On this day in 1978, Van Halen performed at the Mississippi River Jam! The Quad-City Times dug up some forgotten photos from the 1978 Mississippi River Jam, which was held July 16th, 1978, on Credit Island (an island in the Mississippi River on the southwest side of Davenport, Iowa, within the Quad Cities area). The bands performing were—in order—Van Halen, Journey, the Atlanta … [Read more...]
Van Halen 1978 Archive
Three Lessons I Learned in 1978 Touring With Van Halen
From SolveigAndStevie.com: by Stevie Adamek Van Halen’s first album had just come out in early 1978, and they had two huge hits, "Running with the Devil" and "You Really Got Me". I was in a band called Bighorn, a five-man group based out of Seattle that sounded like a cross between Elton John and Queen. We had just been signed to CBS Canada and USA. I had been a producer … [Read more...]
Flashback: Homecoming for Van Halen
Something from the archives of the Los Angeles Times: Posted By: Scott Harrison Posted On: 12:31 a.m. | December 5, 2013 July 9, 1978: David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen of rock band Van Halen celebrate their return to Southern California at the Long Beach Arena. Columnist Robert Hilburn reported on the band’s success in the July 11, 1978, Los Angeles Times: David … [Read more...]
VHND’s All Access Photo: Van Halen Visits KATT-FM, 1978
November 20th, 1978; Van Halen at "Oklahoma's Pure Rock Station," ROCK 100.5 "The KATT." The band made this radio appearance before jumping in a limo and heading straight to their in store appearance at Sound Warehouse. Thanks to R. Galbraith for the photo, which has never been seem anywhere before. “All Access” Van Halen photos is a weekly feature at VHND.com. Every … [Read more...]
Unearthed Photos & Flyer: Van Halen 1978 Record Store Appearances at Sound Warehouse
We've unearthed photos and a promotional flyer from two of Van Halen's in-store appearances during their first world tour in 1978. First, here's a flyer from an appearance at Sound Warehouse in Dallas, Texas, from exactly 35 years ago today! The flyer states, "SOUND WAREHOUSE on Lemmon and knight welcomes [Van Halen logo]. See and Meet VAN HALEN in person. Saturday, Nov. 25 … [Read more...]
Van Halen: A “Perfect Storm” of Talent and Chronology
Here's a cool little Van Halen blog entry from Greg's Horrible Waste of Internet Bandwidth: On Van Halen... A short time ago, conversation among friends turned to Van Halen (no idea why). We were discussing the band, their history, and the eighties. One friend turned to me and said "they (the band) are so overrated..." "Overrated?", I replied. "Are you kidding … [Read more...]
Don Dokken Scared After First Seeing Van Halen
"The first time I saw Van Halen it changed the way I looked at music and performing forever. It was 1978 and I had just formed my own group, Dokken. We were opening up for them for two nights at the Starwood in Hollywood. I was standing in my dressing room when they went on. Their first record wasn’t out yet, but they hit the stage like they had already made it. I could hear … [Read more...]
Video Upgrade: 1978 Japanese TV Appearance – “You Really Got Me” & Interview
The video above is yet another great addition to the Van Halen News Desk's new YouTube channel, the Van Halen Vault! This is a video of a Van Halen's lip-sync performance of "You Really Got Me" - followed by a quick interview - that was broadcast during their first visit to Japan to promote the Japanese leg. 35 years later, this is still a rarely seen video. Even if you've seen … [Read more...]
VHND’s All Access Photo: Eddie Backstage ’78
Imagine being backstage in 1978 and getting your own private performance from new kid on the block, Eddie Van Halen! Photographer Neil Zlozower took this shot shortly after the release of Van Halen's debut album. “All Access” Van Halen photos is a weekly feature at VHND.com. Every weekend we will be posting a photo from a roadie, friend, or band insider. Many will be … [Read more...]
Van Halen Kicks Off First World Tour!
Imagine a small theater with an extremely crowded backstage area which has no room for the opening band's equipment. Add an inexperienced road crew, four pairs of 3 inch platform shoes, and an equipment truck with the headlights accidentally left on. What could possibly go wrong? From 1974 to early 1978, Van Halen probed their way through the local rock scene in Southern … [Read more...]
Van Halen 35th Anniversary: In The Studio Interview with Dave, Eddie, Alex & Michael
From InTheStudio.net: The four original members of Van Halen, guitarist/songwriter Eddie Van Halen, big brother drummer Alex Van Halen, lead singer/lyricist David Lee Roth, and ex-bass player/backing vocalist Michael Anthony are all unanimous in this classic rock interview in their recollections of their unaided efforts before signing their record deal and releasing that … [Read more...]
Is Ozzy Dead? Van Halen’s Crazy Tour With Black Sabbath
David Lee Roth shares a tale from Van Halen's first world tour: There is an old science-fiction movie from the fifties called Forbidden Planet, where the extinct inhabitants are called the Krell. So we started to call cocaine "Krell", gave it a science fiction name. We would stay up all night, well into the next day, having what we called Krell Wars. And the best Krell War was … [Read more...]