Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong says his first-ever concert experience was seeing Van Halen in 1984. During Green Day's recent appearance on Howard Stern's show, Armstrong recalled the emotional experience. "When I saw Van Halen in '84 I was 12," Armstrong told Stern. "They were my favorite band and...I cried. [laughs] 'Cuz Eddie was so....it's like his guitar playing … [Read more...]
Engineer Defends Eddie Van Halen’s Replacement Of Michael Anthony With Wolfgang
Engineeer Ross Hogarth says whatever criticism Eddie Van Halen faced for replacing Michael Anthony with his son Wolfgang in 2007 was unmerited. Hogarth recently appeared on the Anthony Merinelli Music YouTube channel to share stories from his experience as engineer on Van Halen's last-ever studio album and first with David Lee Roth since 1984 - A Different Kind Of Truth. It … [Read more...]
Satriani Having Amp Built To Replicate Eddie Van Halen’s Sound
In a new interview with Australian Musician, Joe Satriani said he's having a special amp built to replicate Eddie Van Halen's sound for the upcoming Best Of All Worlds tour. "What I learned from 'The Howard Stern Show', besides it's still important to rehearse and you can't do gigs without rehearsals... But what, what it confirmed was a couple of things I was thinking about, … [Read more...]
Behind-The-Scenes With David Lee Roth & Eddie Van Halen
Credit: Neil Zlozower You want David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen stories? Frank Meyer's got the stories! Just recently, the VHND's Eric Senich had the opportunity to interview Darren Paltrowitz, author of the new book DLR Book: How David Lee Roth Changed the World. Paltrowitz shared a few David Lee Roth stories from the book courtesy of author/musician/documentarian … [Read more...]
Frank Hannon: Eddie Van Halen Is Forever Rock Guitar’s ‘Mozart’
Credit: Neil Zlozower Tesla guitarist Frank Hannon says Eddie Van Halen's smile and style places him forever among music's elite, calling him "the Mozart" of rock and roll guitarists. During a recent interview with Cassius Morris, Hannon explained why he believes that the passing of Eddie has had such a profound impact on rock music fans worldwide. "Eddie Van Halen … [Read more...]
Watch Van Halen ‘1984’ 40th Anniversary Livestream
The 5150 Show is livestreaming an episode devoted entirely to Van Halen's 1984 album, which was released 40 years ago this month. Joining the show are authors Greg Renoff (Van Halen Rising, Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer’s Life in Music) and Chris Gill (Eruption: Conversations with Eddie Van Halen), who will discuss the album's creation, reception and legacy. Catch … [Read more...]
The Devo Joke David Lee Roth ‘Didn’t Like’
Credit: Neil Zlozower Devo is known for its sense of humor. But not everyone is in on the joke. Devo's Gerald V. Casale was a recent guest on the Paltrocast and recalled the time an in-concert joke at the expense of David Lee Roth didn't sit well with the Van Halen frontman. I only met David Lee Roth in passing," Casale told Paltrowitz. "Back then I never met … [Read more...]
Steve Stevens Reminisces About Working with Van Halen Members
From his first meeting with Edward Van Halen at 5150 Studios in 1987, through his final 2013 interaction with Eddie and Wolfgang on Tour in Australia, Billy Idol guitarist Steve Stevens recently shared his career experiences with Edward and Van Halen band members. Stevens, who appeared on Final Resonance TV hosted by the Van Halen News Desk's Jeff Goebel, first met Eddie at … [Read more...]
Exclusive: In Conversation with Darren Paltrowitz, Author of ‘DLR Book’
The Van Halen News Desk had the chance to talk with Darren Paltrowitz, author of DLR Book: How David Lee Roth Changed the World. In the video above, Paltrowitz and the VHND's Eric Senich cover all things Diamond Dave including: DLR Book: How David Lee Roth Changed the World Now Available! It’s currently only in stock & shipping at Van Halen … [Read more...]
What Eddie Van Halen Said That Steve Hackett Is Grateful For
Credit: Neil Zlozower While Eddie Van Halen became the master of two-handed tapping, he often reminded the rock media that he wasn't the first to come up with the technique. One guitarist he'd often name-check was Steve Hackett, something Hackett is still grateful for. Below is an excerpt from Hackett's interview with Ultimate-Guitar's Greg Prato: Do you feel … [Read more...]
Video Series Celebrates Modern Drummer Hall-Of-Famer Alex Van Halen
Credit: Neil Zlozower Modern Drummer has rolled out the first of a series of videos dedicated to their 2023 Hall-of-Fame inductee Alex Van Halen! Alex, who has appeared on the cover of Modern Drummer four times: 1983, 1993, 2008, and most recently in March of 2021, was inducted back in September. This week, Modern Drummer's official YouTube channel released an Alex … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar Crashes Fan Podcast
Photo Credit: Brent Kinnaird & Darin Bristow The Sammy Hagar podcast The Bogus Otis Show recently had the chance to interview the Red Rocker himself! The Instagram comments started sometime in season two of the podcast, but they weren’t from any random listener. They were from Hagar himself. Bristow and Kinnaird would casually acknowledge their new listener on … [Read more...]