"Just Like Paradise" is a song by American rock singer
David Lee Roth. Released after he left
Van Halen
Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1973. Credited with restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene, Van Halen was known for their energetic live performances and the virtuosity of their guit ...
, it was produced by Roth and guitarist
Steve Vai
Steven Siro Vai ( ; born June 6, 1960) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and producer. A three-time Grammy Award winner and fifteen-time nominee, Vai started his music career in 1978 at the age of eighteen as a Transcription (music), transc ...
. The lead single from Roth's second solo album, 1988's ''
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Most modern sources define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition, other than being very tall high-rise bui ...
'', it reached the top 10 in the United States and Canada.
Music video
The video for the single was released in January 1988. Like other Roth videos, it heavily featured live stage performance. Between are clips of Roth rock climbing at
Half Dome shot by Emmy Award-winning mountain climbing photographer
David Breashears. "I started climbing when I was 11, in the
Boy Scouts," he recalled. "It was a natural thing, plus you add in the books and comics and the movies. I'd say, 'Aw, I don't want to be the ''actor'', I want to go to Arabia!"
The video concludes with Roth on a 28-foot surfboard gliding across a concert crowd. "You ask four different people their impression of
he surfboard you get six different responses," he observed. "I had a driver called Cowboy, a chopper pilot during the
Tet Offensive. He said to me one day at rehearsal, 'Goddamn Dave: that reminds me of
'Nam… contour-flying over a hostile landing zone!' Then again, everything reminded Cowboy of 'Nam!"
Noisecreep ranked the video 10th on their list of the best David Lee Roth videos.
Release and reception
Released in 1987, "Just Like Paradise" entered the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in January 1988 and peaked at number six in March.
It reached number four on the
Singles Sales chart and eight on the
Hot 100 Airplay chart.
It also spent four weeks atop the
Mainstream Rock
Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.
Format background
Mainstream rock stations represent a cross between classic rock, active rock and alternativ ...
chart.
The song peaked at eight in Canada,
number 27 in the United Kingdom,
number 13 in New Zealand, and number 77 in the Netherlands.
Music critic Charles Bottomley called the song "a polished ode to decadence, with a chorus you would be unashamed to punch the air to".
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
's Eduardo Rivadavia described it as an "ultra-saccharine" single that tries "too hard to achieve an exaggerated pop sheen".
Track listing
;7" vinyl
#"Just Like Paradise" (Roth, Tuggle) – 4:03
#"The Bottom Line" (Roth, Vai) – 3:37
;12" vinyl (UK)
#"Just Like Paradise" (Roth, Tuggle) – 4:03
#"The Bottom Line" (Roth, Vai) – 3:37
#"
Yankee Rose" (Roth, Vai) – 3:47
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
References
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1988 singles
David Lee Roth songs
Songs written by David Lee Roth
1987 songs
Warner Records singles