It's all about that double bass. During his appearance on The Modern Drummer Podcast, drummer Matt Sorum (The Cult, Guns N' Roses, Velvet Revolver) recalled the time he auditioned for David Lee Roth's band back in 1985 saying it was "probably the craziest" audition he ever went on. "All these drummers went down to S.I.R. [Studios in Hollywood] to audition," said Sorum, … [Read more...]
Eddie Van Halen Asked Daryl Hall To Join Van Halen? Daryl Says ‘Yeah!’ [AUDIO]
EVH Photo Credit: Neil Zlozower So there really needs to be a book written about how many singers almost joined Van Halen. The title: OU Almost Joined Van Halen 2? We can add a chapter on Daryl Hall and this rumor, according to Hall, is true. The legendary Hall & Oates singer was a recent guest on New York radio station Q104.3 and was asked by host Jonathan … [Read more...]
LISTEN: ‘Unchained: The Eddie Van Halen Story’ Author Paul Brannigan Exclusive Interview
The VHND's Eric Senich talked with author Paul Brannigan to talk about his book Unchained: The Eddie Van Halen Story! Here's a rundown of the topics covered in the interview: Eddie's guitar and recorder always by his sideThe influence parents Jan and Eugenia had on EddieForget the Fab Four, Eddie's fire was lit by The Dave Clark Five!Eric Clapton was the Cream of the … [Read more...]
LISTEN: ‘Eruption: Conversations with Eddie Van Halen’ Authors Exclusive Interview
The VHND's Eric Senich talked with Eruption: Conversations with Eddie Van Halen authors Brad Tolinski and Chris Gill for an exclusive, in-depth discussion of Eddie Van Halen's legendary career! Throughout the interview Tolinski and Gill give their insight and opinions on a wide range of EVH topics including: Eddie's childhood days overcoming his shynessHis relationship … [Read more...]
Podcast Explores Van Halen’s Rare & Unreleased Recordings
Credit: Neil Zlozower It's the biggest question among Van Halen fans: Will we ever get to hear what's in the 5150 vaults? The fascination with Van Halen's vast collection of unreleased material was pretty intense back in the 80s and 90s but with the emergence of the internet, it grew to mammoth (pun intended) proportions. The Wax Audio Show podcast recently released … [Read more...]
Exclusive Interview: ‘Van Halen: The Eruption and the Aftershock’ Author Michael Christopher
The Van Halen News Desk's Eric Senich talked with music journalist Michael Christopher about his new book Van Halen: The Eruption and the Aftershock! Below is the complete interview conducted by Senich for his podcast Booked On Rock. Christopher discusses a wide range of topics related to Van Halen including: The band's early days in Pasadena and original bassist Mark … [Read more...]
Mr. Big Singer Eric Martin On The ’85 Van Halen Audition That Never Happened
Eric Martin says he could have been a man with big regrets if it wasn't for his band Mr. Big. During a recent appearance on the Appetite For Distortion podcast, Martin recalled the time he had the chance to become the lead singer of Van Halen. "That's the biggest thorn in my side," said Martin, who went on to tell the story of the time Eddie Van Halen offered him a … [Read more...]
Car Engineer Claudio Zampolli, The Man Who Led Sammy Hagar To Van Halen in ’85, Has Died
Italian car engineer Claudio Zampolli, the man who facilitated the Sammy Hagar era of Van Halen, died yesterday (July 7th) at the age of 82. No cause of death has been given. Zampoli is best known to car fans as the creator of the Cizeta V16T Supercar, but Van Halen fans will remember him as the man who gave Eddie Van Halen Hagar's phone number back in 1985. At the time, … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar Was ‘100 Percent On Board’ With Keeping Van Halen Band Name
Sammy Hagar said he would have been embarrassed to have had Van Halen change their name to Van Hagar in 1985, adding that he fully supported the band's decision to remain Van Halen. Hagar said it was Warner Bros. who suggested the name change. He recalled the moment during an interview with KLOS FM. "Yeah, we were all in a room. And I think [head of Warner … [Read more...]
WatchMojo Pays Tribute To Eddie Van Halen [VIDEO]
The YouTube channel WatchMojo paid tribute to Eddie Van Halen by highlighting his best career moments. In the video above WatchMojo takes a look at the accomplishments of Eddie by counting down his past appearances on: Top 10 Songs That Make You Want to Jump, Top 10 Iconic Guitars of All Time, Top 10 Musical Siblings, Top 10 Coolest Rock Vocal-Guitar Duos, Top 10 Most Insane … [Read more...]
How Eddie Van Halen Brought Marty McFly Back To Life In The Future
Forget the DeLorean. Ditch the flux capacitor. Without Eddie Van Halen Marty McFly would never have stood a chance. Syfy writer Adam Pockross found a very clever way to connect his tribute to the greatest guitarist of all time with the greatest sci-fi film of all time: 1985's "Back To The Future". He posted an opinion piece on Syfy's website titled "If Not For Eddie Van … [Read more...]
Steve Perry On Eddie Van Halen’s ‘Life Changing’ Music & The Possibility Of Joining Van Halen In 1985
Credit: K. Todd Storch/Flickr & Steve Perry/Facebook Legendary Journey vocalist Steve Perry described Eddie Van Halen's talents as "life changing" in a recent interview with Rolling Stone. Perry got to see Eddie up close and in person just as his star was about to rise as Van Halen opened for Journey back in 1978. It was Perry's first tour as frontman with Journey. He … [Read more...]