By JIM FARBER NY DAILY NEWS MUSIC CRITIC
Still in there kicking: David Lee Roth, who shared the bill with Sammy Hagar at the PNC Bank Arts Center
Maybe it's best to look at David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar's joint tour as rock's answer to 'The First Wives Club.' Two spurned singers from one of history's most mammoth bands (Van Halen) have teamed up to reclaim assets they've shared with a man who had great meaning in their lives, Eddie Van Halen. Practically speaking, the tour lets them earn fresh bucks off material they wrote and recorded long ago with a band that now seems hopelessly sidelined.
Never mind that the two have bad-mouthed each other for years (something Hagar ratcheted up in a recent interview). Still, there are mortgages to be paid and egos to be stroked. So this strange pair managed to lumber into the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, N.J., on Tuesday for a combination rock concert, face-off and car wreck.
The stars, who didn't acknowledge each other in their sets, have been alternating headline and opening slots. This time, Roth took first bows. Making no attempt to keep au courant, Roth began with a video montage of ancient Van Halen memorabilia. He also had his players strike as many poses as possible from his '80s prime.
Nor has Roth risked updating his look. He's still sporting long locks, though they now sprout from a far smaller portion of his head. And he's wearing the old low-riding spandex, the crotch region of which he fondled with the letchy vigor of the dirtiest old man imaginable. Ultimately, he most closely resembled the Bette Davis role in 'What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?' - a character who would not, or could not, acknowledge the cruel passage of time.
For the record, Roth can still do the high kicks. And he completed one of his old splits - a move that seemed to surprise him as much as anyone.
Vocally, he hit enough notes to please the crowd. And his band did a competent job of karaoke-ing the great old songs.
Hagar showed more vocal command, and a greater willingness to dress his age. He covered up his increasing girth and sported a shorter hairdo. But he did an ever harder sell on his history, yammering about Eddie as if they were still best friends, and touting his solo hits as if they were equal to Van Halen's.
Interspersed with the music were frequent plugs for his bar in Mexico, plus entreaties to the Jersey crowd to drink. While Roth offered a campiness that substituted for self-awareness, Hagar played his role as the world's oldest frat boy with deep self-regard. Luckily for both singers, their smirks and leering were backed by songs strong enough to let them get away with anything.
AGC FAQ and FUN STUFF
http://www.dreamwater.net/agc/mainpages/agcfaq.html BLIND ITEM REHASH:
