Official 5/1 Tulsa Meetup/Review Thread

[SLAUGHTER MAN]

Some of my friends from Wichita were at the show tonight, as it is only about 2 1/2 hours from Tulsa. Including one of my closest friends in the world. I look forward to hearing his thoughts on the show, as he had seen them back in the early 80s several times also. Yo, Vin!

HARD ROCK69...can't fuckin' wait to read your post about the Tulsa show. It sucked that St Louis didn't get ROMEO DELIGHT (one of top 5 VH songs) and GIRL GONE BAD..I wish they would have put GGB in PRETTY WOMAN'S place....completely changed my attitude on I"LL WAIT..it smokes like Tommy Chong 4/20. Was good in 2007/08...is beyond killer,slap your woman's ass, light a bomb bad ass on this tour,

[Jagermeister]

Well great show last night. Set list was already posted so I won't rehash that.

First of all it was fucking hot in that place. I stood up the entire show and wasn't real uncomfortable during it but it was warm. I don't know that it really helped Dave out much which I will explain in more detail later.

The band was on fucking fire. Sound quality was excellent as it usually is in this venue. I tried to shoot some video on my wife's phone but it didn't work. O well. Tons of people were shooting so I am not to worried about it. I wanted to enjoy the show. Like the other shows this one was fast. Not many breaks between songs. Before Ice Cream Man Dave had an Oklahoma rant about his dogs and cows. It was kinda cool. I think we exited the place at 1100 pm. We could have got out quicker but my wife's friend was drunk as hell so we were a little slow getting out. It wasn't sold out but it was close. The place was packed. It seats about as many as MSG to give you an idea of how big the place is.

Ok Dave was in top form for most of the show. As it went on his voice was giving out to the point where by the last two songs I think he could barely speak. It looked almost painful to me. He managed to get all the words out but it was tough. Weird deal. I don't know if anyone else noticed it or not but I sure did. It wasn't before Jump but the song before that (ATBL as I review my notes)he went back to the drum riser and got a drink of something and spit some of it out.


Ed was on fire. Guitar solo was EPIC!

I may post more details as the cob webs clear form my head. Plus I have some work to do so I'll check back later.

Viva Van Halen!

[houseofpain]

Very moved my brother. Awesome show. Mind blowing. So happy I was able to experience the greatest band ever with you. The only thing that would have made it better would have been if KEB had been able to come with us.

Tom

[houseofpain]

For all the complaining about the arena and temperature, I wore jeans and a t-shirt and was fine. It was warm, but never uncomfortable.

[Momshell]

Clip of HFT

[Momshell]

and another clip of HFT

[loucap81]

I really think they're hitting their stride now, in "midseason form" to use a sports phrase. I have a friend who was at this show as well, a well-known guy on other boards and in the VH bootleg community. He registered here but I don't think he's ever posted here. I encouraged him to submit a review. Anyway he was just lavishing praise about this show. Here were the texts I got:

"Yes they are great. Awesome" (This was in response to my telling him that redfire was telling everyone how great it was)

"Eddie just did a wild feedback thing during EWS"

"Great jam in YRGM"

"Biggest cheer of eve for DTNA"

"Eddie just tore up solo for ICM"

[Jagermeister]

I want to see a clip of Panama.

[fourthcoming]

You know what, this Fuckin' band kicks ass.......their steamrolling through cities now.......they had a rough patch here and there, every band gets fatigued.....but their tearing heads off again. Am I the only one still blown away by the new album btw? I listened to it so much it was bordeline rediculous when I first bought it. Had to put it down for a week or two.....switched to listening to boots of all the shows from this tour......I'm back to listening to nothing but ADKOT.....still completely blown away and still get emotional listening to it. I still have to sometimes stop and think to myself......I can't believe after all the drama, that my favorite rock and roll band released a full length, kick ass record with Diamond Dave. Has this been happening to anyone? I'm sure it has......it just still seems surreal to me sometimes. You stop and think about all the bands people have wanted to get back together over the course of time and the likelihood of Van Halen ever getting back and recording with Dave, it still blows my mind. It's a very special thing, a special time, and it truly means alot to me. That's my 2 cents.

[redfire]

I think I have audio of ATBL, so I'll have to check that out when I get home.

HOP, sorry they didn't play House in your house last night. Next tour maybe...

[Jagermeister]

[Jagermeister]

[Jagermeister]

Epic!

[David Lee Rocks]

Ok guys, this was the BEST Van Halen show Ive ever seen, and ive seen alot! Even Dave said it was one of the best on the tour so far, 13 rows back left center kind of, FANTASTIC!! My friend i took with me was impressed also, and Kool and the Gang really brought it also! It was worth every penny!! THANK YOU VAN HALEN!! i HEARD A RUMOR ABOUT A SHOW iN oKLAHOMA cITY IN SEPTEMBER, YES!!!!

[houseofpain]

Holy shit! If Okc happens, I will be going there as well. The old myriad wAs a great place to go see concerts and Chesapeake Arena is even better!

[Jagermeister]

Van Halen review: Hot forTulsa

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/scene/arti...8_CUTLIN111112

Diamond" David Lee Roth's trademark caterwaul may not carry the same range it did 30 years ago, but who cares? It came close. Tuesday night's Van Halen tour stop at Tulsa's BOK Center proved it.

Van Halen was back. Fans came to hear the original, and Roth helped give it to them. Each dressed in black, family band Alex (drums), Wolfgang (bass) and Eddie Van Halen (guitar) joined Roth for close to two hours of hedonistic rock anthems.

Roth and Eddie Van Halen often played off each other, Roth's trademark yawp a call-and-response ritual to Eddie's throbbing guitar riffs.

"I'll Wait," "Girl Gone Bad" and "Romeo Delight" melded with "Hot for Teacher," "Panama" and "Jump." They rocketed through their famous covers of the Kinks' "You Really Got Me," Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman" and John Brim's tasty "Ice Cream Man." Every album was represented, though not every hit: "Hear About it Later," "Dance the Night Away," "Runnin' With the Devil" and "Beautiful Girls" all made the set.

Roth, dressed in black leather, sequins and studs, had his high kicks projected large onto a two-story-tall screen. He kicked, he spun, he twirled his mic stand, he slid, he did the splits, he karate-chopped air, he cracked wise, he changed wardrobes, he postured. He reveled in pomposity.

The fans wouldn't accept anything less. He delivered.

"I see a lot of really young kids here tonight with their parents for their first concert," Roth said. "And I just want to let you know, this music is the reason a lot of you exist today!" he added as the crowd cheered.

Van Halen recorded two of my favorite albums: 1980's "Women and Children First" and 1984's seminal "1984." The former's a win for the unusual dexterity between its ego-blasted mix on drum, bass, vocals and guitar and the latter for its front-to-back endurance, its integration of modern electronic sounds and unabashed rock radio viability.

Both are groundbreaking in their swaggering, heady, heavy sound. Eddie Van Halen's technique is legendary - dynamic and startling. His solos are less noodling than they are rabbitholes into an aural other dimension.

Tuesday night proved fertile terrain for Van Halen classics. During "Everybody Wants Some!," Roth's creepy-guy spoken-word lyrics, "This stuff isn't going out on the Internet, honey. No. It's just a couple of pictures. ... I like the way the line runs up the back of the stockings," became a catcall to the outrageous sexuality of rock 'n' roll itself. Alex Van Halen's tribal beat electrified Wolfgang Van Halen's detonating bass and Eddie Van Halen's freewheeling guitar. The crowd became one with the rhythm, bouncing and singing in unity.

Van Halen's new studio album, "A Different Kind of Truth," dropped Feb. 7 on Interscope Records, and the first Roth-Van Halen since "1984."

Tuesday's concert included new music "Tattoo," "She's the Woman," "The Trouble with Never" and "China Town," packed near the front of the set, the new like a collaboration with the past - a time vehicle for with what people really came to see, which is the music that helped propel its album sales past the 75 million mark and define American rock 'n' roll.

Kool & the Gang opened the show with its 11-member set, funky and energetic with a roster of its classics, including "Fresh," "Tonight," "Too Hot," "Get Down On It," and "Celebration." The bright, brassy trills and plucky bass runs of "Jungle Boogie" got fans screaming, on their feet and clapping their hands.

The band was reportedly chosen to open this tour by Roth himself. It thanked him by playing "Hollywood Swinging," a tune Van Halen covered in its earliest days. Indeed, these are the songs almost everyone knows the words to, and they don't necessarily know how or why.

Yes, it is an odd pairing for an arena tour, but the genre-bending time-warp readied fans with timeless music, and, to a certain extent, helped suspend reality. Kool & the Gang wrapped the arena in an envelope of nostalgia.

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/scene/arti...8_CUTLIN111112

[Jagermeister]

http://www.tulsaworld.com/blogs/post...ight_/29-15159

As I'm sure so many concertgoers noticed Tuesday night, mannnn, it was steamy at the BOK Center arena during Van Halen's concert.

Contrary to rumor, the air-conditioning wasn't "broke." The heat wasn't turned on, either. Most simply put, Van Halen requested that the air be turned off.

BOK Center Premium Services Manager Sammi Al-Jiboori sent an email (forwarded to the Tulsa World) to many ticketholders before Tuesday's show to let fans know, "Due to artist request, there will be no air movement during Van Halen's performance. This will result in higher than normal temperatures than what you're probably used to here at the BOK Center."

Yes, I've also heard from several fans that the heat "almost ruined" the concert. And yes, it seems a bit obscene for a band to make thousands of fans uncomfortable when they pay good money to support and see the headlining act.

When contacted, BOK Center management had no additional comment.

With some research, the "air circulation ban" is a request made by the band at seemingly all of its tour stops. Many fan message boards, venues and reviews from the 20-plus stops already made on Van Halen's current North American tour reflect as much.

And, really, I've been to many, many shows (everywhere) that were a lot hotter, much more cramped and pulled off with far more chaos. So maybe I'm a bit more unaffected than most. I'm not the "average" concert-goer.

I've been to indoor concerts where temperatures hit triple digits. ... Remember when Cain's Ballroom had no air conditioning? It never did, until less than a decade ago. I've been to arena concerts that were hotter than last night's show. That's why I generally wear light layers: tank, tee, jacket and (in winter) a coat, especially to arena shows. Hey, because sometimes those places are downright frigid, and sometimes, I'm sure, at artist request.

[Jagermeister]

Holy shit! If Okc happens, I will be going there as well. The old myriad wAs a great place to go see concerts and Chesapeake Arena is even better!

I saw them in OKC on the last tour. It was a great show. Had like 10th row seats. I am not a big fan of that arena though.

[loucap81]

Re: the OKC rumor. I will not be surprised, and almost expect them to do one last extension of the tour to cover more secondary markets west of the Mississippi River. They did 80 dates for the 2004 Van Hagar tour and 75 for the 2007-08 reunion tour. So far only 61 have taken or will take place.

[Light Em' Up!]

I will not be surprised, and almost expect them to do one last extension of the tour to cover more secondary markets west of the Mississippi River. They did 80 dates for the 2004 Van Hagar tour and 75 for the 2007-08 reunion tour. So far only 61 have taken or will take place.

I'm crossing my fingers for Boise, SLC, Reno, Portland, etc...Sniper and I would like to hit at least those 4 of they add them on....

[perrin29]

I'm crossing my fingers for Boise, SLC, Reno, Portland, etc...Sniper and I would like to hit at least those 4 of they add them on....

While you're at it, cross your fingers for me in Halifax.

[Light Em' Up!]

While you're at it, cross your fingers for me in Halifax.

I'm crossing my fingers and toes for whomever has a desire to see them :-)

[Hardrock69]

HARD ROCK69...can't fuckin' wait to read your post about the Tulsa show. It sucked that St Louis didn't get ROMEO DELIGHT (one of top 5 VH songs) and GIRL GONE BAD..I wish they would have put GGB in PRETTY WOMAN'S place....completely changed my attitude on I"LL WAIT..it smokes like Tommy Chong 4/20. Was good in 2007/08...is beyond killer,slap your woman's ass, light a bomb bad ass on this tour,

Well, I won't have a post about the Tulsa show, as I was not there. On FB my best friend had this to say:

Still fired up about the VH show in Tulsa! Outstanding production; Edward played like a demon; Blown Away Royale!!!!

[redfire]

Ok, I have EWS up. It's in 2 parts because of battery problems. But I suck at embedding, so I'll just give the link and someone wants to embed them here, more power to you. Here's the link to my youtube. I'm xxjburr

http://youtu.be/OVDMKhKWAm4

[redfire]

I'm working on uploading Romeo Delight next.

I'm trying to clean up the audio on these other songs...

[Light Em' Up!]

Here you go redfire:

[Light Em' Up!]

And here you go with the embedded part 2

[houseofpain]

That's great J, but who is the idiot screaming close to you?

[redfire]

lol, probably William. No telling. Romeo Delight is up...

[DONNIEP]

Damn, EWS sounds great!

[chi-town324]

awesome stuff guys...they are bringing it still!!

[houseofpain]

I was assuming it was @hop1984.

[redfire]

That's a very good possibility. I have no clue most of the time. Because it could have been any the 3 of us, or all of us.

[Dan]

Glad You Fuckers Had A Sweet As Time.

[perrin29]

And here you go with the embedded part 2

"In fact..I might even be your Dad" Ha ha. Nice one Dave.

[Jagermeister]

lol, probably William. No telling. Romeo Delight is up...

Hell if the lights were on in that video you could see me on the opposite side of the arena I bet.

[redfire]

Lol, nice Jager. I know DTNA should be up on my page as well as another, I just don't remember which ones...

[redfire]

China Town is up. GGB shortly....

[redfire]

[redfire]

Damn you smartphone! It's not letting me embed correctly, so if someone wants to do that, that'd be great.