A Van Halen review that is too in-depth for the readers of this blog

Finally, after 25 years of listening to Van Halen, after seeing Van Hagar five times and after waiting through a six week cancellation, I finally got to see the original Van Halen. Well, except for no Michael Anthony.

Here are some pictures from the concert.

First rant - The bass parts on Van Halen songs are not difficult. I have a hard time defending Michael Anthony's bass playing ability when it comes up in conversation, but he made his mark with two things:


Wolfgang Van Halen is a talented bass player, but there was definitely something missing from the show, and that was the showman, Michael Anthony. Wolf was technically very sound, but stood there like a tree. Zero stage presence. I know he's only 17, and I get that, but if Mad Mike was there, the energy level at the show would have been much higher. You always need a guy to chug a bottle of Jack to make the concert better. The good news was there was no need for a bass solo.

I told Tim, I can't believe (Van Halen) replaced their mediocre, fat bass player with a mediocre fat bass player.

Second rant - Who spends $150 on tickets (each) and then brings an eight-year-old girl to a Van Halen concert? I had four girls sitting behind me, giggling every time DLR said a cuss word, screaming at a pitch that only Buckley could hear, and generally just killing the vibe at the concert. Some concerts are family friendly and some are not. This was one that was not. So thank you guy who brought your eight-year-old, the adults really appreciate it.

Now some good times

Wow, what a show! For a hardcore VH fan, it had everything I could ask for. I truly believe that this is as close I'm ever going to get to a religious experience. I was absolutely giddy at times and jumping and shouting like...well, an eight-year-old girl. But I knew all the words, and could appreciate the music. I did that devil horns thing with my hands, which to my knowledge, may have been the first time for a concert. It might be entertaining to see an iso-cam on me during the concert.

When you look at the set list, they played all of their hits (Jump, Running With the Devil, Pretty Woman, etc.), but they also went deeper with Somebody Get Me a Doctor, So This is Love?, Romeo's Delight and Little Guitars. The only clunker song was Little Dreamer, which isn't popular and pretty much sucks.

A surprisingly cut and flamboyant David Lee Roth was exactly what I expected. Several years ago, Eddie Van Halen mentioned that he didn't want DLR to tour because he couldn't hit high notes anymore. That's true, but you know what? That's OK because you couldn't really hear him to begin with. And he's ancient. But he still had enough to carry the show and be the guy that runs around the stage having fun. He surprised me with a mini-guitar solo leading into Ice Cream Man.

Alex Van Halen really brought it. His solo was incredible, and as always, didn't overplay.

Eddie Van Halen moved off of my death list, but not by much. Technically, he played a flawless show. He looked engaged and glad to play. He had a couple of exchanges with DLR where they challenged each other with singing/guitar riffs. That was pretty cool. His guitar solo was also really, really good but it seemed short. He didn't move much around the stage, but that really didn't bother me. His overall grade for me would be a B.

Overall, I'm so glad I went. I would have regretted not seeing David Lee Roth and the chance to catch Van Halen one more time (probably). The seats were good, but I could have sat closer. It wasn't sold out, but the place definitely was full. You'll be happy to know that this will be my last VH post for awhile.

Here's the set list they played:

01. You Really Got Me
02. I'm the One
03. Runnin' With the Devil
04. Romeo Delight
05. Somebody Get Me a Doctor
06. Beautiful Girls
07. Dance the Night Away
08. Atomic Punk
09. Everybody Wants Some
10. So This Is Love?
11. Mean Street
12. Pretty Woman
13. Drum Solo
14. Unchained
15. I'll Wait
16. And the Cradle Will Rock
17. Hot for Teacher
18. Little Dreamer
19. Little Guitars
20. Jamie's Cryin'
21. Ice Cream Man
22. Panama
23. Guitar Solo
24. Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
25. 1984
26. Jump

Van Halen is back on tour

The logo above is a special logo I built for Tim's website VeryCarr

Van Halen played their first gig of their postponed tour in Reno last Thursday. Here are some pictures from that show.

They then played a show on Saturday in Las Vegas for a Tiger Woods event. Here is video from that event.

One more show on Tuesday in Cincinnati before their Thursday show in Dallas. Despite what the poll says, I would bet on them playing at the AAC on Thursday. Thankfully, the Dallas show is early on in the rescheduled tour. If the show was in late May or June, I'd be extremely worried.

theCarr Hall of Fame

Inductee #2 - Eddie Van Halen

When David Lee Roth left Van Halen in 1985, it was assumed that it was because of Roth's flamboyant behavior and stage persona, as well as wanting to pursue a solo career. Well since then, the changes in the band include:

Lead Singer
1985-1996: Sammy Hagar
1996: Mitch Malloy
1996: David Lee Roth
1996-1999: Gary Cherone
1999-2003: Nothing
2003-2005: Sammy Hagar
2006-present: David Lee Roth

Bass
1985-2005: Michael Anthony
2006-present: Wolfgang Van Halen

So there were seven lineup changes since DLR left originally, including six lead singers. Methinks the problem isn't with the lead singer, but someone else in the band. That leaves two original members. Alex Van Halen has never played a gig without his brother, so it's probably not him. That leaves our poster child for dysfunction, Eddie Van Halen, as the cancer in the band.

I watched him in an interview with Howard Stern and I think the guy is just straight up nuts. Throw in 35 years of drinking and drugs, a hip replacement and mouth cancer and the train wreck ensues.

So congrats, EVH, you're straight up batty, berserk, bonkers, cracked, crazed, cuckoo, daft, delirious, demented, deranged, dingy, dippy, erratic, flaky, flipped, flipped out, freaked out, fruity, haywire, idiotic, insane, kooky, lunatic, mad, maniacal, mental, moonstruck, nuts, nutty, potty, psycho, screw loose, screwball, screwy, silly, touched, unbalanced, unglued, unhinged, unzipped, wacky, whacko (thanks Thesaurus.com)

Van Halen tour postponed

After postponing a handful of dates last week in order for guitarist Eddie Van Halen to undergo tests for an unspecified medical condition, Van Halen is postponing all tour activity until April 19.

Well, who knows now. The tour was supposed to start up again on the 11th. Rumor has it that Eddie was drinking again. Wolfgang got pissed about it during a concert and wouldn't talk to him, causing Eddie to destroy his guitar and amps. Here's the video. Towards the end of the video you can see it.

Dallas is now the third of three dates actually scheduled, with the tour starting again in Las Vegas. On the right tab is a poll as to whether or not VH will play.

3-3-08 RIP

"The Van Halen concerts in Dallas, Cincinnati, Raleigh, and Baltimore have been postponed. According to Eddie Van Halen's physician, he is undergoing a battery of comprehensive medical tests to determine a defined diagnosis and recommended medical procedures.

Boy, that sounds encouraging. Is he out with a hip? face cancer? Bertinellitis?

The last time I went to a VH concert was in 1995, so needless to say, I was looking forward to this one. The concert is rescheduled for April 24th. This is the final date of the tour. This means they will need to play 19 more dates before they get to Dallas. The chances of that happening are, how they say, less than 100%. It's frustrating to me on so many levels, but when, err...if this show gets cancelled, I lose Ticketmaster's wonderful processing fees.

On the upside, if the concert does happen, it's probably the last time these guys will ever play together, so I got that going for me.

Thanks to Tim, who helped me drown my sorrows and let me beat him at 9-ball.

70.....

Rolling Stone put out an article in 2003 regarding the 100 Greatest Guitarists of all time.

Man, do I have issue with this. In my mind, Eddie is #1. Really. He's the greatest. Rolling Stone seems to think he is #70. Wow. You may be able to make an argument for these guitarists:

Jimi Hendrix
Eric Clapton
Jimmy Paige
Robert Johnson
B.B. King

That's it.

You want to know who they think is better? Here's some names:

2. Duane Allman (really, the second greatest guitar player of all time)
8. Ry Cooder
11. Kirk Hammett
12. Kurt Cobain
17. Jack White
..........
You know what, there's too many. Look at the link above and be outraged yourself. Note there is no Steve Vai, Pete Townshend is 50 and Angus Young is 96. What a frickin joke.

Ranking Van Halen members

The albums are out of the way, so here are the members in my order of greatness:

1.) Eddie Van Halen - He revolutionized the way the guitar is played. The soul of Van Halen, he is not matched. You know where Rolling Stone Magazine placed him in the 100 greatest guitarists of all time? 70. Yes 70. You saw that right. 70. You know what, that's getting its own post.

2.) David Lee Roth - The debate between Sammy and Dave is really not a debate at all. DLR is the king. Great front man, but the problem was he knew it.

3.) Alex Van Halen - My greatest concert memory is his drum solo from the ou812 tour. He played the drums and made it sound like a freaking motorcycle. I'll never forget that.

4.) Sammy Hagar - Who knew that VH could be successful after Roth left the band. It changed their sound and they became very commercial, but man I loved that first album. He could play guitar, so that allowed for Eddie to play keyboards, but I'll forgive him for that.

5.) Michael Anthony - Much maligned member of the group. At least by my family. He never did anything to hurt the band. He played bass for god sake. What could he do? He was very cool in concert. He pulled a Belushi on a bottle of Jack. Jack Daniels was my drink of choice in high school.

6.) Wolfgang Van Halen - Unknown, but come on, Wolfgang?

7,000,000.) Gary Cherone - I mentioned this earlier, but I really liked him in Extreme. Great voice, but did not do well with this band. Actually, very embarrassing.

8. & 9.) Mark Stone, Mitch Malloy - Look 'em up.

Ranking Van Halen albums

I've got my juices flowing (ewww) about VH, so here are some random rankings:

Best Album



1.) 5150 - Great first album for Sammy. Revitalized the group. Sammy singing at his best.
Songs to enjoy: Summer Nights, Get Up, Best of Both Worlds

2.) 1984 - DLR peaked in this album, but he also went LSD (Lead Singer Disease) on the band. That's according to Eddie at least. Leaps up a notch or two for the Hot For Teacher video.
Songs to enjoy: Drop Dead Legs, Top Jimmy

3a.) Women and Children First - Really underrated and commercially unsuccessful. See 3b.
Songs to enjoy: Everybody Wants Some, In a Simple Rhyme
3b.) Fair Warning - So, VH made this album right after WaCF, and when I bought the tape (!) they were packaged together, making that tape a killer. These two albums together are #1. Not only did I wear the tape out, but I got in a car wreck listening to it.
Songs to Enjoy: Dirty Movies, So This is Love

4.) Van Halen - Very successful debut album and Eruption was groundbreaking. This album peaked at #19. Can you believe that?
Songs to Enjoy: Atomic Punk, Ice Cream Man

5.) OU812 - Van Halen's response to DLR's Eat 'em and Smile. This album was really hot during my prime high school years, so I listened to it quite a bit, doesn't quite hold up as well.
Songs to enjoy: Cabo Wabo, Black and Blue, A.F.U.

6.) Diver Down - VH had a ton of covers on this album, but man there were some cool songs on this album.
Songs to Enjoy: Cathedral, Little Guitars, and Big Bad Bill (of course)

7.) Van Halen II - Eddie is really good on this album. Pretty dark album for the guys, overall not great.
Songs to enjoy: Somebody Get Me A Doctor, Spanish Fly

8.) For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge - Not much to say about this album, other than Right Now was kinda a phenomenon and a great track for the Delt video.
Songs to enjoy: Poundcake, 316

9.) Balance - whew, too much crappy instrumental. I did not like this album at all. I hardly listen to anything on this album anymore.
Song to enjoy: Amsterdam

10.) Van Halen III - I really shouldn't acknowledge this album, but I did buy it hoping for something. I really liked Extreme and thought Gary Cherone could hang with the band. He couldn't. For god's sake, Eddie sang on it.
Song to enjoy: Without You

Tim, other things I'm looking forward to

Thanks Tim, now I know you and Molly have read my site. Yeah!

Yes, I am absolutely looking forward to the concert. Just ask Tami. However, I can't start ramping up until a month before the concert when I will break out the old CDs and listen to them nonstop until right before the concert. It's my fourth time seeing VH, but my first with DLR.

NEW ORLEANS!

What may become an annual trip, (doubtful) Tami and I will be making a birthday trip to the Big Easy. I love the food, the drinks, the atmosphere, and Cat's Meow . Make sure to check the live webcam to see if you can pick us out of the stumbling crowd.

CAMPING!

I'm also pumped about the Carr boys going camping at Possum Kingdom. I'm looking forward to building a campfire large enough to counter the forecast. Friday low: 28, Saturday low: 34. Woohoo!