Original Van Halen reunites (almost) for tour & Hall induction

What a week for my all-time favorite bands.

First, The Police announced this week that they are reuniting to perform at the Grammy Awards, and now Van Halen has announced a 40-city tour and a reunion with their original frontman, David Lee Roth.

As a long-time fan of the band, this is pretty cool news, but about a decade too late.

I saw the Sammy Hagar / David Lee Roth tour a few summers ago, and it was pretty decent, but Hagar was clearly the better performer of the two. I sure hope Roth is up for the tour and that he rehearses.

Of course, it's Van Halen, so there still has to be a wee bit of drama. Longtime bassist Michael Anthony (above, far left) is gone, replaced by Eddie Van Halen's 15-year old son, Wolfgang.

"I am very excited to get back to the core of what made Van Halen," Eddie Van Halen said in a statement Friday.

Of course, Roth wasn't at a loss for words about a reunion - he's been calling for a reunion for some time.

"It's very simple to put together," Roth said last summer. "And as far as hurt feelings and water under the dam, like what's-her-name at the end of the movie Chicago—'So what? It's showbiz!' So I definitely see it happening," he said.

It's safe to say that the reunion of all Van Halen members (save one, short-lived frontman Gary Sherone was not eligible for induction [would he have been there anyway?!?] because he was only in the band for two years) for the band's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony should be interesting. Members of the band will be honored at a ceremony on March 12, 2007, at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City.

I don't know if the ceremony will be televised, but it'll be on my TiVo for sure.

One person who's not a believer in Wolfgang's participation in the tour is former Van Halen frontman Sammy Hagar.

"That’s a lot of pressure for Wolfie," Hagar told billboard.com a couple weeks ago. "Just 'cause he's Eddie's son doesn't mean he can go out and play in arenas and perform and entertain an audience for two hours. I would love to see Eddie and Alex get behind Wolfie, with a kid of his age singing, and produce the record for him and help him launch a career. I'd rather see it go that way than come out and say 'Wolfie's the bass player in Van Halen and maybe singing, too.' Van Halen's got way too much history to have that put on him."

As E!'s Website opined over the weekend, "Hagar will have a chance to give Eddie some parenting advice in person in March, when Hagar, the Van Halen brothers, Roth and Anthony are scheduled to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame."

Hagar, ever the optimist, thinks the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame performance will be fine.

"My hope is that everyone lets everything go and we go there in complete respect of each other and in a loving way, with the attitude that 'I couldn't have done it without you' toward everybody," said Hagar.

Not likely - it's Van Halen! There always has to be drama.

One thing's for sure, though - I want to see the band in concert this summer to witness the drama firsthand.