As the final date of the humongous Van Halen Tour ended last June 2, 2008, it was revealed that this was the most commercially lucrative tour for the band. Lucrative… in the tune of US$93 million! This is according to the band’s official website, Van-Halen.com.What could possibly be even better for the band than having Eddie sober enough to play as prodigiously as he does? Van Halen followers know how bad his condition was during previous tours as a result of his severe alcoholism. But since he got better, possibly from regular rehab, so did his guitar playing. Another plus for the fans was that this was the first time in more than 20 years that David Lee Roth toured with Van Halen. I'm sure those who were alienated from the band when Sammy Hagar came embraced this welcome change.
I feel bad, though, for original bassist and longtime VH companion Mike Anthony. Now, he could only watch, after years of touring together with the Van Halen brothers. He was replaced by Eddie’s teenage son Wolfgang who seemed to have sufficiently filled the shoes left by Anthony.
There’s nothing like playing your own songs and getting big bucks for it. That’s why if I were Eddie, I’d keep my self sober and keep on rocking until I keel over and die.
Photo: Van-Halen.com
2 comments:
Very well said, and I agree with you about all of it, including feeling bad for Michael and Eddie staying sober. I can understand, as a parent, how meaningful it must be for Eddie to have his son up playing along side him.
I got to see them in 1981 and a few other times with DLR. I was one of those who lost interest when he was replaced...nothing against Sammy, I followed him in his solo career too.
Thanks!
You're lucky that you were able to see them during DLR's time. I'm sure it was a great show!
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