Readers of Guitar World have voted Wolfgang Van Halen’s guitar solo on the Mammoth WVH track “Mr. Ed” the third best of 2021.
Wolfgang’s “Mr. Ed” solo was among the ten best of the year as voted by Guitar World readers. Here’s what Guitar World‘s Jonathan Horsley had to say about the solo:
We’ve learned many things about Wolfgang Van Halen in the past year, but perhaps chief among them is that he is his father’s son and his own man. The dignity, strength and, indeed, good humor that he displayed in the months after losing his father, having to process his loss in the public’s eye, is a testament to his character.
And, as a musician, we all learned that WVH is not EVH and there are different influences shaping his sound. But on Mr. Ed, the Van Halen name indicates more than just the familial link, with a guitar solo that references Eddie Van Halen’s trick bag and makes a feel-good song a little more feel-good, but also bittersweet, too.
Even if you took all the names off this and it just arrived in your inbox in an unnamed FLAC file, the Van Halen ideology that says the guitar solo must boost serotonin and serve as a pick-me-up is all over this.
“Mr. Ed” is the opening track on Mammoth WVH, the title a nod to Wolfgang’s famous father. He told Guitar World‘s Jonny Scaramanga in June that the song’s opening guitar taps led to the song title.
“That’s actually why I called it ‘Mr Ed‘,” said Wolfgang. “That was the demo title because at the beginning of the ri? I do a little harmonic tap. Then I just liked that name so much that I kept it.“
Listen To Mammoth WVH “Mr. Ed”
The 10 Best Guitar Solos Of 2021 As Voted By Guitar World
- Greta Van Fleet — Age of Machine
- John Mayer — Last Train Home
- Mammoth WVH — Mr. Ed
- Dinosaur Jr. — I Met the Stones
- Tremonti — Marching in Time
- Cardinal Black — Tell Me How It Feels
- Myles Kennedy — The Ides of March
- Flock of Dimes — Price of Blue
- Joe Bonamassa — Mind’s Eye
- Slash ft. Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators — The River Is Rising
Read the entire Guitar World article HERE.