Home » Archives » March 2007 » Rock and Roll Never Forgets ...
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03/13/2007: "Rock and Roll Never Forgets ..."
It's been an interesting week for a couple of '70s arena rock bands, with both good and bad news.
Every garage band dreams of success, but just how do you measure success for a band? Money? Platinum albums? Chicks? Certainly one way is to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Admittedly, the honorees can be hit-and-miss, as some who are admitted are questionable and others who belong are overlooked.
But imagine if a band got the call that they were to be inducted into the Hall, and when the Committee opened the door no one was there to be honored? That's pretty much what happened with Van Halen last night. Without question, VH belongs in the HOF. At a time when disco dominated the airwaves, the first notes from "Eruption" on the debut album told you the revolution had started. Powered by the Van Halen brothers and bassist Michael Anthony, and fronted by ultimate showman David Lee Roth - assless pants and all - VH redefined hard rock with a series of successful albums from 1976 to 1984. Eddie Van Halen's two-handed tapping method - so unique he initially turned his back to the crowd during solos to protect the secret - completely changed the way the electric guitar was played.
As is often the case in high energy bands, time led to turmoil, and the '80s saw a change in singers with Sammy Hagar replacing Roth. The sound was different ("Van Hagar" scoffed the old schood fans), but the success only grew. But even that couldn't be maintained, and by the end of the decade the band had fractured again. Over the years, various high-profile attempts at reconciliation - and equally high-profile meltdowns - have occured, and in theory the band plans to tour in some form once Eddie gets out of rehab. The fractuous nature of the band, however, meant that only Hagar and Anthony - both of whom are not part of the touring plans - were on hand for the HOF ceremony.
At about the same time as Van Halen was honing their chops in LA, a group of bar band veterans were forming on the east coast. Part of a community of musicians who constantly shifted lineups in an attempt to find the magic, this particular group - led by guitarist Tom Scholz and singer Brad Delp - caught lightning in a bottle. Recording in the studio built by Scholz with the profits from his day job with Polaroid, the group took the name of their town - Boston - and the rest is history. Still one of the best selling records in history, the combination of Scholz's layered guitar riffs and Delp's powerful voice rendered a series of classic tunes. It was a difficult sound to create, though, and while there were only a few years between the first two albums, the wait between each new disc got larger and larger. By the time their third album "Third Stage" was released, time - and music - had moved on. They still had their fans, but not the success they had seen. This band, too, had personnel issues, and Scholz is the only member who lasted through the years.
There was talk of a Boston reunion tour, but that was dashed with the news last week of the death of Brad Delp. Delp, 55, was found dead in his New Hampshire home of presumed natural causes. Another voice silenced, but the music will live on forever.
