Boston Herald Article 8/29/2002

[Bostonian]

Check it out...

Hagar comes out on top in Van Halen vocal slugfest

by Sarah Rodman
Thursday, August 29, 2002

David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar, Tweeter Center, Mansfield, last night.

Watching Sammy Hagar and David Lee Roth perform last night at the Tweeter Center, it was difficult to believe that Hagar is older by eight years.

While the pair's ingenious-on-paper tour, dubbed ``Song for Song, the Heavyweight Champs of Rock and Roll,'' wasn't intended as a contest per se, it was impossible not to compare the pair of former Van Halen frontmen and to ultimately declare Hagar the winner by TKO.

Hagar's raspy whine of a voice may not be for everyone, but the man has a healthy set of lungs that can carry a tune without visible strain and his energetic party host persona was, eventually, infectious, even when the quality of the songs was subpar.

Of course, Roth was never a technically great singer to begin with, but he had an undeniable, as he might put it, ``charasma,'' that helped carry some of the burden of his performance. He was so slinky, confident and agile in the late '70s and early '80s that you overlooked the occasionally wobbly note.

Unfortunately, during his 80 minutes last night there was little in his wriggly, pitiable stabs at his old sparkle that could compensate for his painfully winded and downright flimsy vocals, which couldn't have been positively affected by his constant, piercing yowls and the occasional side-stage cigarette.

Roth also had a case of premature gesticulation. Looking fit and clad in shiny, beyond skintight purple pants and jacket, Diamond Dave came out swinging that leg with a vengeance, almost immediately spin-kicking himself breathless and becoming the weakest link in his own band. The trio could easily be a first-rate VH cover band with their tight harmonies and the close to Eddie-perfect solos by guitarist Brian Young on crowd pleasers like ``Runnin With the Devil,'' ``So This Is Love,'' ``Panama'' and ``Hot For Teacher.''

There were a few decent moments, including a jubilant ``Beautiful Girls,'' but his jabs at Hagar, Van Halen and VH singer number three Gary Cherone left a sour taste.

While Roth may have had the more beloved set list and flashier band, Hagar and his band, the Waboritas, benefited from his own insistent good will, some production frills, a stronger singing voice and VH bassist Michael Anthony on his side of the column. All of which added up to a crowd-pleasing 90 minutes that covered VH favorites like ``Right Now,'' ``Dreams'' and ``Why Can't This Be Love'' and solo hits like ``I Can't Drive 55.'' About 40 contest winners got to sing along from bleachers onstage.

Gary Cherone bravely showed up, as did members of Boston, to sing a climactic duet of ``When It's Love,'' capping off the set a with a little good-natured melodrama.

[SToRM]

> immediately spin-kicking himself breathless

that's so funny ...

cheers,

SToRM

[Sean]

Don't get me wrong, I hold most opinion columnists in the same vein as I do sports columnists--they're often bitter individuals that failed at the subject they happen to be covering. That being said, it seems as though a lot of these guys have it out for Dave. I think that Dave's schtick has spoiled to the point that only die-hard Roth fans still enjoy it. Further, I think it is what is keeping him from returning to VH. And by 'schtick' I'm not only referring to his ridiculous stage antics but also his 'me first, look at me' attitude. At a point in his career where his vocal skills and appearance will be overshadowed by the quality of a band like VH (and even his current band for that matter) I don't see how he can afford to keep this up. Now, more than ever, I think it all spells Sam's return to the helm.

[Raldo]

Sounds like an honest review to me. The reviewer did say Dave was "never a technically great singer to begin with, but he had an undeniable, as he might put it, ``charasma,''" which as been said in a lot of reviews. I didn't know the members of Boston was going to join Sammy on stage. A nice treat for all the Mass folks.

[Eddymon]

As a fan of both eras of Van Halen.

This review is 100% acurate.

Dave did seem "tired" after a few songs, you could see the strain on his face.
The so called "high note" wasn't that high.

The kicks really were overdone, because thats all he did. Do a kick and then smile.
plus whats with all the ball grabbing Dave? Are you a Michael Jackeson fan?

[jrk5150]

Yes, if you ignore the set list and the band, and look purely at the performance of Sam vs. Dave, then Dave just can't compete. BUT, his set list was better, and his band does an extremely effective imitation of the best band in the world. Dave sounded good, real good, much better than I expected. He looked tired and stiff and old. I thought that the show gave everybody what they wanted, in spades. Two great shows that were fun.

[Eddymon]

Originally posted by Incredible Edible Dude:
Yes, if you ignore the set list and the band, and look purely at the performance of Sam vs. Dave, then Dave just can't compete. BUT, his set list was better, and his band does an extremely effective imitation of the best band in the world. Dave sounded good, real good, much better than I expected. He looked tired and stiff and old. I thought that the show gave everybody what they wanted, in spades. Two great shows that were fun.

I agree with you.
But the whole vibe of the night would have been better if Dave had opened and Sam closed. The energy seemed to dwindle considerably after Sam's set. While Dave was better than I thought he would be, VH would be better suited for a more promising future with Sammy.

[jrk5150]

[quote]Originally posted by Eddymon:

I agree with you.
But the whole vibe of the night would have been better if Dave had opened and Sam closed. The energy seemed to dwindle considerably after Sam's set. While Dave was better than I thought he would be, VH would be better suited for a more promising future with Sammy.

Can't necessarily say that, dude. I thought the energy ran out because it was a long, exhausting night. I'm not sure that Sam's reception would have been as good if Dave tore through his set first. I know I was screaming more during Sam's set, and just sitting there slack jawed as my brain melted during Dave's onslaught. Rapid fire killer tunes. I actually think whoever closes is at a severe disadvantage.

[badkaraoke]

Originally posted by Eddymon:
As a fan of both eras of Van Halen.

This review is 100% acurate.

Dave did seem "tired" after a few songs, you could see the strain on his face.
The so called "high note" wasn't that high.

The kicks really were overdone, because thats all he did. Do a kick and then smile.
plus whats with all the ball grabbing Dave? Are you a Michael Jackeson fan?

Yeah, what do they call those guys who are blind to Roth's increasingly evident feeble attempts again, Eddymon?

Finally..some honesty in journalism...

bk

[jrk5150]

As far as who would be better continuing with Van Halen, I would say Sammy, barely, but I'm a Sammy fan. The fact is, based solely on last night's show, Dave doesn't have the stage presence anymore to stay with Van Halen. I'm used to seeing Sammy running all over the place, and bringing energy to the show and the crowd. Take Ain't Talkin Bout Love. I have now seen both guys do it. Sammy did it better, at least compared to last night. Sam runs around, gets the crowd going. Dave stood there, walked around a bit, did a canned spin kick once in a while that came out of nowhere, and smiled a lot. No energy. He certainly SOUNDED fine, on par with Sam. Now, I said Sam BARELY because Dave's VH tunes have an energy of their own that Sam can't compete with.

Regardless, I'd pay a lot of money to go see either guy fronting them. But I think I'd have more fun at a Sammy led show.

[badkaraoke]

Originally posted by Incredible Edible Dude:
Dave sounded good, real good, much better than I expected. He looked tired and stiff and old.

Jesus, what were you expecting??

Two great shows that were fun.

Oh. "Fun". How nice. Cindy Lauper is "Fun".

Glad you enjoyed the show - thanks for posting.

bk

[ August 29, 2002, 06:22 AM: Message edited by: badkaraoke ]

[jrk5150]

Originally posted by badkaraoke:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Incredible Edible Dude:
Dave sounded good, real good, much better than I expected. He looked tired and stiff and old.

Jesus, what were you expecting??

Two great shows that were fun.

Oh. "Fun". How nice. Cindy Lauper is "Fun".

Glad you enjoyed the show - thanks for posting.

bk</font>[/QUOTE]Um, are you expecting to, like, get smarter at these shows? Or figure out the secret to getting a clue? I thought it was about having fun.

And, since I've NEVER gotten into a flame war here, do you really, really want to start up?

Go crawl back under your rock dude, you're not welcome here.

[Crystalfish]

I'm glad Dave is out there doing the way he does..what else do you want?? Him to do ballads on a piano all night? gheesh! Here's to Dave kicking it! No need for Cheeze! [img]graemlins/devil.gif[/img]

[badkaraoke]

Originally posted by Incredible Edible Dude:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by badkaraoke:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Incredible Edible Dude:
Dave sounded good, real good, much better than I expected. He looked tired and stiff and old.

Jesus, what were you expecting??

Two great shows that were fun.

Oh. "Fun". How nice. Cindy Lauper is "Fun".

Glad you enjoyed the show - thanks for posting.

bk</font>[/QUOTE]Um, are you expecting to, like, get smarter at these shows? Or figure out the secret to getting a clue?</font>[/QUOTE]Well, you went to the shows so I quite clearly should expect neither.

I thought it was about having fun.

And, since I've NEVER gotten into a flame war here, do you really, really want to start up?

Go crawl back under your rock dude, you're not welcome here.

Oh dear. Another guy who takes this place so seriously that he worries about his online popularity. "You're not welcome here". As though this were a real place. My god.

Dude, just because I commented on your post doesn't mean we're about to have a flame war . Why would you think that??

"Fun" just isn't the word I'd link with Van Halen. It's not the attitude I personally link with them.

We disagree, so what? Why the attitude?

Sorry if I offended you ASSHOLE. Jeez.

bk

[ August 29, 2002, 06:54 AM: Message edited by: badkaraoke ]

[jrk5150]

Dave's vocals were certainly good enough, along with his set list and band, that a Roth fan could have walked out of there saying Dave blew Sam off the stage. Same with Sam fans saying Sam blew Dave off the stage. I thought Dave had more performance negatives, the stiffness, the lack of energy. But he also had the advantage of the music. Sam had his negatives too, the stupid pinata, the long going nowhere intro to Finish What Ya Started, the constant talk about getting high and drunk, but his performance was exceptional.

I'm wondering when these guys switched places. Dave is now about the music, and Sam about the performance and theatrics.