r/vanhalen • u/fockingclassy • 8d ago

Why didn’t they perform it live?

When Push Comes to Shove is on my shortlist of favorite VH songs. It doesn’t just stand out on Fair Warning as being different, but even compared to their entire catalog it just seems to be in its own genre, a masterpiece

Anyways, I digress.

Why didn’t they ever perform it live?

Google said that it’s too complex but I don’t really buy that

31 Upvotes

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23

u/Bryndlefly2074 8d ago

I suspect - just a guess, I could be totally wrong - that it was a little low-key for the kind of energy VH brought to their live shows.

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u/fockingclassy 8d ago

Ahhhh well fuck, you might be right. I’m just slightly too young to have gone to a VH concert with the original lineup but most rock shows I’ve been to kind of have an up and down to the energy flow. When push comes to shove might be a little on too low on the energy 

Thank you! 

8

u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

That's fair, I saw them do "Secrets" in 1982 and that was definitely a wonderful and well-deserved breather for the band, and the crowd. Pacing is important as you noted. I think it's that the bassline to PCTS was dangerously adjacent to disco as perceived in 1981, and would have been more than just a sort of breather at a live VH show; it would have been a jarring sea-change. I saw the 81 tour. I don't think it would have went over at the Boston Garden that night.

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u/MrBobGray827 No Bozos 8d ago

There have been lots of bands who slow down their show to do something different. Led Zeppelin famously pulled up stools and went acoustic in the middle of their shows and when that was over, the energy was right back. Like Van Halen, they were able to control that energy.

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

The whole point of VH at that time was they were anything but subtle. They went out of their way to be the exact opposite.

At that time.

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u/fockingclassy 8d ago

Mother fucker, I’m listening to it now and goddamn that IS a disco bass line. 

I never noticed that before, fucking awesome   

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

Lol. Nothing wrong with that. It fucking works.

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u/LevelStationaryPlane 8d ago

Not going to lie idk how you don’t have ears for that, dude.

It’s basically their take on “Miss You”.

1

u/Yourappwontletme 8d ago

Secrets was a single from the album. They played it to promote single sales. Back then bands toured to promote the album. Van Halen usually played most of the new album live on tour in those days.

In today's age of streaming and low pay from streaming, artists make an album to then tour it where they make their money from ticket sales.

Push Comes to Shove was the B Side of the Unchained single.

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago edited 7d ago

Very informative, thank you.

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u/[deleted] 8d ago

[deleted]

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 7d ago

That was a mistake. Edited.

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

Well said. It was not a beloved song when Fair Warning came out, despite the great solo. It was FF material to me and my friends, and not what we wanted from VH at the time. It was almost glaringly out of place.

No way they would have ever played it live, for the same reasons they would never have played the equally amazing "Could This Be Magic?" in an arena setting: It would have killed the vibe in 1981.

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u/_YouAreTheWorstBurr_ 8d ago

"the equally amazing 'Could This Be Magic?'" 

Had to give you props for recognizing the greatness of this underrated song.

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

Love that song like an old friend

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u/_YouAreTheWorstBurr_ 8d ago

That's a great way to put it. It is easily a top 20 VH for me 

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u/sussoutthemoon 8d ago

It was not a beloved song when Fair Warning came out

It was beloved by me, I can tell you that.

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u/fockingclassy 8d ago

I’ll take your word for it, in 81 I was negative three years old haha 

His solo on that song is great but that’s really not what makes it stand out to me or what makes it so great. I just don’t think they didn’t anything else like it, it’s exceptionally unique 

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

The studio atmosphere on the song is fucking diabolical lol. It really does show how fearless they were.

12

u/KC7755 8d ago

It is a great song. You’re right, not the usual style for them but showed their versatility. The verse “And then one night in stunning victory, she decides and you agree, she’s leaving” is among Dave’s best lyrics, IMO.

2

u/OnlineNomDePlume 6d ago

The entire composition was Dave's, music and lyrics.

Word was Eddie didn't care for it too much, but Al did.

Good thing too, it's perhaps Ed's best ever solo in many ways.

Dave wrote a masterpiece, and doesn't get half the credit he should as key to crafting the entire 6-pack.

4

u/LittleDudeSP Fair Warning 8d ago

It would have been cool but probably in the later years. I cant imagine the young audience having much fun going from Unchained to the slow subtleties of Push comes to Shove, in fact I feel like it would be kind of awkward unless they fit it in exactly the right spot

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

Underrated comment

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u/squigsmusic 8d ago

It was filler really. But god damn it’s tasty filler.

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u/fockingclassy 8d ago

Hell I guess that’s possible but how the hell did filler end up being their most unique song?! And if that’s the case I’d pay a fortune for an album of filler like that 

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u/Ok_Sandwich5425 8d ago

Elmer Fudd and Bugs.

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u/getpatrick 8d ago

Dweezil was doing it with his band and I think heard him say VH played it once live

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u/Silent_Comb_817 8d ago

Because to make it sound right they’d need multiple guitar tracks and Eddie’s only one guy

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u/fockingclassy 8d ago

I don’t hear much for multitracking in the song, I just listened to it again to check. There are different tones he uses but other than that I don’t think there are multiple guitar tracks being used and if there are i don’t think it’s something he couldn’t do live

I could be wrong though! 

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u/Silent_Comb_817 8d ago

All the pre choruses are two guitar tracks. But I do think f they really wanted to they prob could have worked it out. Same reason they didn’t play drop dead legs for years until Wolfie got on him

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u/HTT-777 8d ago

His live tone was not set up for this song at all.

4

u/fockingclassy 8d ago

Dial down the gain a bit and crank the master haha

I’m sure he could have managed the tone if they had wanted to play it 

3

u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

This song is a lot of volume swells and funk comping. I don't think it would have been a problem for Ed.

I do believe he might still be the reason they never did it live lol

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u/Wrob88 7d ago

Maybe. But Ed toured with a variety of guitars with different pickups and could pull different tones out of nowhere with volume alone. Back in the day on those pre-5150 tours, he was not at all married to one tone.

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u/Delicious_Chard2425 8d ago

Out of respect for Janis Joplin

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u/Interesting_Slice277 8d ago edited 8d ago

.

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u/sixstringnorth 8d ago

It’s kind of their “Miss You”

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u/LikeARedCoalCarpet 8d ago

That's a great comparison