Anyone who knows me fairly well knows I'm a huge Van Halen/Sammy Hagar fan, so I'm sure it's a bit of a surprise to those people that I haven't had much to say about the Roth reunion. I've had lengthy e-mails with my buddy Brian (who, interestingly, I got "into" VH/Hagar and has since become my source of VH/Hagar info) about the situation, and we've covered most of the details I'm outlining below.
But when my friend, Tom, asked me my take, I wrote a pretty concise (and funny in parts) response back. Hopefully he'll forgive me for posting my personal response to him, but my brain's kinda fried from my current state of insomnia (let's just say I'm loving my job right now), and I felt I should use some of my awake time to post to this thing before people give up on it.
Here is my response to Tom about the Roth/Van Halen reunion. Get some info, get some laughs:
"I could, of course, write forever on the subject, but it's gotten obvious I just need to answer and leave the rest of the comments alone.
Roth is back with Van Halen-- for just a 40 date tour. It coincides very nicely with the B.S. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction (B.S. because they should have gotten in already, and B.S. because Grandmaster Flash does not exactly count as RnR in my book). This is the third attempt at some sort of reunion with Roth, so I'm not holding my breath it'll be a happy ending.
Also, in a typical "Eddie's a prick" move: Michael Anthony is no longer in Van Halen. Ed's been pushing him out for a decade now, but since Mike's been touring with Hagar (like what the f*** else is he supposed to do while waiting for the VH Bros to actually do something?), Ed found this to be the perfect time to kick Mike to the curb.
Mike's replacement: Edward's son, Wolfgang Van Halen. Wolfie will turn 16 next month.
The pluses: 1. the teenage son/nephew of the Bros probably won't put up much of a struggle for power, leaving Roth all by himself. 2. Ed says he kicks all sorts of a** on bass, so I'm willing to believe it.
Minuses: He's SIXTEEN! Handing off the bass duties from one of the most beloved members of the group-- who got kicked out no less-- is a Hell of a lot of pressure for anyone, let alone a teenager.
For Wolfgang, pluses: a member of one of the most beloved bands of all time should get all the tail and drugs he could ever want.
Minuses: his dad and uncle will probably cock block him at every turn.
Up until a few weeks ago, Roth had never met with VH-- even though VH had put the feelers out for a tour with Roth singing. In the meantime, the VH Bros and son have been playing away amongst themselves, with Wolfie doing most of the singing.
My prediction: sometime before the end of the tour, they'll announce that Roth wasn't working out, and that Wolfgang will be handling the vocals.
It may not mean they won't finish the 40 dates with Roth, but he'll definitely be gone once their tour is up.
I'm excited to hear Van Halen again, but the s*** they've done to their former members really sours me on them. And putting Wolfgang in the band may seem good in the short-term, but the pressure and scrutiny he'll be under will be unbearable for a sixteen year old."
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