This is only a preview. The auction will open on: 10/28/2026 1:00:00 PM
Offered Here: Van Halen 1979 Lot of 99 World Vacation Tour Live Photos With Transfer Rights
Item Details: Acquire an explosive live performance archive from the band's definitive early years with this lot of 99 original color positive slides, sourced straight from the private collection of rock photographer Waring Abbott. Captured live in concert during the legendary 1979 World Vacation Tour, this archive primarily showcases the electrifying stage presence of frontman David Lee Roth, with 15 dynamic slides expanding to highlight the rest of the band. With immaculate provenance and complete with highly coveted transfer rights, this collection represents a premier opportunity for collectors.
Provenance / Authenticity: The items in this lot are sourced directly from the personal archives of renowned photojournalist Waring Abbott. Abbott’s iconic imagery has graced the pages of Time, Newsweek, People, Rolling Stone, and countless foreign publications, alongside legendary album covers and photo spreads for KISS, Led Zeppelin, Lou Reed, and Bob Dylan and others.
The 1979 World Vacation Tour supported Van Halen II, the follow-up to the band's 1978 debut, and marked Van Halen's move from opening act to arena headliner. In this period the group combined Eddie Van Halen's two-handed tapping and inventive guitar sound, the rhythm section of Alex Van Halen and Michael Anthony, and David Lee Roth's acrobatic, theatrical stage persona. That combination shaped the direction of hard rock and influenced a generation of guitarists and frontmen into the 1980s.
Condition: Very good
SKU: WBB1117