Bummer In The Summer

No, I'm not talking about the gem found on Love's brilliant "Forever Changes." I'm talking about touring. One tour in particular that fits this description nicely is the Genesis reunion tour. Does anyone really care? Obviously they do because the band can still sell tickets, but this baby was a big lost opportunity.

Now, so there are no misconceptions, I am not a big fan to begin with. I owned a couple of cassettes from the post-Gabriel era when I was 13, but quickly grew out of it. There were some stellar tracks like "Mama" that still hold up well, but overall, I'm not into that brand of Pop. You would have to pay me money to sit through "I Can't Dance" and the price would double if I had to witness it in concert. But any fan of Rock needs to dive in and explore the Gabriel-era of the band. If anything, a few spins of "Selling England By The Pound" should be expected.

For years, promoters have been trying to get a tour off of the ground with the original line up -- Phil Collins, Tony Banks, Michael Rutherford, Steve Hackett and Peter Gabriel. The idea of seeing the pre-Collins led version of the band would have been intriguing. That was the original plan. Apparently Gabriel was strongly considering a full-scale reunion with the band for this summer's run, but then declined. Peter Gabriel was a legendary front man. He was an incredible stage performer; he brought theatre to the concert stage with props, costumes, make-up and masks. Rutherford, who now plays lead guitar, was the bass player/rhythm guitarist when the talented Hackett was playing lead guitar. From 71-75, Genesis was a revolutionary band with complicated, creative and artistic studio albums and an incredible live show. Then Gabriel split in 75 and by the end of the decade, the first incarnation of Genesis was a memory as Collins, Rutherford and Banks marched into stardom with a briefcase full of Pop.

Thinking of the tour that could have been, I broke out the sprawling masterpiece "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" yesterday and played a handful of tracks from it. Then I broke out a fantastic live show from Peter Gabriel from London in 2004. It made the current tour by Genesis seem even less interesting than it already was. A Peter Gabriel led tour would have been must-see event. Even if you are not a fan of Genesis, if the Gabriel reunion had taken place, it would have been a dynamic show to see musically and visually. So, for those of you who are still going to give the current tour a shot, hopefully you are not thinking of all the money you have just tossed away while Collins belts out "Invisible Touch" out of tune and out of pitch while you are sipping on a $12 beer.
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VAN HALEN

Is this a summer tour? Well, sort of. It was supposed to be a big summer showcase in sheds, but now, after a few hitches and loads of money on the line, a very late summer-most fall tour will hit the arenas.

Fans of VH have been clamoring for a full-scale reunion with the original line-up since the mid-80's; Edward Van Halen, Alex Van Halen, Michael Anthony, and David Lee Roth. Well, Roth is back in the fold, but Edward has pushed out Anthony and enlisted his 16 year old son Wolfgang as the new bass player for the band. I haven't seen how pre-sales for these shows have done, but the fact that Edward and Roth are working together again should be enough to lock in solid sales even with ridiculous ticket prices.

A lot of fans around the net are baffled that Anthony has been tossed out. Yeah, he is a mediocre bass player at best, but he was an important contributor to the band and was the only guy in the group that could actually sing in tune in 2007. Fans and the Rock world wanted the original, entire band. Was this too much to ask for? At the end of the day, this comes down to money. Sure, people say Eddie also doesn’t like Anthony’s alliance with Sammy Hagar outside of the band, but it is about the cash. Anthony himself has said that he was forced to take a significant pay cut to take part in the disastrous 2004 tour. An original member having to basically become a salaried employee to play with the band that he helped establish? Is this The Eagles? Oh yeah, they are both managed by the same company.

I was on board for checking this out, but with only 3/4 of the original line-up in place, I may end up taking a pass this time around. However, if it becomes clear that Roth can hold a tune and Eddie is playing with passion and focus, maybe I'll be tempted. Time will tell.....