Rock meets funk? It's Kool, Van Halen opener says
Even Robert "Kool" Bell was "caught by surprise" when the hard-rocking Van Halen asked his veteran funk ensemble, Kool & the Gang, to team up for a 52-city tour.
Then again, Van Halen singer David Lee Roth had a good argument.
"He said, 'We were the party rock band of the '80s, and you were the party funk band of the '80s. It all makes sense to me, so let's go out and celebrate,'" Bell recalled.
On Sunday, the genre-crossing show comes to Allstate Arena in Rosemont, where Kool & the Gang will perform for about an hour before Van Halen takes the stage.
Bell said this is the first time in Kool & the Gang's 40-plus-year history that they've toured with a rock band.
"Everything's been cool so far," the bassist and founding member said in a recent Q&A with the Daily Herald.
Q. It's certainly an interesting pairing. How did it happen?
A. David Lee Roth saw us last year at Glastonbury Festival in London. At that time, they were putting together the tour. Glastonbury had over 100,000 people a day, and we closed it out that weekend with about 60,000 people at our stage. When he saw that, he said, "Hey man, I want Kool & the Gang to be part of our reunion tour." He said, "Our fans are about 60 percent ladies - so what better song than (Kool & the Gang hit) 'Ladies Night'?"
Q. How have audiences responded?
A. In the beginning, you got your hard-core Van Halen fans, and we're kind of waiting to see if we can make them move. By the end of the show, everybody's partying. I can see where David was coming from as far as the ladies. When we hit "Ladies Night," they're up and partying. And they're looking at their boyfriends or friends who are still trying to be hard core, saying, "What's the matter with you? You better get down on it." Then we got a party.
Q. Anyone in your band a big Van Halen fan?
A. Some of my guys. Actually, my guitarist Shawn McQuiller had an opportunity to meet Eddie Van Halen because (Poison frontman) Bret Michaels was interested in his band before he joined Kool & the Gang. In some kind of way, Eddie showed up at a rehearsal and was interested in doing something with Shawn, too. Then he ran into David Lee Roth sometime before he got with Kool & the Gang, and so he was very familiar.
Q. You have connections to a Greenwich Village club David Lee Roth's family used to own, right?
A. One of the places we would play when we got our start back in the day was Café Wha? They'd give you a turkey sandwich and potato chips - that's what you got for that Sunday afternoon. I found out that David Lee Roth's family owned the place. Before their tour started, they went back and did a special date there. Then, we did a documentary there when we celebrated our 40th anniversary.
Q. What kind of a set do you play on the tour?
A. We try to keep it up. We only get 50 minutes, so we try to make that 50 minutes work. We kick it off with "Fresh" and then go into what I call the "Kool rock" side with songs like "Misled," "Emergency" and "Tonight." They all got a little rock feel to it. Then we go into "Too Hot," and then back to the '70s with "Hollywood Swinging" and "Jungle Boogie." By that time, they're ready to party. After "Jungle Boogie," we go into "Ladies Night," "Get Down on It" and "Celebration."
Q. What happens when the tour ends?
A. We have two different projects. I'm working on a solo project with my brother called Kool and Friends. We're talking to Bootsy Collins, and also Nile Rodgers is interested in doing something with us. It'd be great if we could get Eddie to come party with us on this record. Then, the other record is a Kool & the Gang studio record. We hope to get it out next year, all new material. We're going to mix it up with a little funk, funk rock, and pop. It all depends on who we get on the project.
Q. Do you think this tour will help you reach new audiences?
A. We hope so. Judging from the audience and the comments on the Internet, it seems to be coming around. Those who weren't into us like that, after seeing the show with Van Halen, say, "Hey man, I can get into Kool & the Gang."
“A Different Kind of Truth” tour
Who: Van Halen and Kool and the Gang
When: 7:30 p.m. Sunday, April 1
Where: Allstate Arena, 6920 N. Mannheim Road, Rosemont
Tickets: $49.50, $79.50 or $149.50
Parking: $20, cash only
Information: Visit
www.allstatearena.com, or call (800) 745-3000