Ask the average fan to describe Van Halen's music and they'd probably think of good times, backyard parties, reaching for the skies and achieving dreams. But there is, as die-hard VH fans know, a darker side to the band, one that can deliver every bit as much power and emotion as their most uplifting tunes. A prime example is the song released 26 years ago today - "Crossing … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar On Singing Van Halen Songs Then & Now
No matter how hard they may be to sing all these years later, Sammy Hagar said there are certain Van Halen songs he has to keep singing. They're just too important not to. Hagar was a guest on the syndicated interview series Kyle Meredith With... to talk about his latest Sammy Hagar & The Circle release 'Lockdown 2020', which includes current recordings of the Van Halen … [Read more...]
Van Halen’s ‘Balance’ Released On This Day In 1995
Balance is Van Halen's fourth and final album with vocalist Sammy Hagar Released January 24th, 1995, Balance became Van Halen's fourth consecutive number 1 studio album. It quickly went double platinum— just two months after it's release—proving that this hard rock outfit could do just fine, thank you, during the new grunge era. It was later certified triple … [Read more...]
Guitarist Blues Saraceno On Why He Almost But Never Golfed With Eddie Van Halen
Guitarist Blues Saraceno appeared on the latest episode of Dweezil Zappa's podcast Runnin' With The Dweezil and shared a story of the time in the early 90s Eddie invited him to play a round of golf. "I don't remember exactly what year it was but at some point I got invited to one of these T.J. Martell celebrity golf charity things," said Saraceno. "And you don't really … [Read more...]
Loudersound Picks Out The Best Of Van Halen Album Catalogue
The staff at Loudersound has gone through their Van Halen album collection to highlight the ones they say are most worthy of a needle drop. "Van Halen albums have it all: One of the most innovative guitarists of all time, your choice of rock star frontmen, and some great tunes," writes Paul Elliott. "If ever a back catalogue epitomized the American Dream, it's the albums of … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar Talks Eddie Van Halen, The Would-Be VH Reunion, 5150 Vaults
Sammy Hagar appeared on Sirius/XM's Trunk Nation to talk about his friend and former bandmate Eddie Van Halen but said he's still coming to terms with his death. "To talk about someone like Eddie Van Halen, the greatness of him and to try to explain it to people or try to tell old stories, it's still not time. I don't feel comfortable with it yet," Hagar told host Eddie … [Read more...]
Valerie Bertinelli Shares Family Photos In Tribute To Eddie Van Halen
Valerie Bertinelli has shared some rare family photos of herself, Eddie and Wolfgang Van Halen during happy times together over the years. She posted this photo video on her Instagram page yesterday. It's set to the music of the Eddie Van Halen instrumental "316", titled in honor of Wolfgang's date of birth - 3/16/91: View this post on Instagram A … [Read more...]
25 Years Ago: Van Halen Performs During Summer Snowstorm
It was exactly 25-years-ago-today that Van Halen, during the summer leg of the Balance tour, performed during a surprise snowstorm! Those who were there will never forget it. It was Sept 20th, 1995, at the Fiddler's Green in Denver, Colorado. The unusual weather was what made this concert so different from the typical amphitheater shows that the band played throughout the … [Read more...]
Watch Van Halen’s Balance Concert Video Which Almost Got Released (Updated)
UPDATE with more footage: There are two YouTube videos of this show to watch. The first is the complete Pay Per View Special, which is most of the concert, but not all. The second video is NOT the Pay Per View version... it's only an hour long, but contains 4 additional songs which aren't on the Pay Per View. All the footage is from Aug. 18th and 19th, 1995. 25 years ago … [Read more...]
Watch Sammy Hagar & The Circle Cover “Don’t Tell Me (What Love Can Do)” While On Lockdown
Sammy Hagar & The Circle just dipped back into the Van Halen catalog for their @Home Sessions series and this time they picked "Don't Tell Me (What Love Can Do)" from 1995's 'Balance' album. Here's what Hagar posted along with the video on YouTube: When I heard that Kurt Cobain had taken his own life, the first thing I thought of was I wish I were there and could have … [Read more...]
Van Halen’s ‘Balance’ Turns 25: Roundtable Discussion
Today, 25 years after the release of Van Halen's Balance, our friends at Ultimate Classic Rock host a roundtable discussion about the album. Featuring UCR staff, Mitch Lafon from Rock Talk with Mitch Lafon, and Jeff Hausman from Van Halen News Desk, they tackle five big questions about the album. Read everyone's answers to question #1, below, and continue to read the rest … [Read more...]
Looking Back at Eddie’s 1995 Rolling Stone Interview
“You’re either rock and roll or you’re not,” Eddie Van Halen said in this 1995 cover interview with Rolling Stone, which hit newsstands on this day in 1995. We read the whole interview today, for the first time in years. There's actually lots of interesting stuff, especially in light of everything that has happened since then. Not too surprisingly, there was the quote about … [Read more...]