The Mighty Van Halen is Back

Due to the generosity of a friend (shout out to Brian), I was able to check out Van Halen's concert in Minneapolis this past Wednesday.

It was the fifth time I'd seen the band-- but the first with David Lee Roth singing. I've been a Van Halen fan for about twenty years, so I just missed the original Roth Days, but I have heard numerous stories about the legendary shows the band put on at that time.

I'm not sure if I experienced one of those "legendary" shows, but I did see a great one. They went way back-- nothing was played that was newer than 1984-- but it seemed new. I'd heard some of the songs before when Sammy Hagar or Gary Cherone sang them, but this time, we got the guy who wrote the words singing. There was a big difference. Yeah, Dave's voice isn't what it was. He can't hit those high notes or sustain the ones he used to carry a while, but, let's face it, the dude is 53 years old. It got kinda annoying that he went "lounge act" on a more than a few songs (to cover the voice), but if that's how we can hear the songs, I could deal with it.

And while Dave didn't rap too much during the show (the band was all about the music), one of the highlights of the night for me was a story that he told during his solo that had nothing to do with anything, but he just told it in such a way that I was hooked. The guy has the gift of gab for sure. And I could tell he just loves what he's doing.

Edward was amazing. I've seen him live before and I've watched the live-show DVDs and videos, so I shouldn't be surprised by what he can do, but I was. The guy can cook-- and he hasn't lost a step. If anything, he has perfected himself even more. I was enthralled by him the whole night, but one of my usually least favorite parts of a show-- the guitar solo-- blew me away. In the past, Ed worked in a lot of the "classic" riffs in his solo, but since the rest of the show was of the "classic" songs, he was unleashed. [I half-joked to Brian that it'd be cool if he did the Hagar-era riffs during the solo, but I knew that wouldn't happen.] Ed punished his guitar during the solo; just crazy stuff.

So: Dave and Ed? They looked like they were having the times of their lives. I've seen Ed fake it with Hagar before , but I really think he was loving doing what he was doing up on stage-- with Dave right next to him. More than once, they seemed almost playful with each other. They did a pretty wild motorcycle impersonation "contest" that freaked me out (Dave would use his mouth and the mic to sound like a starting engine-- and Ed would then counter with the same sounds using the guitar).

Alex was in a little "cage" of drums, pushed back by the second level of the stage, so it was hard to see what he was up to, but being a drummer for a rock band... he was pretty busy. And, unfortunately, the rhythm section is a bit of the mystery to me, so it's hard for me to say how effective he was. I'm going to guess he too, hasn't lost a step.

And the newest and most controversial member: Wolfgang Van Halen. He's no Michael Anthony, but he held his own. Mike was not only an essential member of the band vocal-wise, but he put on a show just as much as the others did. Wolfgang didn't stand out, but, let's face it, this tour is the "Dave and Ed Show", so anyone that band would have tapped to replace Mike would have been in the shadows. The kid can play (as much as I can tell), and he's only sixteen, so I can only imagine he'll get better at working the crowd over time. For now, he was happy (and effective) moving a little outside his area and otherwise standing with legs together in front of his microphone. Considering he was playing with a group that has over twice his age in the business, he did well.

And what is probably Wolf's most important contribution: his beamingly proud father on the other end of the stage.

It's a travesty how Van Halen has handled their business as it pertains to Mike, but I'm trying to come to terms with it. The band definitely needs to get a better P.R. firm to handle what's been going on. Here's the best way to deal with it: VH says they're happy Mike has been playing with Hagar the past few years-- and that they know he has a steady gig-- because Ed wants nothing more than to play with his son while he can. Done deal. Ed & Al-- if you need someone to handle your business, e-mail me.

And one last side note: since Wolfgang is such a new entity to not only Van Halen, but the industry, some loathsome people out there have reviewed him by making jokes that he's overweight. It's despicable. For those lazy writers out there: try doing your jobs. The kid is not (that) overweight-- and he's sixteen. How would you have felt reading something like that-- that has NOTHING to do with your job-- in a paper or online? Grow up.

So all I've got left is: try to see if this show if you can. It may not be what is was in 1984, but it's still damn good.

And, knowing the track history of this band, you may not get the chance ever again.

Australia-- Where Even the Women are Manly

Check out this link to a woman who crushes beer cans in an unusual way:
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22651127-5001021,00.html

Premieres and Notables October 29-November 4, 2007

Monday, 10/29

Runnin' Down a Dream: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers; Sundance. 6 pm CST. Special.
Director Peter Bogdanovich's four-hour documentary of the artist.

American Masters (PBS. 8 pm CST-- check local listings) takes a 90-minute look at Charles Schultz.


Wednesday, 10/31

MonsterQuest; History. 9 pm. Series premiere.
A look at the world's most legendary creatures. You know, like Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, and tonight's creature: "Champ".


Thursday, 11/1

Some special episodes on NBC: The hour-long My Name is Earl (7 pm) sees the Cops reality series visit town again and Rashida "Karen" Jones returns for a brief visit on The Office (8 pm), but it's not Jim she's after, and Kim goes into labor on Scrubs (8:30).

And Smallville (CW, 7 pm) keeps paying homage to the Superman past when Helen Slater (Supergirl of the Supergirl movie) begins a two-episode arc as Clark's Kryptonian mother, Lara.


Friday, 11/2

Orangutan Island; Animal Planet. 8 pm. Series Premiere.
Thirty-five orphaned orangutans are moved to a protected island sanctuary in Borneo. Think Meerkat Manor but with apes.


Sunday, 11/4

FOX has some special episodes tonight: The Treehouse of Horror XVIII airs tonight on The Simpsons (7 pm) and Family Guy (7:30) celebrates its 100th episode.

Premieres and Notables; October 22-28, 2007

Monday, 10/22

No premieres (of note), but Prison Break (FOX, 7 pm CST) and K-Ville (FOX, 8 pm CST) air new episodes after last week's postponement and fanboy dreamgirl Kristen Bell joins the cast of Heroes (NBC, 8 pm).


Wednesday, 10/24

Marriage Camp; TLC. 6 pm CST. Series premiere.
Couples go to a camp in Texas to work on their marriages. Ugh...

Phenomenon; NBC. 7 pm. Series Premiere.
Criss Angel and Uri Geller mentor ten mentalists in this reality (*snicker*) competition.


Thursday, 10/25

Iconoclasts; Sundance. 9 pm. 3rd season premiere.
Novelist Jon Krakauer and Sean Penn discuss Penn's film Into the Wild while they travel to Alaska. This show is up and down for me, but the ups are very good; you aren't going to get the insight to people this show gives you nearly anywhere else.


Sunday, 10/28

Nature; PBS. 7 pm (check local listings). 26th season premiere.
The premiere looks at the bee epidemic that I first heard about on Real Time With Bill Maher last spring but have heard a lot more often of late.

VH Toon

My friend Brian sent me this link to a short (3 min) cartoon about the latest Van Halen tour. Yeah, the jokes are cheap/expected, but still funny.

(Doesn't discourage me at all about seeing them. Just three more days...)

http://videos.newsobserver.com:80/vmix_hosted_apps/p/media?id=1515880