News

David Lee Roth Bids "Happy Trails" to Morning Radio

Cue the Daniel Powter song: David Lee Roth has been voted off your morning commute. The former Van Halen frontman has had a seemingly non-stop stream of bad days during his brief tenure as Howard Stern’s East Coast replacement. He recently said on-air that he could be shown the door by May. At the time, that prediction seemed extreme -- but, as it turns out, Diamond Dave was actually underestimating just how badly his bosses wanted him to turn off his mic for good.

Media insiders quickly denounced Roth as a debacle, thanks to his awkwardness with guests and on-air callers, and his immediate agitation about playing by company rules. Listeners agreed, with millions following Howard to satellite radio, changing the dial, or tuning out altogether; Roth retained only about a third of the audience he inherited. His West Coast counterpart, Adam Carolla, hasn’t been blowing up the ratings, either, but has been spared from the cloud of impending doom that seemed to be hanging over Roth from the very beginning.

As a parting shot, Roth, during his last show, said that he and his legal team would meet with CBS and either “settle like gentlemen or start World War 9.”

If they avoid World War, CBS Radio will look to put the four months of Roth behind them by syndicating Greg Hughes and Anthony Cumia, better known as Opie & Anthony. Like Stern, these shock jocks fled to the censor-free confines of satellite radio after they were booted off public airwaves in 2002 for broadcasting the sweet sounds of a couple (allegedly) having sex in New York’s hallowed St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

--The ARTISTdirect Staff
04.21.06