In an exclusive interview with the Van Halen News Desk’s Jeff Goebel, Eddie Van Halen’s childhood friend Tom Broderick revealed private moments with Eddie and Van Halen from 1968 to 2019.
Tom’s older brothers Rob and Rick were the first to meet Eddie doing paper routes in the Pasadena area they lived at. Rob, a drummer, even jammed with Eddie in the summer of 1968. The rare photo of this jam session is featured in the interview.
Tom, who became part of Van Halen’s original club days road crew with his brother Rob, was the front of house mixer in the clubs and later for the first leg of the first Van Halen Tour in 1978. He was also at the now famous “Van Halen Parachute Show” on September 23rd, 1978. On that same day, Tom witnessed Eddie meet Sammy Hagar for the first time. He covers those topics and more, including recording early demos for Van Halen, attending rehearsals in David Lee Roth’s basement, the first leg of the 1978 tour and a final visit at 5150 with Eddie in 2019. It’s a rare interview with an original member of the early days Van Halen crew you don’t want to miss! Below is the complete interview on Final Resonance TV: