They were phenomenal on my big screen; I can only imagine what it was like live outdoors on Hollywood Blvd. David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen are reunited and their performance was comparable to their early days of 1978. Alex Van Halen was perched behind the drums and the only missing piece to this puzzle was bass guitarist Michael Anthony. Anthony’s replacement is Eddie’s 24-year-old son Wolfgang Van Halen.
An unprecedented part two of their Kimmel mini-concert will be aired on Tuesday night. The late-night appearances are a kickoff to their new album called Tokyo Dome Live in Concert which will be released on Tuesday March 31, 2015. The VH trio, along with 60-year-old Roth, will be touring the U.S. and Canada this summer. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famers hadn’t been on tour in over three years.
The show started out with a bang — directly on the lead singer’s nose. Roth was twirling an illuminated pole and he stopped the twirling with his face. A timeout was called while David Lee had his nose mended. This was a great opportunity for Eddie to put on a show with his guitar mastery. Minutes later, Roth returned and the rock and roll party in the street was on.
They played their biggest hits of yesteryear including, “Panama,” “Running with the Devil,” “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love,” “Dance the Night Away,” and “Hot for Teacher.” It appeared as if young Wolfgang was trying to keep up with the aging Van Halen men.
Over their decades-long career, Van Halen played Whack-a-mole with lead singers. David Lee left the band in 1984 and sought a solo venture. Sammy Hagar took his place and they continued to produce hit after hit. When Sammy begrudgingly left the band in 1996, former “Extreme” lead singer Gary Cherone replaced Hagar. Gary left the band soon after Van Halen III was released. David Lee is back, at least for now.
