From Guardian.co.uk: Van Halen invent hair metal May 1976: Number 32 in our series of the 50 key events in the history of rock music David Lee Roth, of Van Halen, performing live onstage. Photograph: Rob Verhorst/Redferns Thirty-five years ago, a four-piece American guitar band set about changing rock music for ever. They took their name from a brotherly … [Read more...]
Archives for June 2011
Home video: Van Halen visiting child in hospital
This special home video from 1986 was filmed and uploaded by Dayna Steele. Here's what she says about the video: "I often speak about the day Van Halen went to Texas Children's Hospital to see my friend Kevin Hendon. The biggest band in the world at the time took the time to make this young man's eyes sparkle. We lost Kevin to Cystic Fibrosis not long after this day but … [Read more...]
Vote For Van Halen – Best L.A. Band Poll
LA Times Magazines has an online poll to determine the best band ever to come out of Los Angeles.The poll lists 50 bands. A VHND reader emailed us saying, "Please put up a new article regarding this poll so that the followers of VHND can give me a hand. There is no doubt that VH is THE BEST band to come out of LA ever. The impact that Eddie and the boys has had on music is … [Read more...]
Van Halen Retrospective (Part 1)
Midnight Phil discusses the David Lee Roth era of his favorite band, Van Halen, in the first part of this two part retrospective. It's basically a home-made comedic review done with a lot of effort by a young, passionate fan. We hope you enjoy it! We will feature "Part 2" of Midnight Phil's Van Halen retrospective later this month. … [Read more...]
Memories Of Opening For Van Halen In The Early Years
Here's an interesting story written about a band called the Granati Brothers and their experiences on tour with Van Halen. They were Van Halen's opening act for many concerts in 1979 and 1981. From PittsburghLive.com: Van Halen's devotion to music reaches far and wide By Regis Behe, TRIBUNE-REVIEW Spandex. Brown M&Ms. A revolving door of lead singers.These … [Read more...]
Eddie Van Halen’s Guitars Through The Years
From GuitarWorld.com: In the July 2011 issue of Guitar, we tell the story behind Eddie Van Halen's Ibanez Destroyer. In honor of King Edward, GuitarWorld.com brings you this gallery of Van Halen's guitars through the years, from the famous to the obscure, and everything in between. Click the photo to view all 11 guitars: … [Read more...]
Search and Destroy
From the July 2011 edition of Guitar World: Search and Destroy Lost Photos Tell The Story Behind Eddie Van Halen's Ibanez Destroyer. By Chris Gill Guitarists attempting to duplicate Eddie Van Halen's elusive brown sound on Van Halen's debut album have gone to great lengths to build replicas of his trademark black-and-white Frankenstein guitar, but many overlook the … [Read more...]
The David Lee Roth Awesomeness Meter
From the San Francisco Chronicle: Molded by rock Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle More than 20 years later, there's very little that I don't remember about my first rock concert - Van Halen on the "5150" tour at the Cow Palace in Daly City. I was 15 years old, and drank cans of Budweiser in the parking lot while listening to "Led Zeppelin II" on the stereo … [Read more...]