I just gave Van Halen III a listen, first time ever, never heard a single song until now. The debilitating effects Kurt Cobain had on American youth's grasp of harmony rules have been deplored here before, this album is living proof that he was bad for adults too, all I can say is Van Grunge! Compared to this car crash of an album, Kiss' Carnival of Souls was an organic, unforced affair.
EVH earnestly makes every effort on III not to be himself, it actually takes several tracks until there is a song that sounds like Van Halen and that then overdoes it and comes out as a pastiche. Even the trademark backing vocal sound is gone.
And some of those harmony chord choices sound like Eddie fretted in the wrong place, totally forced in their attempt to eschew what might be regarded as "AOR chords". This here - the change from the riff (which starts the song pleasantly enough) to the verse chords at 0:52 - is probably the worst thing Americans have been responsible for since the invention of wonder bread:
Worse than Led Zeppelin (which this song obviously tries to emulate; thinking about it, the whole album tries to match Led Zep's esoteric eclecticism, but fails pityfully), worse than Soundgarden even (who at least sounded like the wrong chords they played came natural to them), brrrrr ... Note to self, Eddie: People bought your records in millions because you chorded pleasantly on Dance the Night Away and played lightning-quick solos to it - or played catchy keyboard runs, not because they were in feverish anticipation with you which wrong-sounding chord you might be hitting next!
And it's not really Cherone's fault either, I believe nobody could have sung this cruelly disjointed stuff any better.
Oh, and on that album some of the bass lines in synchronicity with Eddie's twiddling sound indeed like Eddie has played them and not Michael. They sound nothing like what a bass player would come up with. Or maybe Eddie was using an octaver.
EDIT:Ah, I was (my ears were) right on target. Wiki sez:
The album is also known for its minimal use of Michael Anthony on bass guitar. Anthony only played bass on three songs on the album; "Without You", "One I Want" & "Fire In The Hole". Eddie Van Halen recorded bass for the rest of the album.
After Michael Anthony's departure from Van Halen, he was asked whether or not it was true Eddie Van Halen dictated to him how to play bass on this record and Anthony confirmed this was true. He said by the time of making this album, Eddie was playing the bass more as well as some drums. "I don't know if Eddie was basically making a solo record, which is what Van Halen III seemed like to me."
