I still recall listening to the short lived David Lee Roth radio show and hearing Dave first predicting, then practically begging for, the inevitable Van Halen reunion of the original members. And, of course, there were all the "confirmed reports" in the spring that the tour was on, but you'll recall Earvolution had the early scoop that those early reports were not so "confirmed" as the headlines made them out to be. But, now it looks like this announcement is real and the Van Halen brothers will reunite with Roth. Of course, this being Van Halen this won't be a complete reunion. Bassist Michael Anthony is not going to tour and is basically out of the band. Eddie Van Halen's son Wolfie will take over those duties. Anthony was much more integral in the group than he is typically given credit for, including some great harmony vocals, so it'll be interesting to see how Wolfie stacks up.

So, after months of maybes, here are the Van Halen tour dates:

Sep. 27 Charlotte, NC Charlotte Bobcats Arena
Sep. 29 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
Oct. 01 Philadelphia, PA Wachovia Center
Oct. 07 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre
Oct. 10 Cleveland, OH Quicken Loans Arena
Oct. 14 Indianapolis, IN Conseco Field House
Oct. 16 Chicago, IL Allstate Arena
Oct. 18 Chicago, IL United Center
Oct. 22 Auburn Hills, MI Palace of Auburn Hills
Oct. 24 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
Oct. 26 Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
Oct. 28 St. Louis, MO Scottrade Center
Oct. 30 Boston, MA TD Banknorth Garden
Nov. 03 E. Rutherford, NJ Continental Airlines Arena
Nov. 13 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
Nov. 20 Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
Nov. 23 Glendale, AZ Jobing.Com Arena
Nov. 25 San Diego, CA Cox Arena
Nov. 27 Sacramento, CA Arco Arena
Nov. 29 San Jose, CA HP Pavilion at San Jose
Dec. 01 Portland, OR Rose Garden
Dec. 03 Seattle, WA Key Arena
Dec. 05 Vancouver, BC General Motors Place
Dec. 09 Edmonton, AB Rexall Place
Dec. 11 Calgary, AB Pengrowth Saddledome

There is bound to be plenty of theatre, comedy, drama and somewhere in all that there is likely some good rock and roll left in these boys that is worth seeing. Van Halen tickets go on sale Saturday, August 18th.

Labels: David Lee Roth, Van Halen

David Lee Roth will rejoin Van Halen for a tour. As I noted before, media outlets jumped the gun a bit. But, the same source I spoke to the other week now has confirmed to TMZ that the Roth reunion is official. Now the only question is how long will it last?

Eddie Van Halen is at least optimistic. He tells TMZ: "It feels like a whole new beginning to be back with Dave and to be playing with my brother and my son. We look forward to going on tour."

Of course, original bassist and very good backing vocalist Michael Anthony will not be on the tour. All this should make for a very interesting Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

Labels: David Lee Roth, Van Halen

Van Halen reunion rumors and "reports" are all over the place, including Billboard. But, even Billboard didn't say it was a done deal. And, neither does a source close to the Van Halen camp. The source didn't deny anything would happen, but confirmed that as of yesterday nothing is official. That also includes what the line-up will be, if any, for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction.

The Hall inducted both Sammy Hagar and David Lee Roth along with the rest of the traditional Van Halen line-up. Left out was singer Gary Cherone, who appeared on Van Halen III. Cherone's tenure, according to a spokesperson for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame wasn't part of the band's "significant era" so the Hall subjectively chose to not include Cherone as part of the Van Halen induction. Of course, Cherone might argue that VHIII was a Gold record and produced a #1 rock hit with "Without You."

Another twist in the Hall of Fame scenario is that some even questioned the inclusion of Hagar. The rule for induction states that your recording career must be 25 or more years old before being eligible. Van Halen's career started more than 25 years ago and so did Hagar's. But, Hagar wasn't with VH for 25 years. The Hall spokesperson said that the vote was on the VH "entity" and not the individual members and since Sammy clearly was part of VH's "significant era" he gets in.

Interestingly, when asked if Hagar would get in on his own, the spokesperson didn't seem to know Hagar had a career for over a decade before joining VH. When I provided that information the response was "I don't listen to that kind of music." Uh, you mean, rock and roll? Hopefully, I don't need to spell out the irony.

Labels: David Lee Roth, Rock Hall of Fame, Sammy Hagar, Van Halen

Van Halen reunion with Roth? E! Online reports that a deal could be signed as early as today for a 40 city tour. An email I sent to Eddie Van Halen's rep on the West Coast this morning is unanswered. Given the time difference, I'll update later if this is confirmed.

MTV UK reports that Amy Winehouse and Jamie Callum were among a group kicked out of a London bar last night. The same report cites the Sun as saying that Jarvis Cocker and Ronnie Wood were also part of a group hanging around the bar's piano and apparently making too much noise for management. Perhaps the managers didn't realize they had the "next big thing" in their presence?

Speaking of Ronnie Wood if you've ever wanted to "jam with the Stones" as Spicoli would say, the next best thing might be a rock fantasy camp. Wood is reported to be among the instructors for a rock school that would also include Cream bassist Jack Bruce, Procol Harum singer Gary Brooker and Spencer Davis. Gigwise says that students paying the hefty tuition fee will also be taken to a recording session at Abbey Road Studios and play a gig at the Cavern in Liverpool.

Fall Out Boy is reportedly the latest victim of a leaked record. Pete Wentz told NME, "This isn't the end of the world, (but) it certainly feels pretty terrible." The band will reportedly add a bonus track to the official release to encourage fans to pay for the official version instead of downloading the leaked tracks.

Rumors are flying about the Who playing the monster Glastonbury festival. Artic Monkeys, Bjork, the Killers, Razorlight and the Smashing Pumpkins are also being tossed around as possible bands on the bill. Speaking of the Who, I read somewhere the other day that Pete Townsend sort of apologized for saying bands like the Stones were too old to tour anymore [insert your own "hope I die before I get old joke here].

I just got this mp3 from Chicago's Dearborn so I haven't had time to fully digest it. But, it sounded decent on a first listen and Jambase says: "Want to see a great rock band and dance your ass off? Then go see Dearborn, a rock and roll quartet from Chicago that knows how to blend killer riffs and catchy melodies with funky dance beats and flat-out grooves. This isn't emo, this isn't metal, this isn't prog. This is straight-up rock, and it's not to be missed." So, check them out!
MP3: Already Down

Philadelphia's Dr. Dog is readying their new release. We All Belong will be released in February and the band, who in the past have toured wth Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, My Morning Jacket and other big names will embark on their own US tour. Label mates The Teeth will be on many of those dates.
MP3: My Old Ways

The Ataris new record, Welcome the Night, drops on February 20th. I'm told that it is a bit of a departure from their previous stuff and that the record was produced by Nick Launay (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds / David Byrne). If you listen carefully you may here hints of The Pixies and Sigur Ros.
MP3: Connections Are More Dangerous Than Lies

Labels: Amy Winehouse, Arctic Monkeys, David Lee Roth, Dr. Dog, Pete Townshend, Philadelphia, The Teeth, The Who, Van Halen

At last year's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ceremonies, The Sex Pistols defiantly refused to appear and accept their award while the members of Blondie let personal issues get in the way of a true reunion performance. For 2007, all eyes are upon Van Halen for the "will they or won't they" drama.

Sammy Hagar believes both he and David Lee Roth should get a chance to perform at Van Halen's induction but is pragmatic about the obstacles. Citing the fallout both singers have had with Eddie Van Halen (not to mention bassist Michael Anthony's issues with the guitarist), Hagar fears that they won't play at all. "The talk amongst us so far has been that we're probably not going to play, because of the awkward situation," Hagar is reported as saying. "We're not like mortal enemies or anything, there's just some weird quirks."

If they are permitted to play two songs, things should be fine. "If there's only one song," reportedly said Hagar, "well, then that could be kinda interesting."

Labels: David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar, Van Halen

One year after commencing the most ill-conceived talk show in the history of commercial radio, David Lee Roth received some uplifting news: he and his fellow members of Van Halen will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in 2007. Van Halen's induction will include both Roth and Sammy Hagar. Given the heated animosity that has developed between the two lead singers as well as bassist Michael Anthony and the Van Halen brothers, this should be interesting to say the least.

Joining Van Halen in the Class of '07 will be Patti Smith, R.E.M., Grandmaster Flash & The Funky Five and The Ronettes.

Labels: David Lee Roth, Patti Smith, R.E.M., Sammy Hagar, Van Halen

Its been no secret that since Howard Stern left CBS for Sirius, the CBS radio markets with David Lee Roth hosting the morning show have suffered dramatic ratings dips. As I've said before, Stern made things easy for the CBS suits to sell ads and they are spiraling without him.

It was apparent from the first few weeks of his show, that David Lee Roth was not going to last very long. Criticism was immediate and widespread. It seems the low ratings may have finally taken their toll and CBS reportedly has been working behind the scenes to bring "shock jocks" Opie & Anthony over to CBS from XM Radio. Sort of a Stern-in-reverse move.

If this goes down, this will be a clear move to attempt to lure back some Stern listeners who haven't yet bought Sirius and instead have simply turned the dial. CBS fired the pair back in 2002 when they aired a live broadcast of a couple having sex in New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral. It'll be interesting to see if Opie & Anthony can make their smutty schtick work on terrestrial radio in the post-Janet Jackson nip slip era. One report has the pair staying at XM for the "uncensored" version of their show, with a cleaned up version for CBS. This may be a boon for XM, who has seen Sirius close the listener gap since Stern's arrival, since fans listening to the clean O&A may become curious enough to tune into XM to get the dirty stuff.

Labels: David Lee Roth

When David Lee Roth was off the air for a couple of days last week, rumors swirled that his much anticipated demise as a radio DJ was finally at hand. But, for now, CBS and Roth have decided to continue on with the ill-fated show. Of course, that doesn't mean the two sides are truly on the same page - or even team.

Reports have Roth insisting that he was yanked from the air last week, with CBS saying Roth was merely in transit from Florida to NYC. Even if Roth didn't fly anymore, wouldn't a big powerful conglomerate like CBS be able to rustle up a studio somewhere to beam David into the show? I'm betting Roth is right on this one.

Behind this "interruption" of Roth radio, is CBS' apparent realization that things just aren't working out. Ratings are way down and, as Schultz says, the show simply stinks. CBS reportedly ordered Roth to overhaul his format and dump his on-air entourage. This change will only delay the inevitable. The two sides should simply part ways now.

I have to hand it to David Lee though who, unlike CBS, at least acknowledges that things got off to a rough start. Roth reportedly says he asked for rehearsals, but CBS didn't provide them. If that's true, these guys are bigger bozos than I thought. I'm not sold on that though. Although, it is clear that these honchos really aren't so impressive when they're forced to completely re-tool things after losing a cash cow.

While I do believe he doesn't want to see Roth personally fail or look silly, somewhere Howard Stern is smiling. Stern made these guys at CBS look good for years and now their pants are around their proverbial ankles. You can bet that when Roth's run does come to an end, one of the first places he'll pop up is as a guest on a certain Satellite Radio program. Now that, is likely to be one highly rated show.

Labels: David Lee Roth

Yesterday the Drudge Report previewed a developing story on how paltry David Lee Roth's ratings were in January compared to Stern's December numbers on the stations where Roth took over his slot.

In what seems like a marketing tie in, today Drudge links to the confirming story on Radio and Records that notes: " In the 18-34 demographic, Roth's show attracted a 1.3 share in January, off from double-digit results seen in October, November and December by Stern's show.

Ouch - that's quite a drop. Well, we told you.

Roth is on vacation this week and rumors are swirling that he may not return. His bosses insist, however, that is not the case.

Labels: David Lee Roth

By: David Schultz

When Howard Stern moved to Sirius Satellite Radio, he became Sirius' strongest argument for attracting people away from terrestrial radio. In the last two weeks, a surprising entrant has emerged to challenge Stern as satellite radio's greatest marketing tool: David Lee Roth.

Since taking the commercial airwaves on January 3rd, Roth's inaugural broadcasts have been scatterbrained messes with little to no coherent thought being applied to the subjects discussed during the most misguided call-in show in recent history. In the absence of guests, well, to be fair, interesting guests, Roth must carry the show with his wit and charm. Instead, Roth falls back on stories of his recent exploits as a New York EMT and rehashes old grudges with Sammy Hagar and Eddie Van Halen. In 1985, when Roth oozed charisma, this might be interesting. In 2006, it's painful radio.

The majority of Roth's show revolves around his monologues on political and social issues. At the core of Roth's problems is his lack of pedigree to credibly offer opinions on many of the weighty issues he wants to discuss. Roth wants listeners to buy into the belief that he is an intelligent, thoughtful social critic without making any effort to build up such a rapport with his audience. To most listeners, David Lee Roth is an increasingly irrelevant, aging rock star. America likely cares no more for his thoughts on President Bush's policies or legislative enactments than they would about Courtney Love's views on health care or Paris Hilton's thoughts on the amendments to the tax code. Before his predecessor Howard Stern confronted politics, he had earned the trust of his audience, generally reserving his strongest, most lucid opinions for issues within his bailiwick as a performer (e.g. censorship, the FCC) or as a longtime New Yorker (e.g. daytime highway construction, living in New York after 9/11).

Roth attempts to confront and discuss a wide variety of issues on his show, inviting listeners to call in and join the discussion. When the subjects are entertainment related, especially with respect to musician's behavior, Roth is in his element, obviously having a large reservoir of knowledge on the topic. When he wants to discuss politically charged issues like the recent New York City transit strike or the war in Iraq, Roth's glib, easy answer persona fails him to miserable, horrific degrees.

When discussing weighty topics, he sounds like a moderately educated person simplistically and unconvincingly arguing about issues that are beyond the full breadth of his comprehension. In relating his views on the Iraqi War, Roth mashed his thoughts on Bush's reasons for going to war, America's conduct of the war and our continued presence in the country into one muddled, confusing argument. Before you could make an effort to parse through what Roth thought he was trying to say, Linda, one of his foils chimed in, a la Britney Spears, that she follows and believes in whatever our President does because it's wartime, he's our Commander In Chief and deserves our respect and trust without question. When a listener phoned in to chide Linda for her slavish worship, Roth dismissed the caller thanking him for calling in to humiliate himself, leaving his friend's blind allegiance unquestioned.

In the 80s, Roth showed enormous charisma and a sense of humor in his "Diamond Dave" persona. Sadly, all of those character traits are absent from his morning program. When the discussion turns to the music and entertainment industry, Roth shows glimmers of interest. Given that Van Halen continued under the same name after Sammy Hagar replaced Roth, his views on whether a Freddie Mercury-less band should still call themselves Queen had some weight behind them, even if tinged by his remaining bitterness for those who participated in Van Halen version 2.0. Similarly, when Roth confronted an author who had written a book about an extraterrestrial influence in rock and roll, Roth relied on his own experiences with egocentric musicians to express skepticism in the author's thin premise.

Unfortunately for his audience, Roth rarely stays grounded in areas he can comfortably and knowledgably discuss. An early diatribe against gun control, early in his first week on the air, typified Roth's elocutionary failures. In supporting his view that America requires better education on guns rather than gun control, Roth told a surprisingly riveting tale of a delusional ex-convict attempting to kidnap his father, a 56-year-old physician, at gunpoint. The incident, which occurred in his father's medical office, concluded with his father disarming the kidnapper with his bare hands before escaping out a back door. Throughout this story, Roth remained completely oblivious to the fact that he supported his argument for the unlimited right to purchase weapons with an anecdote involving an unarmed man in his mid-fifties (albeit with a black belt in karate) eluding a psychopathic gunman without the use of a weapon which Roth wishes everyone to have free access. Ignoring the fact that restricting weapons might have prevented his father from having one pointed at him, Roth proudly announced that he purchased a gun and slept with it under his pillow until the police captured the gunman. Regardless of whether you agree with his political views, Roth's ineptness as a political pundit or coherent social commentator predominates the entire discussion.

Unless Roth significantly improves, his time on commercial radio may be limited to how long it takes Infinity Broadcasting to figure out how to bring Adam Carolla's program over from the west coast. Somewhere in the entertainment graveyard, a crypt houses the corpses of The Chevy Chase Show and The Magic Hour. The caretaker should start preparations to receive the David Lee Roth radio program, it is arriving soon.

Labels: David Lee Roth

K-Rock radio will have a huge hole in its lineup when Howard Stern defects for Sirius radio in a few months. Rumors are circulating that David Lee Roth will be Howard's replacement for K-Rock. This may - and I stress may - have worked 10-15 years ago, but this sounds like a train-wreck waiting to happen. Of course, many like to see former stars make fools of themselves, but I'm thinking Diamond Dave should stick to being a paramedic and doing VH1 "Where-Are-They-Now?" specials.

Labels: David Lee Roth