Oh, Yeah! Van Halen Rocked!!!

O.K. I am a slacker. I was supposed to post this post two weeks ago, but hey, I've been busy and well, there were more important things (like celebrating Christmas and sleeping).

Can I simply say that Yes, Van Halen still rocks!!

I admit, I had my reservations about spending money for tickets to see a band that hasn't released a full-length album in over 10 years. In general I've been the naysayer (who by the reviews often comes out right) who does not spend the money on the "bands of my youth" because I figure "they're past their prime". But I figured with Van Halen, I had to take my chances. I never got to see them when I was in high school ... the one time they came to the Minneapolis area (I think I was a Senior in High School) I didn't get to the box office (yes, that would have been pre-Internet when you had to go to the actual arena or another Ticketmaster location to buy tickets) in time and all that was left were "behind the stage" tickets ... and frankly, I don't pay to sit where I can't see ... I'll stay home and listen to the CD ... but I digress...

The concert rocked!

The opening act was Kymani Marley ... who was good, fun, interesting. Certainly had the Marley influence, but also had a nice mix of sounds ... and blessedly was not too loud (maybe it was the seats I was sitting in, Van Halen didn't seem ultra loud either). The opening set was short enough that I didn't get bored, but I did ask the question ... what happened to the days when you would get stoked for the opening band as much as the headliner (Mr. Big opening for Rush, Bad English opening for Whitesnake, O.K. so maybe none of those are bands I would be terribly stoked about anymore ... but I still have my Mr. Big t-shirt from 1990!)

Van Halen came out in standard rock star fashion ... dark arena, lights that make you wonder just where the band is coming from, then clues to where each person is, then full lights up on David Lee Roth waving a flag (o.k. so I didn't quite understand the flag thing, maybe he always wanted to be a cheerleader) but of course the trademark sound of Eddie's guitar caused an Eruption (oh, sorry, he didn't play that song until later). It was a two-hour extravaganza of the hits from the early years of Van Halen. The sounds that made the band famous and put Eddie on the cover of countless magazines!

I dug the drum solo ... while not quite as good as the one on "Live Without a Net" it was still Alex with the joy and exuberance of a teenager. His goofy monkey-like smile when he pulled off some of his moves. And talk about being rhythmically in time ... WOW ... even with some weird polyrhythmic exercises, he kept coming right back to the groove.

Of course Eddie was in rare form ... his fingers nimble flying up and down the fret board. I expected nothing less from him. His energy on stage was incredible. What more can you say than simply WOW that guy can play! I was a bit disappointed that he didn't bring out the keyboard to actually play Jump ... but I guess since he had to keep the guitar rockin' it would have been a real feat to do both on stage.

As for David Lee Roth ... well. I'm pleased he kept his shirt on (even if it was unbuttoned all the way). He was definitely the same sexual-innuendo driven Dave, but then what would anyone expect. Vocally he was on (though his voice seemed to tire a bit by the end of the show ... which is understandable, he was going strong for two hours). I could have done without his feeble acoustic guitar playing leading up to Ice Cream Man, but I appreciate that he played the part so that the rest of the band could kick in with full energy at just the right moment!

Woflgang ... hmmmm ... part of me wanted to see Michael Anthony just because he was the original band member ... but really, I didn't feel like he would have added anything that Wolfgang wasn't able to pull off. Wolfgang sure has the genes from Valerie, but that works for a 16 year old. He surely has the gift of music that runs in the family ... I had read that he was only playing bass 5 months ... that may be true, but from his style I could tell he's been playing guitar much longer. I will always remember Wolfgang's intro to Runnin' with the Devil ... those notes will continue to pulsate in me for a while.

Overall, what a great event ... now the question is ... while the boys of Van Halen ever reconcile with Sammy so they could tour and play the other half of the discography? The songs from 5150, ou812 and For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge? Yeah, I know, in the big picture there's not as much material there, but it still is the music of my youth and I would love to hear it performed live just once. Then after that, there's always the dream of Van Halen on tour with both Sammy and David (yeah, like that would ever happen) so they could perform a 3-hour marathon concert of the GREATEST hits beginning to end. Now, that I would pay the BIG bucks to see!