On this day in 1984, Van Halen performed at in Buffalo, NY. Here's a picture of the special shirt the promoter made for the band and crew, two concert ticket stubs, and three newspaper articles about that show. … [Read more...]
Roundtable: What Went Wrong with ‘Van Halen III’?
Twenty years after the release of Van Halen III - the band's 11th studio album - our friends at Ultimate Classic Rock hosted a roundtable discussion about the album most fans say is their least favorite. Featuring UCR writers and VHND's Jeff Hausman, it focused on five of the biggest questions... answered in no-holds-barred fashion. Take a look... From UCR: After … [Read more...]
Van Halen 3/16/78 Concert Review — Columbus
Here's an interesting article and concert review published 40 years ago today, on March 16th, 1978. The show reviewed was from the night before, in Columbus. Some interesting quotes from DLR. This was written by Sylvia Simmons, and published in the May 13, 1978 issue of Sounds magazine. Columbus, Ohio (3/16/1978). Van Halen, just called back for an encore, are basking in the … [Read more...]
Watch 10-Year-Old Dazzle with ‘Eruption’ at School Concert
Quick ... somebody get this kid to Gazarri's! Yahoo News featured a video of a 10-year-old playing Eddie Van Halen's "Eruption" today. Garret is 10 years old and has only been playing guitar for two years and he's quite amazing! Garrett is playing "Eruption" in front of 300 people at his strings concert. He is such a talented boy, we know he is going to be a future rock … [Read more...]
Killer Cover of Van Halen’s Unreleased ‘We Die Bold’
Jacob and Josh are back! And this time, with another full band Van Halen cover of an unreleased Van Halen gem! Premiering exclusively on the Van Halen News Desk, guitarist Jacob Deraps and drummer Josh Gallagher have released their cover of Van Halen’s 1977 demo, “We Die Bold,” with Jacob on guitar, bass, and vocals, and Josh pounding the drums. This unreleased Van … [Read more...]
Foo Fighters Cover Van Halen/John Lennon Mashup
Remember that clever John Lennon & Van Halen mashup we featured years ago? Well, the Foo Fighters just covered it at their show last night in Brazil! Watch the live performance below. Mashup artist Mighty Mike mashed-up two rock classics that, on the surface, have nothing in common. Yet, most rock fans say they like it! John Lennon's instrumental version of … [Read more...]
Anniversary of Van Halen’s First World Tour!
After four years paying their dues playing the Southern California rock scene, Van Halen hit the road. It was just three weeks after the release of their self-titled debut album that the band kicked off its first world tour. Stop #1 was the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, Illinois on March 3, 1978. The move from the typical clubs the band was used to playing to the Aragon was … [Read more...]
Michael Anthony’s Granddaughter Watches ‘Jump’ Video
You may be cool, but you're not "Michael Anthony's granddaughter recognizing 'Papa' in the JUMP video" cool! However your day is going, it's about to get better. In a video posted by Michael Anthony yesterday, Michael's adorable granddaughter Nina watches Van Halen's classic "Jump" video. Guess who she recognizes? Along with the video on Instagram, Michael added, "My … [Read more...]
Eddie Trunk Frustrated Over Lack of News on 40th Anniversary of Van Halen’s Debut Album
When the 40th anniversary of Van Halen's debut album rolled around last week, rock historian Eddie Trunk could not hide his frustration over the fact that the band didn't do anything, or at least give some indication about future plans. (Although, the next day, on the actual anniversary, both Michael Anthony and Eddie acknowledged the anniversary on social media). Listen to … [Read more...]
‘Atomic Punk’ Play Through
Watch the video above for a killer cover of Van Halen's "Atomic Punk"! "40 years ago in 1978, Van Halen released their first album and it shook the Rock World to it's core. The first song they cut in the studio for the record was Atomic Punk. A couple of years ago I covered this song with a kooky little fun video. "There are no words to explain that impact on my musical … [Read more...]
Famous Guitarists on the Astonishing Impact of Van Halen’s First Album
"The first time I heard Eddie Van Halen, I was absolutely floored," says former Kiss guitarist Bruce Kulick. "I was also petrified." TeamRock.com has put together an impressive collection of new quotes from guitar players talking about Van Halen's first album: When the debut album by Van Halen was released in early 1978, it was a bolt from the blue. For the older … [Read more...]
Watch Millennial Hip Hop Fan React to Eddie Van Halen’s ‘Eruption’ Solo
It's always interesting to see how people react to Eddie Van Halen for the first time. Even more interesting when it's a millennial who's preferred music genre of choice is hip hop. Like in this video, posted by Hectic Reacts, the first edition of the channel's Shreddin' Saturday. Hectic says Eddie's 13-minute Eruption solo was "By far, the most requested solo I'm supposed to … [Read more...]