Changing lead singers midstream tends to have an adverse effect on most rock bands, but after original vocalist David Lee Roth left Van Halen in 1985, the group topped the charts with their next album, 1986's '5150.' Two years later, they released their eighth LP, 'OU812' -- and the hits kept right on coming.
Van Halen finally returned to the stage over the weekend (April 20) at the Stone Music Festival in Sydney, Australia and look who showed up for the festivities – Joe Perry and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. Okay, in all fairness, Aerosmith was on the bill as well, but it still made for some great photo ops behind the scenes.
There are tons of stories and legends surrounding the Mighty Van Halen. Everything from insane threesomes to David Lee Roth getting fired from the band because our very own Flynt Stone slipped Diamond Dave some bad acid. The stories are almost as good as the music. But the newest story from Van Halen may be the icing on the cake...David Lee Roth took out insurance on his penis!
All signs point not just to a full recovery and return to the road for Eddie Van Halen, but some forthcoming new music, as well. The guitarist, who was sidelined by a nasty case of diverticulitis last year, has posted a photo to Facebook of himself in the studio.
In a move that's sure to silence persistent doubters and reasonable cynics everywhere, Van Halen appears committed to prolonging its latest reunion with long-estranged frontman David Lee Roth well into the summer of 2013.
David Lee Roth doesn't mince words when it comes to what's kept Van Halen from playing Australia in recent years. The group announced they'll play the Stone Festival in Sydney this April. Roth suggests they'd tour the world regularly if it were up to him.
Growing up in one of rock's preeminent musical families with a classical composer's first name, Wolfgang Van Halen was probably destined to be a musician before he was big enough to pick up a bass -- but as he pointed out during a recent interview, he says that was still able to find his own path.
Van Halen guitar great Eddie Van Halen recently had a bit of a health scare when he underwent emergency surgery due to a serious flare-up of diverticulitis, a condition impacting the intestine causing it to become infected or inflamed, causing immense pain.
