5150 Tour

The was Van Halen's first tour with newly appointed frontman, Sammy Hagar. The Red Rocker had some mighty big shoes to fill, stepping in for David Lee Roth, and with the first of four #1 albums fronting Van Halen, it looked like Hagar was filling the order quite nicely. 

The opening band, Bachman Turner Overdrive, was attempting a comeback and Van Halen gave them the shot at opening the entire tour. Labeled as "1/2 a Ton of Rock and Roll," BTO was one of the few acts to survive the opening act slot. James Brown, fresh from a jail stint and riding the success of Living in America, was initially offered the opening slot, but both bands' management were unable to come to a suitable monetary agreement. Reportedly, Brown's camp was asking $25,000 per show and Van Halen's management passed on the idea.

The tri-level stage consisted of over 1,000 lights, 20,000-watts of sound, 55 audio cabinets, and a 50-man road crew. According to legend, the stage was outfitted with a specially constructed truss that was to hoist Hagar out over the audience.

Sammy added guitar to several songs while on stage, including You Really Got Me, Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love, Why Cant This Be Love?, Love Walks In, There's Only One Way to Rock, and I Can't Drive 55. His live setup included Dean, Kramer, and Jackson guitars and a "mongrel" amp setup featuring Randall 4-by-12 cabinets with Electro-Voice speakers.

Eddie's stage rig consisted of his main 5150 Kramer guitar outfitted with Seymour Duncan pickups, and a Steinberger GL-2T for Get Up and Good Enough; all connected to a prototype Sony wireless transmitter. Amplifier-wise, he used one Marshall head powered by four H&H 800-watt power amps.

For the keyboard songs, Eddie used a Kurzweil MIDIed to four Obenheimer OB-8s; one for Why Can't This Be Love?, a second for Love Walks In, a third for Dreams, and a fourth for backup.  

His solo consisted of a short piece by Debussy, his own version of Fur Elise, and his standards of Spanish Fly, Eruption, Mean Street (intro), and an early version of 316. 

Mike's live rig consisted of a Mesa Boogie Bass 400 amplifier with a Mesa Boogie cabinet housing a 15-inch Mesa Boogie E-V speaker wound especially for the bassist. He also used Flagg Systems cabinets loaded with Gauss drivers. Effects-wise, Mike used an Electro-Harmonix Micro Bass synthesizer during his solo, along with a pair of Lexicon's, MXR and ADA flangers, a pair of Colorado Sound Tone Benders, and a Roland DC-30 Chorus Echo unit. His Aria, Schecter, and Jack Daniels basses were all outfitted with Roto Sound Round Wound strings, changed religiously after every three shows. For the keyboard-based tracks in the set, he used an Apostrophe five string bass with a low B string. He also used the same Schaeffer-Vega wireless unit he'd been using on every tour since 1978.  

Alex's kit featured Ludwig shells housing Simmons electronic drums with two bass drums, three rack toms mounted in front, and two lower toms on his right. It also included two acoustic toms measuring 13-inch and 14-inch respectively along with an acoustic 20-inch Ludwig floor tom. His snare drum was a rosewood Tama measuring 6½-inch deep. He used Paiste 2002 series cymbals including a 20-inch China, three 20-inch crashes, a 24-inch ride, a 15-inch Sound Edge hi-hat, and a 40-inch gong. All the hardware was made by Ludwig, to which he added Ghost pedals. His sticks were Pro-Mark 5As.

In an effort to be able to get both a double-headed and single-headed bass drum sound, a large orange-colored vacuum hose was run between two of the bass drums. The idea was for the soundman at each venue to have the option of picking the kind of bass drum sound that he wanted. It didn't quite work as planned though as there really wasn't enough air flowing to make the second bass drum sound.   

During the four-day run at the Centrum in Worcester, MA, the band was presented with the key to the city of Boston.  

Two warm-up shows in Anchorage, AK, and a third in Hawaii were cancelled because the 5150 album was still being mixed by Eddie, Donn Landee, and Mick Jones in-between rehearsals. They were later rescheduled for the end of the tour, but for unknown reasons were again cancelled.

Typical set list:

• You Really Got Me
• There's Only One Way to Rock
• Summer Nights
• Get Up
• Drum Solo
• Why Can't This Be Love?
• "5150"
• Bass Solo
• Panama
• Best of Both Worlds
• Love Walks In
• Good Enough
• Guitar Solo
• I Can't Drive 55
• Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
• Jump
• Rock and Roll

3/27/86: Hirsch Memorial Coliseum, Shreveport, LA. Opening act: BTO.

3/28/86: Barton Coliseum, Little Rock, AR. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

3/29/86: Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, TN. Opening act: BTO.

3/31/86: Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center, Birmingham, AL. Opening act: BTO.

4/01/86: Von Braun Civic Center, Huntsville, AL. Opening act: BTO.

4/03/86: Jackson Coliseum, Jackson, MS. Opening act: BTO.

4/04/86: The Centraplex, Baton Rouge, LA. Opening act: BTO.

4/05/86: Gulf High Coliseum, Biloxi, MI. Opening act: BTO.

4/07/86: The Sportatorium, Hollywood, FL. Opening act: BTO. Miami Dolphins five-time Pro Bowler Bob Baumhower takes the stage to sing Jump.

4/08/86: Lee Civic Center, Ft. Myers, FL. Opening act: BTO.

4/10/86: Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, FL. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists. 

4/11/86: Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, FL. Opening act: BTO.

4/12/86: Jacksonville Coliseum, Jacksonville, FL. Opening act: BTO.

4/14/86: The Omni, Atlanta, GA. Opening act: BTO. The band is informed that the 5150 album is #1 on the Billboard charts, and a celebration party is held just before show time. Audio recording exists.

4/15/86: Carolina Coliseum, Columbia, SC. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

4/19/86: Roberts Stadium, Evansville, IN. Opening act: BTO.

4/20/86: Municipal Auditorium, Nashville, TN. Opening act: BTO.

4/22/86: Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, IL. Opening act: BTO.

4/23/86: Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, IL. Opening act: BTO. Rock Candy is added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

4/24/86: Rockford Metro Centre, Rockford, IL

4/26/86: SIU Arena, Carbondale, IL. Opening act: BTO.

4/27/86: Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, IL. Opening act: BTO. Wild Thing and Make It Last are added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

4/29/86: St. Paul Civic Center, St. Paul, MN. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

4/30/86: Five Seasons Center, Cedar Rapids, IA. Opening act: BTO.

5/02/86: Allen County Memorial Coliseum, Ft. Wayne, IN. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

5/03/86: Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, IN. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

5/06/86: Cincinnati Gardens, Cincinnati, OH. Opening act: BTO.

5/07/86: Cincinnati Gardens, Cincinnati, OH. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

5/09/86: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, MI. Opening act: BTO. Wild Thing and Make It Last added to set list for this show.

5/10/86: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, MI. Opening act: BTO. Rock Candy and Wild Thing added to set list for this show. Audio and video recordings exist.

5/11/86: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, MI. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

5/13/86: Pittsburgh Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, PA. Opening act: BTO. Van Halen grosses $235,265. Attendance: 15,899.

5/14/86: Charleston Civic Center, Charleston, WV. Opening act: BTO.

5/16/86: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, NC. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

5/17/86: Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA. Opening act: BTO.

5/18/86: Roanoke Coliseum, Roanoke, VA. Opening act: BTO.

5/20/86: The Omni, Atlanta, GA. Opening act: BTO. Makeup date for a previously cancelled show. Sammy publicly slams a reporter over an article written about the cancelled concert.

5/21/86: Thompson Boling Arena, Knoxville, TN. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

5/23/86: Alpine Valley Music Theater, East Troy, WI. Opening act: BTO. A short version of Black and Blue is performed at this show. Audio recording exists.

5/24/86: Alpine Valley Music Theater, East Troy, WI. Opening act: BTO.

5/26/86: Memorial Auditorium, Des Moine, IA. Opening act: BTO. Make It Last is added to the set list for the show. Audio and video recordings exist.

5/27/86: Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE. Opening act: BTO.

5/28/86: Kansas Coliseum, Witchita, KS. Opening act: BTO.

5/30/86: Kemper Auditorium, Kansas City, MO. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

5/31/86: Kemper Auditorium, Kansas City, MO. Opening act: BTO. Crossroads and Make It Last added to set list for this show. Audio and video recordings exist.

6/02/86: Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, IN. Opening act: BTO. Audio recordings exist.

6/11/86: Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA. Opening act: BTO.

6/26/86: San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, CA. Opening act: BTO.

6/28/86: San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, CA. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

6/29/86: San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, CA. Opening act: BTO.

7/02/86: Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA. Opening act: BTO. Van Halen's first Los Angeles show with Sammy Hagar. Numerous celebrities joined the band backstage including Tommy Lee and Heather Locklear, John Stamos, Dweezil and Moon Zappa, Ratt's Stephen Pearcy, and Paul Stanley. After the show, the band was presented with platinum sales awards for 5150 at a Los Angeles Hard Rock Café.

7/03/86: Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

7/05/86: Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA. Opening act: BTO.

7/08/86: Compton Terrace, Phoenix, AZ. Opening act: BTO.

7/12/86: Folsom Field, Boulder, CO. Known as the Colorado Sun Day, the bill for this show included Loverboy, Dio, and BTO.

7/14/86: Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, NM. Opening act: BTO.

7/16/86: The Myriad, Oklahoma City, OK. Opening act: BTO. Make It Last is added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exist.

7/19/86: Cotton Bowl, Dallas, TX. This was the 9th annual Texxas Jam. The bill included BTO, Keel, Krokus, Dio, and Loverboy. Attendance: 72,000.

7/21/86: St. Louis Arena, St. Louis, MO. Opening act: BTO.

7/22/86: St. Louis Arena, St. Louis, MO. Opening act: BTO.

7/23/86: St. Louis Arena, St. Louis, MO. Opening act: BTO.

7/25/86: Richfield Coliseum, Cleveland, OH. Opening act: BTO.

7/26/86: Richfield Coliseum, Cleveland, OH. Opening act: BTO. Leslie West joined BTO on stage to perform Mississippi Queen.

7/28/86: The Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ. Opening act: BTO. Make It Last is added to the set list for this show.

7/29/86: The Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ. Opening act: BTO with Leslie West.

7/31/86: The Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ. Opening act: BTO with Leslie West. An unknown quantity of tickets for this show were printed with the following date: "7-2-30-86." Foxey Lady is added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

8/01/86: The Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ. Opening act: BTO with Leslie West. Make It Last is added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

8/02/86: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, NY. Opening act: BTO.

8/04/86: The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

8/05/86: The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

8/06/86: The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA. Opening act: BTO. Rock Candy is added to the set list for this show.

8/08/86: Capital Centre, Largo, MD . Opening act: BTO. Summertime Blues is added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

8/09/86: Capital Centre, Largo, MD. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

8/11/86: The Centrum, Worcester, MA. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

8/12/86: The Centrum, Worcester, MA. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

8/14/86: The Centrum, Worcester, MA. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

8/15/86: The Centrum, Worcester, MA. Opening act: BTO. Growth and Outside Woman Blues added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

8/18/86: Canadian National Exhibition Stadium, Toronto, ON. Opening act: BTO and Loverboy. Summertime Blues added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

8/19/86: Manitoba, Canada. Opening act: BTO.

8/20/86: Montreal Forum, Montreal, QE. Opening act: BTO. Sammy and Alex switch places for a short time during this concert. Alex took the microphone while Sammy pounds Alex's drums. Audio and video recordings exist. 

8/22/86: Providence Civic Center, Providence, RI. Opening act: BTO. Make It Last added to set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

8/23/86: Providence Civic Center, Providence, RI. Opening act: BTO.

8/24/86: Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, ME. Opening act: BTO.

8/25/86: Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, ME. Opening act: BTO. Audio recording exists.

8/26/86: Veterans Memorial Coliseum, New Haven, CT. Opening act: BTO. Live without a Net footage is supposed to be filmed, but isn't due to an equipment malfunction. Audio recording exists.

8/27/86: Veterans Memorial Coliseum, New Haven, CT. Opening act: BTO. Live without a Net footage is filmed. Audio and video recordings exist.

8/29/86: Niagra Falls Convention Center, Niagra Falls, NY. Opening act: BTO.

8/30/86: Niagra Falls Convention Center, Niagra Falls, NY. Opening act: BTO.

9/01/86: Silver Stadium, Rochester, NY. Opening act: BTO and Kim Mitchell. Audio and video recordings exist.

9/27/86: Cajundome, Lafayette, LA. Opening act: BTO.

9/29/86: The Summit, Houston, TX. Opening act: BTO.

9/30/86: TCCC Arena, Ft. Worth, TX. Opening act: BTO. Sunshine of Your Love added to set list for this show.

10/01/86: TCCC Arena, Ft. Worth, TX. Opening act: BTO.

10/03/86: San Antonio Convention Center, San Antonio, TX. Opening act: BTO.

10/04/86: Frank C. Erwin, Jr. Special Events Center, Austin, TX. Opening act: BTO. Sunshine of Your Love added to set list for this show.

10/06/86: Pan American Center, Las Cruces, NM. Opening act: BTO.

10/08/86: Salt Palace, Salt Lake City, UT. Opening act: BTO.

10/10/86: Casper Events Center, Casper WY. Opening act: BTO.

10/11/86: Rushmore Plaza Civic Center, Rapid City, SD. Opening act: BTO.

10/14/86: The Metra, Billings, MT. Opening act: BTO.

10/16/86: BSU Pavilion, Boise, ID. Opening act: BTO. A bomb threat after the opening act caused the Pavilion to be evacuated and the show to be delayed by approximately one hour. Upon restarting, Sammy Hagar remarked, "Who in their right mind would want to blow up a Van Halen concert?"

10/18/86: ISU Minidome, Pocatello, WA. Opening act: BTO.

10/19/86: BSU Pavilion, Boise, ID. Opening act: BTO.

10/21/86: Seattle Center, Seattle, WA. Opening act: BTO.

10/22/86: Seattle Center, Seattle, WA. Opening act: BTO. Heart's Ann Wilson joins the band onstage to perform Rock and Roll.

10/23/86: BC Place Stadium, Vancouver, British Columbia. Opening act: BTO and Tom Cochrane.

10/25/86: Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR. Opening act: BTO.

10/26/86: Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR. Opening act: BTO.

10/29/86: Lawlor Events Center, Reno, NV. Opening act: BTO.

10/31/86: Cow Palace, San Francisco, CA. Opening act: BTO. Attendance: 15,000.

11/01/86: Cow Palace, San Francisco, CA. Opening act: BTO. Attendance: 15,000.

11/02/86: Cow Palace, San Francisco, CA. Opening act: BTO. Attendance: 15,000.

11/03/86: Cow Palace, San Francisco, CA. Opening act: BTO. Pipeline added to the set list for this show. Audio recording exists. Attendance: 15,000.