The Van Halen Tour Office Pool
Van Halen made it official today. There will be a tour... they refuse to call it a reunion and that is, in part, because it isn't. Michael Anthony is out and Wolfgang "Wolfie" Van Halen (son of Eddie and ex-wife Valerie Bertenelli). And, while I'm a skeptic, I have to say that they all looked good. Eddie looked healthy, Diamond Dave looked solid, Alex was Alex, and Wolfie looks so much like both his parents it is scary!
They were hugging, lovey-dovey and in good spirits, just as would any of us if we knew we were about to make millions of dollars. And don't kid yourself... this tour will sell out coast-to-coast even if they only bring their 'B' game. The fans who bought their albums as teenagers are all in their 30s and 40s now, with disposable income geared and primed for anything to make us....er...them feel young again!
That all being said, here is the deal with my "Office Pool". The following are the dates of the first leg of the tour:
Sept. 27: Charlotte, N.C. (Bobcats Arena)
Sept. 29: Greensboro, N.C. (Coliseum)
Oct. 1: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center)
Oct. 7: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Oct. 10: Cleveland (Quicken Loans Arena)
Oct. 14: Indianapolis (Conseco Fieldhouse)
Oct. 16: Chicago (Allstate Arena)
Oct. 18: Chicago (United Center)
Oct. 22: Auburn Hills, Mich. (Palace of Auburn Hills)
Oct. 24: Minneapolis (Target Center)
Oct. 26: Kansas City, Mo. (Sprint Center)
Oct. 28: St. Louis (Scottrade Center)
Oct. 30: Boston (TD Banknorth Garden)
Nov. 3: East Rutherford, N.J. (Continental Airlines Arena)
Nov. 13: New York (Madison Square Garden)
Nov. 20: Los Angeles (Staples Center)
Nov. 23: Glendale, Ariz. (Jobing.com Arena)
Nov. 25: San Diego (Cox Arena)
Nov. 27: Sacramento, Calif. (Arco Arena)
Nov. 29: San Jose, Calif. (HP Pavilion)
Dec. 1: Portland, Ore. (Rose Garden)
Dec. 3: Seattle (Key Arena)
Dec. 5: Vancouver (GM Place)
Dec. 9: Edmonton, Alberta (Rexall Palace)
Dec. 11: Calgary, Alberta (Pengrowth Saddledome)
Your job is to pick two dates:
1. The date of the first reported incident of in-fighting. The predicted date should be that of the would-be Associated Press story on such a dust-up.
2. The date where the whole thing blows up and the tour is canceled. If you think they'll make it then say "They'll complete the tour" in the comments section.
There will be two winners (or possibly sets of winners) and, yes, there will be prizes. (What those prizes will be is TBD but I have been known to make mix CDs for people and what not.)
So... pick your dates, have fun, and let's start runnin' with the devil... or something.
J
*******************
On the music front... time to self-promote.
The new edition of my monthly music podcast/show, Soundtrack, is ready and good to go. "Take Covers" is show #18 and, as the title implies, it is an all-covers edition. You can get it in one of two formats:
1. The "Standard" Version: http://www.sendspace.com/file/j3ldet
A single, 109MB MP3 with the whole show as one file. Simple, easy to burn direct to CDR, etc.
2. The "Bonus" Version: http://www.sendspace.com/file/sz2nlj
This is Zip file, with the show divided up into two MP3 files, along with 9 'bonus' tracks that were considered for the shoe but didn't make the cut.
As always, please let me know if you grabbed it, listened, and what you thought.
Thanks.
They were hugging, lovey-dovey and in good spirits, just as would any of us if we knew we were about to make millions of dollars. And don't kid yourself... this tour will sell out coast-to-coast even if they only bring their 'B' game. The fans who bought their albums as teenagers are all in their 30s and 40s now, with disposable income geared and primed for anything to make us....er...them feel young again!
That all being said, here is the deal with my "Office Pool". The following are the dates of the first leg of the tour:
Sept. 27: Charlotte, N.C. (Bobcats Arena)
Sept. 29: Greensboro, N.C. (Coliseum)
Oct. 1: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center)
Oct. 7: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Oct. 10: Cleveland (Quicken Loans Arena)
Oct. 14: Indianapolis (Conseco Fieldhouse)
Oct. 16: Chicago (Allstate Arena)
Oct. 18: Chicago (United Center)
Oct. 22: Auburn Hills, Mich. (Palace of Auburn Hills)
Oct. 24: Minneapolis (Target Center)
Oct. 26: Kansas City, Mo. (Sprint Center)
Oct. 28: St. Louis (Scottrade Center)
Oct. 30: Boston (TD Banknorth Garden)
Nov. 3: East Rutherford, N.J. (Continental Airlines Arena)
Nov. 13: New York (Madison Square Garden)
Nov. 20: Los Angeles (Staples Center)
Nov. 23: Glendale, Ariz. (Jobing.com Arena)
Nov. 25: San Diego (Cox Arena)
Nov. 27: Sacramento, Calif. (Arco Arena)
Nov. 29: San Jose, Calif. (HP Pavilion)
Dec. 1: Portland, Ore. (Rose Garden)
Dec. 3: Seattle (Key Arena)
Dec. 5: Vancouver (GM Place)
Dec. 9: Edmonton, Alberta (Rexall Palace)
Dec. 11: Calgary, Alberta (Pengrowth Saddledome)
Your job is to pick two dates:
1. The date of the first reported incident of in-fighting. The predicted date should be that of the would-be Associated Press story on such a dust-up.
2. The date where the whole thing blows up and the tour is canceled. If you think they'll make it then say "They'll complete the tour" in the comments section.
There will be two winners (or possibly sets of winners) and, yes, there will be prizes. (What those prizes will be is TBD but I have been known to make mix CDs for people and what not.)
So... pick your dates, have fun, and let's start runnin' with the devil... or something.
J
*******************
On the music front... time to self-promote.
The new edition of my monthly music podcast/show, Soundtrack, is ready and good to go. "Take Covers" is show #18 and, as the title implies, it is an all-covers edition. You can get it in one of two formats:
1. The "Standard" Version: http://www.sendspace.com/file/j3ldet
A single, 109MB MP3 with the whole show as one file. Simple, easy to burn direct to CDR, etc.
2. The "Bonus" Version: http://www.sendspace.com/file/sz2nlj
This is Zip file, with the show divided up into two MP3 files, along with 9 'bonus' tracks that were considered for the shoe but didn't make the cut.
As always, please let me know if you grabbed it, listened, and what you thought.
Thanks.