Here’s a little gem from our archives here at the news desk. It’s the original bio introducing Van Halen to the masses. This was part of the press kit, provided by Warner Bros. Records, hyping the band’s debut album.
While press kits and bios are highly common, these pages were typically trashed soon after they were received, whether or not a story was written. Some newspapers and magazines let journalists keep press kit content, while others either filed them for a period of time or destroyed them on the premises. Yet, these “disposable” kits often contained stellar photos and pages printed on high-end paper. Note the Warner Bros. logo is in full color and appears 3D.
Note that the band members are listed in alphabetical order, with Michael Anthony first.
We’re guessing that the “1177” at the bottom signifies the month and year the bio was written. But, we could be wrong.
Okay, we’ll agree. It’s not the best written bio for a hot, up-and-coming band. Not by a long shot. It’s riddled with grammatical errors and was in serious need of editing. If such a bio was sent to the press today, it would more than likely be filed in the huge slush pile. We know the release of the first single, “You Really Got Me“, was rushed to beat Angel’s version of it from hitting the airwaves first. So perhaps that was the case with the press kit, also.
Nonetheless, it’s a tasty piece of the band’s history, don’t you think? And one that’s never circulated on the internet, until now.