It was around ‘7’O’Clock’ when The Quireboys invited the audience to a ‘Sex Party’ and the audience obliged. Drawing back to their early years with the hits, ‘Hey You’, ‘Misled’ and ‘Roses And Rings’. The Quireboys proved as fitting entertainment before the Bruce Lee of Rock ‘N’ Roll appeared on stage in a display of monastic martial arts mimicry and had the crowd ‘goin’ crazy’.

Van Halen’s ringmaster still proved himself to be the ROCK world’s undisputed ultimate front man. Dave resonated the usual high energy that only Diamond Dave can deliver: talking to the crowd and chatting up the pretty ladies. So with his backing band in fierce form and a crowd of animated fans clinging to his every word Roth raised the proverbial glass and proceeded to shatter it in hard ROCK style. ‘The Prince Of Pound’ thrashes into ‘Hot For Teacher’ and before Roth sings a single note he says, “OK?” the crowd are loving it. The high jumps aren’t quite the same but the Hollywood grin is still tightly in place and reaches everyone in the crowd. The set list was ‘just like paradise’ for the fans including songs from almost every Van Halen album from the Roth era with ‘Yankee Rose’, ‘Just A Gigolo’, ‘Just Like Paradise’ and ‘Goin Crazy’ is back in the set. Half way through Diamond Dave proved himself to be no ‘shyboy’ when he asked a chick in the audience to have a drink with him. Then the unthinkable happened; this classic rock chick (me) declined Dave’s decanter. This rocked Roth’s request so in true showman style he soaked the crowd with his Jack Daniel’s. Roth then performed his acoustic rocky rendition of the Van Halen classic ‘Ice Cream Man’. Which the crowd responded with avid applause.

Returning to ROCK the crowd with the stadium anthem ‘Jump’. Roth’s raging raucous vocals rocked the crowd into a frenzy. It may have been written 20 years ago and the kids that rocked hard to it then now have 9-5’s, accounts, homes and suits but watching the energy of Dave and the crowd it’s like nothing’s changed.

It was a ‘Damn Good’ show!  

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