“Spanish Fly” is the seventh track on Van Halen II.
Eddie got the idea for this instrumental after playing on an acoustic guitar during a New Year’s Eve party at Ted Templeman’s house on 12/31/78. Templeman was surprised that Eddie could play an acoustic guitar just as well as an electric and suggested the guitarist write an acoustic instrumental for Van Halen II. He recorded it on a nylon-string Ovation.
The song became a regular part of Eddie’s solo spot on tour.
Guitar World:
“Eruption” turned the rock guitar world on its head. So what did EVH do for an encore? He unleashed another acrobatic, tap-infused shredfest – on acoustic guitar. A jaw-dropping performance, “Spanish Fly” had modest origins. Ed was “fooling around” on an acoustic when producer Ted Templeman “walked in and said ‘You can play acoustic?’ I looked at him like, What’s the difference? It’s got six strings! I ended up coming up with ‘Spanish Fly.'”