Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

[tonemonster]

I just wanted to post about seeing Van Halen in Green Bay, WI on Friday nite. It was a great show. I had seats on the side of the stage (Eddie's side) and I could see everything backstage, and I was close too. Everything!! It was so cool. Good seat to see the show and the backstage stuff. Well after the opening band finished, the satge crew was tearing down their stuff getting ready for VH. Well I saw Eddie walk out behind the stage and duck under the big TV screen where his tech had his guitars,etc.. right behind his wall of peavey cabinets. OK heres the cool part, Eddie snuck out of the curtain and was standing behind his cabinets checking his guitar. There was only a few people in our section as everyone left to get more beer and take a leak. Since I was real close to the stage I shouted "hey Eddie!!!!" and he turned around and looked directly at me and I gave him a big thumbs up and smiled. He appreciativley looked me right in the eye and broke out his signature ear to ear smile on his face, returned a big thumbs up to me and waived at me. [img]/images/graemlins/notworthy.gif[/img] Then he went back under the curtain. I tell you, it was a very special moment for me. Eddie was the inspiration for me picking up the guitar in the first place 17 years ago. Just to make eye contact with him for a moment and smile at him with a thumbs up was my way of saying THANK YOU to him. Thanks for the music, the inspiration he has given me throughout the years. It was a very cool moment for me that I will never forget. I know its not as cool as meeting him, but its probably as close as I will ever get. It was worth going to the concert just for that experience. Eddie was always my guitar main hero as a child and he always will be for me. I know that he and the band has had its history and bad times, but thats life. The fact remains that Eddie is one of the most amazing guitarists in history and always will be. You cant take that away from him. He has changed music and is one of the most influential musicians of our time. It was very cool to say thanks for all that, just with a smile and a thumbs up. and to know Eddie really appreciated by the look on his face it made it even cooler. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

The show rocked. Sammy is the MAN!! He never stopped moving the whole show. They have some energy!!! WOW! They just dont quit. You can really tell the magic is back for them. They all got along so well onstage. I mean there was just a distinct power that filled the stage. They are back!!!! What a great show!

And Eddie did play the Charvel in the show. [img]/images/graemlins/headbang.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]I could see the Charvel logo easily. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] He played the white/black striped model. I about **** when I saw his tech come out with that guitar and hand it to Eddie. I kept looking for the 5150 guitar, but then he broke out that Charvel. Too cool!!!

I think its SOOOOO awesome that Eddie is palying CHarvel again. I wonder what this will do to his Peavey endorsement deal??? Or is that over now? Curious.....

ANyway I thought all you JCFers might be interested in my expereince seeing the band and the man. Van Halen is back baby!!!! they are kickin ass and taking names!! [img]/images/graemlins/headbang.gif[/img]

Tone

[jackson1]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

I enjoyed your story very much. Very nice to hear that they performed well and with energy. Thanks Tone. Glad you had the one and only Eddie look directly at you. I can imagine how that must have felt. Thanks for the report!

[horns666]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

Tone ....sounds like a good time ....How was his playing ....did he play anything other than the "hits"...

You know light up the sky , On Fire ....etc..

[tonemonster]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

Horns, HIs playing was good. Really good. He ventured out of the recorded solos a bit, improvising stuff here and there. WHich was cool. His speed and technique were excellent. He jumped around alot. He was fighting his cord a bit. I was hoping he would have had a wireless unit, but he didnt. He was running his own pedal board on stage. He used a Wah pedal quite a bit. He sang back ups very well and of course Mike Anthony's backups are friggin awesome! Eddie sang one verse on "WHy cant this be love?" They played all popular hits... and They did older stuff like Unchained, AInt talking bout love, Somebody get me a Doctor, Panama, and You really got me. Eddie really fired up the crowd for Unchained, that rocked the house. HIs tone was kickin ass. I was just so blown away when I saw that Charvel hit the stage. HIs guitar solo was cool. Wolfgang played with him when they did "316". You could really tell Eddie was just into it. He was so into it. I mean I have seen him on TV live and concert videos and his intensity level wasnt anywhere near what it was in Green bay. I mean you could tell he was having a blast out there. It was so cool to see him in his glory, just giving it his all. Great show!!!

Tone

[dinkyjacksonman]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

Sounds like a great show!
It is always great to see them in live,so much energy than you see them on TV screen.
VH rock! and the Charvel.. FANTASTICCC!
[img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[No Use]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

dude, thats so awesome to hear your story. oh yeah, having The Eddie Van Halen, connect with you in that moment of time, that must've been a trip!. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[horns666]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

Well like I said many times before ...If it wasn't for Ed I wouldn't be here talkin on this board conversing with you guys right now and I'm sure that goes the same for many of us ....and even may have became a "normal" guy....who likes sports and shopping at Wallmart......and goes Bowling with the boys..if it weren't for VH..


Man I had to edit this because I all bonked and scrafin' down a huge ice cream cone ....munchies!!!! [img]/images/graemlins/headbang.gif[/img]

[kmanick]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

You got that right, I had the rare opportunity to see them live in the Paradise theater in Boston in 1978, open up for Thin Lizzy. Thin Lizzy's opening act had to bail for some reason and Van Halen was, I believe on the road with Black Sabbath and they had just played the Cape Cod Colisem, so they filled in. Well I didn't have any idea who they were and when I saw Eddie for the first time that night, literally 10 feet away, well it completely changed everything. [img]/images/graemlins/notworthy.gif[/img]

[No Use]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

haha. well i remember reading ozzy's take on VH when they toured for sabbath, i think he said that when he saw them, he knew that he wasn't cut out for black sabbath (or black sabbath was nothing to them, or something to that effect), and a new hero was born in eddie.

[quiksilver]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

Nice review! I was at the Green Bay show, too! I was awestruck just to be in the same room with EVH. He's #1 in my book. Everyone else is striving for a distant second.

[Guest]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

Nice Tone, I got to meet him and spend about 30 minutes or so with him at NAMM ( Winter 03 ) was upstairs at the Peavey booth with Wayne's kids, I keep forgetting their names, so I just keep referring to them as Wayne's kids, lol. Anyway, it's cool when you get to meet a hero, something to treasure for a long time, even if it is just some eye contact and a gesture.

Very cool indeed!

Pat

And yes, thanx for the review! I'm counting the hours now, lol...

[JohnnyMac]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

I'm with You guy's on the reason I started playing guitar thing..
I remember playing to the 1st Van Halen record(and I mean record) in My basement when I was a teen and My Dad opened the upstairs basement door and Yelled down(I thought it was gonna be turn that f@#kin Sh%t down) "Is that Your playing" and I reluctantly told Him "I wish!!". I started out playing Bass but Eddies inspiration changed all that. Tone I can imagine that was a real cool moment!! Great story!!

[A. Pulver]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

Wasn't he hammered at that show? (NAMM 03)
I remember that thread and people were very pissed at taht show, IIRC.

[horns666]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

well Jesus was always drunk but that didn't seem to piss anyone off.. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[Guest]

Re: Saw Van Halen in Green Bay, WI with a Charvel

He was TOAST at NAMM! I was very disappointed, but he seemed to carry his own when needed.

I got some pics around here, now where's that camera? [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

Pat