Larry Rodgers
The Arizona Republic

It's been 22 years and a world of ups and downs since David Lee Roth fronted a Van Halen concert tour, but the quartet is showing no signs of rust as its reunion outing traverses North America.

Founding members Roth, guitarist Eddie Van Halen and drummer Alex Van Halen -- joined by Eddie's 16-year-old son, Wolfgang on bass -- delivered a crisp, well-paced performance when they visited Glendale's Jobing.com Arena on Nov. 23.

Roth's flowing blond hair and Spandex outfits of the late '70s and '80s are gone, as are Eddie Van Halen's zany jumpsuits and original bassist Michael Anthony (who got a little too close to Roth's arch-rival and successor, Sammy Hagar), but this Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band still has the power to mesmerize an arena full of fans.

From the gritty opening chords of You Really Got Me (a Kinks cover) to the synthesizer-enhanced show-closer, Jump, Van Halen had the crowd -- which weighed heavily toward the 35-and-over set -- in a death grip.

The one-two punch of Eddie Van Halen's otherwordly guitar work and Roth's sex-charged vocals remains a force that can keep 19,000 fans on their feet for most of two hours.

Two decades after splitting with Van Halen as he pursued a solo career, Roth has morphed from the dangerous, karate-kicking rock stud into everyone's slightly goofy, fun-loving uncle. He threw in a token kick and twirl now and then in Glendale, but he was mainly content to stroll around the stage with the grin of a man who's gone from being busted in a New York City park for buying pot to playing with a group pulling in $1 million per night.

Roth, 53, donned various brocade jackets, leather pants and three colors of top hats thoughout the evening, happily playing the part of circus ringmaster. But Eddie Van Halen was every bit his equal in this latest incarnation of the band.

Fashion and showmanship aside, Roth nailed the vocals to such rock classics as Jamie's Cryin', Running With the Devil, Panama, And the Cradle Will Rock and Pretty Woman.

Van Halen has had his share of struggles, from the failure of his marriage to actress Valerie Bertinelli to an apparently successful battle with cancer. With his hair cropped and his bare, rock-hard torso on display all night, he grinded and swerved through the set, showing that he still has plenty of guitar-slinger moves despite that rocky road.

Van Halen couldn't hide his sheer delight in performing with his son, and who could blame him? After the two dropped to their knees, facing each other, for an instrumental jam during Romeo Delight, Van Halen reached over and gave his son a kiss on the cheek. The pair got a kick out of jumping off the drum riser together to end a few songs.

The stocky, baby-faced Wolfgang Van Halen won over the audience with solid playing. (The band's bass lines were never the most challenging in rock.) He got good-natured encouragement from Roth, who said, "Oh, somebody's been practicing their bass guitar" as the young player rocked out during So This Is Love? Later in the evening, Wolfgang deadpanned to Roth: "Dave, get me a drink."

This set was more focused and precise that Van Halen's visits to the Valley with Hagar at the helm. Eddie Van Halen showcased his jaw-dropping skills in a few extended solos, but much of his best work came in short spurts in between Roth's singing. Those bursts of billiance included a funky intro to Mean Streets, a hot-shot turn in Beautiful Girls and a wah- wah lead at the end of Unchained.

Van Halen, 52, brought out the heavy artillery late in the show, with a 10-minute solo that ran the gamut from classically-inspired runs to mellow chords to speed riffs that had some concertgoers shaking their heads.

That solo led into a version of Ain't Talkin' Bout Love that showcased the high backing vocals (now courtesy of Van Halen & Son) that have been the band's calling card and brought the house down in Glendale.

Roth walked onto the tightrope when he decided to accompany himself on acoustic guitar for the first half of the bluesy Ice Cream Man. He cracked up the crowd with memories of playing at "dollar-a-head parties" and smoking whatever in 1972, and he pulled off the moment, which ended when the rest of the band crashed in for the finale.

The quibbles with this set were few: Hot For Teacher, one of the band's more funny tunes, was delivered at a breakneck speed that didn't allow for the smart-aleck lyrics to sink in.

And the show ended on a less-than-stellar note when the band failed to fully synchronize its playing with the piped-in synthesizer chords of Jump.

But with its power still largely intact, Van Halen lived up to the hype of this long-awaited reunion with its original front man.

Ky-Mani Marley, a son of the late reggae pioneer Bob Marley, performed a well-received opening set.

Marley mixes hip-hop and reggae in an appealing way, and he spotlighted his latest album, Radio, as well as engaging covers of two of his father's most well-known songs, No Woman No Cry and I Shot the Sheriff.

Van Halen set list:

You Really Got Me
I'm the One
Runnin' With the Devil
Romeo Delight
Somebody Get Me a Doctor
Beautiful Girls
Dance the Night Away
Atomic Punk
Everybody Wants Some
So This Is Love?
Mean Street
Pretty Woman
Unchained
I'll Wait
And the Cradle Will Rock
Hot for Teacher
Little Dreamer
Little Guitars
Jamie's Cryin'
Ice Cream Man
Panama
Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love

Encore:
1984
Jump

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