Van Halen
Riverbend Music Center
Cincinnati, OH
July 21, 1998

Set List - Click here!

Review by Holly Winkler - beyondthewheel@hotmail.com

Van Halen just blew Riverbend away tonight, and I was lucky enough to be right up front for it!! They started out with Unchained, and everyone was going nuts.

Eddie can play that guitar like no other, and Alex, cast and all, played one hell of a wicked drum solo tonight. Gary can sing, and that man can move too. Somersaults across the stage, jumping all over, dancing. He looked like he was having the time of his life, along with the rest of us, which I knew we were! Mike was singing on Somebody Get Me A Doctor, with his Jack Daniels bass, and then they handed him a bottle of JD, he just starts chugging that down right there on the stage.

The highlight of the show for me though, would have to be Mean Street, with the crowd dancing, jumping, and screaming right along with Eddie, Mike, Alex and Gary. Let me tell you, these guys can put on a hell of a show. Pawn your tv, vcr, whatever and get down to see them when the get to you, it's well worth it, and it's a performance like you'd never believe. All those people that think it's just not Van Halen without Dave or Sammy, think again, cuz Gary is the man. And man did these guys rock tonight.

I enjoyed this concert a lot. It was the first time that I saw Van Halen on this tour. I have seen many VH on many occasions. Tonight was a little different than the others in the past.

I liked the music but I did not like Gary Cherone. He is not Van Halen material. Mr. Cherone needs to go. I do not mean to be rude. I have inside sources that tell me that Gary was hanging his head back stage. If he does not want to be there, please leave. I will gladly sing all the old songs for nothing!

It is not his fault. Eddie and Alex have to big of an ego to say sorry to Sammy Hagar. Just make up and get back to business. Sammy quit because Ed and Alex would not give Sammy a couple of months off. He is not lazy like they said. Sammy came up with an album long before VH3. But the show tonight was nice but sad. Sad because Gary did not want to be their and because Sammy was not there. If I wanted to see a cover band of VH, I would have bought tickets for Diver Down.

A bit of advice for everyone out there, wait for Cherone to quit and Sammy to come back. Also, the same show can be seen on MTV's Ten Spot. fivepav@aol.com

Cool show! Opened up with change. Very good light show. Band was tight. Played Josephina for the first song in encore which as a piece of shit. VH unplugged, what the fuck is that, espicially during a encore. Other than that I got my $25 worth and Eddie Rocks!!!

First of all, I don't think that it would be right or fitting to leave KWS out of the review. He put on a GREAT show. I can't wait to see him again in Indy tomorrow. I do believe that he has some major potential.

Secondly, the Van Halen Show.

Van Halen rocked the ROOF off of the Riverbend Amphitheater in Cincinatti tonight. I remember seeing the Sydney, AUS show that was on MTV's Live at the 10 Spot, and MAN, Gary has really changed/ perfected his ways in his live presence with the audience. He got up on stage and just had a hell of a time with the rest of the band. At first, I was a bit skeptical about Gary being the new frontman, but no more skepticism from me -- Guaranteed! Gary is the MAN!!!!!!!!!

Michael Anthony did lead vocals on "Somebody Get Me A Doctor" and at the very end, the stage crewman brought a bottle of Jack Daniels out and Mikey took a HUGE gulp. It was pretty funny. After Ed's solo, Mike came onto stage in a Trojan shirt. Man, what a character and a hell of a bass player. He really does love playing that Jack Danniels Bass Guitar. He strapped that thing around his neck and gave the biggest grin. Mikey is just awesome.

On to Alex, what can I say except for, what a HELL of a Drum solo! It was just awesome and if I say anything else about Alex, except for that fact that he just rocked the roof with his drumming, I would be cutting his deserved glory short. Alex is just the Drumming Man and that is all there is to it.

Finally, on to Ed. Now that Ed has lost a lot of weight and his hip does not hurt anymore, he was active, and very physical on stage. His playing was so much cleaner and during his solo, he went into a twisted rendition of 316. Strange, but definitely a cool twist. Ed was all over the stage and was THE MAN on guitar!!!!

The Van Halen show was almost one of the best I have ever seen. The band got down to business, and played their songs. None of the talking in between songs (I partly miss that relating to the audience between songs but Gary's style is different and very acceptable) and they went onto the stage, put a great show on and were off. I don't think that anyone around me left unsatisfied by the looks on their faces.

Van Halen is just an awesome band and I can't wait to see them in Indy tomorrow and I can't wait to see them on later tours.

I thought the concert was great. Gary takes getting used to after being a fan through David and Sammy. But I think Gary will grow on everyone. I know us die hard VH fans accept him already.

Eddie, Alex, and Michael all played great once again and reminded me why I will always be a VH fan no matter what changes they go through. Keep up the great work guys, and Gary welcome to the best band in the world.

Van Halen invaded Cincinnati and what an invasion it was! From the opening riffs of Unchained to the last note of Jump it was fun filled rocking evening. I have seen many Van Halen but this packed more engery than any I have seen in a long time.

If you're a fan you need to see the band as it now with Gary aboard, he brings so much energy to the stage that it rubbed off on the others they were moving around like they were in their mid twenties again! Mike and Alex played as never before and Alex's drum solo was something to see! Eddie was well he was Eddie the greatest guitar player on the planet. The thing that seperates Eddie from all the others is you can tell by the constant smile on his face he really loves what he is doing.

If Van Halen comes to your town and you get a chance to see them, do it. It is nice to see a band that is having fun again and playing better than they ever have before.

Even though I've been a Van Halen fan for years, this was the first time I've ever seen the boys live. I was not disappointed. The set list seemed to be the one they've been using for most shows, starting with "Unchained" and ending with "Josephina" for an encore.

The main thing that impressed me about the show was how together the guys seemed musically and personality wise. All four of them seemed to be having a blast. I was also *really* impressed with Gary. I'll follow any incarnation of Van Halen as long as Eddie, Alex, and Mike are in it, but Gary is doing a great job, in my opinion. He has a great stage presence and was singing his heart out the entire two hours they were on stage. If nothing else, he's a big change from Dave and Sam. He was fun to watch and he was more focused on entertaining and having fun than showing and mouthing off. The others were having just as much fun and putting tons of energy into it.

Other highlights were Al's drum solo (how that man can play as fast and hard as he does in a neck brace is beyond me.) And hearing "Dreams", my favoite VH song played live.

In short, it's worth the money, Gary will not let you down, go see it!

I've got just one simple question: Is the year 1998 or 1978? I ask this because Edward Van Halen put on a show at the Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati that brought back memories of the EVH of 20 years ago.

All I can say is "WOW"!!!! It was like going back in time hearing the familiar introduction of the band that was a trademark during their DLR tours. "Are you ready"!!! "Please welcome the mighty Van Halen"!!!!! And the crowd did just that to a huge roar!! The set list was exactly the same as the KC show on the 16th. There were many highlights of the show for me, but the best had to be hearing one of my all-time favorite VH tunes "Romeo Delight". Gary introduced it as "Here's one for you old-school fans". All I could do was smile when I heard Ed's familiar taps to open the song.

Al played like a man possessed the whole night. He had a smile on his face that could only be topped by Ed's. The brothers are truly happy, and so are the fans according to the reaction last night in Cincy. Gary has truly breathed new life into a band that needed a shot in the arm after the Balance tour.

Here's a quick tip also. For all of you skeptics out there who are still doubting Gary's ability to carry the "heavy" torch as the Van Halen frontman, go see the show and your doubts will be taken away as soon as you get midway through "Unchained". I read the reviews on here, hoped for the best, but still was skeptical myself until I saw the show. But no more. Van Halen is back baby, and back with a vengence!!!!

Wow! What a show! From "Unchained" through "Jump" the guys were up there jamming and just plain having a blast. And Gary did a hell of a job with the set list. Man, he can wail with the best of them and was all over the stage. Eddie was on fire, never sounded better.

The Riverbend Ampitheater was hot and humid and but I believe a breeze was being created through the speakers because these guys just flat-out jammed. The show was over too soon. It seems like it went from "Unchained" to Alex's drum solo to Eddie's solo to "Jump" in no time. Michael was awesome singing "Somebody Get Me A Doctor" and he and Alex laid down a more than solid foundation for Gary and Eddie to spring off of, and spring they did. They were running and jumping all over the stage, getting the crowd going and just plain rocking out.

My personal favorite last night was "Mean Street". Eddie hit it right on. What more can I say? I could go on and on but I'll just leave you with this: If you are a Van Halen fan to any extent, definitely catch this show. It is well worth it! Peace and Rock On!

Rock! Thats all I can say. I can't think of any better way to have spent a muggy Tuesday night then rocking away with Eddie, Michael, Alex, and Gary. I was very skeptical of Gary being able to satisfy my ears with the sounds of Sammy and David Lee that I'm used too, but he sure layed down all senses of unease! From the time the first note of "Unchained" was played until the final riff of "Jump" I was in awe. The continous bombarding of new, old, and really old callaborated to make one of the best shows I have ever seen!

Gary can work a crowd with the best of them. Eddie's guitar riffs and solo was enough to send chills through your spine. Michael Anthony had to hit the highest note I have ever heard in my life when pulling off lead vocals in "Somebody Get Me A Doctor." The ever quiet Alex sit back and played his drums like fatigue was not in his vocabulary. His drum solo brought the house down!

I would have been satisfied if the concert would have ended with "Aint Talkin' 'Bout Love", but NO WAY, they come back with "Josephina", "Panama", and "Jump"! Anyone who hasn't seen this tour needs to get their tickets now and be prepared for the best show in the world performed by the best band in the world!