The YouTube channel Rock N’ Roll True Stories has released a video recalling two times Van Halen stood up for the fans and gave the big ole “FU” to authorities in the early 90s.
Both stories took place in 1992 while Van Halen was on tour promoting their 1991 album For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge. The first occurred when the band played at the Five Seasons Center outside Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Local authorities set up roadblocks leading to and from the venue where they checked concert goers to see whether people had been drinking that night. Turns out that local authorities were unfairly profiling rock fans. Van Halen would put a stop to that!
The second story involved a 19-year old fan who was arrested in Fort Smith, Arkansas for wearing a t-shirt with the album title of the band’s latest album on it. The first letter of each word was boldly highlighted to become a four-letter expletive: F.U.C.K. The fan was actually charged with “violating a statute against wearing a smutty shirt.” The band got wind of this and weren’t happy at all, leading to a perfect response from Eddie Van Halen: “You can mess with us, but not with our fans.”