08.19.24 - Inglewood, CA - Kia Forum

[Brett]

This thread is for all discussion on the 8/19/24 show. Set list is below. Videos can be found in the posts below.

1. Good Enough
2. Poundcake
3. Runaround
4. There's Only One Way To Rock
5. Judgement Day
6. Panama
7. "5150"
8. Summer Nights
9. Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
10. Top Of The World
11. Best Of Both Worlds/Celebration
12. Satch Boogie
13. The Seventh Seal
14. Right Now
15. Why Can't This Be Love?
16. Eagles Fly
17. Mas Tequila
18. Heavy Metal
19. I Can't Drive 55
20. Space Station #5/Big Foot/Jump
21. When It's Love

[Brett]

Entire Show
https://youtu.be/zc3j6S9Vc1E?si=FZSUeG6XEvVoG4L1

1. Good Enough
https://youtu.be/eZyjBNEADNI?si=XDPY-7_KFKkO1AzQ

2. Poundcake
https://youtu.be/kz8H7CZQ_YA?si=TYacLSOIMxZnossg

3. Runaround
https://youtu.be/wWJBqqzEi94?si=YWmpvBKh-CB5s7Nd

4. There’s Only Way To Rock
https://youtu.be/yVvqyuxS4is?si=v6cd_mD958kCSBYb

5. Judgement Day
https://youtu.be/XaDlf-q1A2o?si=eIHv9MO-2-IkzDom

6. Panama
https://youtu.be/YQYdXb4x0RA?si=4DkMh9G_udHH1KnV

7. “5150”
https://youtu.be/1Xu20LthVMU?si=8_p3Ixl720nWpszm

[Brett]

8. Summer Nights
https://youtu.be/36zHQogYJDc?si=KEjalQsdZWfG785y

9. Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love
https://youtu.be/AJDxdbXHHmk?si=8Z_2YuYpHzt4xiQk

10. Top Of The World
https://youtu.be/b0UJb7X12iE?si=k26MJNBvAt83WZHw

11. Best Of Both Worlds/Celebration
https://youtu.be/LKr5I8dEl5U?si=18-_yMUJCKsATQDc

12. Satch Boogie
https://youtu.be/h07GXW1rIlo?si=P1DeA7CpbgenpvW_

13. The Seventh Seal
https://youtu.be/_3oor45UCj4?si=Q9ITArNcm76iz-iq

14. Right Now
https://youtu.be/u-mVBb41r84?si=40wxeglJNAWsZeOO

[Brett]

15. Why Can’t This Be Love?
https://youtu.be/i1VR87_eax8?si=eIga05ovd7JzvLta

16. Eagles Fly
https://youtu.be/1NSxw3so3lA?si=rcMUJ-VJ3wVkg4Nt

17. Mas Tequila
https://youtu.be/EX1Yn28LD-0?si=FfrudSaVMXhIa-lz

18. Heavy Metal
https://youtu.be/gnT0SBf7I2A?si=ODJ7CBeo5yIPDxkg

19. I Can’t Drive 55
https://youtu.be/UKXnRoYFPVc?si=beW4jrz_9-liyFMF

20. Space Station #5/Big Foot/Jump
https://youtu.be/4OqMhjRzGbc?si=bxmm4qvJyZUIemv6

21. When It’s Love
https://youtu.be/vfOni7DR4-4?si=KNT186qWUprUTKfW

[leroy]

Any chance of a guest at this one? Wolfgang has some spare days.

[I Coulda Hada VH]

Great show so far.

[Little Dreamer]

Any chance of a guest at this one? Wolfgang has some spare days.

After seeing the show, I'm not sure how Wolf would have fit in the show. The show is really based on the songs. So unless they'd do something off Adkot, it's kinda weird to bring out WVH to play on music created mostly before he was even born.

[Brett]

So here are my thoughts. First off, as has been said no special guests. Not that anybody really expected any. And like LD said I don’t know how Wolfgang would even fit in there anyway. Those are songs that just have nothing to do with him.

I don’t know if it was completely sold out, but it looked pretty damn close to being sold out. There were just a few seats I saw in the top sections open. But I’m pretty sure it was sold out.

Musically, I mean, you can’t ask for much more if you want to hear Van Halen now. The band sounded great, their energy was great. The audience was great. It was just a really fun show to be a part of, and it was fun to sing those songs one more time.

The only issues I really heard was they only did one verse on Judgement Day. I don’t know if that’s been going on for a while, or if they just forgot to do the second verse, but it was pretty seamless. So maybe they planned to do that. Weird. I think The Seventh Seal was shortened a little bit too.

Speaking of The Seventh Seal. It’s a great song, but it’s just kind of out of place where they have it. It’s probably out of place completely at this show. I just don’t know that it really works. It’s kind of a lull. And Right Now really misses all those cool little nuances that Ed added to it.

Sam’s voice was really great. I think he went flat a couple times, but big fucking deal. He was pretty much dead on the entire night. And he had a ton of energy tonight. Satch is the man and the crowd really appreciated what he is doing up there to make those songs work. Mike is Mike, he’s just always happy and never fucks up. And Bonham and Rai were solid all night. Just a really great performance.

I thought the songs that got the biggest applause were Panama, 5150, Summer Nights, ATBL, WCTBL, and Heavy Metal. People really seem to dig HM, which I think is probably Sam’s best solo song.

My daughter, who knows all the songs anyway, had a blast. Lots of old fuckers there, but I did see some young people too. We’re fucking old what can we do? Pretty much a sea of people wearing Van Halen shirts. :)

If you’re on the fence about going, obviously you should go. It’s a great way to get to hear these songs live one more time with the guys who created them. I didn’t get very emotional. Seeing the 5150 album cover on the screen was cool, and then when they did WIL, they used part of the real video in the background, and before the song really kicked in, they froze the screen on Ed playing the keyboards which was a nice touch.

That’s all I’ve got for now. It’s late.

[Van Squalen]

Well, it turned out to be a bit more emotional than I thought during certain parts.

Good Enough, Joe banged it out super, but in our section, the mix was muddy. On a couple-three tracks in the show, actually.

Dunno if that was a soundboard issue or if it was the Forum acoustics in our loge section.

Joe with the drill on Poundcake? Chills down the spine.

Runaround was one of the cleanest songs of the night. By a long shot. Joe's solo slayed on Runaround.

LOL, as Brett said, they skipped a verse in Judgment Day. Still a blast to watch Joe play it.

One Way to Rock. The redheads around me and the wifey were RABID. Many gonzo wasted. And SB was right, there was overweight white Boomers and Gen X'ers wall to wall there across the Forum. Dunno how many Van Hagaritas were risking coronaries with their drunken antics, but I'm thinkin' a lot. ;)

Want to see a mass action of impulse action? Go to this tour if you haven't and wait for Sam and Mike to play one of the Dave songs, and watch 15,000 people simultaneously pull out their phones to record it. Panama, our section lit up like a copter spotlight, all the goddamn phones out recording.

5150 might've been the cleanest song of the night, apart from Sam's best solo song. Mean and clean. I think Joe probably rehearsed that one more than any other. Wicked precision.

In my section, Summer Nights' lead vox were muddy and washed out. So that was a bummer. And Joe's riffs also sounded off rhythm....not out of key, but again...a muddy mix.

ATBL, for once, was absolutely one of the highlights of the night, no contest. Mike sang the whole song. And it's the first time I've ever seen him lower his octave range to a mid-range, 'normal' baritone, and I'm here to tell you, girls and boys, that those of you who think Mike couldn't handle lead vox are absolutely mistaken. How strange it was, listening to Mike sing the lead verses between the higher choruses, all the while Joe SLAYING the songs, and thinking "well, for fuck's sake, if he can harmonize those lower ranges, why the F did we bother with Gary at all in '98, if Mike can sing??" What the fuck, right? Seriously. He really can. And yeah, on a number of songs, Mike carried the high bridges for Sammy. Still...Sam was in top form. Top. For a 77 year old, he was a freak of nature, really.

7th Seal didn't land. Maybe nobody can truly reproduce a fair approximation of Ed's wet tone on Balance. Vic didn't. And Satch tonight didn't. Not that I wanted a replica, but again, within the ballpark, like 5150 and Runaround clearly were.

And yup, we were singing our brains out during Good Enough, Runaround, Jason's little Country Road bit, Mas Tequila, ATBL. Loads of fun. Me and the other linkers were texting our thoughts throughout the show. Coulda especially enjoyed the crowd's reaction to his favorite Van Hagar song WCTBL. (the crowd went absolutely bonkers for it). ;)

So the 4 times I got teary eyed thinking of Ed were 5150, when they flashed the album cover on the screens behind them. And then again during BOBW, when they did the 5150 walk. While I understand and respect why Joe stays out of it, and Rai was great and all stepping in for Ed, and I know it's Sam's thing, I'd maybe have dropped that. Too reminiscent of Ed for me. But maybe that's just me. And the third time was when they projected the red stripes during the SS5/Bigfoot/Jump medley. The 4th, weirdly enough, was Satch Boogie, Joe's spot. Just the solo spot itself. Made me miss Ed. Joe's solo was friggin' awesome, as expected.

At no time did Joe come close to replicating/emulating Ed's tone. In no way could you close your eyes and mistake it for a Van Halen show. It was its own thing, and Joe paid most excellent homage to Ed, in his own way. And that's the way it should've happened, and it did.

Eagles Fly? Eh. But I've never been a fan. 55 and Mas Tequila? Fun, but again, the redheads going nuts and that time, even drunker and louder cause it was later in the show. And yeah, as Brett said, Right Now was sorta whatever without Ed's flourishes. But Rai is a solid player, and singer.

The other highlight, along with Runaround and 5150, was Heavy Metal. Not only is it Sam's best solo song, but Joe playing it, made it even more wicked. But the best part? Sam SHREDDING the HM solo. The old man can still play something fierce. Me and my gal thought Heavy Metal was the peak of the night, along with Mike's ATBL, 5150, and Runaround.

My gal and I left 1/2 through WIL to beat the traffic, we had a longer drive home than the other guys (though I'm still up from Randy's Donuts and coffee), and I'm no fan of WIL.

Go, if you can. This is the last of Van Halen you'll ever see played proper. Was a blast.

[Wolfgang Bob]

Glad you guy's really enjoyed the show as much as I did! (In Saratoga) Ed is smiling down at Joe saying good job man, good job:)

[Brett]

I’ve got videos up for this entire show now. I didn’t video anything myself. I just really wanted to enjoy the show and there were like a zillion cameras out there anyway, and I knew a bunch would show up online.

[Little Dreamer]

I’ve got videos up for this entire show now. I didn’t video anything myself. I just really wanted to enjoy the show and there were like a zillion cameras out there anyway, and I knew a bunch would show up online.

The number of people filming was insane, considering the demographic. It's really weird leaving a VH-adjacent show without even breaking a sweat.

[Van Squalen]

Recording really has ramped up exponentially. Some folks are content to record the whole show. We had many around us. It’s a real shame. Live music is live for a reason.

[Brett]

Recording really has ramped up exponentially. Some folks are content to record the whole show. We had many around us. It’s a real shame. Live music is live for a reason.

You can’t bring a tripod in there that means these people are holding their cameras for two hours straight some of them.

[Little Dreamer]

You can’t bring a tripod in there that means these people are holding their cameras for two hours straight some of them.

It also means you can't sing every lyric at the top of your lungs, if you're filming. And that's the number one reason to go to a VH show!

And how can you give the devil's horns sign if you're holding a phone?!?! Wtf?!?!

[Naked Wake]

I’ve got videos up for this entire show now. I didn’t video anything myself. I just really wanted to enjoy the show and there were like a zillion cameras out there anyway, and I knew a bunch would show up online.

ha. I was recording for a bit and then I was like "what am I doing? People a lot closer than me with better cameras than mine are going to record and post on Youtube. Let me just enjoy this thing."

[Pacfanweb]

ha. I was recording for a bit and then I was like "what am I doing? People a lot closer than me with better cameras than mine are going to record and post on Youtube. Let me just enjoy this thing."

In Charlotte I recorded the intro and Good Enough, then watched the rest of the show. I put mine on YT so I could share it here. I don't get recording the whole thing...you're never going to watch it, and it's not like you can monetize it on YT due to the copyrights.

They did skip a verse in Judgement Day when I saw them also, I guess that's normal for this tour.

[Pacfanweb]

Go, if you can. This is the last of Van Halen you'll ever see played proper. Was a blast.

Exactly why I paid Texa$ for my family to have good seats.

As Sam said in our show, "This is the best we can do now"

As close as you're going to get.

[Reckless Fable]

Good stuff. Thanks for the reviews.

I had to pass along my Concord, CA tix. We had a family emergency. Life sometimes gets in the way. I guess I'll have to experience Sammy and Mike's VH swan song vicariously through you all.

[Little Dreamer]

Good stuff. Thanks for the reviews.

I had to pass along my Concord, CA tix. We had a family emergency. Life sometimes gets in the way. I guess I'll have to experience Sammy and Mike's VH swan song vicariously through you all.Wouldn't be surprised if they're back next year.

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk

[Greenpaw]

Good stuff. Thanks for the reviews.

I had to pass along my Concord, CA tix. We had a family emergency. Life sometimes gets in the way. I guess I'll have to experience Sammy and Mike's VH swan song vicariously through you all.

Hope everything worked out for you and your family.

So many great reviews and packed houses, it would be a shame if they didn't do a live Bluray/album for this tour

[5150 Mean St]

Hope everything worked out for you and your family.

So many great reviews and packed houses, it would be a shame if they didn't do a live Bluray/album for this tour

I'd be all over that blu-ray and album. The in house production value certainly seems to be of high enough quality to do that!

[Little Dreamer]

It was a memorable night, for many reasons. Loverboy sounded tight. Mike Reno’s voice was in fine form. His appearance is very distracting. It’s not just that he’s older and overweight. Why does he need to wear a sleeveless shirt and then on top of that this oversize vest? Really strange. Also it made me think “Sam will probably never bring Remember The Heroes into the set list. He’s got a keyboard player, he’s got Mike Reno, and he doesn’t do the song. Maybe he just thinks about it as a Jonathan Cain song.
During the break, we went (my 17 year old son was with me) to find the other SoCal linkers. After a bit of searching, we were able to locate them. I must say, it was a bit emotional for me to meet you, Brett, for the first time. It just put into perspective the last 25 years of being on this site. The 90s had The Inside, but the 21st century has VH Links. And VH Links is even better and more important, during a time with much less VH activity. So, much gratefulness to Brett and VH Links. We all had a good chat, with Coulda and Van Squalen, which I had almost met the day after Ed passed. VS gave Brett one of Ed’s picks from the last show, past moments on the Links were briefly talked about – the vibe was really cool. It’s kinda surreal for digital presences to suddenly materialize into full blown human beings. People who are just letters on a screen for 25 years… suddenly become real. Wait, that sounds like lyrics for a Sammy ballad ala Love Walks In! Anyhow, SoCal linkers, let’s do this again soon when we have more time.
Onto the show. The venue was packed. I hadn’t been to a rock concert in 7 years (Metallica in 2017) – well really 5, if you take out 2 years for COVID. It was a bit shocking seeing how everyone was older. I knew that included me as well, probably the worst part!
During the show, Sammy said there were 14,000 people. It’s a pretty epic number. It’s a Van Halen type of number… except with the higher ticket prices, it might even make gross even more $ than VH did. Why should we care? Well, with this type of success, I don’t think this lineup is stopping any time soon. When CF went gold, we got CFIII. That’s just the way Sammy rolls. He doesn’t get in the way of success, he rides it.

What appears evident at this show is that it’s not a bunch of musician just playing shows, like Sammy (or Dave) used to do. It’s a production, crafted to celebrate the music of Van Halen, for the most part. Sammy invested 1.5M into the production aspect of the show, and you can see a specific effort was made. I didn’t attend any VH Mark IV shows (boycotting the 07 tour because no Mike, and then when I decided to go in ’15, being really too broke that summer to afford it), so maybe Linkers who went can comment on this, but I don’t remember Van Halen ever having this type of production, with a video created for each song. It almost had a Rush vibe to it. Some of it was simple, some of it was elaborate. Maybe it’s just me, but I still can’t get over Sam playing the Ingmar Bergman movie The Seventh Seal, during the song “Seventh Seal.” Yes it’s an obvious thing, but you’d never associate Sammy with something this intellectual. Dude is more sophisticated than he lets on!
Where we were sitting, section 133, the sound was good and heavy, but there were two issues: 1) couldn’t hear Mike’s bass well, 2) Satch sound, while thicker and with more “ body” than when I saw him in Chickenfoot, had highs that were a bit grating to the ears.
Onto the guys’ performance.
Satch was great, as already noted. I think it’s because he’s one of Ed’s peers. If you had a “baby Eddie” like Nuno, it would be some note for note stuff, a “student paying tribute to his master” type of vibe. But here it’s different. Joe’s the same generation, and philosophically is a kindred spirit to Ed’s, having pushed the art of guitar playing further, with many technical innovations. Different innovations, but innovations still. He’s put in a lot of work to learn the songs, but also THINK about the songs. It’s not like Steve Vai in 86 playing VH – Steve was in his twenties then, the songs were fairly new. Satch is 68, he’s been aware of Van Halen his whole life. There’s a reflection you could feel on what that music means and how to approach it. I think that’s also true for the whole show – you can feel some thinking went into this. In some ways it was a bit like LWAN, with a few changes on each song compared to the studio version, but changes made very tastefuly.
What I like the most is when Joe would improvise some stuff in parts where Ed didn’t solo. He did something at the end of Right Now that was really cool. He created a new intro for Space Station n#5.
From where I was sitting, Satch sounded heavier than he did in CF. He had a thicker sound. I thought the highs were a bit grating and unpleasant – I don’t know if it was the Forum, or his own amps.
Jason Bonham, I wasn’t a fan of originally, I thought he was too much of an 80s drummer. But he has evolved and for this tour, he plays on a different kit – an expanded kit. He’s almost more progressive – he did a really cool drum solo intro to Seventh Seal. His sound is super heavy. I think seeing the effort Joe put into this, he thought “damn, I better study my AVH before the tour starts.” Usually when people cover VH songs, the drums are lacking, but this time I was pleasantly surprised.
Rai I doubt will ever leave Sam’s touring lineup. His personal chemistry with the guys is great, he seems very easy going. He’s a fantastic singer in his own right. Great on keyboards and plays guitar, and is younger, great stage presence, which is an asset. I mean come on, Sammy just NEEDS the guy from now on.
Mike has always been Sam’s secret weapon. And just continually show how wrong Ed was to sideline him. Mike was already essential during peak VH in the 80s. But as both VH singers have aged, he’s even MORE important now, covering for high notes the lead singer can’t reached. He’s also the OG guy bringing the VH spirit. It’s the reason why Sam can do a majority VH show with so much credibility.
A few songs suffered from a tempo a bit too slow (7th seal). Mas Tequila I could do without.
It’s hard to say which song I like best. Heavy Metal was super heavy. Summer Nights – my fingers were hurting just looking at Joe playing it without a Transtrem (this is a guitar, not a new gender, calm down). Judgement Day was super heavy and well done. ATBL, always solid. The show has a heavy 5150/FUCK focus, but I dig both records. I think Top of The World was poignant. They were on top of the world… for a little while. Spot on lyrics.
Maybe the highlight of the show was When It's Love - when they froze Ed's face from the official video for about 30 seconds. Misty eyes on that one. It did feel at times like a Van Halen show, even though we knew it wasn't one. The mind knew it wasn't VH, but at times, the heart felt like it was.

What’s next – well Sam has said he’s going to record some new songs with this lineup, which is great. Satch chord changes bring out something different in Sam. I’m sure they’ll tour next summer – hopefully spacing out the dates more. They’ll have to bring in some different songs into the setlist. I think they could have a bit more CVH. Like have Mike sing RWTD. Sam’s clearly the last man standing. He shouldn’t feel threatened by that. He’s finally found a way to do Van Halen right. I don’t think he’s going to stop now.

[Little Intruder]

Brett, thanks so much for sharing the pic of you guys at the Forum. You all look like buddies of mine! I would have loved partying with you all that night. I also wanted to ask you how many times has your daughter seen the band? She's still a teen, right? So she would be a lot younger than even Wolfgang!

[Brett]

Brett, thanks so much for sharing the pic of you guys at the Forum. You all look like buddies of mine! I would have loved partying with you all that night. I also wanted to ask you how many times has your daughter seen the band? She's still a teen, right? So she would be a lot younger than even Wolfgang!

My daughter has never seen Van Halen before. She is 19. There was an opportunity to go to that last show in 2015, and my wife and I asked her, but she was only 10 at the time, and we didn’t force it on her. She just didn’t really want to go. Of course, had we known it was going to be the last time any of us would ever see Ed play live, I probably would’ve tried harder to make her go.

But she had a great time at the show and was standing and singing every single song. And the next night when she went to work, she showed me the playlist that she put on in the store, and it was all Van Halen stuff. And she’s never done that in her life, and that just made me smile. I finally won. Lol.

She told me she didn’t realize how significant Eddie Van Halen was as a musician until she saw those songs being played live, and heard all that great music he created in that environment. I guess I shouldn’t say significant. She completely understood how hugely important Ed was, but I don’t think she grasped the scope until she heard it like that, and the audience reaction.

She’s been to several concerts already in her life. But she said this was the most fun concert she’s ever been to.

[Little Intruder]

That's awesome, Boss! I'm glad your little girl expresses an interest in VH. Most young people these days are driven by social media, which has a tendency to be less than ideal. If I had shown up at the Forum, I would have been the shortest one in your photo since I'm only 5'8. But my long grey beard would have made up for it! Billy Gibbons has nothing on me...hehe :smokin:

[Brett]

Nah Squalen is a short mofo too.

[Little Intruder]

Imagine if Chris and Darren had shown up! How would they rank height wise?

:p

[Brett]

I know Chris is a short fucker. I’m not so sure about Darrin.

[Van Squalen]

That's awesome, Boss! I'm glad your little girl expresses an interest in VH. Most young people these days are driven by social media, which has a tendency to be less than ideal. If I had shown up at the Forum, I would have been the shortest one in your photo since I'm only 5'8. But my long grey beard would have made up for it! Billy Gibbons has nothing on me...hehe :smokin:

Yup, I’m 5’8” too. Brett and Coulda are tall string beans. :)

[CaboChris]

I know Chris is a short fucker. I’m not so sure about Darrin.5'7 on a good day and seeing Darrin's pics on FB, I'd say over 6.

[Brett]

Yeah, I was thinking from the few pics he’s put here, Darrin is probably as tall as me.

Coulda is a probably a couple inches taller than me. I would say LD is probably close to 5’10”.

For reference in that picture, my daughter is about 5’6” but she was wearing some tall boots.

[Little Dreamer]

Yeah, I was thinking from the few pics he’s put here, Darrin is probably as tall as me.

Coulda is a probably a couple inches taller than me. I would say LD is probably close to 5’10”.

For reference in that picture, my daughter is about 5’6” but she was wearing some tall boots.Yup, that's right.

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk

[Little Intruder]

I've always thought Cuda was the giant of the Links at 6'4. I met Peter Steele from Type O Negative and he was at least 6'7. I've met a couple of basketball players even taller but they are so outta my league I don't even consider them! :D

[Darrin Stephens]

I was listed in college as 6ft 5 but reality was 6ft 3. I think I am closer to 6ft or 6ft 1 now due to decades of injuries and lost cartridge.

Awesome show, and thank you to Coulda to for coordinating. I made the show late due to a flight delay from SFO (Emerald Cup was that weekend in Oakland).
I made it to the Forum but only when Sam was just on. I boogied from LAX once there was gonna text Coulda back but after taking a quick pic with a rando got to my suite where my team asked wtf is wrong which was news to me as I thought all was good. That was my last memory of the eve.

Apparently my sepsis infection returned despite being deemed cleared. My head grower freaked because I was yellow when I showed up. Apparently it flared and caused a host of issues and down went Frazier. They tell me it was a killer show lol.

Beyond the show had looked forward to meeting all LD, Brett, Coulda, Squalen etc... I apparently am grounded and will be down for a bit. But I hope by later in Sept, you all let me take you guys out for a gathering drinks, game, dinner whatever works. Sorry to miss finally connecting and thank you Coulda for reaching out. Much appreciation

[VH1986]

I was listed in college as 6ft 5 but reality was 6ft 3. I think I am closer to 6ft or 6ft 1 now due to decades of injuries and lost cartridge.

Awesome show, and thank you to Coulda to for coordinating. I made the show late due to a flight delay from SFO (Emerald Cup was that weekend in Oakland).
I made it to the Forum but only when Sam was just on. I boogied from LAX once there was gonna text Coulda back but after taking a quick pic with a rando got to my suite where my team asked wtf is wrong which was news to me as I thought all was good. That was my last memory of the eve.

Apparently my sepsis infection returned despite being deemed cleared. My head grower freaked because I was yellow when I showed up. Apparently it flared and caused a host of issues and down went Frazier. They tell me it was a killer show lol.

Beyond the show had looked forward to meeting all LD, Brett, Coulda, Squalen etc... I apparently am grounded and will be down for a bit. But I hope by later in Sept, you all let me take you guys out for a gathering drinks, game, dinner whatever works. Sorry to miss finally connecting and thank you Coulda for reaching out. Much appreciation

Please take care of yourself. The world needs Darrin Stephens more than ever.

[Little Dreamer]

I was listed in college as 6ft 5 but reality was 6ft 3. I think I am closer to 6ft or 6ft 1 now due to decades of injuries and lost cartridge.

Awesome show, and thank you to Coulda to for coordinating. I made the show late due to a flight delay from SFO (Emerald Cup was that weekend in Oakland).
I made it to the Forum but only when Sam was just on. I boogied from LAX once there was gonna text Coulda back but after taking a quick pic with a rando got to my suite where my team asked wtf is wrong which was news to me as I thought all was good. That was my last memory of the eve.

Apparently my sepsis infection returned despite being deemed cleared. My head grower freaked because I was yellow when I showed up. Apparently it flared and caused a host of issues and down went Frazier. They tell me it was a killer show lol.

Beyond the show had looked forward to meeting all LD, Brett, Coulda, Squalen etc... I apparently am grounded and will be down for a bit. But I hope by later in Sept, you all let me take you guys out for a gathering drinks, game, dinner whatever works. Sorry to miss finally connecting and thank you Coulda for reaching out. Much appreciation

What was your favorite song of the nite?

[I Coulda Hada VH]

I was listed in college as 6ft 5 but reality was 6ft 3. I think I am closer to 6ft or 6ft 1 now due to decades of injuries and lost cartridge.

Awesome show, and thank you to Coulda to for coordinating. I made the show late due to a flight delay from SFO (Emerald Cup was that weekend in Oakland).
I made it to the Forum but only when Sam was just on. I boogied from LAX once there was gonna text Coulda back but after taking a quick pic with a rando got to my suite where my team asked wtf is wrong which was news to me as I thought all was good. That was my last memory of the eve.

Apparently my sepsis infection returned despite being deemed cleared. My head grower freaked because I was yellow when I showed up. Apparently it flared and caused a host of issues and down went Frazier. They tell me it was a killer show lol.

Beyond the show had looked forward to meeting all LD, Brett, Coulda, Squalen etc... I apparently am grounded and will be down for a bit. But I hope by later in Sept, you all let me take you guys out for a gathering drinks, game, dinner whatever works. Sorry to miss finally connecting and thank you Coulda for reaching out. Much appreciation

What's the best steakhouse in Laguna Beach? :)

[Darrin Stephens]

What was your favorite song of the nite?5150 but that was at Bristow not Forum.

I did mot see enough to have an opinion on Forum. I think Satch really engaged that song live .

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[Little Dreamer]

5150 but that was at Bristow not Forum.

I did mot see enough to have an opinion on Forum. I think Satch really engaged that song live .

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Wait, so you saw multiple shows on the tour?

[Darrin Stephens]

Please take care of yourself. The world needs Darrin Stephens more than ever.Thanks Im fine. I have fought my body forever nothing new and I have lived a lot. Slide sideways and beat up into that coffin. Life is too short so drive it like you stole it not gonna be around long and most of what we all think is important usually is not.

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[Darrin Stephens]

Wait, so you saw multiple shows on the tour?Yes but first time was a last minute just happen to be there and the forum was brief for myself

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[Little Dreamer]

Yes but first time was a last minute just happen to be there and the forum was brief for myself

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Never knew you were such a big Sammy fan. You have eclectic tastes.

[Darrin Stephens]

Never knew you were such a big Sammy fan. You have eclectic tastes.

I liked Sam's work up to VOA. I did not dig VOA or a lot of solo work since. I think HSAS is his peak vocally and the best album he ever recorded. Also those vocals on HSAS were recorded live, I think most people fail to realize that record was done live at 6 shows. His vocal on Whiter Shade is off the chart good and a live take.

I enjoy music that feels authentic regardless of genre. Four vinyl's on my turntable currently are the Chasing Coltrane doc soundtrack, Stray Cats 40, Led Zep 4 and ACDC For Those About to Rock. So I guess eclectic, never thought of it that way. Does a song connect or doesn't it, really that what it comes down to. I tend to feel 70's music for me aged much better than 80's and I think it was just a bit more organic musically than when corporations took over the Neil Bogart's of the industry and music felt more formula as 80's moved on.

Plus keyboards are like screens in cars. Get into a perfect 10 year car and immediately despite perfect condition the screen gives its age away every time.

[Little Dreamer]

I liked Sam's work up to VOA. I did not dig VOA or a lot of solo work since. I think HSAS is his peak vocally and the best album he ever recorded. Also those vocals on HSAS were recorded live, I think most people fail to realize that record was done live at 6 shows. His vocal on Whiter Shade is off the chart good and a live take.

I enjoy music that feels authentic regardless of genre. Four vinyl's on my turntable currently are the Chasing Coltrane doc soundtrack, Stray Cats 40, Led Zep 4 and ACDC For Those About to Rock. So I guess eclectic, never thought of it that way. Does a song connect or doesn't it, really that what it comes down to. I tend to feel 70's music for me aged much better than 80's and I think it was just a bit more organic musically than when corporations took over the Neil Bogart's of the industry and music felt more formula as 80's moved on.

Plus keyboards are like screens in cars. Get into a perfect 10 year car and immediately despite perfect condition the screen gives its age away every time.

Total agreement on HSAS, fantastic record. I guess the one thing they did wrong was the album cover art and name (Through The Fire, WTF??) - it looks horrendous, and in a visually-focused decade, that's a big no no. They should've asked Pete Angelus for help.

[I Coulda Hada VH]

Total agreement on HSAS, fantastic record. I guess the one thing they did wrong was the album cover art and name (Through The Fire, WTF??) - it looks horrendous, and in a visually-focused decade, that's a big no no. They should've asked Pete Angelus for help.

Also, Through The Fire will always belong to Chaka Khan ...

[Darrin Stephens]

I forgot that was the name of the album. Not a good title. There are I think 5-7 HSAS tracks that were not released on the record, did they ever come out on a Sam package?

[CaboChris]

What's wrong with Through The Fire?

You guys cannot be THIS jaded. [emoji1787]

[CaboChris]

"We came, we came, we came through blood and fire..."

Pretty stupid lyric, huh? [emoji1787]

[Darrin Stephens]

What's wrong with Through The Fire?

You guys cannot be THIS jaded. [emoji1787]

To me it is out of context as zero reference song wise and despite loving the record the only tie in with the name is the cover which kinda looks like a high schooler did it. Great record however

[CaboChris]

To me it is out of context as zero reference song wise and despite loving the record the only tie in with the name is the cover which kinda looks like a high schooler did it. Great record howeverTo each their own but man, by that criteria, there's a whole bunch of classic albums we all love that have titles that don't tie in with any of the songs. Where's the song titled II on VHII?

[emoji1787]