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...]
35 Years Ago: Van Halen Plays Final Show Of ‘5150’ Tour [RARE VIDEO]
On this night 35 years ago Van Halen's 5150 tour finished on a high note with the last of four shows at the jam-packed Cow Palace Arena in Daly City, California. The Cow Palace shows ran from October 31st through to November 3rd and would cap off a highly successful 111-date tour which began on March 27th, 1986 in Shreveport, Louisiana. As was the case with many of the … [Read more...]
35 Years Ago: Van Halen Shoots ‘Live Without A Net’ Concert Video
It was on this hot "Summer Night" in 1986 that Van Halen performed in New Haven, Connecticut for what would become the band's first-ever commercially released concert - "Live Without A Net". This was the second of two consecutive nights Van Halen performed in New Haven before 12,000 crazy, flipped out 5150s at the now-defunct Veterans Memorial Coliseum, which officially … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar Says There Are A Few More Van Halen Jams In The Vaults
Credit: Mark Weiss There may be a few more completed Sammy-era Van Halen songs left in the 5150 vaults, according to Sammy Hagar. During a recent interview with Ultimate Classic Rock's Matt Wardlaw, Hagar said, although there isn't much, there are still "a few jams" that remain from his time with the band. One of those songs Hagar cited was a demo recorded during … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar To Celebrate 35th Anniversary Of Van Halen’s ‘Dreams’, 75th Anniversary Of Blue Angels At Upcoming Afterburner Music Festival
Sammy Hagar & The Circle have announced they'll be part of the first-ever Afterburner Music Festival in Southern California to be held on October 1st and 2nd. The show will be in celebration of Van Halen's classic 1986 single "Dreams" along with the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, who starred in the song's video (above). Hagar and his bandmates Michael Anthony (bass), Jason … [Read more...]
Billy Sheehan On ‘Eat ‘Em and Smile’ Tour Bass/Guitar Duel With Steve Vai: ‘Dave Said It Should Be Like A Tractor Pull’
If you were fortunate enough to attend one of David Lee Roth’s concerts 35 summers ago, you’ll likely remember the epic onstage bass/guitar duel between bassist Billy Sheehan and guitarist Steve Vai. Then again, if you were at one of the first few shows, odds are you didn’t see it at all and Sheehan can explain why. During a recent appearance on the podcast Breaking … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar On Adding Van Halen Songs To Upcoming Setlists, The Story Behind ‘Poundcake’
Sammy Hagar continues to promise a setlist heavy on Van Halen songs during his upcoming concerts. During a recent Instagram live chat with The Washington Post's Geoff Edgers, Hagar said he and Circle bandmate Michael Anthony have been adding more and more songs from Hagar's time in Van Halen to upcoming shows. "We're goin' heavy on Van Hagar lately," said Hagar. … [Read more...]
Latest ‘Runnin’ With The Dweezil’ Podcast Clip On The ‘Greatness’ Of Eddie Van Halen’s ‘Good Enough’ Guitar Work
Listening to Zappa's podcast Runnin' With The Dweezil often feels like being a fly on the wall. We get to hear two veteran guitarists talk shop. In the case of this podcast, it's a shop filled with the sounds of Eddie Van Halen's legendary guitar riffs, solos, bending licks and whatever other head scratching "how the hell did he do that?" sounds. Take Eddie's elephant roars on … [Read more...]
Billy Sheehan, Gregg Bissonette To Discuss Making Of DLR’s ‘Eat ‘Em and Smile’ At Upcoming Rocknpod Expo
Billy Sheehan (L), Gregg Bissonette (R) photos courtesy of Neil Zlozower Former David Lee Roth band members Billy Sheehan and Gregg Bissonette will be the featured panel guests for a discussion of the making of Roth's classic 1986 album Eat 'Em and Smile. Their appearance is part of the Rocknpod Expo Saturday, August 7th in Nashville, Tennessee. Sheehan and Bissonette … [Read more...]
SPIN Revisits 1986 Interview With David Lee Roth
The summer of 1986 was quite an interesting time for Van Halen fans wasn't it? It was hard not to come across something on the TV, radio or on a local newsstand with something related to either the band's new lineup with Sammy Hagar or the now solo David Lee Roth. This week SPIN magazine revisited an April 1986 cover story with Roth in honor of the 35th anniversary of his … [Read more...]
Mick Jones On ‘Intense But Very Special’ Experience Producing ‘5150’
Mick Jones said producing Van Halen's 1986 album 5150 may have been an exhausting experience but it was also equally as rewarding. "I was completely exhausted at the end of it,” Jones recently told Guitar World. "We were running a bit late -- and the band had a tour booked. So there was pressure…It was a pretty intense experience but we achieved something very … [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...]