A Different Kind Of Show

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Van Halen

February 8, 2012

Los Angeles Forum

Final Dress Rehearsal

So what happens when a photographer (and the biggest Van Halen fan I know) goes to Van Halen’s dress rehearsal and forgets his camera?  He ends up with photos like this.  Confused?  Read on.

I had heard of Van Halen’s “Friends And Family” dress rehearsal shows since I was a kid growing up in the San Gabriel Valley – Van Halen country as we call it.  This was a dream come true!

I knew I would not be allowed to bring my usual high end camera gear to the rehearsal, so I charged up the battery in my trusty Canon G-10 and cleared the memory card and was ready to snap away.  I was allowed to bring a guest with me to the show, so I immediately chose my 12 year old daughter – she loves the DLR!  I didn’t tell her where we were going, it made for a great surprise.

As we parked in the L.A. Forum parking lot, our excitement grew.  The second I stepped out of my car, I knew I had blown it.  I left my camera at home on the living room table – I had placed it there so I would not forget it.  Great job, Kevin!

I was devastated!  Immediately, my excitement turned to fatigue, all energy was sucked out of my body.  The walk into the venue must have been the longest walk of my life.  My daughter tried her best to console me, but she knows what a VH fan I am and how much I was looking forward to snapping some photos.

I began convincing myself that we would not be sitting close enough to the stage to get decent photos – that made me feel better. As we approached the inside of the arena, an usher asks us if we would like to sit in the upper seats or the loge section or if we wanted to go up front on the floor. Of course we chose to go up front on the floor.   Nothing like Van Halen right in front of your naked, steaming eyes!

We scored a spot so close to the stage we could nearly touch the band!  Kool And The Gang opened the show and I saw that everyone was snapping photos and shooting video with their phones.  We were all so close, that even the photos on the phones looked pretty good. It was killing me – there was no way I was going to make it through the show without shooting photos.

So I scouted the area and I found a friendly (and a bit intoxicated) woman and her pissed off punker husband with a Canon PowerShot. I couldn’t take my eyes off their camera. After about 10 minutes, I walk over to the husband and explain that I forgot my camera at home and I need to shoot some photos. I tell him that I will give them $20 if they let me shoot a handful of photos with their camera. They stare at me like I am nuts and ask me to explain it again – and again and again. Finally, after some begging she agrees and hands me the camera, just in time for VH to hit the stage.

At one point, the alcohol had her feeling a bit artsy, so she grabs the camera from me and starts screwing up the settings I had dialed in and tries to snap some miscellaneous photos. Just then, Alex jumps behind his drum kit and the lights drop.  Her husband yells at her, grabs the camera and hands it back to me and says, “Just to hold on to it for the rest of the show.” Yes!!

I dial my settings back in, and Van Halen tears into “You Really Got Me.” The camera shot a bit slow for me and had a bit of lag time, but it did the job. At the end of the show we exchanged numbers and email info so I can have them send me the photos.  The next day I discover that the couple does not know how to get the photos off the card.  I am getting worried the photos are going to be deleted or lost, or worse.  So I jump in my car and drive 60 miles to their home and grab the photos.  I must have had a smile a mile wide the whole way home!

This was one of the greatest nights of my life, so I wanted to share a handful of my photos with you…hope you like them.  And be sure to support Van Halen by buying their new CD and seeing them when they come to your hometown.

Ross Hogarth…you da’ man!!

Photographed with a borrowed Canon PowerShot SX130.

Heard You Missed Us…We’re Back!

Van Halen
Reunion Press Conference
Four Seasons Hotel
Los Angeles, CA
August 10, 2008

This was the day I had been waiting for since the DLR and the band split in 1986.  A reunion…well, not exactly…not without Michael Anthony.  But I think true Van Halen fans, myself included,  felt that this was the closest we were going to get to a true reunion.

This was the first big press conference I had ever really attended…I really don’t go to these kinds of things…but hey, this is Van Halen!

I had never felt so much excitement and electricity in the air that day.  Everyone attending had smiles across their faces.  And as soon as the band marched through the crowd to the stage, everyone regressed to acting like a teen.

Diamond Dave proved that he had not lost the gift of gab, but it was the brotherly hug between Eddie Van Halen and DLR that made the crowd melt.  It was magic, if only for a brief moment in time.

I was on cloud nine as I left the building that day looking through the bands list of tour dates for the reunion tour.  I noticed that the L.A. date fell on my wedding anniversary…ugh!  Guess how I celebrated our anniversary?  That’s right, my photos came out great!

Photographed with my Canon 5D, a Canon 24-70mm 2.8 lens and a Canon 580 EX flash.

Classic Reunions…Van Halen

Van Halen
Staples Center : Los Angeles
November 20, 2007

***
Part two of a five part series I am doing this week on Classic Reunions. Each day I will add a new photo of a featured artist and that band’s classic reunion.
***

By 1986, David Lee Roth had done his own solo EP, written a book and was talking about doing some acting. After years of tension with Eddie Van Halen, Roth left the band. The relationship had gotten so bad both sides couldn’t even agree on whether or not he left or was kicked out. After that, Van Halen hired and fired Sammy Hagar, tried a stint with Gary Cherone (that bombed big time), and then re-hired Sammy. They were supposed to do a world tour with Sammy, but wound up only playing gigs in North America. For the second time, Sammy exited the band and tensions were erupting between Eddie and Michael Anthony, who had always been close with Sammy.

The two had gotten into the food business, with Sammy selling Cabo Wabo Tequila and opening up his club in Mexico, and Michael selling his own line of BBQ Sauce called Mad Anthony’s. This seemed to really piss Eddie off, and when he kicked Michael Anthony out of the band, he complained that Sammy and Anthony were touring together, and singing songs Eddie wrote while selling food and drink. Eddie’s son Wolfgang was brought in to replace Anthony. Big offers were always flooding in for a Van Halen reunion, and even back in 1996 the band was set to do it. But even then, Eddie and Dave couldn’t get along and the plans were scrapped.

In 2007 it was announced that they were finally going to bury the hatchet, but just then Eddie entered a rehab program. None of us knew what to expect when he came out, but luckily he got out and declared the reunion was still on. Technically speaking, this was not a full Van Halen reunion as Michael Anthony was not included. Still, it was fantastic to see the dynamic team of Eddie VH and DLR once again together on stage.

Photographed from the soundboard with a Canon 5D and a Canon 400mm f2.8 lens.

Link to Cabo Wabo
http://www.cabowabo.com/

Link to Michael Anthony’s BBQ sauce
http://www.madanthonycafe.com/macstore.html