I've seen Van Halen in concert numerous times, but never with David Lee Roth... until last night, that is.
I took my brother, Michael, to see Van Halen at the Mellon Arena for his birthday. Our seats were not too shabby (Section E16, Row C), but I was concerned going in that I was not going to get my money's worth, given TicketMaster's monopolistic, ass-raping fees. The opening act was Ryan Shaw, who was nothing to write home about, but he was serviceable for his 30 minutes on stage.
Van Halen started their show at 8:45 PM, and proceeded to electrify a near-sold out crowd for just over 2 hours. While it was not the best Van Halen show I've seen, it was outstanding. David Lee Roth was energetic and entertaining, but his leg kicks were noticably not youthful. Diamond Dave forgot the words during several songs, but he always managed to recover with a "whoa" here or a "wow" there.
Eddie Van Halen's 17 year old son, Wolfgang, is playing bass for Van Halen now that Michael Anthony has been ostracized. Wolfgang filled in well on bass, but his stage presence can not match the Jack Daniels-guzzling antics of Michael Anthony.
Alex Van Halen is one of the greatest drummers I've ever seen. His solo and the intro to Hot For Teacher were not as impressive as other live shows I've seen, but it was still impressive. Alex and Wolfgang did a great job of laying the foundation for a great sound.
01. You Really Got Me (from Van Halen, 1978)
02. I'm The One (from Van Halen, 1978)
03. Runnin' With The Devil (from Van Halen, 1978)
04. Romeo Delight (from Women And Children First, 1980)
05. Somebody Get Me A Doctor (from Van Halen II, 1979)
06. Beautiful Girls (from Van Halen II, 1979)
07. Dance The Night Away (from Van Halen II, 1979)
08. Atomic Punk (from Van Halen, 1978)
09. Everybody Wants Some (from Women And Children First, 1980)
10. So This Is Love? (from Fair Warning, 1981)
11. Mean Street (from Fair Warning, 1981)
12. Pretty Woman (from Diver Down, 1982)
13. Drum Solo
14. Unchained (from Fair Warning, 1981)
15. I'll Wait (from 1984, 1984)
16. And The Cradle Will Rock (from Women And Children First, 1980)
17. Hot For Teacher (from 1984, 1984)
18. Little Dreamer (from Van Halen, 1978)
19. Little Guitars (from Diver Down, 1982)
20. Jamie's Cryin' (from Van Halen, 1978)
21. Ice Cream Man (from Van Halen, 1978)
22. Panama (from 1984, 1984)
23. Guitar Solo
24. Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love (from Van Halen, 1978)
Encore
25. 1984 (from 1984, 1984)
26. Jump (from 1984, 1984)
I took my brother, Michael, to see Van Halen at the Mellon Arena for his birthday. Our seats were not too shabby (Section E16, Row C), but I was concerned going in that I was not going to get my money's worth, given TicketMaster's monopolistic, ass-raping fees. The opening act was Ryan Shaw, who was nothing to write home about, but he was serviceable for his 30 minutes on stage.
Van Halen started their show at 8:45 PM, and proceeded to electrify a near-sold out crowd for just over 2 hours. While it was not the best Van Halen show I've seen, it was outstanding. David Lee Roth was energetic and entertaining, but his leg kicks were noticably not youthful. Diamond Dave forgot the words during several songs, but he always managed to recover with a "whoa" here or a "wow" there.
Eddie Van Halen's 17 year old son, Wolfgang, is playing bass for Van Halen now that Michael Anthony has been ostracized. Wolfgang filled in well on bass, but his stage presence can not match the Jack Daniels-guzzling antics of Michael Anthony.
Alex Van Halen is one of the greatest drummers I've ever seen. His solo and the intro to Hot For Teacher were not as impressive as other live shows I've seen, but it was still impressive. Alex and Wolfgang did a great job of laying the foundation for a great sound.
The story of the night was the nimble guitar work by Eddie Van Halen. Eddie has always been considered a guitar god, but the last time I saw Van Halen in concert (circa 2004), he looked like a crack whore, and the band did not put on a good show. Last night was a different story. Eddie looked and sounded great. Thunderous, gut-crunching guitar chords, tremolo dive bombs and finger tapping filled my musical soul.
I have fulfilled a dream to see the (almost) original lineup of Van Halen. Given their rocky past, I hope they can keep from killing each other.
Setlist:01. You Really Got Me (from Van Halen, 1978)
02. I'm The One (from Van Halen, 1978)
03. Runnin' With The Devil (from Van Halen, 1978)
04. Romeo Delight (from Women And Children First, 1980)
05. Somebody Get Me A Doctor (from Van Halen II, 1979)
06. Beautiful Girls (from Van Halen II, 1979)
07. Dance The Night Away (from Van Halen II, 1979)
08. Atomic Punk (from Van Halen, 1978)
09. Everybody Wants Some (from Women And Children First, 1980)
10. So This Is Love? (from Fair Warning, 1981)
11. Mean Street (from Fair Warning, 1981)
12. Pretty Woman (from Diver Down, 1982)
13. Drum Solo
14. Unchained (from Fair Warning, 1981)
15. I'll Wait (from 1984, 1984)
16. And The Cradle Will Rock (from Women And Children First, 1980)
17. Hot For Teacher (from 1984, 1984)
18. Little Dreamer (from Van Halen, 1978)
19. Little Guitars (from Diver Down, 1982)
20. Jamie's Cryin' (from Van Halen, 1978)
21. Ice Cream Man (from Van Halen, 1978)
22. Panama (from 1984, 1984)
23. Guitar Solo
24. Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love (from Van Halen, 1978)
Encore
25. 1984 (from 1984, 1984)
26. Jump (from 1984, 1984)
.jpg)
