Remembering Eddie Van Halen

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This topic has 6 voices, contains 56 replies, and was last updated by  mrmojohalen 1481 days ago.

October 15, 2020 at 8:04 pm Quote #62564

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SAMMY HAGAR: EDDIE VAN HALEN Asked Me ‘What Took You So Long?’ After I Called Him Earlier This Year.

https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/sammy-hagar-eddie-van-halen-asked-me-what-took-you-so-long-after-i-called-him-earlier-this-year/

Sammy Hagar has spoken out in more detail about his renewed friendship with Eddie Van Halen in the months leading up to the legendary guitarist’s death.

Hagar, who previously said he hadn’t talked to Eddie since since the conclusion of VAN HALEN’s 2004 reunion tour, discussed his former bandmate in a new interview with Rock 105.5′s “The Angi Taylor Show”.

Hagar said (hear audio below): “I think that the word is pretty much out that Eddie and I buried the hatchet earlier on this year. We didn’t go around talking about it. He asked me not to talk about it, and I did not talk about it. But now, looking back, if we wouldn’t have come to terms with that feud we were having after the reunion tour, I wouldn’t have been able to come to grips with it. It would have been way too much for me, ’cause I’m still grieving my ass off… But the grieving is starting to make… It feels like, hey, we had a great thing. This music will live on forever — beyond me. I’ll sing it for the rest of my life. When I’m gone, hopefully some young bands come up and play that music. And you can always play it in your homes.”

Asked to recall one of his favorite Eddie moments, Sammy said: “When I called him, after years of not speaking, back in February, I think, or January, whatever it was — before COVID — he said, ‘What took you so long?’ [Laughs] It put the biggest smile on my face. I said, ‘Oh my God. Don’t ask me.’ That was just very touching to me: ‘Hey, I’ve been waitin’.'”

In a separate interview with Marci Wiser of 95.5 KLOS, Hagar said that Eddie’s death was “hard to accept” when he first got the news. Two days after the guitarist’s passing, Sammy and fellow ex-VAN HALEN member Michael Anthony (bass) paid tribute to Eddie Van Halen at Hagar’s annual birthday bash, which was moved to Catalina Island in California due to the coronavirus pandemic. Prior to launching into a rendition of the VAN HALEN classic “Right Now” with the rest of THE CIRCLE band, Hagar led the audience in a moment of silence as they stood quietly for 20 seconds in memory of Van Halen, who died on October 6 at the age of 65 following a long cancer battle.

“The moment I heard ‘Right Now’, the beginning, the piano part to that, and I was about to sing it, I realized how great it was, the music that Eddie Van Halen [co-wrote],” Sammy said (hear audio below). “He was just a genius musician, songwriter, bandmate. And when you hear the music, you realize it’s immortal — it lives forever.

“We were left with a beautiful gift. And having 11 years of my life standing on stage next to Eddie Van Halen, writing all those songs together, at the peak of my rock and roll career in that band, I’m grateful for it. I’m just so glad that it happened.”


EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 16, 2020 at 6:35 pm Quote #62572

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SAMMY HAGAR Says He Reconnected With EDDIE VAN HALEN At Urging Of Comedian GEORGE LOPEZ.

https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/sa…-george-lopez/

Sammy Hagar has offered more details about his renewed friendship with Eddie Van Halen in the months leading up to the legendary guitarist’s death.

Hagar, who previously said he hadn’t talked to Eddie since since the conclusion of VAN HALEN’s 2004 reunion tour, discussed his former bandmate in a new interview with Guy “Favazz” Favazza of the St. Louis, Missouri radio station KSHE 95.

Hagar said (hear audio below): “I reached out to Eddie because… George Lopez, the comedian, who I’ve known for a long time and who also is dear friends with Eddie, calls me up and says, ‘Sammy, I need you to call Eddie. I played golf with him. He’s not doing good,’ blah blah blah. And everyone knew Eddie wasn’t doing good. He said, ‘I just was with him, and he said he loves you and he’s so disappointed that you haven’t reached out to him.’ I said, ‘I reached out to all these people. I reached out to Alex [Van Halen, Eddie's brother].’ I didn’t have Eddie’s contact number. I reached out to all these people: ‘Tell Eddie I love him. I hope he’s doing well.’ So George says, ‘Here’s his number. Call him.’ So I call him. And Eddie said — my favorite line from Eddie in a long time… He goes, ‘What took you so long?’ I go, ‘I reached out to Al. I reached out to everybody.’ He’s going, ‘You didn’t call me.’ And I said, ‘Oh, man. Ed, I love you.’ And it was just one big love fest from then on. That was back in the beginning of the year, before COVID. So, yeah, we’ve been texting and talking about Wolfie [Eddie's son Wolfgang Van Halen] and his new record, and about us and the things we did and how great the stuff is.”

Sammy went on to say that he was comforted by the fact that he made peace with Eddie before the influential rocker’s death.

“Yeah, it’s really a sad thing,” he said. “It was a tough one. But if I wouldn’t have contacted Ed and we buried the hatchet like that and became friends again, I’m not sure how I could have taken it. It would have been devastating.”

Asked if former VAN HALEN bassist Michael Anthony had also reached out to Eddie prior to the guitarist’s passing, Hagar said: “You’d have to ask Mike that. I don’t think so. But Ed told me a million times, ‘Give Mike my love,’ or something. But I’m not sure they communicated. I don’t think so. It’s probably not my place [to say].”


EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 16, 2020 at 8:01 pm Quote #62574

mrmojohalen
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October 17, 2020 at 1:45 am Quote #62579

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https://people.com/music/totos-steve-lukather-says-eddie-van-halens-greatest-pride-was-performing-on-stage-with-son-wolfie/

Toto’s Steve Lukather Says Eddie Van Halen’s ‘Greatest Pride’ Was Performing on Stage with Son Wolfie

“He was a family man,” Toto guitarist Steve Lukather tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue of longtime friend Eddie Van Halen, who died last week

By Brianne Tracy October 16, 2020 04:10 PM

To the world, Eddie Van Halen was known as a guitar god. But those closest to the late musician say there was so much more to the man who changed rock forever.
In this week’s issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday, Toto guitarist Steve Lukather opens up about the many sides of Eddie, his friend of more than 40 years who died at the age of 65 last week after battling cancer for years.

“He loved everybody, but he kept his cards to himself,” Lukather says. “He was a family man. That was the only thing that mattered. He was all about his son Wolfie. And his wife Janie, when she came along.”

Getting to perform onstage with his son Wolfie, 29 — whom Eddie shared with ex-wife Valerie Bertinelli — after he replaced Michael Anthony as Van Halen’s bassist in 2006 was Eddie’s “greatest pride and joy,” says Lukather.

“I remember him telling me about it ’cause I’ve gotten to do it with my oldest son,” he says. “I get a rush writing, recording and playing with my son. He could relate to that and what that felt like watching the two little s—s grow up and turn into fine, upstanding, talented young men.”

Relating on that level was a full-circle moment for Lukather, 62, and Eddie, who have both come a long way since their early days of fame.

“We’ve been in the trenches together for a long time as friends, as real friends,” Lukather says. “We didn’t really talk about guitars and stuff, like people would think. We mostly talked about life and had a lot of laughs.”

When he was “19 or 20 years old,” Lukather got his first introduction to Eddie’s music while listening to Van Halen’s self-titled 1978 debut album.

“I heard the first album while I was making my first record thinking I was pretty good for a kid — then I f—ing heard Ed!” he says. “I went, ‘Who the f— is this guy?! How’s he doing this?!’ That’s how everybody felt. It was like an alien landed from another planet and showed us a new way. I said, ‘Okay, first off, I’m going to find this guy and be his friend.’ I just wanted to be a piece of somebody that brilliant.”

Lukather’s opportunity to befriend Eddie came along later that year, when Toto got booked to play the California World Music Festival alongside Van Halen, who were the headliners.

“Everybody wanted to stand on the side of the stage and watch Van Halen because they were the headliner of the night,” Lukather says. “We [had already played] and Eddie goes, ‘No, I want him to be on the side. I really like the way that guy plays. I liked that record, “Hold the Line.” He could stay on the side of the stage.’ They didn’t anybody else in the band on stage but me. I sat on the stage in the lotus position watching him with my jaw dropped. He kept smiling at me, and I just kept giving him the thumbs up.”

“We hugged for a few seconds afterwards and then he called me on the phone and he said, ‘Come on up to my house. We’re going to hang out,’” he continues. “He was there with Don Landy, the original engineer for Van Halen, who was a friend of mine. We got together and it was like, man, I found a long lost friend. He goes, ‘Do you want to go to the Rainbow [Bar] or something?’ I said, ‘I’d rather slit my throat with a box cutter.’ He grabbed me and gave me a kiss on the lips. He goes, ‘Thank God!” From that moment on, we were best friends.


EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 17, 2020 at 6:46 pm Quote #62587

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Eddie Van Halen’s Michigan family opens up about the real rock god

https://www.freep.com/story/entertainment/music/2020/10/17/eddie-van-halen-michigan-family-bertinelli/5972714002/

Here’s some of the article.

The late legendary rocker Eddie Van Halen had strong ties to Michigan right up to his untimely death.

For one thing, his first wife, TV star Valerie Bertinelli, grew up in Clarkston. Van Halen’s former brother-in-law, David Bertinelli, has lived in Charlevoix for years. Just last fall, Van Halen donated one of his autographed guitars to Bertinelli’s son’s school fundraiser in Charlevoix.

“I’d take pictures of them,” Bertinelli said. “It was a difficult thing because I was a fan and I was taking it all in at the same time, but I got some unique shots after the show.”

Earlier this year, Bertinelli started tweeting some of his vintage photos. The reactions from people included many suggesting he do a book, he said.
“Patrick said, ‘You’ve got great images.’ So I talked to Ed about it briefly and he was OK with the idea,” Bertinelli said. “My goal was to get him involved in it and comment on the images, but, unfortunately, that didn’t happen.”

Bertinelli said he shot “many hundreds” of photos throughout the years, most have never been seen publicly.
“I was able to capture things that other people couldn’t,” such as backstage, on the road, at home and in Van Halen’s famous 5150 Studio in California, Bertinelli said.

He’s still pursuing the book, even though his late former brother-in-law can’t participate in it now. But for Bertinelli the book will be a labor of love because, “a lot of the photos will have stories behind them.”


EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 17, 2020 at 8:33 pm Quote #62588

mrmojohalen
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October 18, 2020 at 2:59 am Quote #62589

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EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 18, 2020 at 6:12 pm Quote #62590

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UNISWAG
@UNISWAG
Custom cleats for @athielen19 honoring rock legend Eddie Van Halen.
????: @MACHE275



EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 18, 2020 at 6:15 pm Quote #62591

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EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 18, 2020 at 6:18 pm Quote #62592

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EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 19, 2020 at 6:53 pm Quote #62607

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https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/sebastian-bach-says-there-was-a-little-talk-of-him-joining-van-halen-in-1996/

SEBASTIAN BACH Says There Was ‘A Little Talk’ Of Him Joining VAN HALEN In 1996

During an October 7 appearance on SiriusXM’s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk”, former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach confirmed that there was “a little talk” of him joining VAN HALEN shortly after Sammy Hagar departed in 1996.

“[SKID ROW manager] Doc McGhee had me up at the office, and Ray Daniels was managing [VAN HALEN] at the time, and Ray and Doc were talking. But they didn’t want [VAN HALEN guitarist] Eddie [Van Halen] to smoke weed. And I go, ‘That’s funny,’ because I was smoking weed with Ray Danniels. I go, ‘So you can [smoke weed] but I can’t. What the fuck? The lead singer of VAN HALEN can’t smoke pot? What?’ But that was a discussion.

“I was summoned into Doc’s office, and there was talk about it,” he reiterated. “At the time, they were looking for a singer. But I didn’t get to audition. I don’t think Doc was into me leaving SKID ROW either; there was something about that.”

In 1999, when the news came that VAN HALEN had parted company with Gary Cherone and was again in the market for a new lead singer, rumors once again abounded, and Bach’s name was thrown in the mix. At the time, Bach shot down the chatter, telling MTV News: “The thing is, man, there’s only one singer for VAN HALEN, and that’s David Lee Roth, and if they’ve got no use for him, what possible use could they have for me? If they don’t like him, they definitely won’t like me.”

He continued: “I mean, when they’re looking for singers and they pick Gary Cherone, they’re thinking in ways that we’re not. I mean, I love Gary. He’s a really nice guy, but you can’t be a really nice guy and be the lead singer of VAN HALEN. It just doesn’t go together. You got to kick some ass, man, and he does kick ass in his Gary Cherone way. But David Lee Roth was doing kicks off of the drum riser and flying 40 feet in the air. It’s a tough act to follow. I can’t do that, but I can sing the Sammy Hagar stuff and the David Lee Roth stuff. I’m not bragging, I’m stating a fact.”


EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 20, 2020 at 12:57 am Quote #62614

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EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 20, 2020 at 7:21 pm Quote #62615

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Tribute from the tallest church in Holland:



EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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October 20, 2020 at 7:37 pm Quote #62616

mrmojohalen
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Read The Times’ first review of Van Halen, from 1976

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2020-10-06/van-halen-eddie-1976-times-review


When you turn on your stereo, does it return the favor?


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October 21, 2020 at 4:43 pm Quote #62625

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https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/eddie-van-halen-memorial-to-be-discussed-by-pasadena-city-council-on-monday/

EDDIE VAN HALEN Memorial To Be Discussed By Pasadena City Council On Monday

A memorial honoring legendary VAN HALEN guitarist Eddie Van Halen will be considered by the City Council in Pasadena, California, where the band was formed nearly five decades ago.

City public information officer Lisa Derderian confirmed to Pasadena Now the item would appear on Monday’s agenda.

Randa Schmalfeld and Julie Kimura have raised more than $5,000 via a fundraising campaign on GoFundMe with a view toward getting a street or alley named in honor of the iconic musician, who died on October 6 after a long battle with cancer.

“We are delighted that the City Council is moving so quickly to consider a dedicated public space here in Van Halen’s hometown,” Schmalfeld told Pasadena Now. “We envision a place where fans can forever honor and celebrate the brilliance of Eddie Van Halen and the phenomenal success of Pasadena’s hometown band. The overwhelmingly positive response to our campaign demonstrates the desire of our community to honor Eddie and his bandmates. We are hopeful that the council will decide in our favor and we are looking forward to next steps in forever honoring Pasadena’s favorite rock stars!”

Following Eddie’s death, fans left flowers at his childhood home on Las Lunas Street in Pasadena. Additional flowers, candles and fan mementos were placed on Allen Avenue where Eddie and his brother Alex scratched their band’s name into the wet cement of a sidewalk when they were teenagers.

Eddie died at St. John’s Hospital in Santa Monica, California. His wife, Janie, was by his side, along with Alex and Eddie’s son Wolfgang.

The iconic VAN HALEN axeman died from complications due to cancer, his son confirmed.

VAN HALEN was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2007.

Rolling Stone magazine ranked Eddie Van Halen No. 8 in its list of the 100 greatest guitarists.


EDDIE’S fingers aren’t fingers they are muscle-powered pistons that hammer guitar strings to the fretboard with the force of a rivet gun”.


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