Legendary Hagar

A few weeks ago, I wrote about seeing The Mighty Van Halen in Minneapolis. Well, last week, I got to catch Sammy Hagar and Wabos (along with Michael Anthony's Mad Anthony Express) in Green Bay at the Oneida Bingo and Casino.

I cut and edited an e-mail I sent my friend Brian about it. Apologies if I didn't edit it well enough:

There are a number of things that can "make" a show great: the energy of the place, the song list, how well the band seems to be gelling. Van Halen in Minneapolis was historic, legendary, tight. A must-see.

But Hagar last week was special. Green Bay is becoming one of those "must stops" for him. It's quickly becoming like St. Louis or California's Bay Area for him. He said as much when he said he HAS to stop in Green Bay because he loves the place and the fans. It was not the usual artist B.S. they say on stage to get a big pop. He took the time between the end of the show and the encore to just say how much he loves coming here and gave a number of singular reasons why.

The show began with a 10-15 minute video piece put together for his birthday with best wishes from friends and fans (ZZ Top, James Hetfield, David Hasselhoff, Miley and Billy Ray Cyrus, and many more). Nothing groundbreaking, but had a few laughs-- and it also helped pass the time before the show started.

Then The Mad Anthony Express (consisting of Michael Anthony, Victor Johnson, and J.D.) played a few songs. Mostly old VH but a ZZ TOP and a Zepplin one as well. New Wabos percussionist J.D. is still kind of an enigma to me, but he was POUNDING the skins during the set. Vic showed he's grown as a showman by sharing vocals on "Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers" (good voice for that song, BTW) as well as rapping with Mike between songs. Mikey is no Roth in the singing department, but he chose songs that he didn't need to reach too much on. And you gotta appreciate the hard work the members of a "power trio" do for a show.

After that was the 10 or so minute video piece from Cabo he had last year. Again-- nice to have something to do other than look at a dark stage and wait.

Then Hagar and The Wabos came out. I don't remember them all, but here's a little taste: Started with "Sam I Am" and then kicked into "One Way To Rock" and just took it from there. Sang "Piece of My Heart", "I'll Fall in Love Again" (one of my favorite songs), "The Girl Gets Around", "Open", "Serious Juju" (another favorite-- but unlike the Ten13 tour where it didn't work so well, this time it REALLY cooked).

Then he asked Mona to go potty and to send Mike in, and they did "Good Enough" (not a classic song, but one that has major history for me), "Why Can't This Be Love?", and "Poundcake" (Vic didn't have a drill for the opening, but he got a very similar effect from just his fingers). Can't remember off-hand what else. Maybe another song or two-- wasn't a long set for The Other Half.

Then back to the Wabos with "I Can't Drive 55" and "Heavy Metal" followed by "Mas Tequila" and "Three Lock Box". He did a lot more playing around with the waitresses . There was a great moment when he had one pour water on his hands (to get some spilled margarita cleaned off), and he pulled out his waistband to his capri pants (why, oh God why, do these old rockers wear those ridiculous things?) for her to pour on his junk, which she did, and he got surprised when the water came from the one she was holding for him to drink-- and it was really cold.

Then he closed out the show with the thank yous. And improvised a little (Mona had to switch gear) and they played a song ("When the Sun Don't Shine") he wrote for this tour because it's not during the summer time (his usual tour time), but the weather has been so nice, he's only played it in Detroit before Green Bay. Doesn't sound like it'll be a song that'll be on the next disc; he kept saying it was just a tour song. It had a pretty heavy country bent with Vic and his twangy guitar.

And then he stopped and rapped about how sometimes how he feels about a song can change over the years. He wrote this song 20 years ago but it means something different to him now, so he decided to change it up. Then Vic and Mona started on the acoustic guitars (yep, bassist Mona had a six-string), Mike had his electric bass (which he didn't touch until half-way through the song), and David and J.D. played softer drums. Sammy started singing this slow, soft tune, and the words were from "Dreams". It was great. He took a song that I've all heard hundreds of times, and made it fresh again. I really wish that could go on a disc, but I doubt it.

Sam was as youthful as ever. Wore sunglasses the entire show. Vic was all over his part as usual, and like I said, he seems to be stepping out a little and becoming more of a showman. Mona was as solid as ever. Played bass for her parts and played percussion with J.D. here and there and even picked up a six-string for the finale. Still have no idea how someone with hair that long can handle being that warm (it was cozy in that room-- I had on jeans, a T-shirt, and my Cabo beach shirt, and I was sweating). Lauser was the backbone of the group as always. I like the rapport he and J.D. have. I find it amazing that those two can keep in time with each other; there were a few songs when both were smashing their kits exactly the same. I guess I don't understand music well enough, so I find it amazing. Even more amazing: J.D. was chewing gum (with a bubble once in a while) while he was drumming-- I can't get my hands and feet to work together on a drum kit, and he's doing both AND chewing gum!

And, finally, Michael Anthony was Mike. I thought Wolfgang did an admirable job during the VH show, but Mike knows how to work a crowd (something Wolfie will pick up with experience, I'm sure). When he's crankin' on the bass, it's as if every note is like firing a gun for him. The guy puts on a show. More than once he and Sammy looked at each other and you knew neither had anywhere else they wanted to be.

So: great energy from the crowd the band fed off and gave back; tight setlist with some surprising songs (he seems to be rotating out some-- no Montrose, no Capitol/70's stuff-- and working others in-- never heard him sing "Piece of My Heart" before that I recall); great place to play-- nice and cozy but still had room.

It truly ranks up there as one of the best shows I've seen. The guy just turned sixty years old, and he rocks just as much as he ever did. He's been with the Wabos for ten years now, and they just get better and better. I highly recommend anyone check out his show. He's not in it for the money ($25 tickets, for cryin' out loud), and I don't think he'd have it any other way.

Premieres and Notables, November 12-18, 2007

Monday, 11/12

SpongeBob SquarePants; Nickelodeon. 7 pm CST. Special.
An eleven-hour marathon beginning at 8 am culminates in a new one-hour "movie" called "Atlantis SquarePantis".


Thursday, 11/15

A great season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FX, 9 pm) ends. Try to catch it in repeats or on DVD.


Wednesday, 11/14

Project Runway; Bravo. 9 pm. 4th Season premiere.
I can't get myself to watch this show, but many critics I respect seem to like it.



Friday, 11/16

Frank Caliendo: All Over the Place; TBS. 9 pm. Special.
The comic gives a stand-up special on the home of his new show Frank TV (premiering 11/20).


Sunday, 11/18

Kenny vs. Spenny; Comedy Central. 10:30 pm. Series Premiere.
TV Guide calls this the premiere, Entertainment Weekly says it's 11:30 pm on Wednesday (11/14). This Canadian import (brought to us through Trey Parker and Matt Stone) pits two friends against each other in ridiculous competitions (who can eat the most meat?, who can produce the biggest fart?).
I don't have high hopes for this, but the spin-off called Ed vs. Spencer BBC America aired last year was pretty entertaining, so maybe this one will be good, too.

Possible Strike Questions Answered

TVGuide.com has had pretty good coverage of the WGA strike. Check it out.

Here are a few links to good Q&A posts:

Network Plans

How Many New Episodes Are Left?

Overall, late night chatfests have already been airing repeats, but also will, most likely, come back without writers if the strike goes on too long. I don't remember the last strike, but I read that even Johnny Carson suffered when he did shows without writers.

Dramas mostly have enough episodes in the can to air new episodes until Year's End, but comedies are mostly produced closer to their air date, and have fewer in the can (except Everybody Hates Chris, which has a full season already produced).

New shows that don't have great ratings (Bionic Woman, Life, Journeyman, et al) will probably have a tough time coming back if there is too long before new episodes. And don't expect them to return at all if the season is lost.

And comic book writer and TV writer Brian K. Vaughn does a Q&A-type blog post of his own. In it, he explains that writers want their four cent payment per DVD to increase to eight cents! Oh, those greedy bastards! He also echoed what I've read in a number of other blogs-- the news outlets we see on TV or hear on the radio are usually owned by the companies the writers are striking against, so take that into account.

Check it out here:
http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=135331

I also found it interesting that the actors and directors guild contracts are up next summer, so this strike will probably play a large part in those negotiations.