Looking Back at the Sam and Dave Tour

[Bad to the Bone]

It's been 5 years now so looking back what do you remember about this "epic" tour? Were you suprised by either ones performance? Did it change the way you looked at either one?

I saw the 2nd date in Clarkston Michigan-I think it was the 2nd. I went on the day the Wings beat Colarado 7-1 in the western conference finals. Anyway I went with my wife's aunt and uncle, her Aunt loved Dave, hated Sam. Dave was up first, cool setlist but the thing I found odd was Dave didn't say a word to the crowd, just played....crowd didn't like the guitar player doing eruption but went nuts for alot of the old stuff. Kid Rock came out and intro'd Sammy. I'm a Sam fan and I thought his show was great, lots of energy, Sam was everywhere playing guitar, singing..everything. I think he took a shot at Ed....don't really remember. No Mike so I was kinda bummed but Nugent came out and did wildthing with Sam at the end as seen on The long Road to Cabo.

Looking back Dave had the stronger setlist but I think Sam's held it's own and Sam was really much more energized than Dave. Sam always sells good in Michigan so maybe that had something to do with it but the crowd went nuts for his VH stuff and went loco when he did Heavy Metal and One way to rock, 55 and Mas Tequila. I didn't really change how I looked at either, I do think it was a better show than the ones I saw from the 04 tour. My wife's aunt totally changed her view on Sammy so that was cool.

[AT]

I hiked out to the Sandstone Ampitheater in Kansas City for the show (twice--it was cancelled for the original date, and we didn't know until arriving). Sam played first and threw out the energy like crazy. Mike joined him as he often did, and Sam made a VH crack at how many times he'd been to KC since '97 and, "How many times have you been to KC in the last five years, Mike?" Dave played second and was okay at best. His band was of course awesome, but they were having line problems with the bass, so the tone was a terrible distortion, and for the entire set Brian's guitar cut in and out. From my angle I could see Dave run back a couple of times to yell at the techs. The only thing he said to the crowd about it was, "This shit just happens sometimes, people." He didn't say much overall, and his voice sounded terrible. (A big disappointment, as I'd seen Dave just one year earlier in MN and both he and the band sounded great.) One of my buddies with me was only a casual VH fan and hardly familar with all the Dave/Sam rivalry and debate; he was quite unimpressed with Dave's set.

[darthadv]

i caught the show in atlantic city... as sammy described it, it was the smallest venue they were playing, and they were doing it as a favor to a friend of sammy's who worked at the trump marina (the show took place in a small ballroom, and there maybe 100-150 of us in the audience, tops)...

i enjoyed both setlists... dave's was entirely vh-centric, while sammy picked songs from his whole career... i was close enough to get some tequila poured to me from sam! dave did his shtick, and some cute girl from the crowd rushed the stage to hug and kiss him, as dave seemed like he was taking off guard...

although there was some verbal jabbing, it wasn't anything major in my book...

it was definitely worth the money and a good show to boot!

[SuckaInA3Piece]

Caught the show in Camden, NJ. Was pretty wasted for Dave's set, but I do remember enjoying it. I have the bootleg laying around somewhere, and do watch it from time to time. From just the entertainment factor, it's probably the most fun I've ever had at a show.

Dave's voice was just ok, but he and the band sounded great. Brain's tone can be a bit high pitched for my liking sometimes, but he was on fire at this show. Ray Luzier put on a fucking clinic that night. Really opened my eyes, and has become one of my favorite musicians since that show. Real good set by Dave, which included So This Is Love, which was my favorite VH tune at the time.

As for Sam, the only down part of his set was Eagles Fly. I've never seen that many people head for the restroom in my life. Other than that, he delivered a blistering set of kick ass tunes. Heavy Metal and BOBW being the highlights for me. I can remember just standing there in a daze while I watched this 50+ yr old dude run around like a mad man on stage. All the while he's hitting all his notes vocally, and laying down some kick ass riffs on guitar. I've seen Sammy like...6 times I think, and he's only been below average twice. This show was one of my favorites.

As for who was better? I can't say. Hearing all the CVH tunes was great for me, having never seen the original band. Had lots of Cabo, a few too many beers, threw some kick ass air guitar in there, and it all added up to a great time.

[Gypsy King]

I went to the show at Nissan Pavilion in Virginia (DC area). I sat about 20 rows back from the stage. Sam played first. He very was energetic and put on a great show.

By the time Dave took the stage, I was pretty hammered. Dave was not as energetic as Sam. However, Dave's set list was laced with numerous deep cuts. I think he did all of VH I, as well as some tracks from VH II.

In sum, it was a great show. Sam put on a better stage show but he played only the hits. Dave had less stage presence than Sam but his band played CVH flawlessly. It was great to hear those deep cuts live.

[Raldo]

I saw the show in Hartford, CT.

No Mike.

Sammy played first and I felt like I was at a party! He really got the crowd going and had a lot of fun.

I loved Dave's setlist and he was really good but I enjoyed Sammy's performance more. I don't know if it was Daving doing the VH tunes being played by someone else.

Don't get me wrong I enjoyed both performances but the vibe seemed to go Sam's way that night.

[lightemup55]

I saw the show at The Gorge amphitheater in George Washington. First off, the pure setting of this venue is worth the price of admission. Dave played 1st and went through his regular set list of Van Halen classics and sounded pretty good. I noticed a lot of empty seats around me during his performance, most notably my wife, who saw Dave in his electric blue spandex and decided to go to the beer garden until Sammy's set. I had nothing bad to say about the Diamond one's set, I was actually somewhat impressed by how good the band sounded and Dave's voice was better than people were saying on the internet.


Sammy hit the stage at dusk and that's when the party started. The seats filled up quick and Sam was on fire. There was no appearance by Mike, but the Wabos put on a great show. Sam gave his regular speech about how he and Ed wrote Finish What You Started, he also had a video of a black and white striped guitar being cut in half for the intro to Poundcake. I've always been more of a Sammy fan, and without being biased, I think that Sammy proved that he was the real deal and Dave was just a nostalgia act that night.

[Van Squalen]

Caught the Universal Amp show at Citywalk in Hollywood. Sam opened, Dave closed. They both put on a good show, but Sam had the lion's share of energy that night. Mike made an appearance, played on a few songs, and the crowd went nuts. I thought Dave sounded good enough, certainly better than what I'd heard reported, but there were a lot of people walking out mid-set...I guess there were folks who did not think he was sounding good, or they wanted to beat the traffic. Still, you had to enjoy Dave's setlist, heavy on the VH, light on the solo stuff. I don't remember if he played Yankee Rose or not. The platinum-blonde dye job and purple glitter jumpsuit was ridiculous, though.

[SuckaInA3Piece]

LOL The spandex was a bit much, but shit, I was too wasted to care! The only sad thing I caught during Dave's set was his jump off of the drum riser at the end of Jump. The riser was about...I dunno..3 or 4ft off the ground. And he barely nailed the jump. I cheered when I saw it. But when watching the bootleg, I just thought it was kinda sad.

Great show though. $7.50 for Coors Light!

[vhrocker]

Great show though. $7.50 for Coors Light!

Damn $7.50 for a cold beer. That's fuckin' crazy.

Sam and Dave rocked in OKC!!! even though Dave forgot the fucking words.

[ED'S A 20THCENTURY MOZART]

sam 'em in NJ, dave opened and was alright,sam obviously closed and was thr life of the party. He told a cool story about how he and eddie wrote 'finish what ya started'. really made eddie look cool and said nice things about him.
they should all tour next year!!
have the wabo's open up and cherone sing for them,sweet.

[Nostalgia Act]

Damn $7.50 for a cold beer. That's fuckin' crazy.

Sam and Dave rocked in OKC!!! even though Dave forgot the fucking words.

I was at this show too. Dave opened.Very loud. Blue Jumpsuit. Uh.....no. Ray Luzier impressed me.

Sammy's show was tight. Cannon Mouth was in the house.

Good Double Bill.

On a side note. You know how much two concert shirts cost? $140.00! That's what it cost when you f'n lose two and end up buying two more.

[Dave's Dreidel]

I also was at the show at Nissan Pavilion. Sam was great that night and Dave was OK. Dave started off rocky, hit his stride in the middle of the set and really banged out a few awesome renditions of the classics, and then his voice was fried by the end. Sam sounded great from beginning to end.

Also have a friend who works security at Nissan and had the pleasure of meeting both Sam and Dave. This might come as a complete surprise to some people here but Sam was really nice and cordial to everyone "hi, I'm Sam, nice to meet you". And Dave was really nice too, but his handlers were asses. "Do not look Mr. Roth in the eyes unless he talks to you first" kind of stuff.

And as much as I like Dave, he looked comical on that tour, the crypt keeper haircut and the Liberace outfit really were not a good look for him. Not that Sammy's capri pants and sandals were all that great either, but Dave looked like someone just let him out of the asylum!

[Gypsy King]

I also was at the show at Nissan Pavilion. Sam was great that night and Dave was OK. Dave started off rocky, hit his stride in the middle of the set and really banged out a few awesome renditions of the classics, and then his voice was fried by the end. Sam sounded great from beginning to end.

Also have a friend who works security at Nissan and had the pleasure of meeting both Sam and Dave. This might come as a complete surprise to some people here but Sam was really nice and cordial to everyone "hi, I'm Sam, nice to meet you". And Dave was really nice too, but his handlers were asses. "Do not look Mr. Roth in the eyes unless he talks to you first" kind of stuff.

And as much as I like Dave, he looked comical on that tour, the crypt keeper haircut and the Liberace outfit really were not a good look for him. Not that Sammy's capri pants and sandals were all that great either, but Dave looked like someone just let him out of the asylum!

Sam did have the better show that night at Nissan. Unfortunately, I got to the show a bit late (because of traffic). Sam was in the middle of "There's Only One Way to Rock" by the time I got to my seat (after purchasing a $7.00 beer, of course).

[Bob_R]

Saw the Dave/Sam tour in NJ and Dave had the better night.