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For so many years, the concert that has eluded me has involved David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen on the same stage belting out early Van Halen tunes. Ever since the party rock n’ roll band separated with Roth in 1985, and about 40o concerts later, I always proclaimed this was the show I wanted to see.  Images of Diamond David Lee Roth (with Jack Daniels bottle in tow) and company hosting a mega arena rock-party of rock and roll debauchery always captured my imagination, touching the teenager soul that lingers inside of me. Over 25 years later, I was not disappointed Friday night when both Van Halen and Kool and the Gang killed it down a the First Niagara Center in Buffalo.

With fantasies of 1980′s rock n’ roll excess imprinted in my brain, the Ranman, Anna and myself entered the arena not quite sure what to expect of the evening. Would Van Halen, now with members in their mid-50′s, be able to recreate that feeling? That image quickly escaped my mind as I walked into the arena and saw that the the audience has aged more than the band. But I guarantee that most of audience agrees that it seems just like yesterday that we were listening to “Fair Warning” or “Diver Down” on a boom box while playing basketball, hanging with friends, or at your local keg party.

Kool and The Gang, who we were pretty excited to see, kicked off the evening perfectly with a strong set-up of funk rock party favorites. I prescribed  to the notion that whenever you see 12 band members on stage with a horn section, it’s gonna get sick. Playing in front of a traditional rock crowd, it was fun seeing Kool and The Gang win over the audience with every song, eventually having the entire arena dancing on their feet.  Kool’s set was like a juke-box of smash hits from the 1980s – “Fresh,” “Too Hot,” “Jungle Boogie,” “Ladies Night,” “Celebration” and the great dance sing-along “Get Down on It.” Fantastic set. When these guys come to town again, hell yeah we’ll be there.

During intermission, we ran into one of Buffalo’s most creative minds in Ben Richey and his brother-in-law Frank, as well as Jim McGee who we know from the Big Leg Emma family.

When the lights went out, the stage immediately was filled with music ramblings coming from Alex Van Halen behind the drum kit, Wolfgang Van Halen on bass, and the living legend Eddie Van Halen on guitar. Out from underneath this wall of sound strolled out David Lee Roth, with a huge smile and an eagerness to entertain the crowd. With the opening chords of “You Really Got Me” a two-hour rock n’ roll journey began. It was so cool hearing the songs coming from the original sources. David Lee Roth was never compared to the world’s best singers, but what he lacked in hitting some of the notes on Friday, he made up for capturing the spirit of the songs and being the master of ceremonies. Eddie Van Halen, who will undoubtedly will be considered one of the world’s greatest guitarists for centuries to come, played flawlessly the entire night. I was so impressed how he nailed many of the solos and didn’t stray from the songs.

I loved how the band mixed hits, with some deep cuts. For every “Dance the Night Away,” “Unchained,” or “Hot for Teacher,” there were deeper cuts like “Hear about it Later,” “Girl Gone Bad,” or “Women in Love.”  I loved the roaring version of “Everybody Wants Some,” with Roth taking center stage twirling a metal staff like a samurai warrior. For some reason, I also loved “I’ll Wait,” which is often overplayed on the radio. The band played four or five numbers from their new album “A Different Kind of Truth” which didn’t seem out of place at all during the hit-filled show. Roth spent the entire set parading around stage, dancing, jumping and shaking, meanwhile Eddie stayed on his side of the stage dazzling the arena with his guitar mastery. The show ended with “Ain’t Talking about Love” and the confetti-filled “Jump.”

In the old days, the end of the concert would’ve signaled the beginning of a wild night that would have extended into the wee hours of the next morning. But instead, we made a bee-line for our car in the parking lot, and sped off to our lives in the suburbs. We left downtown Buffalo feeling entertained and with the immense feeling that great music does not age.