Yankee Rose

This song is a tribute to the Statue of Liberty in New York. It was released around the time it was being renovated, so interest was high in the statue.

David Lee Roth's first solo effort was his Crazy from the Heat EP, which he released while he was still in Van Halen. That EP contained two hit singles, "California Girls" and "Just A Gigolo / I Ain't Got Nobody," which kept him on radio and MTV throughout the spring and summer of 1985. At the end of the summer, he left Van Halen. Crazy from the Heat was all cover songs and was laced with jocularity. For his first full-length solo album, he wanted to prove that he was much more than a novelty act outside the confines of Van Halen. This meant assembling a band and writing original songs. The band was bass player "Bad" Billy Sheehan, drummer Gregg Bissonette, and crucially, guitarist Steve Vai. A rising star who did time with Frank Zappa, Alcatrazz and Public Image Ltd., Vai was one of the few guitarists who could approach the creative energy of Eddie Van Halen. His songwriting skills were key to the album's success: he co-wrote 6 of the 10 tracks with Roth, including the lead single, "Yankee Rose." Vai stayed with Roth for his next album, Skyscraper (1988), before focusing on his own solo career.

After Roth and Van Halen parted ways, they took some shots at each other in the press and tried to clear up perceived misconceptions. Roth made it clear that he fancied himself much more than just a showman and lyricist. Speaking with Winner magazine in 1986, he explained: "What I'm good at is the song-crafting end, tweaking out the little phrases. The two little high notes at the end of the phrase in 'Jump,' I wrote. The little riff in 'Yankee Rose,' that little ZZ Top-type riff that goes 'da da da da da da DAH dum' - that's me. When the two guitars do that thing in the middle, when everything stops and they do it together and it's just total spasmo - that's my contribution."