Crazy from the Heat [Paperback]

David Lee Roth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2000

'I was there with these two girls once; they were strippers. They said 'Dave, we'd like you to go upstairs, the two of us, with you'. So I said, 'okay'. It was angus, and it was hot and sweaty and humid, and we commenced to deliver the groceries at 138 beats per minute or more. One of the girls had $1500 in singles and fives and tens, her end-of-the-week tips and pay and everything in her g-string. Nobody noticed, you know, when the g-string came undone - well, I noticed - nobody noticed the money, like, floating around. I woke up at some point around dawn, the two of them were asleep, and all three of us were covered with money, every square inch of skin had a dollar bill pasted to it - there was nothing but. The whole bed was covered with bills. Our bodies were covered with bills. There were bills in my underwear. Take a little picture of that'. So begins perhaps the ultimate rock autobiography. Throughout the late-seventies and eighties, Van Halen were the archetypal American rock group. Whats more they were also the highest paid band in the history of show business, taking a cool $1 million for a night's work at a festival in 1983 and making the Guinness Book of Records.

Editorial Reviews

Review

... it is only in this aw-what-the-freak frame of mind that you should attempt Roth's autobiography, Crazy from the Heat. Don't come to this table expecting polite discourse, ... just sit back and suck down outlandish anecdotes from a semi-charmed life.... The 800-pound guerrilla style of the narrative (the F-word appears twice in the first paragraph) spares no detail from his straight-outta-Hollywood beginnings: He saw his first psychiatrist for being "superactive" when he was 6 years old; had read the Koran and Lenny Bruce's How to Talk Dirty and Influence People by the time he was 13; and had oral sex in 10th grade (while watching Buddy Hackett on The Tonight Show!). -- Entertainment Weekly --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Vintage/Ebury (a Division of Random (June 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0091874807
• ISBN-13: 978-0091874803
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 1.3 x 7.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (95 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #51,186 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #61 in Books > Arts & Photography > Music > Musical Genres > Popular

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Renaissance man. David Lee Roth. October 13, 2005

A Kid's Review

Format:Hardcover

This book is a gem. He is a man (referring to David Lee Roth) that has traveled the world, knows many hobbies and has dated many beautiful women. This book might sound like fluff but it truly is not. He knows more than today's youth, as well as thousands of adults who wished they were this experienced. You find out (in the book) that he speaks Spanish, and takes you into his inner world he experienced as child, teen, and adult while playing in the legendary Rock Band "Van Halen." He doesn't trash anyone on here but you laugh and learn at the way he says things. As for his hobbies, these are some of them: Climbing Mount Everest, rock climbing, traveling to third world countries, has read many books, and has Kayaked Manhattan island which he did in 9 and half hours. This book is recommended to Hollywood stars as well as to us commoners who only dream of such a life. This guy is amazing. He also has his own site in case you decide to google. Yes, fine piece of work, includes hilarious pictures in color and in black and white. Sometimes you wonder how he would do if he went to College in these days (in 2005). Why do i say this? He is so knowledgeable; he absorbs everything, he is basically a walking sponge. The higher message to this book is always about learning everything in life, to travel, to read many books, as well as having tons of hobbies so you can make your life very rich......I recommend this book because this Rock star: David Lee Roth, gives you knowledge that is priceless.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best read while tanning on a beach somewhere. September 29, 2003

By High Duke

Format:Hardcover

What can I say? Within ten pages of reading this book I cursed myself for wasting my life. DLR has sailed the Amazon, climbed the Himalayas, slept with hordes of women, rode his bike on every continent, mastered several forms of martial arts and rocked tens of thousands of people at a time...he's lived more lives than most of us can dream. What is also great is that he reveals himself to be a highly intelligent individual with a positive zest for life that is ultimately more uplifting than ANY self-help book on the market. Whenever I'm down, I pull this book out and start to randomly read from any point and reconfirm my love of life. Even when the guy's facts are wrong, his amusing ramblings never once become boring. You can't fault a guy for having a personal philosophy and sticking to it. His self-confidence almost crosses into arrogance, but it's evident that the guy is willing to play the fool...and only because it's more fun! He was once asked in an interview why such an obviously intelligent guy has to sink to the lowest common denominator and he answered "Hey, I can go on and pontificate about Voltaire, but why bore anyone? They can go and do that on their own. I'm here to entertain. Life's a party that we've all been invited to and I'm your host." At least he doesn't suffer from delusions of grandeur. The best sections of the book, however, are when Roth talks about what drives him...his liberal Jewish upbringing, his early epiphany after having to wear braces on his legs in early childhood that he was an outsider, his need to explore and read everything he can get his hands on, the ups and downs with the boys in Van Halen. Supposedly this book was whittled down from a 1200 page manuscript...I would die to get my hands on that! An all-out, vigourously entertaining and uproaringly funny read! Keep this in your bathroom for your houseguests. They'll sit in there for an hour. Guaranteed.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Greatest Stories Ever Told October 6, 2005

By Christopher Calabrese

Format:Hardcover

I kid you not. When I tell others what a masterpiece this book is, they give me a "You've got to be kidding me" look. I owe an enormous debt to my friend Adam Wexler for turning me onto this book a few years ago. I suppose people would shoot down the notion of this being such a great book simply because of the author.

This book is not a Van Halen book. It is a biography of a man with many talents and interests. DLR is all about having fun, and he definitely lives life to the fullest, whether it involves mountain climbing, vacations to third world countries, or even kayaking around the island of Manhattan - Diamond Dave has done it all. I found his critique of all the money-hungry cronies in the music business to be the most interesting section. He talks about early on in his career when Van Halen was making millions, but he was barely making enough money to survive. He talks about the importance of overseeing where all your money goes (agents, managers, promoters, etc.) and managing those finances yourself. DLR also talks about wandering around Southern California as a teenager - he claims he always saw himself as an african-american! This book sparked my interest in Rudy Ray Moore's DOLEMITE movies. Roth was a huge fan and I am as well thanks to this amazing book. There's also plenty of decadent content to fulfill your desire for stories about the Rock-N-Roll lifestyle, but this book takes you far beyond that.

My favorite part is from the last chapter when he talks about when he was on his way to a radio interview and he was stuck on a long bridge. He ended up getting out of the car and running along the bridge to the radio station while everyone in their cars cheered him on! What a great book. I recommend it to anyone, not just Van Halen fans.