The great “Hot For Teacher” Waldo hoax has officially come to an end. Meet Keith Kessinger, a musician from California who, back in 2011, posted a one-man-band tribute video to his favorite Van Halen song and titled it “Hot For Waldo.” In it, Kessinger performs the Van Halen classic “Hot For Teacher” while dressed up as the iconic character in the original video from 1984 – … [Read more...]
Tawny Kitaen On Touring With ‘Greatest Rock Band In The World’
Tawny Kitaen was doing cartwheels for Van Halen long before Whitesnake. In fact, she still is. "I'd like to see somebody tell me that Van Halen isn't the greatest rock band in the world," said Kitaen during her recent appearance on rock journalist Mitch Lafon's podcast "Rock Talk with Mitch Lafon". Kitaen said she toured with Van Halen's original lineup for three years … [Read more...]
Van Halen Drunken Summit #2: Greg Renoff, Steve Brown, Philip Shouse, Jeremy Asbrock
Izzy Presley hosts Van Halen Drunken Summit #2... Author Greg Renoff (Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producers Life In Music & Van Halen Rising), Steve Brown of Trixer/Tokyo Motorfist, Philip Shouse of Accept/Ace Frehley/Gene Simmons/THEE Rock & Roll Residency, and Jeremy Asbrock of Gene Simmons/Ace Frehley/THEE Rock & Roll Residency stop by to have a few drinks and … [Read more...]
Van Halen Drunken Summit: Carrie Stevens, Steve Brown, Philip Shouse, Greg Renoff
Playmate Carrie Stevens, Steve Brown of Trixer/Tokyo Motorfist, Philip Shouse (Accept/Ace Frehley/Gene Simmons) and author Greg Renoff (Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producers Life In Music & Van Halen Rising) get together, have a few drinks, and talk the Mighty Van Halen! The host of this little virtual get together is Izzy Presley, who runs, Another FN Podcast. "Another FN … [Read more...]
Never-Before-Heard Alex Van Halen Interview From 1981
“There’s a little bit of Van Halen in everybody, and we’re just there to bring it out.” Talk about the perfect t-shirt. Those words came straight from the man who has brought the undeniable Van Halen beats we’ve been rocking to for over four decades - Alex Van Halen. They’re from a 1981 interview that has never been heard before until now thanks to the podcast The Tapes … [Read more...]
Van Halen ‘Women and Children First’ Anniversary Podcast
Van Halen’s ‘Women and Children First’ album has just turned 40 and like a bottle of David Lee Roth’s best party-ready whiskey, it’s only gotten better with age. To celebrate the anniversary of the classic Van Halen album released on March 26th, 1980, the podcast The Rocker Life recently released an episode featuring host Aaron K. and a pair of musicians/die-hard Van … [Read more...]
Discover The Stories Behind Van Halen’s Debut Album (Podcast)
The Van Halen News Desk’s Eric Senich is going back to the classic Van Halen catalog once more for the latest episode of his classic rock podcast DISCovery. Just recently he revisited the ten-million plus selling ‘1984’ album. this time he’s digging deep into another diamond-selling album, the one that started it all – their iconic self-titled debut from 1978. “You cannot … [Read more...]
Discover The Stories Behind Van Halen’s ‘1984’ Album (Podcast)
Thirty-six years ago this month Van Halen’s massively successful ‘1984’ album was released. Today it ranks among the greatest albums in rock history. While its songs continue to entertain millions of fans over three decades later, the intriguing stories behind the album continue to surface. Van Halen News Desk writer Eric Senich explores those stories and more behind '1984' in … [Read more...]
Greg Renoff Shares Ted Templeman’s Behind-The-Scenes Stories
This week's episode of DISCovery hosted by Eric Senich of the Van Halen News Desk features an interview with Greg Renoff, author of the 2015 book Van Halen Rising: How a Southern California Backyard Party Band Saved Heavy Metal. He's about to release a brand new book along with legendary producer Ted Templeman, Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer’s Life in Music. Greg talks … [Read more...]
Warner Bros. Promo Men Reveal Stories Behind The Rise Of Van Halen (Podcast)
We discovered a really cool podcast that interviewed former Warner Bros. promo guys talking about Van Halen's early days and how they promoted the first album. They shared some fun stories from Van Halen's first year on tour, and some later VH stories, as well. Enjoy. It’s the winter of 1978. Disco music has invaded the music charts. Is there no end in sight? Can rock and … [Read more...]
Billy Sheehan Looks Back at Van Halen’s Early Years & David Lee Roth Band
On this day in 1986 (Aug. 16th), David Lee Roth began his first solo tour in Hampton, VA with Billy Sheehan, Steve Vai, and Gregg Bissonette! In a new interview, Billy Sheehan gives a very candid interview about his years with DLR, his bizarre exit, the near "Eat' em & Smile" reunion, and how he almost ended up in Van Halen! (Listen below). Eat 'em and Smile Tour With … [Read more...]
Wildest Van Halen Stories Ever Told (Podcast)
Noel Monk Answers The Big Question: “What If Brown M&Ms Did End Up Backstage At A Van Halen Concert?” Yes there were a few brown M&M sightings but they never came with nuts – as in Noel Monk going “nuts”. Former Van Halen manager Noel Monk recently spoke with Brian Hiatt on the ‘Rolling Stone Music Now’ podcast to talk about his colorful seven year stint as manager … [Read more...]