Hide Your Sheep Tour

Beginning in Augusta, GA, the 1982-1983 Hide Your Sheep Tour (also known as the K.A.T.N. [Kicking Ass and Taking Names tour]) sold out all 80 of its U.S. concerts while grossing $10 million during an industry-wide slump in concert ticket sales. As in previous tours, this tour was the largest ever with 170 tons of equipment including 1.4 million-watts of light, 70,000 watts of sound and a road crew of 70. 

With this tour we saw the birth of the infamous "Grid System." Mostly Dave's idea, it began when the band was planning the tour in the late spring/early summer of 1982. A small-scale model of the stage was designed and housed at their Hollywood, CA, business office. Each of the stage barricades was marked with a number and each number corresponded to specific security guards, located at various points around the stage. If Roth spotted a female fan that he wanted to party with after the show at say, section 24, the appropriate guard was sent to hunt her down and provide her with a backstage pass. Should the guard be unable to locate the specified person or if he found others en route who were good enough or better than the selected recipient, it was his call whether or not to provide them with a pass. 

This tour introduced Jimmy Briscoe and Danny Rodgers, Dave's personal little person bodyguards, who remained with the band through the 1984 Tour. They were frequently seen dressed in all kinds of outfits, including S.W.A.T. uniforms, karate guis and tuxedos. 

Michael's live rig was made up of four or five basses, each strung with Rotosound Swing Bass Roundwound strings. This collection included Fender Precisions with Yamaha pickups and Badass bridges along with his main bass - a prototype Yamaha Broad Bass 2000, given to him when the band was in Japan a few years earlier. For amplification he used SVT amplifiers fed through Flagg System cabinets with 18-inch Gauss bottoms and 12-inch Gauss tops. His solo routinely featured the Bonanza theme.

Alex's Ludwig setup consisted of one kick drum, one 14-inch-by-10-inch rack tom, one 18-inch-by-20-inch floor tom, one rosewood 6 ¼-inch-by-14-inch snare drum with a Black-Dot CS head, three tomtoms measuring 12-inch, 13-inch, and 20-inch respectively, a high-hat, and various other Paiste cymbals, including a 24-inch heavey ride and a 20-inch crash. His hardware was a hybrid mixture of sorts and everything was welded together to keep from breaking when Roth would climb on his kit during the show. 

The band had planned a European leg for the tour, with stops in the Netherlands, but it was cancelled by Warner Brothers who reportedly demanded Van Halen back to the studio to begin work on a new album.

In January 1983, as a substitute for the cancelled leg of the U.K. tour, the band made a short run through South America (dubbed the No Problem Tour). Stops included Argentina, Venezuela, Brazil, and Uruguay. At one Venezuelan show, Eddie played the entire evening from stage right (the spot normally held by Michael Anthony) for the first and only time in the band's history. During this leg of the tour, Dave played a song entitled Ode to Argentina, unaccompanied on an acoustic/electric guitar. 

Typical set list:

• Romeo Delight
• Unchained
• Drum Solo
• The Full Bug
• Runnin' with the Devil
• Jamie's Cryin'
• Little Guitars
• Where Have All the Good Times Gone?
• Bass Solo
• Hang 'Em High
• Cathedral
• Secrets
• Everybody Wants Some!! (with Eddie and Alex on drum intro)
• Dance the Night Away
• Somebody Get Me a Doctor/I'm So Glad
• Dave's Solo
• Ice Cream Man
• Intruder
• (Oh) Pretty Woman
• Guitar Solo
• Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
• Bottoms Up!
• You Really Got Me/Happy Trails

7/14/82: Augusta-Richmond County Civic Center, Augusta, GA. Opening act: After the Fire.

7/16/82: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, NC. Audio recording exists. Warner Brothers films this show and some backstage footage.

7/17/82: Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte, NC. Audio recording exists.

7/18/82: Carolina Coliseum, Columbia, SC

7/20/82: Knoxville Coliseum, Knoxville, TN. Opening act: After the Fire.

7/22/82: Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center, Birmingham, AL. Opening act: After the Fire. Audio recording exists.

7/23/82: Jackson Coliseum, Jackson, MS

7/24/82: Biloxi Coliseum, Biloxi, MS

7/27/82: Nashville Memorial Coliseum, Nashville, TN

7/29/82: Hara Arena, Dayton, OH

7/30/82: Freedom Hall, Louisville, KY. Opening act: After the Fire. Audio recording exists.

7/31/82: Allen County Memorial Coliseum, Ft. Wayne, IN

8/03/82: Rockford Metro Centre, Rockford, IL

8/04/82: Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Des Moines, IA. Opening act: After the Fire.

8/06/82: Checkerdome, St. Louis, MO. Edward meets Dan Martin and by 5:30 the following morning, purchases a mint condition 1958 Gibson Flying V.

8/07/82: Kemper Arena, Kansas City, MO

8/08/82: Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE

8/10/82: St. Paul Civic Center, St. Paul, MN. Opening act: After the Fire. Attendance: 15,207.

8/11/82: Dane County Memorial Coliseum, Madison, WI. Audio recording exists.

8/13/82: Cobo Hall, Detroit, MI. Audio recording exists.

8/14/82: Cobo Hall, Detroit, MI. Opening act: After the Fire. Audio recording exists.

8/16/82: Mecca Auditorium, Milwaukee, WI. Opening act: After the Fire.

8/18/82: Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena, Green Bay, WI

8/19/82: The Pavilion, Chicago, IL. Opening act: After the Fire. Audio recording exists.

8/20/82: The Pavilion, Chicago, IL

8/21/82: Richfield Coliseum, Cleveland, OH

9/01/82: Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR

9/02/82: Seattle Coliseum, Seattle, WA. Audio recording exists.

9/03/82: Vancouver Coliseum, Vancouver, BC

9/05/82: Selland Arena, Fresno, CA. Audio recording exists.

9/07/82: Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, AZ. Opening act: After the Fire.

9/08/82: Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE

9/10/82: Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA. Opening act: After The Fire. Audio recording exists.

9/11/82: Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA

9/12/82: Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA

9/14/82: Cow Palace, San Francisco, CA. Opening act: Kix. Audio recording exists.

9/15/82: Cow Palace, San Francisco, CA. Opening act: After The Fire. Audio recording exists.

9/17/82: Aladdin Hotel, Las Vegas, NV

9/18/82: Aladdin Hotel, Las Vegas, NV

9/19/82: El Paso County Coliseum, El Paso, TX

9/21/82: The Myriad, Oklahoma City, OK. Opening act: After the Fire.

9/22/82: Assembly Hall, Tulsa, OK

9/23/82: Kansas Coliseum, Wichita, KS

9/24/82: The Summit, Houston, TX

9/25/82: Hirsch Memorial Coliseum, Shreveport, LA

9/26/82: Casper, WY

10/07/82: New Haven Coliseum, New Haven, CT. Opening act: After the Fire. Audio recording exists.

10/08/82: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY. Opening act: After the Fire. Audio recording exists.

10/09/82: The Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY. Opening act: After the Fire. Attendance: 32,000. Audio recording exists.

10/11/82: Capitol Centre, Largo, MD. Opening act: After the Fire. Audio and video recordings exist. Warner Brothers films this show.

10/12/82: Capitol Centre, Largo, MD. Opeing act: After the Fire. Audio recording exists. Warner Brothers films this show.

10/13/82: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, NY

10/14/82: Pittsburgh Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, PA

10/15/82: Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford, NJ. Cancelled due to Eddie's wrist fracture.

10/16/82: Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford, NJ. Cancelled due to Eddie's wrist fracture.

10/18/82: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, NY. Cancelled due to Eddie's wrist fracture.

10/19/82: The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA. Audio recording exists.

10/20/82: The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA. Audio recording exists.

10/22/82: The Centrum, Worcester, MA. Opening act: Joe Whiting & the Bandit Band. A third show at this venue was added to the tour schedule and Van Halen Day is declared due to a 25,000-signature petition headed by radio's WAAF program director, Rob Barnett.

10/23/82: The Centrum, Worcester, MA. Opening act: Joe Whiting & the Bandit Band.

10/24/82: The Centrum, Worcester, MA. Opening act: Joe Whiting & the Bandit Band.

10/26/82: Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, ON. Opening act: Joe Whiting & the Bandit Band. Audio recording exists.

10/27/82: Montreal Forum, Montreal, QC. Audio and video recordings exist.

10/30/82: Roanoke Civic Center, Roanoke, VA

10/31/82: Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA. Opening act: Accept. Audio recording exists.

11/01/82: Pittsburgh Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, PA

11/03/82: The Omni, Atlanta, GA

11/05/82: Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, OH

11/06/82: Rupp Arena, Lexington, KY

11/07/82: University of Tennessee Arena, Chattanooga, TN

11/13/82: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, NY. Makeup for canceled 10/18/82 show. Audio and video recordings exist.

11/14/82: Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford, NJ. Makeup for canceled 10/15/82 show. Audio recording exists.

11/15/82: Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford, NJ. Makeup for canceled 10/16/82 show. Audio recording exists.

11/18/82: Reunion Arena, Dallas, TX. Audio recording exists.

11/19/82: Reunion Arena, Dallas, TX. Audio recording exists.

11/20/82: Frank C. Irwin, Jr. Special Events Center, Austin, TX

11/22/82: San Antonio Convention Center Arena, San Antonio, TX

11/24/82: Kansas Coliseum, Wichita, KS

11/26/82: Riverside Centroplex, Baton Rouge, LA

11/28/82: Mobile Municipal Auditorium, Mobile, AL

11/29/82: Von Braun Civic Center, Huntsville, AL

11/30/82: Asheville Civic Center, Asheville, NC

12/02/82: Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, TN

12/04/82: Freedom Hall, Johnson City, TN

12/05/82: Reynolds Coliseum, Raleigh, NC

12/07/82: Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, FL

12/08/82: Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, FL

12/09/82: Sportatorium, Hollywood, FL

12/10/82: Sportatorium, Hollywood, FL. Audio recording exists.

12/11/82: Jacksonville Coliseum, Jacksonville, FL

1/14/83: Paliebro, Caracas, VENEZUELA. May have been cancelled.

1/15/83: Paliebro, Caracas, VENEZUELA. May have been cancelled.

1/16/83: Paliebro, Caracas, VENEZUELA. Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers is added to the set list for this show. Audio and video recordings exist.

1/21/83: Ibirapuera Gymnasium, Sao Paulo, BRAZIL. Opening act: Patrulha do Espaco. Video recording exists.

1/22/83: Ibirapuera Gymnasium, Sao Paulo, BRAZIL. Opening act: Patrulha do Espaco.

1/23/83: Ibirapuera Gymnasium, Sao Paulo, BRAZIL. Opening act: Patrulha do Espaco

1/26/83: Maracanãzinho Gymnasium, Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL

1/27/83: Maracanãzinho Gymnasium, Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL. Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers and Heartbreak Hotel added to set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

1/28/83: Gigantinho Gymnasium, Porto Alegre, BRAZIL

1/29/83: Gigantinho Gymnasium, Porto Alegre, BRAZIL

2/05/83: Auditorio El Cilandro, Montevideo, URUGUAY. Heartbreak Hotel added to set list for this show. Audio recording exists.

2/07/83: Auditorio Obras, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA

2/08/83: Newell's Old Boys, Rosario, ARGENTINA. May have been cancelled.

2/09/83: Newell's Old Boys, Rosario, ARGENTINA. May have been cancelled.

2/11/83: Auditorio Obras, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA. Summertime Blues added to set list for this show. Audio and video recordings exist.

2/12/83: Auditorio Obras, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA. May have been cancelled.

2/13/83: Auditorio Obras, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA. May have been cancelled.