Excerpt from The Rockstar Ramblings:

This week brought the first single and video from the new Van Halen album. Not only do we get David Lee Roth back, but also Eddie Van Halen’s son, Wolfgang, instead of Michael Anthony. There’s a lesson here kids. ANYWAY, the new video is “Tattoo” and the reviews have varied from “It’s good to hear Dave’s voice again” to “How many years did I have to wait for this shit!” Does the new video hold up to the vintage Van Halen videos? The old VH videos showcased a band with a sense of humor, keeping the balance between the song and having a good time. This week a look at some classic Van Halen videos before we dive into the new video…

#5 RUNNIN’ WITH THE DEVIL
Bottom line one of the greatest rock songs of all time. The fact that this song is from album one, side A, song one somehow makes it even better. This is the start of Van Halen.

The video begins with David Lee Roth fist pumping and thrusting his hips. Roth is also wearing pearls and considering he was probably getting laid in between shoots, this is okay. Side note: This song is the first time we hear Michael Anthony’s back-up vocals. He’s no Wolfgang, NO; he’s definitely no Wolfgang in the vocals department.

The highlight of the video is Eddie Van Halen and Anthony mimicking the guitar moves of KISS. They do this a couple of times in the video.

2:50 An early David Lee Roth shimmy.

In the end we are left with a great song, and a so-so video that was either a showcase for the band or an abs workout for Roth. Probably a little of both…

READ the full column at MetalUnderground.com

David S. Grant is the author of BLOOD: The New Red.  Follow David on Twitter: .david_s_grant