A Lil’ Ain’t Enough: Friday Music to Release David Lee Roth CD/DVD Compilation

MusicTAP reports the release of the first-ever CD/DVD compilation by Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth, due in November from Friday Music.

Of course, anyone with even a middling interest in rock and roll probably knows Roth as the irascible frontman for Van Halen, who, with the Van Halen brothers (guitarist Eddie and drummer Alex) and bassist Michael Anthony, propelled themselves into the genre’s stratosphere with six albums for Warner Bros. between 1978 and 1984. They were writing shred-worthy classics, covering rock classics and eventually set their crosshairs on the massive audiences on MTV.

But Roth was more theatrical than even VH might have let him be. In 1985, at the height of the band’s popularity, the singer released an EP of peppy covers, Crazy from the Heat; backed by some very funny videos, half of the set became U.S. chart hits, with “Just a Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody” peaking at No. 12 and a faithful take on The Beach Boys’ “California Girls” matching the original’s chart placement of No. 3.

Within months, tensions within Van Halen led Roth to strike out on his own for good. Recruiting an impressive power trio of guitarist Steve Vai (in what would be his career breakthrough), future Mr. Big bassist Billy Sheehan and jazz/rock drummer Greg Bissonette, Roth cut two popular albums, Eat ‘Em and Smile (1986) and Skyscraper (1988), featuring hits like “Yankee Rose,” “Tobacco Road,” “Just Like Paradise” and more.

Roth’s solo career cooled in the 1990s, after which the frontman pursued other intriguing muses from a short-lived reunion in the studio with Van Halen in 1996 to such wild pursuits as radio personality, author (his 1997 autobiography, named for his debut EP, was a critical smash) and – for a brief time in New York City – an Emergency Medical Technician. Against all odds, Roth rejoined Van Halen in 2006 (with Eddie Van Halen’s 16-year-old son Wolfgang replacing Michael Anthony on bass) for a massively successful tour; 2012 saw the release of a new album, A Different Kind of Truth, constructed largely from vaulted song ideas from the Roth era.

Friday Music’s Roth compilation (which follows remasters of much of his Warner/Reprise catalogue from the label), sequenced by the singer himself and remastered by label head Joe Reagoso, features 16 tracks from 1985 to 1994 (including the entire Crazy from the Heat EP) as well as a DVD featuring the digital debut of the Dave TV video program (consisting of promo videos for “Just a Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody,” “California Girls,” “Yankee Rose” and “Goin’ Crazy”) and five more videos released for the first time anywhere.

It’s out November 19 and is yours to order after the jump.