ne week to go to Van Halen! On January 28th, I'll be joining nine of my closest friends for a trip to the Toyota Center in Houston to see my favorite band. Although this is my 8th or 9th Van Halen concert, this one will be special: Diamond Dave is back. If you haven't heard, the group has reunited with its original lead singer, David Lee Roth, for this latest tour. I've seen Roth only once and that was my first VH concert way back in 1983 in Austin.
If you know anything about the group, they're famous (or infamous) for changing lead singers. They started with Roth, then dumped him around 1985. Sammy Hagar was his replacement and lasted 11 strong years with the group. Then he was dismissed and Gary Cherone was hired. Mistake. That lineup lasted one album and one tour, neither of which was anything to write home about. After a long layoff, the band got back together in 2004 with Hagar at the helm once more. And again, personalities clashed, the boys started bickering and the tour almost didn't make it to the end. Now, two years later, they're going back to the drawing board with Roth. However it's still not the original quartet. Longtime bass guitarist Michael Anthony was kicked out so Eddie Van Halen's son, Wolfgang, could have a spot.
From the reviews I've read, they're sounding better than ever. Probably because Eddie did the wise thing and went to rehab for his alcohol problem before going out on tour. While few young people relate to Van Halen anymore, I love their music and especially Eddie Van Halen's guitar playing and brother Alex Van Halen's drum work. At the show, I expect to see lots of 40-somethings (like me) reliving their high school days through the music of THE GREAT VAN HALEN!
On another note, thanks to those of you who were concerned about my eye Monday night. My injury is proof the internet can be hazardous to your health. Allow me to explain: Sunday morning my left eye started getting very red. By the end of the day, it was much worse. It didn't hurt and my vision was okay, it just looked scary. I went to Dr. Norwood Monday thinking I had pink eye. To my surprise, it wasn't. He said I had a hemorrhage inside my eye. Furthermore, it wasn't serious and there was nothing I could do about it but allow it to go away over time. When I asked how it happened, Dr. Norwood asked if I'd laughed really hard at anything on Saturday. Bingo. My close friend Lisa Cangelosi had sent me an email of Olan Mills portraits from the 70's. It was so hilarious I laughed until I cried. The doctor thinks that's how I ruptured my eye. So you see, the internet can be a dangerous place.
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