How about Rolling Stone:

=======

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2007/09/28/gods-of-ro...
9/28/07, 9:07 am EST

Gods of Rock Deliver the Goods: Van Halen Kick Off Reunion Tour

“You’re going to see some tears when they hit that stage,” said
Modesto, California’s Matt Caramella as he waited for Van Halen with
David Lee Roth to hit the stage for the first time since 1984 in
Charlotte, North Carolina, last night. Sure enough, tears streamed
down his face as the lights went down and Eddie Van Halen appeared on
the darkened stage, shirtless and wearing faded green Army fatigue
shorts and white sneakers, cranking out the first few riffs of the
band’s reconstituted Kinks cover “You Really Got Me.” By the time Roth
came out, wearing tight black leather pants, a polka-dotted shirt and
white sports jacket with gaudy black embroidery, Caramella was in
fist-pumping ecstasy. “These guys are my heroes,” he shouted over the
din, “the gods of rock & roll.”

(Click here for photos from this show.)

And for more than two hours, the gods delivered. From “You Really Got
Me” to “Runnin’ with the Devil,” “Dance the Night Away,” “Oh, Pretty
Woman,” “Unchained,” “Hot for Teacher,” “Ice Cream Man,” “Panama,”
guitar-god solo “Eruption,” “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love,” “Jump” and
about thirteen more classic Van Halen tunes, the band was in top form
for their long-overdue reunion. “I’m not going to waste time BS-ing
around tonight,” Roth told the delighted, sold-out crowd of
predominantly middle-aged guys in white- and blue-collar work clothes
and gals who’d retrieved their Eighties bustiers for a night of
original hair-metal nostalgia. But he was lying: Roth was at his BS
best.

His hair may be shorter and crow’s feet longer, but Diamond Dave is
every bit the Vegas showman that he was two decades ago, when he left
Van Halen for an ill-fated solo career that took him from cheesy bad
to train-wreck worse. He showed his gift for gab — and flamboyant duds
— from the get-go, imitating Mick Jagger and martial arts moves,
smiling like a clown, riding a giant microphone. And despite old
wounds, his bandmates seemed charmed by their new old lead singer.
Eddie Van Halen, switching from his signature Peavey “Wolfgang” guitar
to his old, red- and white-striped “Frankenstein,” nuzzled up to Roth
several times. And drummer Alex Van Halen, sporting his trademark
white headband, pounded his kit with a constant smile. If original
bassist Michael Anthony was missed at first, it wasn’t long before
Eddie’s sixteen-year-old son, Wolfgang Van Halen, had the crowd in the
palm of his hands. The teenaged slap-style bass player held his own
with style, grace and grit, throwing out picks to the audience as he
walked the catwalk into the crowd, his bass in hand, during “Atomic
Punk.” There were some bumps along the way, including a few times when
Roth missed his vocal cues, but the audience could not have cared
less.

All four members looked healthy and fit, particularly Eddie, who has
gone from drug-addict weird to middle-age handsome since the original
band’s aborted reunion of 1996. Even young Wolfgang seemed to have
lost some of the baby fat he showed in earlier photographs with the
band. And then there was Diamond Dave, who has evolved from rock &
roll cool to old-Vegas hip with style, grace and his eternally smart
sense of flamboyant irony.

“Did this really happen?” Matt Caramella shouted as the house lights
went up following the encore, “Jump.” By then, his tears had mingled
with the sweat running down his face from his buzz cut. “Man, that was
like a fucking dream.”

=====

How about USA Today:

============

http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/reviews/2007-09-28-van-halen_N.htm...

Music road trip: Van Halen shakes off the cobwebs
Updated 2d 1h ago | Comment  | Recommend  E-mail | Save | Print |
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Attendance: A sellout crowd of more than 18,000

The opener: Ky-Mani Marley incurred favor with the crowd by opening
his half hour set with Roots, Rock, Reggae and finishing with No
Woman, No Cry, two songs from his late father Bob Marley's repertoire.
However, he flashed his own charismatic side by enthralling the crowd
with The March, a hip-hop/reggae hybrid song from his new album,
Radio, that juxtaposed the war in Iraq with street violence.

The crowd: Straight out of 1984. Lots of baseball jerseys and classic
rock band shirts (think Rolling Stones, Ratt, The Who, Rush, AC/DC,
Def Leppard and Foreigner). Many in attendance were in their forties
or older, but twentysomethings and teens were present, too. "We
brought them because they want to see (16-year-old bassist) Wolfgang
(Van Halen, the son of Eddie and ex-wife Valerie Bertinelli)," says
Mandy Mashburn, 38, of York, S.C. She and husband Ric, 37, brought
son, Rick, 14, and his friend Quin Magee, also 14, to the show. Both
boys play guitar and heard Van Halen songs at home, but watched
Wolfgang on YouTube. They already had souvenir T-shirts on.

Says neighbor Jim Gilkeson, 39, a Van Halen concert veteran who
accompanied them, "I prefer (the band's original lead singer) David
(Lee Roth)," he says. Roth fronted the band, founded in L.A. by
brothers Eddie and Alex, for about seven years. Later, Sammy Hagar
took over as lead singer for a decade and a 2004 reunion tour. "Really
in my mind, I think they've all realized (Roth as the lead singer) is
what works."

Stage setting: An S-shaped walkway swooped from above Alex Van Halen's
drum kit and flowed into a catwalk that allowed Roth and others to
cavort through the crowd. The billboard-sized video screen often
displayed an "Eddie cam" view that zoomed in on and captured guitarist
Eddie Van Halen's fretwork. Green laser lights occasionally came into
play.

FIND MORE STORIES IN: CHARLOTTE | Rock | Eddie | Alex | Van Halen |
David Lee Roth | Eddie Van Halen | Sammy Hagar | Wolfgang
The merch: Pretty conservative, considering the modern-day
merchandising frenzy that has led to many bands offering
logo-monikered baby outfits. One on-the-edge offering for the ladies:
a $15 red Van Halen thong. Also: a $70 hoodie, $15 tote bags, $10
sweatbands and a selection of $35-$40 T-shirts sporting the classic VH
logo.

The lowdown: For longtime Van Halen fans, question marks were
answered. First to take the stage, Eddie, 52, emerged — clean-cut,
bare-chested and buff — and fired off some Eruption-era riffs to a
rowdy and affectionate reception from a standing crowd. Any lasting
effects from his rehab stint earlier this year and past treatment for
tongue cancer were not evident. Returning to the band he parted ways
with 22 years ago, Roth, also 52, smiled like a Cheshire cat — and
clad in skintight leather pants and sparkling embroidered tunics — and
strutted like Chanticleer. His flowing locks are gone and his voice
sported a slightly lower register, but Roth sounded virile and
satisfied the faithful with some high-pitched screams and spinning
karate kicks. On drums, Alex, 54, continued to stoke the band's fire
and Wolfgang wooed the crowd with his self-effacing demeanor.

Musical highlights: Showing their teamwork from the get-go, Roth
scatted to Eddie's playing during their cover of the Kinks' You Really
Got Me. "It only took us 20 years to get this far," Roth told the
crowd during the next song, I'm the One (another song from the band's
1978 debut album), referring to decade-long reunion rumors. Two-thirds
of the way into the 2-hour-plus show, Alex and Eddie collaborated on a
crunching intro to Everybody Wants Some!! During Hot for Teacher, Roth
happily exclaimed with emphasis, "I heard you missed us, we're back."
The non-stop barrage that also included Beautiful Girls, their cover
of Roy Orbison's Oh, Pretty Woman and Panama, another from hit album
1984 (released in 1984), filled the arena with hard rock energy rarely
generated since, well, the band's previous forays.

Memorable moments: The absence of bass player Michael Anthony was
obvious, but Wolfgang missed nary a beat neither on bass or background
vocals. In fact, he had his own rock star moments standing at the
stage's crest to strike the opening notes of Runnin' with the Devil
and slapping hands with crowd members while stalking the runway during
Atomic Punk. (Also not mentioned: Sammy Hagar, who served as lead
vocalist after Roth, set to tour with Anthony this fall. Those two
attended the band's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this
year.)

He and his father had a couple touching moments including a smooch
after Dance the Night Away and Eddie sliding across the stage on his
knees — while playing Little Guitars— and coming to a stop at
Wolfgang's feet. Eddie and Roth also had a good rapport and the two
slapped hands after Jump.

"They were like a family up there," said Matt Long, Greenville, N.C..
36, who attended the concert with his brother Andrew, 33. Both have
listened to the band since they were teens. "Honestly, it was
something I didn't think I would see," he said. "The core of the band
is Eddie and Alex, but the alpha male is David. I thought the crowd
was going to be older, but this proves their influence and that the
interest goes beyond generations."

Both were more than pleased with the performance. "I think David held
back. He hasn't been in front of 20,000 people in 20 years," Long
said.

Knowing the group's volatility, he said, "you want to be at the first
show because you don't know what will happen with them."

===========

How about NBC:

============

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21071453/

Van Halen begins tour in spectacular form

Diamond Dave, Eddie shine in first show together in more than 20 years

Jason E. Miczek / AP
David Lee Roth was a campy, lunatic master of ceremonies and in
excellent voice all evening as he twirled around the stage and the
runway that snaked out to the floor during Van Halen's Sept. 27
concert.
 View related photos  Slide show

Top 10 rock guitarists
From Jimi Hendrix to Eddie Van Halen, a subjective look at the best
axe men in rock history.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Van Halen's supercharged Kinks cover “You Really Got
Me” was the band's first single almost 30 years ago. It was even more
exhilarating Thursday night as the rebuilt Van Halen came blazing
across the stage before a sold-out crowd of frenzied classic rock fans
in Charlotte, N.C.

It's been more than two decades since David Lee Roth toured with Eddie
and Alex Van Halen; and with Eddie's teenage son Wolfgang on bass, the
band was every bit as exciting as when it debuted in 1978.

It's not a full-fledged reunion without original bassist Michael
Anthony, but given the group's volatile history, fans seemed
blissfully unconcerned and just happy to see Roth back onstage with
the Van Halen brothers. The charismatic frontman was equally ecstatic,
beaming to the arena, “Well look at all the people here tonight!” Roth
was a campy, lunatic master of ceremonies and in excellent voice all
evening as he twirled around the stage and the runway that snaked out
to the floor. Backed by a giant video screen, the members of Van Halen
were larger-than-life, an aspect they lived up to for the 2 1/2-hour
show.

They might be a little long in the tooth, but there is a timelessness
in Van Halen's music. VH hasn't recorded with Roth in years, and songs
from their multiplatinum 1978-84 catalog remain staples of rock radio.
These churlish, melodic, guitar-driven confections have become
legendary, and from every squealing note to every yelping chorus, the
crowd was positively delirious as Van Halen rocked through such gems
as “I'm the One,” “Runnin' With the Devil,” “Romeo Delight,” “Somebody
Get Me a Doctor” and “Beautiful Girls.” Roth was a lecherous, grinning
harlequin in leather, kicking and screaming all night long. Age might
have affected his hairline, but it hasn't softened his edge; he's
still a bum in the sun who's having fun, and he brought it all to
Charlotte.

From start to finish the show was about Diamond Dave and Eddie Van
Halen. The ultimate guitar hero was a living spectacle, bending and
tapping strings on his various signature guitars. Shirtless and
smiling the entire night, Eddie Van Halen is thrilling to watch; the
man is a virtuoso who basically reinvented the wheel, guitar-wise,
though he made it look effortless, especially during his solo late in
the show.

Alex Van Halen delivered a drum solo, but his strengths were best met
within the songs the band played. His 16-year-old nephew Wolfgang gave
the songs the rock bottom and groove and filled Anthony's place just
fine. But much like Anthony before him — and perhaps because of the
conspicuous nature of his presence (Anthony was not asked to join the
tour) — the youngest Van Halen stayed out of the spotlight. Still, he
played admirably and clearly has inherited his family's musical genes.

Throughout the night, his father would run to play alongside of him or
casually look over and smile. It was a treat to watch the two
generations of Van Halens together.

There was hardly a misstep as the band played one audience favorite
after another: “Everybody Wants Some,” “And the Cradle Will Rock,”
“Unchained,” “(Oh) Pretty Woman.” Keyboards were tracked for “I'll
Wait,” but the group relied almost solely on the guitar histrionics
its known for. Roth was a fuzzy mess during “Hot for Teacher,” as he
seemed so eager to get to that “Hey, I heard ya missed us, we're
back!” line.

The band closed with an encore of its biggest hit, “Jump,” digitally
piping in the bouncy synthesizer that carries the song. When the song
was over, the band took a bow, but no one wanted the show to end.
After 22 years, David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen were back onstage
together rocking and rolling, and hopefully they will continue to do
so for a long time. But come what may, for one perfect night in
Charlotte, Van Halen was nothing short of spectacular.

============

How about Pollstar:

======

http://www.pollstar.com/news/viewnews.pl?NewsID=8388
Off & Runnin' Like The Devil
Updated 03:13 PDT Tue, Oct 02 2007
For all of its fits and starts, the Van Halen tour appears to be off
to a rip-roaring start.
 The Police are getting good reviews. So is Stevie Wonder. But if
reviewers in Charlotte, N.C., are any indication, it is the reunited
Van Halen that is the coolest show of the year.
 To some, Van Halen was going to be a great show no matter what.
Hardcore fans just wanted to see David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen
back together again, and they snatched up tickets without any other
concern. A show at Los Angeles' Staples Center in November sold out in
minutes, prompting a second night to be added for December. There are
also multiple nights in Philadelphia, Las Vegas and Anaheim.
 To others, though, like snarky music bloggers, VH ran a chance of
imploding before the tour launch. And if the volatile personalities
made it to a stage, would they bring it?
 "Early into their first concert together in more than 23 years - the
show no one thought they'd see - Van Halen was doing its best to erase
years of soap opera feuding, false starts and long-fading hopes for a
reunion," the Post & Courier of Charleston said of the tour opener.
"And if there was any doubt they could live up to the band's
considerable legend or the unbelievable hype - and there was plenty of
that - they were viciously putting those concerns to rest. And they
seemed to know it."
 The band was said to have ripped through its 26-song set, with Eddie
Van Halen and Roth all smiles (the latter was said to have a grin on
his face all night). Wolfgang Van Halen - Eddie's 16-year-old son -
was given props.
 Two nights later, VH visited the Greensboro Coliseum in North
Carolina to the same applause.
 "There's just something so right about seeing Roth up there where he
belongs again, even without the mane of hair he used to sport," the
News & Observer said.
 "By the end of the very first song (a crushing "You Really Got Me"),
Roth was scatting his vocal and Eddie Van Halen was duplicating it
syllable for syllable on his guitar. That goofy sense of fun is
exactly the dimension Van Halen lacked during those long, dark Sammy
Hagar years."

===

How about NY Post:

========

http://www.nypost.com/seven/09292007/entertainment/music/reunions_a_j...
REUNION'S A JUMP FOR JOY
By DAN AQUILANTE
 After years of discord, David Lee Roth (left) and Eddie Van Halen
happily share the stage at their tour opener. September 29, 2007 --
VAN HALEN CHARLOTTE, N.C. - After 23 years of merci lessly teasing
their fanatical following with rumors, confirmations and concert
cancella tions, Van Halen, featuring David Lee Roth, started running
with the devil again at a riot ous concert Thursday.

At Charlotte Bobcats Arena, the opening venue of the band's 38-city
arena tour, Van Halen dispelled the doubts that their reunion was just
about grabbing some green, or that it was going to implode before
Diamond Dave yelped the first note.

The quartet may make millions on this tour, but this show was a rock
celebration of the hard-charging vocals and bombastic stagecraft of
Roth and the rollicking guitar riffs of Eddie Van Halen.

And the longstanding hate that festered between the Van clan and Roth
was nonexistent at this performance.

It was more than just stage chemistry between Eddie and Dave. As
unlikely as it may seem, the two acted like brothers who were proud of
each other.

As for Eddie's actual brother, Alex Van Halen, who mans the drums, his
big, goofy, toothy smile said he was a very happy to be back at rock
camp again.

If there was any noticeable tension, it came from bassist Wolfgang Van
Halen (Eddie's 16-year-old bass-playing son), who commendably kept up
with pop and the gang, but was obviously feeling the pressure of
having replaced original bassist and backup singer Michael Anthony.

But even young Wolfie's stiffness eased as the night progressed and
the sold-out show got deeper into the set that mixed a few choice
covers with most of the band's classics from the Roth era.

Between the opening version of the Kinks' "You Really Got Me" and the
band's own "Somebody Get Me a Doctor," spontaneous fan-appreciation
applause erupted and went on and on. A solid five minutes of cheers
that had Roth dabbing at tears and Eddie scanning the house
slack-jawed. It was a blue-moon moment of unrehearsed concert triumph
that threaded its way through the rest of the show.

Chitchat was at a minimum, as if no one wanted to say anything wrong.

Dave, who wore stitched leather pants and an occasional top hat,
gushed, "It took us 20 years to come this far," and Eddie kept his
speeches to simple "Thanks."

The music was doing all the talking with a set that included warhorses
such as "Runnin' With the Devil," "Everybody Wants Some!!" (complete
with Dave mouthing a very credible revving Harley), "Jamie's Cryin',"
"Panama," "Oh, Pretty Woman," "Hot for Teacher" and, of course,
"Jump." It was an all-hits-all-the-time concert, easy for a band that
actually is in the Guinness World Records book as having the most No.
1 hits on Billboard's rock charts.

That said, for most of this 21/2-hour show, no one sat - no one wanted
to.

The only major miscalculation in the concert was the 10-minute Eddie
solo that was five minutes too long. The guitar ace's noodling was
intricate, passionate and expressive, yet as it went on - and on some
more - the repeated patterns became less engaging. No doubt guitar
geeks will disagree, but, during that lengthy solo, many in the
audience went to fetch beers or sat down to wait for him to finish.

In a year of unexpected reunions from to the Police to the upcoming
Led Zeppelin concert in London, the reunited Van Halen has become the
most welcome of all.

The band will make three area appearances: The first is at the
Meadowlands Nov. 3, with a show at Nassau Coliseum on Nov. 8 and a
Madison Square Garden gig set for Nov. 13. If you're a fan, this is
the must-see concert of the year.

=========

I've got about 20 more. Haven't seen a nagative one yet.