Hide Your Sheep Tour

The Hide Your Sheep Tour was a concert tour by hard rock band Van Halen in support of their fifth studio album Diver Down.

When the North American leg of the tour had concluded, the band accepted an offer to perform in South America as they had never performed there. The South American leg was dubbed the "No Problems Tour" when they performed there for a month.^[1] After performing in South America, the band concluded the tour with a performance in San Bernardino, performing as a headliner for "Heavy Metal Day" on May 29, 1983 as part of the US Festival alongside headliners Ozzy Osbourne, Judas Priest, Scorpions, Quiet Riot, Triumph and Mötley Crüe.^[2] They were reportedly paid $1.5 million for their performance at the US Festival despite the disappointment of the festival's organizers.^[3][4] During this tour, Eddie Van Halen began to use Kramer guitars which had been endorsed in early 1982, notably with a custom double neck.^[5] Relations between the members of the band were beginning to hit an all-time low due to the constant partying, which resulted in the band arguing with one another, and creating grudges.^[6]

Pete Bishop from the Pittsburgh Press gave Van Halen's performance a mixed review. He opened by stating that the reader should forget the show for a moment, and note the aspect of the show being David Lee Roth who Bishop wrote was giving an "obnoxious, disgusting exhibition" which the band did not need. He added about the fan response when they threw things on stage and jumped on stage only to get tossed back off while also noting problems that happened before the show. When going to the show, he praised the entertainment and the lighting such as the strobe lights at the base of Alex Van Halen's drum platform. Adding to the term 'entertainment', Bishop stated that they were in the best physical rock 'n' roll tradition too - adding praise to Roth's vocals. He, however, criticized that the volume had ruled too often, drowning out Roth's vocals in a muddle of bass and drums, making it almost impossible to recognize songs.^[7]

Dave Stuckrath from the Lakeland Ledger gave the performance he attended in Lakeland a poor rating, opening his review by stating that the band was more spectacle than music. He criticized the set as being poorly paced and uneven - only to be saved by their pyrotechnic lighting effects. He also added about the deafening wall of sound which rendered the music and lyrics meaningless than their records. He noted that a Van Halen concert was flashy but was musically and emotionally empty, having to rely on gimmicks and Roth's usage of obscene words and gestures. According to Stuckrath, they did nothing but "degrade rock 'n' roll's past, including that there was nothing original about their music and behavior. He concluded his review, saying that the audience had missed the opening acts which he said were the most entertaining part of the evening.^[8] The paper later published a letter by Candy Blank, a fan at the concert, who slammed Stuckrath's criticism, said the crowd was hardly bored, and called the music "fantastic".^[9]

• Eddie Van Halen – guitar, backing vocals
• David Lee Roth – lead vocals, acoustic guitar
• Michael Anthony – bass, backing vocals
• Alex Van Halen – drums

• Christopher, Michael (2021). Van Halen: The Eruption and the Aftershock. Lanham, Maryland: Backbeat. ISBN 9781493062102.
• Tolinski, Brad; Gill, Chris (2021). Eruption: Conversations with Eddie Van Halen (First ed.). New York, New York: Hachette Books. ISBN 9780306826672.