Eddie Van Halen, 1955-2020
October 6, 2020 1:12 PM Subscribe
Edward Lodewijk Van Halen, 65, has died after a long battle with throat cancer, per his son Wolf [twitter].
From a 1984 Rolling Stone article on the band that bore his name:
"Eruption/You Really Got Me" -- listen to his works, ye mighty, and despair.
From a 1984 Rolling Stone article on the band that bore his name:
Eddie’s been screwing up ever since he was a kid. He was a bad student and got thrown out of high school. He still thinks he’s dumb and goofy looking. “I hope you have good questions. I’m not a good talker,” he says, opening a bottle of Blue Nun by pushing in the cork. Eddie actually looks a lot like his wife, TV star Valerie Bertinelli. He says she’s as geeky as he is. When you ask him about the kids who dream about being Eddie Van Halen, of picking up a guitar and playing it with two agile hands as if it were a piano, he says, “Oh, I am so much geekier than any of those kids dreaming about being me.”Obituaries: Rolling Stone, NYT, Variety.
"Eruption/You Really Got Me" -- listen to his works, ye mighty, and despair.
I've never been a huge Van Halen fan, but Eddie was a giant and when I think of the first half of the 80s backdropping my adolescence they're one of the main bands on the soundtrack. Van Halen and AC/DC were also pretty much the only hype music that got played in the dressing rooms of the hockey teams I played for back then.
RIP.
posted by The Card Cheat at 1:17 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
RIP.
posted by The Card Cheat at 1:17 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
.
Damn. I graduated from high-school in '82 and Van Halen were the easily the biggest band at the time and that was before they really exploded.
posted by octothorpe at 1:18 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
Damn. I graduated from high-school in '82 and Van Halen were the easily the biggest band at the time and that was before they really exploded.
posted by octothorpe at 1:18 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
just shared this news with my husband, who is a big fan, and helped me to appreciate this band, and Eddie as a player, more than I had before. /80s child
.
posted by supermedusa at 1:19 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
.
posted by supermedusa at 1:19 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
.
posted by AzraelBrown at 1:22 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by AzraelBrown at 1:22 PM on October 6, 2020
.
posted by JoeXIII007 at 1:22 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by JoeXIII007 at 1:22 PM on October 6, 2020
As one of about 600,000,000 electric guitar-owning teenage boys in the 1980s, he was huge in my world back then.
Thanks for all that you brought to us, Eddie.
posted by bondcliff at 1:24 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
Thanks for all that you brought to us, Eddie.
posted by bondcliff at 1:24 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
.
Such a better player than the millions who copied him.
Dweezil Zappa has an amazing and touching EVH story.
posted by swift at 1:24 PM on October 6, 2020 [26 favorites]
Such a better player than the millions who copied him.
Dweezil Zappa has an amazing and touching EVH story.
posted by swift at 1:24 PM on October 6, 2020 [26 favorites]
That first, best album opening with Eddie strumming behind the nut. And then Eruption on track 2.
.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 1:25 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 1:25 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
.
Interestingly enough I was just into a Bauhaus jag and was directed to (by Spotify) early Van Halen. Because of the time period? Damn I had forgotten how fun and good they were.
posted by repoman at 1:25 PM on October 6, 2020
Interestingly enough I was just into a Bauhaus jag and was directed to (by Spotify) early Van Halen. Because of the time period? Damn I had forgotten how fun and good they were.
posted by repoman at 1:25 PM on October 6, 2020
RIP, Eddie. One of the people that made up the soundtrack to my youth.
Now, the weird stuff. I haven't thought about Van halen in decades, but woke up with Jamie's Crying in my head. Even made a toot about it on Mastodon this morning. Learned about Eddie's passing 5 mins ago.
posted by terrapin at 1:26 PM on October 6, 2020 [8 favorites]
Now, the weird stuff. I haven't thought about Van halen in decades, but woke up with Jamie's Crying in my head. Even made a toot about it on Mastodon this morning. Learned about Eddie's passing 5 mins ago.
posted by terrapin at 1:26 PM on October 6, 2020 [8 favorites]
.
Jump was such a huge song when I was a kid. I can only name that and Right Now but Van Halen the band and Eddie Van Halen the musician were giants just like The Card Cheat said.
Kind of weird because he showed up on my news feed the other day. Nothing about his death just some random bit of news about him, maybe praising some other guitarist. I have no idea why he showed up.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 1:26 PM on October 6, 2020
Jump was such a huge song when I was a kid. I can only name that and Right Now but Van Halen the band and Eddie Van Halen the musician were giants just like The Card Cheat said.
Kind of weird because he showed up on my news feed the other day. Nothing about his death just some random bit of news about him, maybe praising some other guitarist. I have no idea why he showed up.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 1:26 PM on October 6, 2020
The reason that I and millions of others picked up the guitar. So much music I listen to today came from his influence. I'm devastated.
RIP.
posted by mikesch at 1:27 PM on October 6, 2020
RIP.
posted by mikesch at 1:27 PM on October 6, 2020
.
posted by Annabelle74 at 1:28 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by Annabelle74 at 1:28 PM on October 6, 2020
Eddie actually looks a lot like his wife, TV star Valerie Bertinelli
I have always thought this but never heard it mentioned elsewhere before.
posted by supermedusa at 1:31 PM on October 6, 2020 [9 favorites]
I have always thought this but never heard it mentioned elsewhere before.
posted by supermedusa at 1:31 PM on October 6, 2020 [9 favorites]
Damn.
posted by Don.Kinsayder at 1:32 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by Don.Kinsayder at 1:32 PM on October 6, 2020
I saw this reported in our Dutch newspaper with the note that he was of one of the most famous Dutch musicians ever. And I am thinking.."Dutch??"..and just learned that Eddie Van Halen was indeed born in Amsterdam. I never knew that. RIP Eddie.
posted by vacapinta at 1:33 PM on October 6, 2020 [10 favorites]
posted by vacapinta at 1:33 PM on October 6, 2020 [10 favorites]
And then Eruption on track 2.
And the transition from "Eruption" into "You Really Got Me" is pretty perfect.
It's hard to overstate his influence.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 1:35 PM on October 6, 2020 [14 favorites]
And the transition from "Eruption" into "You Really Got Me" is pretty perfect.
It's hard to overstate his influence.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 1:35 PM on October 6, 2020 [14 favorites]
My adopted hometown (Pasadena) is going to be upset. There are tons of folks posting on Facebook remember when Van Halen was just a bunch of goofy kids playing gigs locally.
posted by drewbage1847 at 1:37 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by drewbage1847 at 1:37 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
I remember standing in a frat house parking lot in the snow and one of the guys put his speakers at the window of his room, exclaiming we had to hear something. He put on "Eruption". Jaws dropped. Hell, beers dropped. It was like nothing we had ever heard before. And though his imitators are legion, there will only be one Eddie. RIP you glorious bastard.
posted by Ber at 1:37 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by Ber at 1:37 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
"Dutch??"..and just learned that Eddie Van Halen was indeed born in Amsterdam
Yeah! It's easy to miss that. He seems so American. And Lars Ulrich from Metallica who's gottta also one of Holland's most famous musicians.
RIP Eddie- there was only one of him. Early 80s MTV videos emblazoned in my mind of him walking on that table playing guitar. Hot for Teacher?
posted by Liquidwolf at 1:38 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
Yeah! It's easy to miss that. He seems so American. And Lars Ulrich from Metallica who's gottta also one of Holland's most famous musicians.
RIP Eddie- there was only one of him. Early 80s MTV videos emblazoned in my mind of him walking on that table playing guitar. Hot for Teacher?
posted by Liquidwolf at 1:38 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
Er. Lars Ulrich is Danish....
posted by Brockles at 1:40 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by Brockles at 1:40 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
♪
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 1:43 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 1:43 PM on October 6, 2020
Er. Lars Ulrich is Danish...
Oh right. My mistake. Close though.
posted by Liquidwolf at 1:45 PM on October 6, 2020
Oh right. My mistake. Close though.
posted by Liquidwolf at 1:45 PM on October 6, 2020
If you're looking for more thoughts on Eddie and his impact on fans, the industry, etc, Rick Beato has a heartfelt live-streamed video about it. Celebrate Eddie's life through storytelling.
posted by Godspeed.You!Black.Emperor.Penguin at 1:45 PM on October 6, 2020 [10 favorites]
posted by Godspeed.You!Black.Emperor.Penguin at 1:45 PM on October 6, 2020 [10 favorites]
.
posted by Mister Moofoo at 1:47 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by Mister Moofoo at 1:47 PM on October 6, 2020
SoCal in the late 70's-early 80's, when Runnin' With The Devil would be blaring from the gym as we walked out to the fields for track or tennis. When my best friend paid the absurd* price of $ 35 ! each! for mezzanine tickets so we could see DLR in his yellow and black striped spandex and suspenders, no shirt, climbing up the amp stack with his bottle of Jack. When we did the overnight for the Rose parade, just so we could keep yelling "where's the Van Halen float!!" like the obnoxious loving teenagers we were. Still to this day I yell at the tv on New Years Day, "where's the Van Halen float?!!".
* this was so expensive to us, when we could get any other wing seats in the Sports Arena for around $ 10.
Thank you Eddie.
posted by winesong at 1:51 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
* this was so expensive to us, when we could get any other wing seats in the Sports Arena for around $ 10.
Thank you Eddie.
posted by winesong at 1:51 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
The intro to Mean Street is the reason I still play guitar after all of these years. I am tapped out.
.
posted by extraheavymarcellus at 1:54 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
.
posted by extraheavymarcellus at 1:54 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
.
posted by Faint of Butt at 1:59 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by Faint of Butt at 1:59 PM on October 6, 2020
.
posted by Silvery Fish at 1:59 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by Silvery Fish at 1:59 PM on October 6, 2020
.
posted by oozy rat in a sanitary zoo at 2:02 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by oozy rat in a sanitary zoo at 2:02 PM on October 6, 2020
When MTV did that 'Lost Weekend with Van Halen' contest.
posted by box at 2:02 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
posted by box at 2:02 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
Eddie actually looks a lot like his wife, TV star Valerie Bertinelli
I mean, let's be honest: the hair was really doing the lion's share of the work.
.
posted by Atom Eyes at 2:03 PM on October 6, 2020 [5 favorites]
I mean, let's be honest: the hair was really doing the lion's share of the work.
.
posted by Atom Eyes at 2:03 PM on October 6, 2020 [5 favorites]
♪
I saw Van Halen on their 1984 tour, and while it was generally a sloppy mess (but fun!), Eddie Van Halen carried that show.
posted by Gelatin at 2:06 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
I saw Van Halen on their 1984 tour, and while it was generally a sloppy mess (but fun!), Eddie Van Halen carried that show.
posted by Gelatin at 2:06 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
I saw this reported in our Dutch newspaper with the note that he was of one of the most famous Dutch musicians ever. And I am thinking.."Dutch??"..and just learned that Eddie Van Halen was indeed born in Amsterdam. I never knew that.
I imagine someday people will be startled to learn in her obituary that Tina Turner is arguably the most famous citizen of Switzerland.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 2:07 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
I imagine someday people will be startled to learn in her obituary that Tina Turner is arguably the most famous citizen of Switzerland.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 2:07 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
I mean, let's be honest: the hair was really doing the lion's share of the work.
When he had long flowing hair, he probably had the best hair in rock and roll. And then when he cut it off, he definitely did. He played amazingly, but man that man could hair.
.
posted by Mchelly at 2:08 PM on October 6, 2020 [6 favorites]
When he had long flowing hair, he probably had the best hair in rock and roll. And then when he cut it off, he definitely did. He played amazingly, but man that man could hair.
.
posted by Mchelly at 2:08 PM on October 6, 2020 [6 favorites]
He was a hero of my youth. To the degree that I not only had an "Eddie is God" poster on my wall, but my first guitar was a Kramer Striker.
May the cigarette smoking cherubs guide you to that high place.
.
posted by gwint at 2:10 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
May the cigarette smoking cherubs guide you to that high place.
.
posted by gwint at 2:10 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
Neil Peart and Eddie Van Halen. Fuck you cancer and 2020 both.
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 2:11 PM on October 6, 2020 [9 favorites]
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 2:11 PM on October 6, 2020 [9 favorites]
Well fuck. Didn't see that coming.
I mean, I should have, it is 2020 after all.
posted by caution live frogs at 2:14 PM on October 6, 2020
I mean, I should have, it is 2020 after all.
posted by caution live frogs at 2:14 PM on October 6, 2020
🎸
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 2:14 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 2:14 PM on October 6, 2020
I haven’t seen Chuck Klosterman’s 2015 Billboard profile of EVH linked yet, which is worth revisiting to recall what a unique character he became.
posted by Ian A.T. at 2:21 PM on October 6, 2020 [5 favorites]
posted by Ian A.T. at 2:21 PM on October 6, 2020 [5 favorites]
2020: Might as well jump.
posted by chavenet at 2:25 PM on October 6, 2020 [5 favorites]
posted by chavenet at 2:25 PM on October 6, 2020 [5 favorites]
.
posted by SonInLawOfSam at 2:26 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by SonInLawOfSam at 2:26 PM on October 6, 2020
Only today I was referencing this exchange from Bill And Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989), a parable of why I never get anything done:
Bill: Ted, while I agree that, in time, our band will be most triumphant... the truth is, Wyld Stallyns will never be a super band until we have Eddie Van Halen on guitar.posted by Pallas Athena at 2:27 PM on October 6, 2020 [18 favorites]
Ted: Yes, Bill. But, I do not believe we will get Eddie Van Halen until we have a triumphant video.
Bill: Ted, it's pointless to have a triumphant video before we even have decent instruments.
Ted: Well, how can we have decent instruments when we don't really even know how to play?
Bill: That is why we NEED Eddie Van Halen!
Ted: And THAT is why we need a triumphant video.
Bill, Ted: EXCELLENT!
[air guitar]
Summer 1996, a small city in Canada. A dozen fifteen year-olds wearing Halloween masks enter McDonalds. One holds aloft a boombox and presses play. Out comes the opening riff of Van Halen's Don't Tell Me.
The twelve masked teens begin to do jumping jacks in formation, chanting that summer's marketing slogan: "MY McDONALDs, MY McFLURRY."
As the staff and diners stare, in storms a 200-lb guy in full football gear, who grabs hold of a big promotional blow-up McFlurry and hoists it in the air.
"Sweet Jesus," shouts a plainclothes teen from the seating area. "They're stealing the giant McFlurry!" He pauses awkwardly, then overturns his tray, scattering fries everywhere.
The football player, the plainclothes teen, and the masked jumping-jack crew all run out the front door and stuff the McFlurry into a getaway car.
But the last kid to exit McDonalds is the one holding the boombox. He stays there in danger, still pumping Van Halen and nodding solemnly, until the first chorus is over.
.
posted by Beardman at 2:29 PM on October 6, 2020 [20 favorites]
The twelve masked teens begin to do jumping jacks in formation, chanting that summer's marketing slogan: "MY McDONALDs, MY McFLURRY."
As the staff and diners stare, in storms a 200-lb guy in full football gear, who grabs hold of a big promotional blow-up McFlurry and hoists it in the air.
"Sweet Jesus," shouts a plainclothes teen from the seating area. "They're stealing the giant McFlurry!" He pauses awkwardly, then overturns his tray, scattering fries everywhere.
The football player, the plainclothes teen, and the masked jumping-jack crew all run out the front door and stuff the McFlurry into a getaway car.
But the last kid to exit McDonalds is the one holding the boombox. He stays there in danger, still pumping Van Halen and nodding solemnly, until the first chorus is over.
.
posted by Beardman at 2:29 PM on October 6, 2020 [20 favorites]
When I was growing up in Venezuela in the seventies, I used to visit my grandparents in Florida every summer, and would bring back an entire suitcase of American vinyl for friends, my Dad had connections, he'd meet me at the plane and walk me right through customs. The LPs being manufactured down there sounded like shit, and folks would pay premium prices for American-pressed records.
One of those summers, I was in a record store in Hollywood, Florida (probably Peaches), and this insane sound comes over the speakers, it's Running With the Devil, then Eruption, then You Really Got me. My mind shattered into a million pieces, no one had ever heard an electric guitar sound like that, his Brown Sound was an instant shot of dope directly into my soul. I walked out of there with a last 10 copies of VH1.
When I got back to Caracas, I played that album for everyone, and the copies flew out of my hands. I had a couple left, and my father took me over to Radio Caracas, he had friends at the station, and I wanted to turn them onto it. One of the DJs put it on to hear why I was so excited, didn't even get through the first minute of Running With the Devil, and immediately put those first three songs on the air. I remember the switchboard lighting up, people lost their minds. I sold him that copy, and wore out my single remaining one. You best believe I bought more of them the following summer. That was very likely the best premiere album for a rock band I had ever heard (Besides Led Zep 1), it changed how we thought about the electric guitar in no less an intense way than Jimi Hendrix.
RIP, Eddie, your place as a Rock God is intact, while you might be Running With the Devil, I hope you're climbing the Stairway to Heaven.
•
posted by dbiedny at 2:31 PM on October 6, 2020 [45 favorites]
One of those summers, I was in a record store in Hollywood, Florida (probably Peaches), and this insane sound comes over the speakers, it's Running With the Devil, then Eruption, then You Really Got me. My mind shattered into a million pieces, no one had ever heard an electric guitar sound like that, his Brown Sound was an instant shot of dope directly into my soul. I walked out of there with a last 10 copies of VH1.
When I got back to Caracas, I played that album for everyone, and the copies flew out of my hands. I had a couple left, and my father took me over to Radio Caracas, he had friends at the station, and I wanted to turn them onto it. One of the DJs put it on to hear why I was so excited, didn't even get through the first minute of Running With the Devil, and immediately put those first three songs on the air. I remember the switchboard lighting up, people lost their minds. I sold him that copy, and wore out my single remaining one. You best believe I bought more of them the following summer. That was very likely the best premiere album for a rock band I had ever heard (Besides Led Zep 1), it changed how we thought about the electric guitar in no less an intense way than Jimi Hendrix.
RIP, Eddie, your place as a Rock God is intact, while you might be Running With the Devil, I hope you're climbing the Stairway to Heaven.
•
posted by dbiedny at 2:31 PM on October 6, 2020 [45 favorites]
EVH probably had the most influence on me as a keyboard player, thanks to Jump. That is my go-to test song for any new axe.
.
posted by grumpybear69 at 2:32 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
.
posted by grumpybear69 at 2:32 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 2:33 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by MCMikeNamara at 2:33 PM on October 6, 2020
The amazing thing about relistening to VH VH just now - just the sheer casual swaaaaager of that album and yeah, those first three tracks. It just sounds like they were having a blast knowing they were going all out to blow your mind
posted by drewbage1847 at 2:35 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by drewbage1847 at 2:35 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
Selland Arena, Fresno 3/25/79: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4
First show of their first headlining tour, a couple days after Van Halen II came out. Dave says "today," but Wikpedia disagrees. :shrug:
In 7th grade I prided myself at already listening to VH while my classmates were still loving AC/DC like a bunch of children. That would change very quickly over the next year or so, but by then I was getting into jazz. Anyway, I've said before that the first four albums are pretty much perfect, and I still stand behind that! I also remember, as a prepubescent, being disappointed that he cock-blocked me with Valerie Bertinelli.
He did screw (the integral) Michael Anthony, and pushed Diamond Dave out for the absolute wrongest reason there could be, given the years that followed (Eddie wanted to be more serious), but them's the 80s. I don't know if it was a childhood thing or just sex and drugs or just The Seventies, but 1984 was the last of the real VH. I still wish I would have gone to one of the reunion shows, Dave is still amazing.
I find myself surprised that Eddie went first, but if I close my eyes I don't know who else could have. I could sit here and describe all of the moments in his songs that still give me the same frisson as when I was 13, but we'd be here all day and I'm not that good a writer.
.
posted by rhizome at 2:36 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
First show of their first headlining tour, a couple days after Van Halen II came out. Dave says "today," but Wikpedia disagrees. :shrug:
In 7th grade I prided myself at already listening to VH while my classmates were still loving AC/DC like a bunch of children. That would change very quickly over the next year or so, but by then I was getting into jazz. Anyway, I've said before that the first four albums are pretty much perfect, and I still stand behind that! I also remember, as a prepubescent, being disappointed that he cock-blocked me with Valerie Bertinelli.
He did screw (the integral) Michael Anthony, and pushed Diamond Dave out for the absolute wrongest reason there could be, given the years that followed (Eddie wanted to be more serious), but them's the 80s. I don't know if it was a childhood thing or just sex and drugs or just The Seventies, but 1984 was the last of the real VH. I still wish I would have gone to one of the reunion shows, Dave is still amazing.
I find myself surprised that Eddie went first, but if I close my eyes I don't know who else could have. I could sit here and describe all of the moments in his songs that still give me the same frisson as when I was 13, but we'd be here all day and I'm not that good a writer.
.
posted by rhizome at 2:36 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
"Many more eloquent than me will discuss his musical achievements, so I'll just note that he was owner and inventor of the patent with the baddest-ass diagram in the history of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office..."
Click tweet or patent copy for rockin' diagram.
posted by doctornemo at 2:37 PM on October 6, 2020 [14 favorites]
Click tweet or patent copy for rockin' diagram.
posted by doctornemo at 2:37 PM on October 6, 2020 [14 favorites]
A Pasadena Civic show from just before the first album came out, basically their last show before exploding. It's good.
posted by rhizome at 2:48 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by rhizome at 2:48 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
And the transition from "Eruption" into "You Really Got Me" is pretty perfect.
Child me thought that Eruption was the awesone intro that they cut out of the radio version of "you really got me"
.
posted by cmfletcher at 2:48 PM on October 6, 2020
Child me thought that Eruption was the awesone intro that they cut out of the radio version of "you really got me"
.
posted by cmfletcher at 2:48 PM on October 6, 2020
Not claiming I was a die hard, but I was enough of a fan to go see Van Halen play live twice. This one hurts. Goodbye, Eddie, and thank you for everything.
Fuck cancer.
.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 2:48 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
Fuck cancer.
.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 2:48 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I wish I could be as happy doing anything, as Eddie Van Halen looked when he was on a stage playing guitar. On top of everything else, the innovation, the technique, the tone, that wide goofy grin was pure rock’n’roll.
R(ock) I(n) P(erpetuity)
posted by wabbittwax at 2:52 PM on October 6, 2020 [13 favorites]
R(ock) I(n) P(erpetuity)
posted by wabbittwax at 2:52 PM on October 6, 2020 [13 favorites]
I never set out to listen to Van Halen, but they were a big part of my youth anyway. This is hitting harder than I would have guessed.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 2:54 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by The Underpants Monster at 2:54 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
.
posted by dopeypanda at 3:18 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by dopeypanda at 3:18 PM on October 6, 2020
"Dutch??"..and just learned that Eddie Van Halen was indeed born in Amsterdam.
And part Indonesian through his mother.
posted by The Tensor at 3:24 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
And part Indonesian through his mother.
posted by The Tensor at 3:24 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
.
I, too, woke up with Van Halen playing in my head today. It was Why Can't This Be Love? from the Van Hagar era. Say what you want about Sammy's bizarre paradox of humourless self-importance and fluffy pastel lyrics; EVH's synth is redemption enough.
And yes, get you a man who smiles at you the way Eddie smiled while he was playing.
posted by armeowda at 3:29 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
I, too, woke up with Van Halen playing in my head today. It was Why Can't This Be Love? from the Van Hagar era. Say what you want about Sammy's bizarre paradox of humourless self-importance and fluffy pastel lyrics; EVH's synth is redemption enough.
And yes, get you a man who smiles at you the way Eddie smiled while he was playing.
posted by armeowda at 3:29 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
Remember listening to 1984 while I pumped iron in my parents' basement. Oh man, that was a long time ago now, and a distant place. I'll never go back there again.
Thanks Eddie, for everything.
.
posted by newdaddy at 3:36 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
Thanks Eddie, for everything.
.
posted by newdaddy at 3:36 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
goddamn this year is relentless. hope you've got it made, got it made, got it made up there, Eddie. You deserve it.
posted by headspace at 3:36 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by headspace at 3:36 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
Lessons in shredding.
To paraphrase "Almost Famous", he was a golden god.
posted by grimjeer at 3:39 PM on October 6, 2020
To paraphrase "Almost Famous", he was a golden god.
posted by grimjeer at 3:39 PM on October 6, 2020
- "Dutch??"..and just learned that Eddie Van Halen was indeed born in Amsterdam.
-- And part Indonesian through his mother.
The family's emigration was spurred (at least in part) by Mrs. VH's "second-class citizen" status and subsequent treatment in the Netherlands. And EVH didn't especially care for guitars, at the beginning, and he'd franken-fuse his own to get the sound he wanted. From the series What It Means to be American, A National Conversation, a 2015 EVH sit-down at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, with video and podcast links. Article excerpts:
[...] En route to America by boat, Van Halen’s father performed with the on-board band during the nine-day journey. After their father suggested that his sons play during intermission, Eddie and Alex learned performance came with perks: The next night, they were eating dinner at the captain’s table. In Southern California, Van Halen’s mother worked as a maid, and his father pursued music while working as a janitor. The family lived in one room in a house they shared with two other families. In a new country, speaking a new language, the one constant thread was music. “We always liked things loud,” said Van Halen. Nonetheless, he and his brother spent years playing classical piano—despite the fact that Eddie never learned how to read music. Once the Van Halen brothers discovered rock ’n’ roll, they quit piano lessons. Eddie got a drum set, which his brother coveted.
“I never wanted to play guitar,” he said. But his brother was good at the drums, so Eddie gave into his brother’s wishes: “I said, ‘Go ahead, take my drums. I’ll play your damn guitar.’” In between taking up guitar and becoming a star, there were “a lot of years of experimentation,” said Van Halen—taking apart guitars, opening up amplifiers, and getting electrocuted. Some of that was driven by necessity. But a lot of it was just his nature. “I’m always pushing things past where [they’re] supposed to be,” he said. “When Spinal Tap was going to 11, I was going to 15.” Van Halen knew the sound he wanted to achieve, but he couldn’t find a guitar that could make it. So he got different parts from different guitar-makers, including Gibson and Fender, screwed and soldered and melted them together, and built the instrument he wanted. [...] He customized his amplifier with the same combination of trial and error, tinkering and luck. [...]
Do you feel as though you’re living the American dream, asked [interviewer, music journalist Denise] Quan.
We came here with approximately $50 and a piano, and we didn’t speak the language, he said. Now look where we are. “If that’s not the American dream, what is?” he said.
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:41 PM on October 6, 2020 [19 favorites]
-- And part Indonesian through his mother.
The family's emigration was spurred (at least in part) by Mrs. VH's "second-class citizen" status and subsequent treatment in the Netherlands. And EVH didn't especially care for guitars, at the beginning, and he'd franken-fuse his own to get the sound he wanted. From the series What It Means to be American, A National Conversation, a 2015 EVH sit-down at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, with video and podcast links. Article excerpts:
[...] En route to America by boat, Van Halen’s father performed with the on-board band during the nine-day journey. After their father suggested that his sons play during intermission, Eddie and Alex learned performance came with perks: The next night, they were eating dinner at the captain’s table. In Southern California, Van Halen’s mother worked as a maid, and his father pursued music while working as a janitor. The family lived in one room in a house they shared with two other families. In a new country, speaking a new language, the one constant thread was music. “We always liked things loud,” said Van Halen. Nonetheless, he and his brother spent years playing classical piano—despite the fact that Eddie never learned how to read music. Once the Van Halen brothers discovered rock ’n’ roll, they quit piano lessons. Eddie got a drum set, which his brother coveted.
“I never wanted to play guitar,” he said. But his brother was good at the drums, so Eddie gave into his brother’s wishes: “I said, ‘Go ahead, take my drums. I’ll play your damn guitar.’” In between taking up guitar and becoming a star, there were “a lot of years of experimentation,” said Van Halen—taking apart guitars, opening up amplifiers, and getting electrocuted. Some of that was driven by necessity. But a lot of it was just his nature. “I’m always pushing things past where [they’re] supposed to be,” he said. “When Spinal Tap was going to 11, I was going to 15.” Van Halen knew the sound he wanted to achieve, but he couldn’t find a guitar that could make it. So he got different parts from different guitar-makers, including Gibson and Fender, screwed and soldered and melted them together, and built the instrument he wanted. [...] He customized his amplifier with the same combination of trial and error, tinkering and luck. [...]
Do you feel as though you’re living the American dream, asked [interviewer, music journalist Denise] Quan.
We came here with approximately $50 and a piano, and we didn’t speak the language, he said. Now look where we are. “If that’s not the American dream, what is?” he said.
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:41 PM on October 6, 2020 [19 favorites]
If you didn't read the Chuck Klosterman profile Ian A.T. linked above, scroll up, click the link, and do so.
posted by wittgenstein at 3:53 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by wittgenstein at 3:53 PM on October 6, 2020
Kind of amazing that two of this guitar virtuoso's most widely-known compositions are the keyboard parts to Jump and Right Now.
posted by straight at 3:56 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by straight at 3:56 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
well, i guessed it before i came home when i realized the classic rock station had been playing van halen for over an hour
i remember that moment when someone played me eruption for the first time in 1977 and ... well, the technique was obvious, but it just didn't get me
aside from all the great guitarists i'd already heard, i'd already heard alan holdsworth play with gong on this (about 2.40 in for an amazing solo)
and then there was that steve hillage guy (that whole fish rising album blew my mind)
the whole point of which is van halen didn't come from nowhere with no precedent - what he did was a natural evolution of what other people had done, and i heard that in his playing - i thought he was better in a band context playing songs and his rhythm guitar tone was good
.
posted by pyramid termite at 4:01 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
i remember that moment when someone played me eruption for the first time in 1977 and ... well, the technique was obvious, but it just didn't get me
aside from all the great guitarists i'd already heard, i'd already heard alan holdsworth play with gong on this (about 2.40 in for an amazing solo)
and then there was that steve hillage guy (that whole fish rising album blew my mind)
the whole point of which is van halen didn't come from nowhere with no precedent - what he did was a natural evolution of what other people had done, and i heard that in his playing - i thought he was better in a band context playing songs and his rhythm guitar tone was good
.
posted by pyramid termite at 4:01 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
Thanks to Eddie, it was a rule for school kids across the continent that they had to have the VH logo somewhere on their pencil case or Trapper Keeper.
Thank you, Eddie. I was as much a fan as I could be without my parents allowing your music in the house.
posted by Capt. Renault at 4:06 PM on October 6, 2020 [8 favorites]
Thank you, Eddie. I was as much a fan as I could be without my parents allowing your music in the house.
posted by Capt. Renault at 4:06 PM on October 6, 2020 [8 favorites]
It has been stated on Metafilter that Van Halen is music for getting wasted to by your Camarro in the high school parking lot. I gratefully endorse this as a child of 1980s Southern Illinios. I will be playing Running with the Devil tonight, and I will find a cheap beer to chug for the memories.
.
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 4:10 PM on October 6, 2020 [6 favorites]
.
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 4:10 PM on October 6, 2020 [6 favorites]
Also, Eddie's most-listened to guitar solo is probably the unpaid and uncredited one he played for Michael Jackson's Beat It (ignore the headline - the song itself was written by Jackson, even though the main riff totally sounds like something Eddie might play).
posted by straight at 4:17 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by straight at 4:17 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
Van Halen was the soundtrack to the first truly painful breakup I ever had. I'll always have a soft spot for the Hagar-era band as a result.
I wasn't expecting to do more than shrug and carry on when I read this... but I really do feel it.
As wabbittwax said...
Rock In Perpetuity
.
posted by ChrisR at 4:23 PM on October 6, 2020
I wasn't expecting to do more than shrug and carry on when I read this... but I really do feel it.
As wabbittwax said...
Rock In Perpetuity
.
posted by ChrisR at 4:23 PM on October 6, 2020
"When Spinal Tap was going to 11, I was going to 15."
He took it all the way to 1984.
posted by New Frontier at 4:24 PM on October 6, 2020
He took it all the way to 1984.
posted by New Frontier at 4:24 PM on October 6, 2020
RIP EVH
The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History and Zócalo Public Square present "Is Rock 'n' Roll All About Reinvention?" featuring Eddie Van Halen with Denise Quan.
Interview with Eddie Van Halen: Is Rock 'n' Roll All About Reinvention?
posted by gen at 4:28 PM on October 6, 2020
The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History and Zócalo Public Square present "Is Rock 'n' Roll All About Reinvention?" featuring Eddie Van Halen with Denise Quan.
Interview with Eddie Van Halen: Is Rock 'n' Roll All About Reinvention?
posted by gen at 4:28 PM on October 6, 2020
I saw him play guitar with power-drill once. That was pretty cool.
.
posted by valkane at 4:36 PM on October 6, 2020
.
posted by valkane at 4:36 PM on October 6, 2020
Michael Jackson's Beat It (ignore the headline - the song itself was written by Jackson, even though the main riff totally sounds like something Eddie might play)
Little known fact: Eddie rearranged the song.
.
posted by JoeZydeco at 4:39 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
Little known fact: Eddie rearranged the song.
.
posted by JoeZydeco at 4:39 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
aside: I'll reiterate an old Van Halen story, that thing about their funny contract riders where they made contractors pick out the brown jelly beans (and freak out if the brown beans were found) and they later explained that they actually wanted their contracts to be read and followed thoroughly... so I heard VH perform on their first tour, it was the worst live sound that I'd ever heard for a big rock event, it sounded like they were playing underwater, and it seemed like their live sound team was cutting a few corners back then. VH just wanted a more professional live sound presentation after all of that...
posted by ovvl at 4:41 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by ovvl at 4:41 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
He says she’s as geeky as he is. When you ask him about the kids who dream about being Eddie Van Halen, of picking up a guitar and playing it with two agile hands as if it were a piano, he says, “Oh, I am so much geekier than any of those kids dreaming about being me.”That just made me like him 10x more. I was a bit too young in the 80's to be much of a music person other than what's on the radio but still... I know why kids today are wearing 80's band's T-shirts. There once was awesome OMGWTFHOW?
It's like I didn't even know, but still actually knew Eddie Van Halen was worthy.
.
posted by zengargoyle at 4:42 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
Van Halen was the soundtrack to the first truly painful breakup I ever had.
“Why can’t this be love”, coming up on the car radio just as she’s done telling me it’s not going to work.
One of those fleeting, perfect moments.
Eruption was pretty good tho.
posted by mhoye at 4:43 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
“Why can’t this be love”, coming up on the car radio just as she’s done telling me it’s not going to work.
One of those fleeting, perfect moments.
Eruption was pretty good tho.
posted by mhoye at 4:43 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
David Lee Roth explains the brown m&m story.
posted by mhoye at 4:47 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by mhoye at 4:47 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
Even though Van Halen broke up in 1985 and never reunited in any way, shape or form, that 70s-to-mid-80s work will stand on its own merits for a very, very long time.
Eddie made the insane look easy.
posted by delfin at 4:52 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
Eddie made the insane look easy.
posted by delfin at 4:52 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
Van Hagar, on the F.U.C.K. tour, was my first concert.
Rest in pull-offs and hammer-ons, dude.
posted by notsnot at 4:52 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
Rest in pull-offs and hammer-ons, dude.
posted by notsnot at 4:52 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
.
I don't care for the "who's the best guitarist" debates (it's not a competition) but it's undeniable that Eddie had a huge influence on a whole generation of musicians.
I certainly had the logo on my Trapper Keeper, and the posters in my bedroom, and spent an ungodly amount of time air-guitaring to those first four albums during my awkward teenage years, thinking "how'd he *do* that?".
Also, here's this, from Better Off Dead.
posted by chbrooks at 4:55 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
I don't care for the "who's the best guitarist" debates (it's not a competition) but it's undeniable that Eddie had a huge influence on a whole generation of musicians.
I certainly had the logo on my Trapper Keeper, and the posters in my bedroom, and spent an ungodly amount of time air-guitaring to those first four albums during my awkward teenage years, thinking "how'd he *do* that?".
Also, here's this, from Better Off Dead.
posted by chbrooks at 4:55 PM on October 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
swift, thank you -- the Dweezil Zappa YouTube clip from 2012 you linked is really lovely.
In the clip Zappa's on stage; there's a lot of crowd noise and a few interruptions during the storytelling section. So, briefly, if you didn't click or couldn't, or couldn't make it out:
- Frank Zappa fan/rising rock star Eddie Van Halen calls the house to chat with 12-year-old Dweezil's dad, then visits; Van Halen superfan Dweezil is beside himself
- EVH produces the first song Dweezil records; it's still the very early 1980s, Dweezil's still 12 and has been playing guitar for all of 9 months
- Afterward, EVH attends Dweezil's soundcheck for the middle-school talent show as Dweezil & schoolmates rehearse their Running with the Devil cover
- EVH briefly "sits in" with the kids, standing behind Dweezil (who had been playing the wrong chord) and putting his arms around him to play the guitar part -- providing the ideal angle to view the correct technique
- When Dweezil's guitar keeps going out of tune during the soundcheck, EVH runs home to fetch one of his own guitars to substitute
In the last bit he relates, Dweezil flash-forwards about a dozen years, and tears up: I, I had one more thing, to tell you, that's super cool about Eddie Van Halen, is that ... the first person that called, when Frank passed away, was Eddie Van Halen.
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:22 PM on October 6, 2020 [39 favorites]
In the clip Zappa's on stage; there's a lot of crowd noise and a few interruptions during the storytelling section. So, briefly, if you didn't click or couldn't, or couldn't make it out:
- Frank Zappa fan/rising rock star Eddie Van Halen calls the house to chat with 12-year-old Dweezil's dad, then visits; Van Halen superfan Dweezil is beside himself
- EVH produces the first song Dweezil records; it's still the very early 1980s, Dweezil's still 12 and has been playing guitar for all of 9 months
- Afterward, EVH attends Dweezil's soundcheck for the middle-school talent show as Dweezil & schoolmates rehearse their Running with the Devil cover
- EVH briefly "sits in" with the kids, standing behind Dweezil (who had been playing the wrong chord) and putting his arms around him to play the guitar part -- providing the ideal angle to view the correct technique
- When Dweezil's guitar keeps going out of tune during the soundcheck, EVH runs home to fetch one of his own guitars to substitute
In the last bit he relates, Dweezil flash-forwards about a dozen years, and tears up: I, I had one more thing, to tell you, that's super cool about Eddie Van Halen, is that ... the first person that called, when Frank passed away, was Eddie Van Halen.
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:22 PM on October 6, 2020 [39 favorites]
I was just into a Bauhaus jag and was directed to (by Spotify) early Van Halen.
First song of theirs on AOR I noticed was Jamie's Crying and it sounded pretty dark and mysterious. Now I'm hearing it in my head with Murphy singing and need to turn on a light.
posted by Mr. Yuck at 5:37 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
First song of theirs on AOR I noticed was Jamie's Crying and it sounded pretty dark and mysterious. Now I'm hearing it in my head with Murphy singing and need to turn on a light.
posted by Mr. Yuck at 5:37 PM on October 6, 2020 [4 favorites]
.
posted by Joey Michaels at 6:08 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by Joey Michaels at 6:08 PM on October 6, 2020
I know that first record, that band was god-like, that record (recorded onto cassette and played as I drove) got keyed into/onto my heart.
I know a bit of 1984, because it was used as Chicago Cubs sign-on song in by far the best ever year to be a Cubs fan.
I know enough to know I couldn't stand Van Hagar.
Throwing Michael Anthony out on his ass one of the tackiest things ever, a total dick move.
He could learn to play any instrument, learn it fast and learn it well.
He looked happy as hell.
Fuck cigarettes.
Thx for the music, Mr. Van Halen.
.
posted by dancestoblue at 6:13 PM on October 6, 2020
I know a bit of 1984, because it was used as Chicago Cubs sign-on song in by far the best ever year to be a Cubs fan.
I know enough to know I couldn't stand Van Hagar.
Throwing Michael Anthony out on his ass one of the tackiest things ever, a total dick move.
He could learn to play any instrument, learn it fast and learn it well.
He looked happy as hell.
Fuck cigarettes.
Thx for the music, Mr. Van Halen.
.
posted by dancestoblue at 6:13 PM on October 6, 2020
valkane: I saw him play guitar with power-drill once. That was pretty cool.
I saw him do the same the same in one of my first concerts, must have been the Balance tour ‘94-‘95. He would turn his back doing the intro to Poundcake so you wouldn’t see, but apparently the drill would cause some kind of interference on the pickup, generating that “drill but not a drill” sound. Reading later on, he would endlessly experiment with all kinds of electronic and acoustic tricks to get that “brown sound” as noted by his synesthesia-driven perception. A once-in-a-generation talent.
.
posted by dr_dank at 6:45 PM on October 6, 2020
I saw him do the same the same in one of my first concerts, must have been the Balance tour ‘94-‘95. He would turn his back doing the intro to Poundcake so you wouldn’t see, but apparently the drill would cause some kind of interference on the pickup, generating that “drill but not a drill” sound. Reading later on, he would endlessly experiment with all kinds of electronic and acoustic tricks to get that “brown sound” as noted by his synesthesia-driven perception. A once-in-a-generation talent.
.
posted by dr_dank at 6:45 PM on October 6, 2020
.
right now, snuffy has had enough
posted by snuffleupagus at 6:48 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
right now, snuffy has had enough
posted by snuffleupagus at 6:48 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
From the Washington Post obit:
posted by pmurray63 at 7:27 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
Mr. Van Halen, a longtime smoker, was being treated for throat cancer, years after losing about one-third of his tongue to the disease. He had attributed his cancer diagnosis to a habit of holding a metal guitar pick in his mouth while performing.Umm ... doubtful.
posted by pmurray63 at 7:27 PM on October 6, 2020 [2 favorites]
I was surprised to find myself crying about this today. Back in the day, I wasn't a metalhead, I was an alterna-kid (bands like Duran Duran, Eurythmics, the Smiths, the Cure, the Jazz Butcher Conspiracy, Let's Active, the Waterboys, etc. were more my thing), but my husband put a live version of "Eruption" on and what honestly came to mind was Bach improvising on the church organ.
posted by Lexica at 7:36 PM on October 6, 2020 [12 favorites]
posted by Lexica at 7:36 PM on October 6, 2020 [12 favorites]
Umm ... doubtful.
But extremely metal.
posted by straight at 8:13 PM on October 6, 2020 [5 favorites]
But extremely metal.
posted by straight at 8:13 PM on October 6, 2020 [5 favorites]
From the Washington Post obit:
When I saw this I thought it might be possible if the pick was copper or a copper alloy, which seemed pretty unlikely, but in fact, Van Halen's picks were copper and brass.
posted by jamjam at 9:03 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
Mr. Van Halen, a longtime smoker, was being treated for throat cancer, years after losing about one-third of his tongue to the disease. He had attributed his cancer diagnosis to a habit of holding a metal guitar pick in his mouth while performing.Umm ... doubtful
When I saw this I thought it might be possible if the pick was copper or a copper alloy, which seemed pretty unlikely, but in fact, Van Halen's picks were copper and brass.
posted by jamjam at 9:03 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
.
posted by Rufous-headed Towhee heehee at 9:09 PM on October 6, 2020
posted by Rufous-headed Towhee heehee at 9:09 PM on October 6, 2020
Van Halen wasn't my style, but I somehow found myself the DJ for a junior high dance one night in what must have been 1984 (or late 1983?), because I still remember the reaction when I played the 45 of 'Jump'. It was the one song that unified the whole surging bunch of kids. I played it three times to the same effect. All the kids got off the wall and moved.
posted by pracowity at 11:23 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by pracowity at 11:23 PM on October 6, 2020 [3 favorites]
In a hundred years, general study history textbooks (if there still are such things) will have exactly one paragraph on the rock music of the second half of the 20th century, and the picture that will accompany that paragraph will be Van Halen, with Eddie mid-riff and David doing the splits of jumping off an amp or some such antic. No band better represents the archetype, dynamic and aesthetic of "rock and roll band". If the textbook permits inbedded sound and video (and why not) the song it will play will be Panama or Hot for Teacher or some other arguably supremely dumb thing: not for being the pinnacle of the art form, but for being the MOST of the art form.
posted by St. Oops at 4:15 AM on October 7, 2020 [9 favorites]
posted by St. Oops at 4:15 AM on October 7, 2020 [9 favorites]
When Dimebag Darrell Abbott of Pantera (another band of two brothers) was murdered on stage in 2004 he and his brother had recently met Eddie Van Halen at a show and really connected over music. His surviving spouse had asked for a replica guitar to bury with Dimebag. Eddie came to the funeral and gave them the 1979 black and yellow striped guitar pictured on the back cover of Van Halen II and said "the original should have an original."
Valier Bertinelli tweet is very loving: 40 years ago my life changed forever when I met you. You gave me the one true light in my life, our son, Wolfgang. Through all your challenging treatments for lung cancer, you kept your gorgeous spirit and that impish grin. I'm so grateful Wolfie and I were able to hold you in your last moments. I will see you in our next life my love. She attended the wedding between her ex-husband Eddie and his second wife. Wolfgang would grow up to play base with his father and uncle.
I've spent some time the last evening watching old youtube videos and Eddie Van Halen looks so happy in all of them. Such an icon. He lived a life of kindness amongst a lot of chaos and tragedy.
.
posted by dog food sugar at 5:19 AM on October 7, 2020 [8 favorites]
Valier Bertinelli tweet is very loving: 40 years ago my life changed forever when I met you. You gave me the one true light in my life, our son, Wolfgang. Through all your challenging treatments for lung cancer, you kept your gorgeous spirit and that impish grin. I'm so grateful Wolfie and I were able to hold you in your last moments. I will see you in our next life my love. She attended the wedding between her ex-husband Eddie and his second wife. Wolfgang would grow up to play base with his father and uncle.
I've spent some time the last evening watching old youtube videos and Eddie Van Halen looks so happy in all of them. Such an icon. He lived a life of kindness amongst a lot of chaos and tragedy.
.
posted by dog food sugar at 5:19 AM on October 7, 2020 [8 favorites]
the first time I heard eruption it blew my frikken tweenage mind. His playing was definitely an influence and an inspiration for me at the time. Sometime soon I'm going to press that twang-bar all the way down, and then come up pinching the pick close to the strings to bring out those eagle-cries harmonics in memoriam.
Jamie is not crying alone today.
.
posted by The Vice Admiral of the Narrow Seas at 6:20 AM on October 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
Jamie is not crying alone today.
.
posted by The Vice Admiral of the Narrow Seas at 6:20 AM on October 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
> In 7th grade I prided myself at already listening to VH while my classmates were still loving AC/DC like a bunch of children.
Ah, youth. That exact same dynamic played out in my high school circles when some people started listening to Jane's Addiction, Sonic Youth, and the other trendy alterna-bands of the day and started looking down on those of us who were still into classic rock like a bunch of children.
Edited to add: nothing against Jane's Addiction, Sonic Youth and the other trendy alterna-bands of the day.
posted by The Card Cheat at 6:42 AM on October 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
Ah, youth. That exact same dynamic played out in my high school circles when some people started listening to Jane's Addiction, Sonic Youth, and the other trendy alterna-bands of the day and started looking down on those of us who were still into classic rock like a bunch of children.
Edited to add: nothing against Jane's Addiction, Sonic Youth and the other trendy alterna-bands of the day.
posted by The Card Cheat at 6:42 AM on October 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
.
Eddie was/had so much fun. The man could swing.
posted by whuppy at 7:46 AM on October 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
Eddie was/had so much fun. The man could swing.
posted by whuppy at 7:46 AM on October 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
Their first album came out when I was in the 11th grade. Eruption blew all our minds, in unison. RIP, you crazy thing.
IIRC, Ray Davies said their version of You Really Got Me was better than the original. I agree 100%, so that may be coloring my memory.
posted by corvikate at 8:12 AM on October 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
IIRC, Ray Davies said their version of You Really Got Me was better than the original. I agree 100%, so that may be coloring my memory.
posted by corvikate at 8:12 AM on October 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
I absolutely LOVE what they did with covers! Really made the songs their own. Amazing. I have to listen to You Really Got Me again.
posted by dog food sugar at 8:16 AM on October 7, 2020
posted by dog food sugar at 8:16 AM on October 7, 2020
Jump didn't always sound great. (Keys and guitars weren't in tune with each other.)
posted by emelenjr at 9:35 AM on October 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by emelenjr at 9:35 AM on October 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
Lessons in shredding. yt
Was VH the first StStanders video? Maybe it was Santana, but you can't deny EVH's role in yet another legacy.
posted by rhizome at 12:56 PM on October 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
Was VH the first StStanders video? Maybe it was Santana, but you can't deny EVH's role in yet another legacy.
posted by rhizome at 12:56 PM on October 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
The StSanders "Van Halen shreds" masterpiece rhizome refers to is still viewable here, if you're feeling adventurous. (Not secure https; YMMV on mobile, etc.)
Wouldn't have been nearly as funny if the guys didn't truly look like they were having a ball.
posted by armeowda at 3:09 PM on October 7, 2020
Wouldn't have been nearly as funny if the guys didn't truly look like they were having a ball.
posted by armeowda at 3:09 PM on October 7, 2020
A tv host, in discussing Eddie's passing with his co-hosts this morning, put it to them thusly, "But what was their deal? Was Van Halen metal band, a hard rock band, or a hair band?" Puzzled looks from the other two hosts and then two of them agreed that VH was a "hair band," while the other one looked undecided.
I read another obit of EVH this a.m. that called them a "glam rock" band, but to my mind, glam rock really got going with the likes of David Bowie in his Ziggy Stardust days. I think they could be called your quintessential 80's rock band, because they weren't death metal, they weren't glam rock and they were so much more than their decidedly awesome hair.
RIP Eddie; and btw, I know people who are still trying to figure out how you did your fingering. Thanks for all the great music.
posted by Lynsey at 3:36 PM on October 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
I read another obit of EVH this a.m. that called them a "glam rock" band, but to my mind, glam rock really got going with the likes of David Bowie in his Ziggy Stardust days. I think they could be called your quintessential 80's rock band, because they weren't death metal, they weren't glam rock and they were so much more than their decidedly awesome hair.
RIP Eddie; and btw, I know people who are still trying to figure out how you did your fingering. Thanks for all the great music.
posted by Lynsey at 3:36 PM on October 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
Hard rock.
posted by The Tensor at 4:50 PM on October 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by The Tensor at 4:50 PM on October 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
.
I have distinct memories of their 1984 cassette in my older brother's boombox and staring at the smoking baby on the cover trying to figure out what it meant.
I also have a strong craving for Crystal Pepsi.
posted by Twicketface at 7:17 PM on October 7, 2020 [4 favorites]
I have distinct memories of their 1984 cassette in my older brother's boombox and staring at the smoking baby on the cover trying to figure out what it meant.
I also have a strong craving for Crystal Pepsi.
posted by Twicketface at 7:17 PM on October 7, 2020 [4 favorites]
I also have a strong craving for Crystal Pepsi.
I feel like this fantastic comment should be unpacked for any of his newer, younger fans who may be unfamiliar.
Crystal Pepsi. Crystal Gravy.
posted by Mchelly at 8:23 AM on October 8, 2020 [3 favorites]
I feel like this fantastic comment should be unpacked for any of his newer, younger fans who may be unfamiliar.
Crystal Pepsi. Crystal Gravy.
posted by Mchelly at 8:23 AM on October 8, 2020 [3 favorites]
One thing I always loved about Van Halen was that they were such a FUN band to listen to. No sad songs, no ballads (that I'm aware of - if there are, don't tell me please), just fucking fun! In the car, at home, hanging out in the parking lot, on headphones, in the shower, just anywhere!
posted by sundrop at 11:32 AM on October 8, 2020
posted by sundrop at 11:32 AM on October 8, 2020
All 131 Van Halen Songs, Ranked From Worst to Best (Vulture, because 'All x Ranked' is one of their things, and Chuck Klosterman, because VH is one of his)
posted by box at 2:34 PM on October 9, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by box at 2:34 PM on October 9, 2020 [3 favorites]
.
posted by double bubble at 7:35 AM on October 10, 2020
posted by double bubble at 7:35 AM on October 10, 2020
« Older Focus on the clusters, not the trees. | We Close at 9 Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by lazaruslong at 1:16 PM on October 6, 2020