On April 24, 1980, the iconic rock group Van Halen blew into Cincinnati to play a show for their World Invasion Tour. The show was wild…so wild that 177 people were arrested after the show ended, as well as the lead singer of the group getting charged for a misdemeanor.
There’s a great chronicling of the concert here. In a nutshell, while Van Halen rocked, their front man, David Lee Roth supposedly told the audience to “light up” several times throughout the show. This didn’t go over well with local law enforcement, since they were probably still reeling from the tragedy of The Who concert that happened one year earlier. Roth was officially charged with complicity to violate the city fire code (post concert), and Cincinnati police arrested 177 concertgoers for alcohol and drug charges.
The charge that Roth got didn’t stop him or Van Halen. They went on to perform the next show of their tour in Chicago (Roth posted his $5000 bond), and I’m betting the news helped Roth and the band with their notoriety. In a nutshell, rock and roll won the night of April 24, 1980.
Talk to me. Were you there to see Van Halen in Cincy in 1980?
Below are press clippings and the concert setlist.
