No more teasing. Never tease where Van Halen is concerned...I have information from a highly placed source that Van Halen will likely tour in 2007 with David Lee Roth as frontman.
Negotiations are currently underway to re-unite Van Halen with their original frontman for a tour in 2007 that will take in America and possibly other territories. While nothing in the world of Van Halen is set until the band walk out on stage, I can confirm that negotiations between all parties have been underway for some time, trying to put together a big 2007 re-union tour.
One would presume the tour will feature classic VH era songs only. What I do not yet know is whether this plan includes exiled bass player Michael Anthony. Perhaps Wolfgang will play bass? I'm told these questions will be answered shortly.
Van Halen last toured in 2004 with Sammy Hagar, but the tour ended on a sour note and Hagar has not talked to Eddie Van Halen since.
What I also know is that there will be no new Van Halen release to go with the tour, such as The Best Of Both World's in 2004. There is no plans for a new compilation or a new studio album - just the tour.
further update:
MORE ON THE VAN HALEN 2007 TOUR:
This in over night from Billboard.com, adding to the recent Van Halen news:
November 09, 2006, Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.
"Eddie Van Halen has tapped his 15-year-old son, Wolfgang, as the replacement for Michael Anthony in Van Halen, a spokesperson confirms to Billboard.com. Father and son, along with Eddie's drummer brother Alex, have been rehearsing for a 2007 tour, but it is unknown who will serve as the band's vocalist.
Rumors continue to swirl that David Lee Roth will be back in the fold for the first time in more than 20 years. Roth told Billboard.com in May that he hadn't seen Eddie Van Halen in "a couple of years" but that he was up for reuniting with his old mate.
"I see it absolutely as an inevitability," said Roth. "To me, it's not rocket surgery. It's very simple to put together. And as far as hurt feelings and water under the dam, like what's-her-name says to what's-her-name at the end of the movie 'Chicago' -- 'So what? It's showbiz!' So I definitely see it happening."
No details have been provided about Anthony's departure, although Van Halen knocked the bassist for aligning himself with Sammy Hagar during a September appearance on "The Howard Stern Show."
"I got no problem with these guys, but they're billing themselves as the other half of Van Halen," he said. "My brother is the other half of Van Halen. They're out there selling hot sauce and tequila and playing all my songs. It doesn't bother me. It just makes them a cover band."
As for the musical acumen of Wolfgang, he enthused, "If I excel at the speed of sound, he excels at the speed of light. This kid is just a natural."
As previously reported, Van Halen is one of nine acts on the ballot for the 2007 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction.
There is also talk of Van Halen playing the 2007 UK Monsters Of Rock festival, but I'm no so sure about that. Early days...but it does look like Dio and the Sabbath boys will perform at the MOR festival as their new Heaven & Hell project.
Latest update: 12/12/06
Eddie Van Halen recently spoke to Guitar World Magazine. This quote is an excerpt from the interview featured in the new issue, and posted on a David Lee Roth fan site:
"I'm telling Dave. 'Dude get your ass up here and sing, witch! Come On!'" says Van Halen. "As it stands right now, the ball is in Dave's court. Whether he wants to rise to the occasion is entirely up to him, but we're ready to go."
"Wolfgang breathes life into what we're doing," says Ed. "He brings youthfullness to something that's inherently youthful. He's only been playing bass for 3 months, but it's spooky. He's locked tight and puts an incredible spin on our dookie. The kid is kicking my ass! He's spanking me now, even though I never spanked him. To have my son follow in my footsteps on his own, without me pushing him into it, is the greatest feeling in the world."
further update:15/12/06
MORE ON THE VAN HALEN RE-UNION FROM ROSS HALFIN:
This just in from photographer Ross Halfin's website diary:
http://www.rosshalfin.co.uk/diary/decem ... r-2006.php.
"Head off to meet up (for photo shoot) with Edward Van Halen. It is hot today and I'm in black which doesn't help my thumping head. I feel like I'm being cooked in the sun - tortured...
Edward is in a great mood, he's easy to work with. And I'm not saying who or what I shot, but I will tell you Edward played a couple of cds which I thought were from 1978 (it was from two days ago) of Van Halen rehearsing with Wolfgang Van Halen on bass. It was jaw-droppingly amazing. They played On Fire, I'm The One, Atomic Punk. I'm not listing the rest, but I will tell you the band sounded untouchable. On Jamie's Crying they did a long bass-lead jam on the intro - the band rocked. I don't like that word (too American) but the band rock - really rock. It was as exciting as the first time I saw them. They will come back and destroy the world. One of the tightest, freshest sounding groups ever. I want to go and play the first album as soon as I get home. Had a blast listening to them, it made me remember why I liked music in the first place. Having Edward's son on bass has rejuvenated them.
They were rehearsing later that afternoon. I was invited - I wish I was staying...Got to LAX and got moved to the front of the plane. I was going to shoot the night sky, but couldn't get motivated. I'm still feeling ill - I should have stayed and watched Van Halen."
Interesting!
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