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Where Have The Good Times Gone? Right Here, Van Halen Shows Crowd

Tribune photo by JAY NOLAN

David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen take center stage during a Van Halen concert Monday night.

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By CURTIS ROSS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 19, 2008

Updated: 02/18/2008 11:46 pm

TAMPA - Kids - mere kids, I tell you - were bombing down the Forum's lobby Monday night, whooping "Van Halen!" at the top of their lungs like it was 1978 or something.

These kids - babies, really - were nowhere even near conception when some in the crowd of 16,853 were wearing the oxide off cassettes of "Van Halen" and "Van Halen II."

They should thank classic rock radio or dad's record collection for hipping them to one of the finest over-the-top rock acts ever.

But they - and those of us who never got any closer to Van Halen than blasting the tapes in our cars - mostly should thank Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth for putting aside veritable rivers of bad blood and finally touring together for the first time since 1984.

Whatever their personal differences, guitarist extraordinaire Van Halen and showman's showman Roth looked genuinely pleased to be sharing the stage again; almost as glad as the crowd was to see them there.

The band - including drummer Alex Van Halen and Eddie's son, Wolfgang, on bass, replacing the departed Michael Anthony - ripped through most of the high points from the six albums the original foursome recorded between 1978 and 1984.

Roth and Eddie Van Halen, both 53, were in fighting trim, both displaying torsos that would do a man half their age proud. Roth even executed a few high kicks with apparent ease.

Still an amazing guitarist, Van Halen's playing combined speed and technique with inventiveness and a wicked sense of humor.

He demonstrated that on "Everybody Wants Some!!" when he and Roth engaged in a duel imitating the sound of a car engine, with Roth, for once, conceding defeat.

Of course Roth isn't known for modesty, and he preened and pranced like a man born to the stage, vaudeville or rock. In his spangled coat and top hat, he strutted like a raunched-out Yankee Doodle Dandy.

Wolfgang, just 16, kept his head down and played mostly, but he sounded just fine both on bass and handling the backing vocals.

Highlights depend on your favorite Van Halen song - if they played it, it probably sounded great, but from my seat, "Atomic Punk," "I'm the One" and "Romeo Delight" were tops.

Reporter Curtis Ross can be reached at (813) 259-7568 or cross@tampatrib.com.

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