A message from Jason Becker who shared a letter written by his mother Pat about the day in 1996 Eddie Van Halen visited Jason: From Jason Becker's Facebook Page: On January 26, 1955, Edward Van Halen came into the world. Then, on February 10, 1978, the guitar world was changed forever with the release of Van Halen's first album. It is impossible to overstate his … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar On The ‘Twister’ Era Van Halen Song We’ve Yet To Hear: ‘It’s In The Archives, They’ll Find It’
Sammy Hagar says the unreleased 1996 Van Halen track "Between Us Two" isn't hard to find and when it does finally see the light of day, it'll be worth the wait. During a recent appearance on the Kyle Meredith with...podcast, Hagar was asked about the ballad recorded for the soundtrack to Twister and whether he thinks the song will eventually be released. "Everyone keeps … [Read more...]
POLL: ‘Me Wise Magic’ vs ‘Can’t Get This Stuff No More’
On this week in 1996, Van Halen released Best Of - Volume 1. Sure, the album promised to please the casual fans with the familiar hits from the Dave and Sammy eras but what would be a reason for the Van Halen die-hards to spend their hard-earned cash on an album with songs they already owned? The band answered that question with not just one but two reasons - "Me Wise Magic" … [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...]
Singer Mitch Malloy To Perform ‘A Celebration Of Van Halen’ Concert
Mitch Malloy, who in 1996 very briefly worked with Van Halen in 1996, will celebrate Eddie Van Halen's musical legacy in concert next month. "Mitch Malloy's Van Halen Experience" is set to take place on Saturday, October 9th at Mattie Kelly Arts Village in Destin, Florida from 5:30 PM to 10 PM CDT. A portion of the proceeds will go to the new Destin High School Music … [Read more...]
25 Years Ago: Van Halen’s Original Lineup Reunites On MTV
On this night 25 years ago (Sept. 4th, 1996), Eddie Van Halen, Alex Van Halen and Michael Anthony made MTV and rock history when they appeared on stage together for the first time in over a decade. In the summer of 1996, Van Halen parted ways with Sammy Hagar, leaving Eddie, Alex and Michael without a frontman. Soon after they reached out to Roth to … [Read more...]
25 Years Later Van Halen’s ‘Humans Being’ Continues To Shine On
On this month in 1996 Van Halen released the single "Humans Being". Twenty five years later it stands out as a shining moment in what would soon become a dark period in Van Halen history. "Humans Being" was one of two tracks the band recorded for Twister - a film all about impending destructive windstorms. Little did Van Halen fans know at the time that there was a storm … [Read more...]
Heartwarming Video of Eddie Van Halen and Jason Becker Emerges
Guitarist Jason Becker posted something amazing today; private, home video footage from the day that Eddie Van Halen visited him at his home, back in 1996. You can watch the two guitar legends spending time together in this previously unseen footage. But first, Jason Becker sets it up: "An amazing meeting took place on August 31, 1996. That’s when Eddie Van Halen spent … [Read more...]
Hear Unearthed Version Of Eddie Van Halen Performing Jimi Hendrix’s ‘If 6 Was 9’
An extended version of Eddie Van Halen performing Jimi Hendrix's "If 6 Was 9" has just been released. The track (above) has been included on a new EP released by keyboardist David Garfield called 'Guitar Heroes OTB, Vol. 1'. The original version of the song appeared on the 1997 Garfield album "Tribute to Jeff". Both the original and extended version features singer and … [Read more...]