EDDIE VAN HALEN DEAD AT 65

When Van Halen hit the scene they made a huge impact. EVH was immediately recognized as an exceptional talent. Although I'm not a huge fan I always paid attention to their music. It was always a big deal when a Van Halen record came out. There will never be another Eddie Van Halen.

Favorites: Panama, Runnin' With The Devil. Hot For Teacher

 

Long Live King Edward

 

There have been few musicians that both inspired and depressed my idea to be a guitar player,. EVH was one of 'em.
His leads were fantastic, but his chops were undeniably some of the best.

 

For some reason this one is hitting me really hard. Like *really* hard. I've been in bands where we've played VH songs and I think I need to pick up my guitar and play one right now.

 

RIP Eddie , what a loss !

 

They filmed this more than a decade ago but it fits this so well.

Phil is perfectly summing up what we all loved about EVH so much.

 

I just turned 56, 9 years younger than EVH. I had just started high school when Van Halen 1 came out, he was a huge influence on anyone who played guitar at my school as I’m sure he was in every high school. The challenge we all gave each other was to learn each of his instrumental gems each time it came out. We all would show our attempts to each other and share what we thought his techniques were. I eventually worked out a pretty good version of “Eruption,” “Spanish Fly,” and “Little Guitars.” Of course we were all into Angus Young, Jimmy Page, David Gilmour, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Mark Knopfler then too but Van Halen spoke to us and energized us with a desire to learn as much of his stuff as we could.

 

Great guitarist, nice guy...

 

Yes, in my early teen years he was my guide. Countless hours trying to copy his every lick and fill. RIP Master Eddie. A legacy.

I still have one of his guitars to play. Tonight indeed I will.

Back in the early 80’s I was doodling that logo on everything. Remember the “patch” for the back of your jean jacket? Mine was VH, and all 4 members shown.

 

Really took me aback to hear this and I spent the rest of the afternoon in my van listening to all the radio stations playing VH (my home stereo is currently down) while reading the online bios and tribs on my phone. Not generally my cup of tea for guitar style but Eddie was special, and their big sound and sense of humor were great. Above all else, his friends and peers cited his big friendly heart, warmth and 'regular guy' down-to-earth demeanor. RIP EVH!

 

Let's be honest, landing a job as David lee Roth's guitarist isn't the dream job that many people think it is because you'll always be compared to Eddie.

And Roth had many guitarists over the years that not only weren't daunted by that prospect but actually rose to the challenge, so I figured it to be fun to show case those guitarists and their most memorable moments.

First up, the guy of who'm Eddie once said "That guy freaked me out."

Of course the Vai albums of DLR's solo output were full of all out shredding "Shy Boy" for example but they were also full of "I live life to the fullest and loving every minute of it" such as "Going crazy" and "Just like paradise." But for me the most memorable song Vai did with Roth was "Ladies night in Buffalo?" which shows Vai at his most tasteful.


Vai and Eddie

Then there's the unfortunate one.

Jason Becker replaced Vai and played on the "A little ain't enough" album where he also wrote the majority of the songs. But before he could go on tour with Roth to support the album, he noticed that his legs began to feel numb and work out sessions made no difference. He was diagnosed with ALS and has been completely paralyzed since. His most memorable song with Roth in my opinion is "It's Showtime" in which Roth shows that he still had that party element that early Van Halen was known for. The song itself resembles "Hot for teacher" but it differed enough not to be a copy. Not to mention that Becker's guitar work doesn't even remotely resemble anything Eddie would have played.



Eddie and Jason Becker

But after that and with the flopping of "Your filthy little mouth" it took Roth a while until he came up with something worth while, he eventually did so when a young upstart guitarist actually got in contact with him and asked him if he was interested in working with him. The resulting album and the guitarist who played on it got VERY high praise from Eddie, saying that "In Lowery, Roth has finally somebody who NAILS that vintage Van Halen feel."

And the most memorable thing John 5 did with David Lee Roth? A song with a lot of influence coming from that little Texas band and listen to him play.



John 5 and Eddie

 

Oh yeah! The VH logo was carved into a lot of school desks and drawn on bathroom walls and notebooks and the backs of school bus seats.

 

He's one of those, we'll be talking about for a long time. Long time.

I remember the first time I heard that guitar, and immediately I knew something huge was up. My reaction was "oh no, don't want guitar going off in a whole new direction". But it wasn't gonna be about what I wanted or didn't want - I basically felt like I got run over by a big truck.

But in the long view, I guess I don't mind being run over by a truck, as long as the guitarist/truck is as massive a talent as this man was.

Rest in peace, EVH. Don't worry about all these imitators - they're never gonna catch up with you.

 

remember reading Guitar Player? I was so stoked to see this:



look at his expression

Eddie was one of us, a modder, a DIYer, he was just so much better!

 

Man that sucks. RIP Eddie, a true legend. For all of the legions of shredders he inspired, few shared his uncanny ability to weave hooks and melodies through the blazing solos.

2020 is truly the worst.

 

I never thought of Eddie as a shredder. Just a great guitar player.
Jimmy & Eddie sold more guitars and influenced more wannabes than most.
The king is dead, long live the king.

 

Thank you, Eddie, for all the great music, the technical advances you pushed and pioneered in electric guitars, and for turning the world on to the possibilities of what could be done with a guitar and a pile of Marshalls.

 

I have to say that he wasn't a much of an influence on my playing, but he was a huge inspiration to me since I first heard him in the 80s. He was one of those guys who had such a muscular style you just couldn't help but listen. His brother is the same way on drums.

To this day, one of my great pleasures is to put 1984 on my turntable and crank it as loud as I can. I still run a 70s style living room stereo with large speakers, and that album is like a freight train when you crank it.

That said, I think pop music is what allowed him to shine. I wonder how much I would like a VH instrumental album, but IMO he is possibly the greatest accompanist in the history of rock music, and how many great songs did he help write? He was just a monster.

IMO he was the last epic rock guitar hero.

 

McDonald's 1978