May 1, 1998 - Don't forget to watch MTV's Live From The 10 Spot tonight at 10PM ET to see Van Halen live in Sydney recorded on April 20, 1998. The show will be repeated on May 3 at 11PM ET. Check your local guides for details.

There are a bunch of new US tour dates on the 1998 World Tour page, as well as heaps of reviews from the recently completed Australian leg, so don't forget to check them out if you haven't already.

Lastly for today, I've had many queries from Australian readers asking when the Sydney show will be screened on MTV in Australia. I've heard from Optus Vision that they do plan to air the show, but the rights are owned by Van Halen and their publishing company so they have to give the OK before MTV Australia can show it.

May 5, 1998 - The "unconfirmed" US tour dates on the VHND 1998 World Tour page have been officially confirmed! Check the tour page for full details.

2nd Single: As you know, the band are back home at the moment, taking a break after their tour of New Zealand and Australia. Later this week they will be making a video for Fire In The Hole, the second single from Van Halen III. The song will be included on the soundtrack to the soon to be released movie, Lethal Weapon IV.

Rockline: On May 11 Van Halen will be appearing on Rockline! Click here for the complete Rockline station roster.

May 6, 1998 - The new single by the David Lee Roth Band is out now! Unfortunately, a few people have emailed to say they haven't been able to find it in the stores. The good news is that CDNOW are selling the CD. Click on the links below to order Slam Dunk.

• Order Slam Dunk from CDNOW

May 11, 1998 - Don't forget to listen to Rockline tonight at 11:30PM EDT to hear a live interview with all 4 members of Van Halen. Click here for the complete Rockline station roster.

If you don't get Rockline in your area, fear not because Worldlink will be simulcasting the interview live on the Internet! All you need to hear the broadcast is the Microsoft Netshow software.

Click here to go directly to the interview.

May 14, 1998 - Van Halen's mini-tour of the USA kicked off with a bang on Wednesday night with their show at the Woodlands Pavilion in Houston, Texas. There are heaps of rave reviews from both the Houston and Dallas shows on the tour page. One of the highlights of the Houston show was the first ever live performance of How Many Say I, featuring Edward on grand piano!

Van Halen now head up to Chicago for a show at the Rosemont Horizon on Saturday. At 2:30PM (PST) on the day of the show, the band will be interviewed at the venue. You can hear the interview live on the Internet, thanks to Rolling Stone online. All you need to listen to the interview is the RealAudio software.

Click here to go to Rolling Stone's Virtual Venue to hear the interview.

Also, check out this link to hear Michael Anthony's interview on 103.5 Rock Chicago, recorded on Wednesday. Thanks to 5150.com for providing the interview!

May 19, 1998 - David Lee Roth's new album is ready for release! The as-yet untitled album is being shipped to radio stations across the USA in anticipation of a June 9 release. Below is the final track listing:

• Slam Dunk
• Black Light
• Counter-Blast
• Lose The Dress (Keep The Shoes)
• Little Texas
• King Of The Hill
• Going Places
• Wa Wa Zat!!
• Relentless
• Indeedido
• Right Tool For The Job
• Tight
• Weekend With The Babysitter
• Black Sand

The album, reportedly recorded in 4 weeks, is Dave's first studio album since 1994's Your Filthy Little Mouth. Dave's new lineup includes guitarists John Lowery and Michael Hartman, bassist "B'urbon Bob" and drummer Ray Luzier.

• Pre-Order Dave's new album from CDNOW

May 22, 1998 - With the recent death of Frank Sinatra, I thought it would be cool to pay tribute to 'ol blue eyes by turning the clock back to 1984. One of Sinatra's last hits was a song called L.A. Is My Lady, released in 1984. By now you're probably asking "what the hell has this got to do with Van Halen?" Well, a lot actually! The video that accompanied the song features a cameo appearance by David Lee Roth and Edward Van Halen!

You can download the video (Dave and Ed's part only) by clicking on the image above. The file is in MPEG video format (479KB). Click here if you require the MPEG video software.

Back to 1998: Van Halen are playing Madison Square Garden in New York tonight! More cool photos from the Dallas show on May 14 have been added to the Tour Page. Keep those excellent reviews and photos coming in. Your input is appreciated!

Yahoo Chat: Edward and Alex will be participating in a live Internet chat on Sunday May 24 at 6PM Eastern. Click here for more information.

May 29, 1998 - The following statement was sent to me by Michael Hartman.

Sad but true, 22 year old guitar wiz Michael Hartman has exited the mighty DLR due to "creative differences". Hartman as you know wrote the tunes "King of The Hill", and "INDEEDIDO" on Roth's upcoming CD. Hartman says, "I love Dave, it was a dream come true, but I am doing a million projects right now, and can't commit. I wish Dave all the luck."

Next on Hartman's list is finishing up his solo album that already has appearences by Gregg Bissonette, Marco Mendoza of Blue Murder on Bass, John Christ of Danzig, Blues Saraceno of Poison fame as well as Ray Luzier of the DLR band.

The album will have major label distribution as well a radio support.

Update: June 03, 1998 - Michael Hartman's original press release (above) contained the statement that he played the solos on the tracks Lose The Dress, Keep The Shoes, Black Sand and Right Tool For The Job.

This was an erroneous statement.

Michael Hartman in no way meant to give any false information and apologizes for the mix-up regarding the tunes that he played and didn't play on.