Wolfgang Van Halen's "mammoth guitar sound" will be heard on the upcoming 'Barbie' movie soundtrack. According to a tweet from Wolfgang today (July 10), he lent his guitar skills to the track "I'm Just Ken", written by British producer/songwriter Mark Ronson and sung by Ryan Gosling, who portrays Ken in the film. Joining Wolfgang on guitar is Slash. Both the film and the … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar On Van Halen Manager Ed Leffler: ‘He Kept The Band Together’ (AUDIO)
Sammy Hagar says late Van Halen manager Ed Leffler was the glue that kept the band together. When Lefller passed away, everything fell to pieces. Leffler managed Van Halen from 1986 to 1993, when he lost his battle with cancer. During an appearance on The Bob Lefsetz podcast, Lefsetz asked Hagar how Leffler's death affected the band. "It totally broke up Van Halen," Hagar … [Read more...]
Steve Vai Says It Would Have Been Foolish To Compete With Edward Van Halen (VIDEO)
Credit: Neil Zlozower Steve Vai didn't feel the pressure of competing with Edward Van Halen when he became David Lee Roth's guitarist in 1986. That was simply because he never bothered to compete. "Having, I'll say 'the shadow' of Edward hanging over me, I didn't feel pressure," said Vai during a recent appearance on the Vintage Rock Pod. "If I would have felt … [Read more...]
Watch Wolfgang Van Halen Debut New Mammoth WVH Single ‘Take A Bow’ (Featuring EVH-Inspired Solo) Live
Fan footage of Mammoth WVH performing the brand new single "Take A Bow" live for the first time has surfaced, and it's every bit as good as the studio version, most notably Wolfgang Van Halen's guitar solo. In the video above, filmed during Mammoth WVH's June 28th performance in Lisbon, Portugal, Wolfgang performs "Take A Bow" with his forthcoming EVH SA-126 … [Read more...]
‘What Is He Doing?!’: When Brian May First Witnessed Eddie Van Halen Perform (VIDEO)
Recalling the time he first encountered Eddie Van Halen's "phenomenal" performance in 1978 as the opening act for Black Sabbath, Brian May shared his experience in a new video. In the clip above, May details how he had the opportunity to meet Eddie through Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi. As a lead-up to the July 14th reissue of the three-song EP collection "Brian May … [Read more...]
Van Halen’s ‘Hot For Teacher’ Video Memorabilia: How Much Is It Worth? (VIDEO)
Most Van Halen fans will tell you that you just can't put a price on vintage Van Halen memorabilia. But say you just happened to have a kick-ass collection of memorabilia from the band's "Hot For Teacher" video. How much would you say it's worth? One collector asked for 100 grand during a recent episode of Pawn Stars. In the video above, Corey from Pawn Stars looks … [Read more...]
Star Fleet Sessions: How It Began (VIDEO)
It all began with a phone call to Eddie Van Halen. Not long afterward, Brian May's Starfleet project was ready for liftoff. In a newly released video (above), May recalls the day he decided to get some of his LA-area musician friends to jam. The result was the forthcoming three-song EP collection released in 1983 titled "Brian May & Friends: Star Fleet Project". The … [Read more...]
Opera Singer Analyzes Van Halen’s ‘Hot For Teacher’
This opera singer is now hot for Van Halen! Check out this video of professional opera singer Elizabeth Zharoff who decides to analyze "Hot For Teacher" by Van Halen, a band she admittedly knows very little about. Watch as she does her best to analyze David Lee Roth's vocals, but can't help but laugh at the antics of Dave, Eddie Van Halen, Alex Van Halen, Michael … [Read more...]
The Lasting Legacy Of Van Halen’s ‘Fair Warning’
Van Halen’s 1981 album Fair Warning remains the darkest and downright meanest sounding of any record in the band’s catalog. No toes in the sand with a drink in hand. Dance the night away? Not on this dead-end street. With the absence of a good-time party rock single, Fair Warning was the slowest-selling album of the original David Lee Roth era. Despite that, the album went on … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar Says Rest Of Remastered Van Hagar Catalog Soon To Come ‘With Extra Tracks’
Sammy Hagar says the rest of the remastered Hagar-era Van Halen catalog is coming soon, and it'll include some extra surprises. In a video post to Instagram today, Hagar opened up his vinyl copy of the first of the remastered releases - Live: Right Here, Right Now. He responded to comments and questions from fans along the way and announced that there is more to come: "The … [Read more...]
The History Of Rock & Roll Radio, More Early Van Halen Stories In Latest Roth Show Episode
From AM to FM, it's a trip around the dial and through radio history in the latest episode of The Roth Show. David Lee Roth returns with a new episode of his podcast and this time he shares his love of radio with a history of the medium from its early days through to the birth of FM rock radio in the late 60s. Along the way are vintage radio clips from various radio stations … [Read more...]
Gary Cherone On His Best Songs With Van Halen & Unreleased Tracks
Gary Cherone looked back on his favorite songs with Van Halen and those we've yet to hear during a recent interview with rock journalist Greg Prato. Prato, who interviewed Cherone for Songfacts, has shared the Van Halen portion of the interview with the VHND: Prato: What's the best Van Halen song you worked on? Cherone: Two songs come to mind. "One I Want" I … [Read more...]