Nuno Bettencourt strapped on his custom-made black and yellow striped "Bumblee" guitar for Extreme's cover of Van Halen's "Mean Street" at a recent show in Montreal. Extreme played the Van Halen classic during their show at MTELUS in Montreal last weekend (September 28th). The band is currently on a U.S. tour supporting their new album, "Six". … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar To Appear At 2024 Rock Hall Induction Ceremony [UPDATED]
The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame has announced the listed of performers and presenters who will appear at its 2024 induction ceremony on October 19 at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio. Among them will be Sammy Hagar. Hagar and Slash will be part of a star-studded group celebrating Foreigner. They will be joined by pop singer Demi Lovato and Red Hot … [Read more...]
Gene Simmons: ‘Paul Stanley Should’ve Taken My Advice And Signed Van Halen’
Regrets. Gene Simmons has had a few. One he often talks about is his missed opportunity getting a then-unknown Van Halen signed. Here's an excerpt from a recent article by Ultimate-Guitar's Greg Prato: Throughout the history of rock music, there have certainly been quite a few close calls and "What if?" scenarios. And high on the list would be when Gene Simmons spotted a … [Read more...]
Why Wolfgang Van Halen Owed Kenny Wayne Shepherd’s Dad A Thank You
Wolfgang Van Halen felt he owed Ken Shepherd a sincere "thank you". After all, without Shepherd, there would be no Wolfgang. In 1980, Edward Van Halen and Valerie Bertinelli met for the first time. Valerie was staying at her parents’ home in Shreveport, Louisiana due to an actors strike and scored backstage passes to see Van Halen perform in the area. Those passes were … [Read more...]
Van Halen Brothers Rank 2nd On Top 20 Sibling Acts List
Alex and Eddie Van Halen were named the second best sibling act in rock by Van Halen at 50 author Martin Popoff. Popoff listed the 20 best siblings in a recent article for Goldmine magazine. The VH brothers finished second behind the Angus brothers Angus and Malcolm. Below is what Popoff had to say about Eddie and Alex: Ticking many of the boxes, brothers Alex and Eddie … [Read more...]
Dweezil Zappa Shares Edward Van Halen Guitar Lessons with Rick Beato
Dweezil Zappa appeared on Rick Beato's YouTube show to share his guitar lessons from Edward Van Halen. Dweezil first met Edward, who was good friends with his father Frank, when he was 12 years old. In the video above he recalled the moment he first met Edward, played some of his favorite Van Halen riffs, and explained the ease and joy in which Edward played the … [Read more...]
Alex Van Halen Announces Three-City Book Tour
In anticipation of his upcoming book Brothers, Alex Van Halen will make three book signing appearances next month. He's scheduled to be in New York, New Jersey, and California. The final will be a Live Talks virtual event. October 21 @ 12PMBarnes & Noble Fifth AveNew York, NY October 22 @ 6PMBooks & GreetingsNorthvale, NJ October 24 @ 8PMLive Talks LA @ The … [Read more...]
TNA Champ Nic Nemeth Credits David Lee Roth For Fashion Inspiration
Current TNA Wrestling champion Nic Nemeth is known for his flashy, 80s-metal look when he entered the ring. So it should come as no surprise to find out his number one fashion influence is the Diamond one himself - David Lee Roth. "I usually say Mötley Crüe, Guns N' Roses, Poison, Ratt, whatever but the absolute...my favorite one [is] David Lee Roth," said Nemeth during a … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar Thanks Fans In Best Of All Worlds Recap
The Best Of All Worlds summer tour is in the books and Sammy Hagar has thanked the fans in a new video. Sammy and his bandmates Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani, Jason Bonham, and Ray Thistlewaite will play three shows in Japan next month. As for what happens after that? Watching the video above, it appears like the Best Of All Worlds band isn't done yet! … [Read more...]
Thomas Dolby: Edward Van Halen’s Life Was Like ‘Spinal Tap’
Edward Van Halen saw This Is Spinal Tap. He also lived it. During a recent interview with Jeremy White, Dolby recalled a conversation with Edward when the topic of Spinal Tap came up. At the time, Edward was lending his guitar talents to a few tracks on Dolby's then-upcoming album Astronauts & Heretics - "Eastern Bloc" and "Close But No Cigar". "I went up to his … [Read more...]
Did David Lee Roth Almost Form A Band Featuring Billy Sheehan & Carmine Appice?
A David Lee Roth band featuring a returning Billy Sheehan and drummer Carmine Appice almost happened in the late 90s? That was a question DLR Book author Darren Paltrowitz recently posed to Sheehan. Below is the Q&A excerpt from Sheehan's recent appearance on Paltrowitz's podcast The Paltrocast. DP: In '97, '98 Dave did this newsletter through a website that's since … [Read more...]
Michael Anthony Expects Alex Van Halen’s Book To Focus On The Good Times
Michael Anthony doesn't know what's inside Alex Van Halen's upcoming book "Brothers" but he expects Alex will focus on the good times had rather than the dirt. "Alex, basically, like myself — I've never been one to wanna talk smack about the band or whatever, 'cause I choose to remember all the good stuff and all the good times that we had," said Anthony during a recent … [Read more...]