The long awaited return of one of the best vocalists ever to stand on stage with one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Eddie Van Halen, has finally reached Manchester, as Sammy Hagar takes the stage with an all star lineup. Michael Anthony of Van Halen, guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani and drummer Kenny Aronoff make up the band, with 70s throwback act Jayler in support.
Jayler came first with half an hour of Led Zeppelin inspired hard rock, complete with crunchy guitar work that harks back to the glory days of classic rock. Frontman James Bartholomew had a glass shattering wail, dropping in little bits of harmonica wizardry on tracks like ‘Riverboat Queen’, a song that sounded like it had been sitting in a vault since 1974 waiting to be discovered. ‘No Woman’ gave a bit of a Deep Purple feel with its punchy staccato riffing, and that fit perfectly with the boogie driven blues riffs making up the rest of the set.
It’s hard to gauge a band’s full spectrum in half an hour, but this felt wholly representative of their skills as they flung out twiddly guitar solos and wild drum fills in a solid warmup for the man everyone came to see. Highly recommended for fans of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath.
After a short break, the man himself made his way onto the Apollo stage for the first time in almost 20 years and got straight into the Van Halen classic ‘Why Can’t This Be Love’. Within seconds, the audience was transported back to 1986. The mix was a bit rough at first, with Joe Satriani hard to hear and Michael Anthony‘s vocal harmonies drowned out, but this was quickly fixed and a marvellous mix filled the room for the rest of the set.
Despite being 78 years old, Sammy Hagar was still at the top of his game as he danced his way around the stage and proved once and for all that he’s still one of the best in the business. He may be a divisive figure among Van Halen fans, but the inclusion of mega hits like ‘Top Of The World’ and ‘Cabo Wabo’, plus a David Lee Roth era hit performed by Michael Anthony in the form of ‘Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love’, gave the audience the closest experience to seeing the real Van Halen possible. These tracks felt incredibly authentic and were lovingly recreated by Joe Satriani, who slots into Eddie’s legendary shoes without the slightest bit of ego or any assumption that he could ever fill them. He knows it’s a tribute to a legend.
Despite having more knowledge of the Roth era, this show was a great introduction to a part of Van Halen history that many, including myself, have overlooked. The iconic “hello baby” intro of ‘Good Enough’ and the fun, energetic choreography of ‘Best Of Both Worlds’ carry the same raucous energy as early Van Halen, while showing a more mature and thoughtful period of the band’s songwriting.
As you’d expect from The Best Of All Worlds tour, Hagar’s own history is well represented, with tracks from Montrose and his solo career getting an airing. The pure chaos of ‘Bad Motor Scooter’, with trade off solos between Sammy and Joe paired with legendary video clips of Evel Knievel on screen, made for an almost overstimulating experience in the best way possible.
Hagar’s solo material showcases some of the best rock the 80s have to offer, with the title track from the 1981 cult film Heavy Metal continuing to be a fan favourite and an iconic slab of legendary riffing. The hits just kept coming, with ‘I Can’t Drive 55’ and ‘There’s Only One Way To Rock’ filling the airwaves as a crowd of rockers of various ages partied like it was 1984.
Joe Satriani had his time to shine as he played ‘Satch Boogie’, a high octane shred fest full of weird and wonderful guitar licks. Every single time he’s tasked with laying down an insane solo, he aces it with flying colours. Even though he’s wearing sunglasses indoors, he absolutely dominates and looks effortlessly cool doing it.
The show ended with a story about Sammy Hagar‘s dream of writing a song with Eddie Van Halen, only to forget it by the time he woke up. This led to Joe Satriani stepping in to finish the song, and it’s a heartfelt but high energy moment that felt like closure for both Sammy and the legion of Van Halen fans in the audience.
The night was somewhat bittersweet. It was good to see Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony on stage together again, and nice to have a partial reunion of Chickenfoot, but this is now the closest anyone can get to seeing Van Halen again. It was a lovely tribute to a man who convinced so many to pick up a guitar, and it didn’t overshadow Sammy’s show. He simply rocked as hard as he possibly could, and that’s all anyone can feasibly ask for.
