Running with the … Tiger

Putting on the glitz, at any cost, for star-studded charity event

Doug Fox, May 16, 2008

Here’s an excerpt from the full DAILY HERALD article:

There’s a magic moment that occurs at most rock concerts — in those split seconds after the arena lights go dark, but before the band begins playing. There’s an almost palpable energy which flows through the venue — the bigger the act, the bigger the jolt.

That moment has always treated Van Halen well, or, perhaps, vice versa. This night was no exception as Eddie Van Halen stepped out in front of the stage curtain and cut through the darkness with a thundering power chord, followed by a cascading torrent of squealing, whammy-mutated notes that served to signal that a real live guitar hero was indeed in the house.

He then casually stepped back behind the curtain as the full band joined in the jam, before a brief pause led into the recognizable riffs of “You Really Got Me,” the Kinks cover that unleashed Van Halen on an unsuspecting, disco-fogged nation in the summer of 1978.

I spent the first few songs simply basking in the wonderment of the moment and watching longtime antagonists Roth — sporting various top hats, matador jackets and leather pants (that had full seats, thank you very much!) — and guitarist Van Halen treat each other like long-lost pals. So engrossing was the pair’s interaction, in fact, that it wasn’t until some point during the third song when I happened to glance at drummer Alex Van Halen and was jolted into the conscious realization that he was even there, keeping everyone in fast-paced rhythm.

Read the full Daily Herald article here.

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