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View Full Version : Does Diamond Dave know what he's doing?



johnst_nhb
2nd December 2002, 22:47
Seeing as how i know next to nothing about iaido, could someone take a look and tell me if David Lee Roth knows what he's doing?

Just curious...

http://www.davidleeroth.com/video1.html

renfield_kuroda
3rd December 2002, 00:33
I can't judge other styles by the rules of my own style (Mugairyu Iaihyodo), but it looks to me like:
* his drawing cuts are all wrist
* he takes his eyes off his target and looks at his sword alot
* his downward cuts are all right arm (looks like he's pulling up with his left hand on that long tsuka)
* there's alot of tension in his shoulders
* there's no hip/lower-body use in any of his cuts

But then again maybe he's a master of some style I don't know anything about.

Regards,
renfield kuroda

Colin Lam
3rd December 2002, 06:27
apparently, he was performing something close to ZNKR iai (well that's what I'm learning anyway..) but his o-chiburi looked a bit odd though ....

Andy Watson
3rd December 2002, 10:42
It looks more like MJER to be sure. However why someone would want to consign this performance to video and then put it on the internet I don't know. It's fairly pap and it looks like some legitimate techniques are being modified in order to make it look flash - which is doesn't.

ulvulv
3rd December 2002, 12:48
Is it really "the" david lee roth?

Charlie Kondek
3rd December 2002, 14:21
Odd. Yeah, I hate to say it, but he looks really... I hesitate to say bad, but... Did you notice him breaking his wrists forward in his cuts? And how heavy is that blade?

Well, David Lee (and BTW I adore his work with Van Halen and some of his solo stuff) is traditionally a kung fu student, so I'm sure that and the fact that he does everything rock n' roll-performer style is affecting his performance here. He's really posturing. But we know better. And, yes, I think that's really him.

Tetsuo
3rd December 2002, 18:00
Originally posted by Charlie Kondek
Did you notice him breaking his wrists forward in his cuts? And how heavy is that blade?


Though I'm not one to judge his style, I've noticed that a few people I've seen that try to do a kiriotoshi (full downward cut to gedan level) with an egregiously long tsuka for their body proportions, they have to break their wrist to get there. At most, they can do shomen-giri and kirioroshi (down to waist level where sword is level with tsuka), but as soon as they try to do a full power, full speed cut all the way to gedan. Not to say it can't be done, just that the few I've seen do it at a loss of power and body connection.

johnst_nhb
3rd December 2002, 18:36
all i know is that i heard him on howard stern and he said he had a dojo at his home and a "very old japanese sensei" who was teaching him sword techniques. its no surprise that he would make it more flashy for his purposes.

interesting...

-km

p.s. he has trained in bjj too-he is, from what i understand, quite the enthusiast.

Bruce Mitchell
3rd December 2002, 18:50
Makes me curious,
Bad student or bad teacher? I have to give him this though, he's making a more honest effort than most Hollywood martial artist (Segal , Van Dammit). Still kind of tacky to put yourself on the web that way thoungh...