Review: Van Halen turns back clock to the good days

"You Really Got Me" roared through Arco Arena, and for a moment, Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth had their arms around each other like old buddies. It might seem like a small gesture. But in the saga of Van Halen, any embrace between the two counts as a triumph.

Previous attempts to reunite Roth with his old band left only puddles of bad blood. But the Van Halen that played Sacramento on Tuesday night was all about perma-grins - or at least great game faces - and a powerful two-hour set of Van Halen classics.

There was none of that "Van Hagar" stuff, and Roth's solo work was thankfully left for another time. (Whew, no "Just a Gigolo.")

Van Halen circa 2007 brings the band back to its party rocking best: Diamond Dave and Eddie Van Halen sharing a microphone during the high harmonies of "Dance the Night Away" and a capacity crowd of 15,000-plus going bonkers during "Beautiful Girls" and "Panama."

It was enough to make you forget that Sammy Hagar once was the voice of Van Halen. And that Gary Cherone guy who fronted Van Halen for a milli-second after Hagar left? We'll just pretend that didn't happen.

Eddie Van Halen, meanwhile, looked elated, speed-picking his custom guitars with a smile and ripping through "Eruption" like it was 1978 all over again. It was a whole different Eddie Van Halen than the frazzled guitar god who performed in Sacramento a couple years ago.

Van Halen's rejuvenation is obviously inspired by the band's 16-year-old bassist. That's Wolfgang Van Halen, the son of Eddie and replacement for original bassist Michael Anthony. (Roth described the lineup as "three-quarters original, one-quarter inevitable.") The elder Van Halen played a dual role of guitar hero and proud papa, giving his son numerous kisses and doting on Wolfgang as he rumbled away on bass.

Add Wolfgang's uncle Alex on drums, and the two generations of Van Halens made for a mighty rhythm section. The flip side is that Roth's vocals were over-powered at times, especially with Eddie's guitar riffing away.

But for a teenager, who'd otherwise be studying for finals right about now, Wolfgang did an admirable job of anchoring the band and singing Van Halen's signature harmonies. The young dude could loosen up a little more, but he'll certainly get more comfortable with a few more tours under his belt. By the time he's the ripe old age of 19, he'll be a pro.

But there'll be only one Diamond Dave, the mouth behind "Mean Streets" and archetype for high-kicking singers everywhere. At 53, Roth is less airborne than in the "Jump" video days of yore, but still has a few good leaps left in him.

He didn't hold back much on his vocals, either - "And the Cradle Will Rock" and "Hot for Teacher" were delivered righteously - but Roth's phrasing was so loose that it sometimes sounded scatterbrained.

And who knew that Roth played such tasty acoustic guitar, like he did on "Ice Cream Man"? Once the rest of the band kicked the tune into high gear, the song rarely sounded hotter.

The night started off on a much mellower note with an opening set by Ky-Mani Marley. Van Halen's party rock is about as far away as you can get from reggae, but the son of Bob Marley and his band eased the crowd (at least the ones who weren't in line for beer and T-shirts) into 30 minutes of Jamaican music. Marley's versions of "No Woman No Cry" and "I Shot the Sheriff" were received just fine.

An opening set of hard rock might've made the night feel overloaded. Van Halen rocked with more than enough wattage of its own, like when Eddie and Wolfgang kneeled side by side and pounded through "Romeo Delight" with Roth singing away.

At least the fireworks were in Van Halen's music this time, not some behind-the-scenes flare-up.

About the writer:

• Call Bee pop music critic Chris Macias, (916) 321-1253. Read his blog at www.SacTicket.com/beatnonstop.