New singer helps
band recover from
turbulent past
Van Halen ends their
By Nadine Kam
tour in with a rest-stop
in Hawaii
Features Editor, Star-BulletinBy most accounts, Gary Cherone is a madman on stage. He leaps. He runs. He tumbles. The new singer for Van Halen brings back the frenzied kind of energy last seen when "Diamond" Dave Lee Roth fronted the band.
Yet Cherone isn't quite the wild man in private life. "A lot of performers are shy off stage. I feel more comfortable on stage than off," he says from a hotel room while on the road.
"It's the same way dancers express themselves through dance. I'm a singer, so I express myself through singing. If I met you on the street I couldn't talk to you, but we could sing to each other."
Which he starts doing now, while waiting for room service to deliver his pre-show dinner -- no rock-star champagne affair, no caviar, no green-only M&Ms -- just a plain old vegetarian sandwich.
"Oh Nadine, honey is that you? Seems like every time I see you darling you got something else to do."
Generally, I make it a point to hate that song Chuck Berry made famous, just as most women named Michelle despise that Beatles tune, and those named Angie hate that Stones ditty. But hey, when Cherone serenades you -- he who made the girls swoon with his former band Extreme's hit "More Than Words" -- life is good. Real good.
Life is also good for Cherone, who had his share of doubts about winning over Van Halen fans, many who could never accept Sammy Hagar as Roth's replacement. As for his own take on that switch, Cherone says, "That happened when I was starting up Extreme, so to tell you the truth I was too busy to pay much attention.
"There's some paranoia when there's a change like that. You wonder if audiences will like you, but all you can do is be yourself."
Cherone didn't have to wonder long. Reviews of the latest Van Halen album, "III," were mixed, but Cherone's live presence has drawn raves.
He was the last person to think he would be a part of such a megaband. He never lobbied for the job as singer, and never even sang Van Halen songs in the car or shower.
"In fact, during sound checks for Extreme, Nuno (Bettencourt) and Pat (Badger) would break into Van Halen songs and I'd have to leave the stage. I didn't know the words. Pat would end up singing."
Since then, he's learned all the words to old favorites like "Jump" and "Jamie's Cryin'," which the band continues to mix with newer material in their sets.
"Those old songs had been all over radio, so when I started learning them I found out I actually knew more than I thought I did."
He admits to having been nervous about meeting the rest of the band. Eddie Van Halen's spats with different singers have been the stuff of rock legend. But the two hit it off from the start, and wrote "Without You" within 45 minutes of meeting.
Van Halen was born in the mid-'70s. Its original lineup featured brothers Eddie (guitar) and Alex Van Halen (drums), vocalist David Lee Roth and bassist Michael Anthony. The band built its success on Eddie's guitar pyrotechnics and hits such as "Panama" and "Runnin' With the Devil."
Ten years later, Roth had worn out his welcome with the band, and Sammy Hagar was recruited to take his place in 1985, continuing the string of hits with "Right Here, Right Now" and "Why Can't This Be Love?"
Cherone got his phone call from Eddie Van Halen last year, when his own career was in limbo. Extreme was suffering its own personnel difficulties because Bettencourt quit to pursue solo projects. Cherone's first impulse was to continue Extreme with his brother taking Bettencourt's place.
Or the singer might have pursued acting. Between Extreme tours he played Jesus in a 1994 Boston Rock Opera production of "Jesus Christ Superstar." The theater company draws its talent from Boston's diverse stage and music community. "Jesus Christ Super-star," which also starred Kay Hanley of the band Letters to Cleo, drew a cult following and reviewers were won over by Cherone's "mysterious" presence.
"I always wanted to do a musical," he said. "I never did one in high school. I found it difficult in that you can't be just anywhere on stage. You can't roll around."
Even so, he said he would like to someday perform in The Who's "Tommy." He did get a chance to sing songs from The Who's "Quadrophenia," in a BRO "Night of Rock Opera" showcase this past June.
Cherone also toyed with the idea of pursuing other musical interests and starting a jazz standards band, a la Sinatra.
But for now, he's happy rolling around with Van Halen. "Some-times being on the road is pretty brutal. Sometimes, you're beat -- your body, your voice -- but you find a way to do it," he said. "I'm not complaining. I love my job.
"Do you know I haven't signed anything with this band? It sounds crazy but there was never a point where they said, 'Now you are officially a member.' I don't think that way. If I'm creating music and making the band happy, that's the main thing. It's all about the music. I've still got a lot of rock 'n' roll in me."
And the shy guy who can't talk to girls on the street asks for a favor. "Can you tell (model/centerfold) Patricia Ford to come to the show?"
Done.
Van Halen
The date: 8 p.m. tomorrow
