10 minutes backstage with David Lee Roth at Coachella

David Lee Roth popped retired astatine Coachella connected Friday to sing Van Halen’s classical “Jump” with Teddy Swims. After the show, we grabbed a fewer minutes with the 71-year-old stone star, who wore a beaded vest and choky silver-and-black trousers and sipped from a reddish integrative cup.

Ted, Teddy, Theodore — what bash you telephone Teddy swims?
I telephone him Teddy. Teddy Swims is 1 of the champion names ever — everybody’s saying it. All astir successful the metropolis present are visitors from Germany, Holland, Japan, China, and they each cognize that name. Something similar Greenberg? Helfenbein? [Shrugs]

What if you’d been Dave Roth?
My afloat sanction is David Lee Roth — it’s an anagram. When I was born, I had a traumatic commencement — I was backwards, I had the cord around, I was hyperactive. My grandfather, who was a 70-hour-a-week doc — graduated aesculapian schoolhouse successful 1920 — took a look astatine maine 2 hours aft I was calved and told my mom, “He’s gonna beryllium trouble.” And Mom’s mode of saying “Go schtup yourself,” she added the mediate sanction Lee. If you reverse the letters, it comes retired the devil.

You ever been to Coachella before?
This is my archetypal clip connected this stage, and it’s the astir forgiving audience. What a colorful, noisy bunch.

A forgiving audience? What does that mean?
It means if you spell to Kenny Chesney, you gotta person the chapeau — the girls person to person the cut-offs. There’s rules. If you spell dense metal, you gotta chopped the sleeves disconnected a achromatic garment — not blue.

And present it’s catch-as-catch-can?
It’s inventive, creative, imaginative without rules — the mode artwork possibly utilized to beryllium successful the mediate ’80s. In 1985, graphic art, sculptural art, automotive creation — determination were nary rules. Today, you’re not getting connected immoderate assemblage walls without a governmental bias. And today, here, I’m not definite what the bias is. I tin deterioration thing similar this and it’s like, “Too atrocious you showed up successful your time clothes.”

What is this outfit?
This is Artemis satellite mission. I’m vacuum-packed for your information — kid-tested, mom-approved. She likes it due to the fact that it’s bully for ’em. I similar it due to the fact that it’s gonna sensation truthful good.

“I got my backmost against the grounds machine,” from “Jump.” Could you explicate to the kids what a grounds instrumentality is?
It’s a jukebox. And it’s a ocular — similar Broadway: [Sings] “When you’re a jet, you’re a pitchy / All the mode from your archetypal cigarette…” Now, I cognize Tony similar I cognize maine — the playground is neutral territory.

Wait, who’s Tony?
“West Side Story.”

What’s a jukebox person to bash with “West Side Story”?
It suggests an representation of a quality being leaning against a jukebox saying, “I whitethorn not beryllium the champion happening successful your caput contiguous — but I’m the close instrumentality for the job.”

Van Halen’s highest-charting azygous — what was it?
Either “Panama” oregon “Jump.”

It was “Jump” — a No. 1 deed successful 1984. Remember what was No. 2 down it?
Oh my God, “Boogie Oogie Oogie”?

“Karma Chameleon,” Culture Club.
OK, that’s Boy George.

You ever conscionable Boy George?
Yes, I did. Boy George would person acceptable into Coachella perfectly. Where is he? A Boy George comeback astatine Coachella? Stop lying.

What’s the champion Van Halen song?
It depends what verb you’re attaching.

You choose.
Pairing, for example, the close alcoholic beverage with the close firearm is important. A airy Pilsner goes with that caller Czech instrumentality pistol we saw successful the past John Wick movie. And a Benelli shotgun for Guinness stout. Van Halen euphony is the aforesaid thing: What verb are you participating in? Are you dancing? How long? The full night. Are we running? Sure. Who with? The devil.

What’s successful your cupful here?
This is what made maine what I americium contiguous — abdominous and unemployed.