Peter Frampton contributed to the new hardcover photo book, Eddie Van Halen, by Neil Zlozower. VHND.com has the exclusive on what he had to say about Eddie Van Halen:
“Ed reinvented the electric guitar for us with his tapping style, which he took further than anyone before him. He plays with such fluidity. It’s so ear-catching to me. It’s inspiring to so many guitarists. And it will be forever!
“I spent some time with him in the studio at A&M once in the 1980s. He was producing Sammy’s solo album at the time. Ed was very excited to show me the new TransTrem system he had been working with. So out we went to the main room, where he had two 4 x 12 cabs and his rack system all set up. He then started playing my song, “Nowhere’s Too Far for My Baby,” and told me how this track had inspired him to use my chord shapes for a Van Halen song. That blew me away . . . but he then proceeded to give me a sampling of his TransTrem playing!!! Oh, what a treat to watch and listen to him play four inches away from the fret board. Needless to say, it was, in the true sense of the word, AWESOME!
“When Ed stopped, he just handed me the guitar and said “Pete, wanna have a go?” Er . . . well, you can’t say no, can you!? So, very sheepishly I slowly started to play, having just been royally shown how Ed does it. Definitely, one of the more humbling moments of my career as a guitar player. What a lovely man and a true inspiration to all guitar players, past and future.”
—Peter Frampton