Photo by Neil Zlozower For nearly three decades, songwriter/producer Desmond Child has reigned as one of music's most successful hitmakers for the biggest bands like Bon Jovi, KISS, Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Ratt, and Joan Jett. According to Child, Van Halen could have been another band on his resume, but David Lee Roth prevented that from happening. Child, a recent guest … [Read more...]
What If Van Halen Didn’t Implode At The ’96 VMAs?
In late February of 1996, the original four members of KISS officially reunited at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. It was to be the biggest story in music that year. But there could have been one just as big. Maybe bigger: The reunion of Van Halen's original four. As Van Halen fans know, the reunion of David Lee Roth, Eddie Van Halen, Alex Van Halen, and … [Read more...]
Engineer Mark Linett Recalls David Lee Roth ‘California Girls’ Recording Sessions
Producer/engineer Mark Linett is best known for his remixing and remastering of the Beach Boys' catalog. It wouldn't be his first Beach Boys recording experience, however. That came when he worked on David Lee Roth's cover of "California Girls". During a recent interview with journalist Darren Paltrowitz, Linett (The Beach Boys, David Lee Roth, Randy Newman, Frank Zappa, … [Read more...]
Kip Winger On How David Lee Roth Influenced His Stage Performance
Credit: Neil Zlozower Take a bit of ballet, add a nice mix of Paul Stanley and David Lee Roth and you've got Kip Winger's stage performance approach. The Winger frontman and bassist stopped by the Paltrocast with Darren Paltrowitz to talk about the new Paramount+ three-part docuseries I Wanna Rock: The '80s Metal Dream. Paltrowitz asked Winger, who has a background in … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar On Van Halen Manager Ed Leffler: ‘He Kept The Band Together’ (AUDIO)
Sammy Hagar says late Van Halen manager Ed Leffler was the glue that kept the band together. When Lefller passed away, everything fell to pieces. Leffler managed Van Halen from 1986 to 1993, when he lost his battle with cancer. During an appearance on The Bob Lefsetz podcast, Lefsetz asked Hagar how Leffler's death affected the band. "It totally broke up Van Halen," Hagar … [Read more...]
The Fateful Encounter That Led To Edward Van Halen’s First Interview
Jas Obrecht, former Editor of Guitar Player Magazine (1978-1998), spoke in depth on Final Resonance TV's "Van Halen Stories Podcast" about his accidental meeting and first interview with Edward Van Halen in 1978 at The Day on The Green Festival Show. Edward himself referred to this interview as his "first interview." This fateful encounter captured a young Edward … [Read more...]
Michael Anthony Going Through Entire Van Halen Catalog, Ready For Tribute If It Happens (VIDEO)
If a Van Halen tribute ever happens, Michael Anthony will be ready. "I'm gonna be ready for anything that might happen," Anthony said during an appearance on THAT Rocks! with Eddie Trunk, Jim Florentine, and Don Jamieson. "I'm gonna go through all of our albums now. Stuff that I've forgotten, I'm gonna relearn. I'm gonna know everything in the Van … [Read more...]
‘In The Studio’ Celebrates 35th Anniversary Of Van Halen’s ‘OU812’ (AUDIO)
O-U-8-1-2 @ 35! On May 20th, 1988, Van Halen released OU812 - their eighth studio album and the second featuring Sammy Hagar on vocals. In celebration of its 35th anniversary, the syndicated radio show In The Studio with Red Beard has shared its original documentary on the album. Below is what Red Beard has to say about the album 35 years later along with the … [Read more...]
Hear Eddie Van Halen Play Unreleased Guitar Riffs
Credit: Neil Zlozower Jas Obrecht has done it again and released another exclusive tape of his 1980 interview with Eddie Van Halen, but this time we get to hear some never-before-heard riffs that didn't make it onto a Van Halen album. Below are Jas's comments on tape five along with the complete audio from his YouTube channel Talking Guitar: Jas Obrecht's Music … [Read more...]
Early Van Halen Stories With Great White’s Mark Kendall (VIDEO)
Great White guitarist Mark Kendall was the latest guest in Final Resonance TV's "Van Halen Stories" series. Kendall witnessed the rise of Van Halen from their backyard party days to becoming the biggest rock and roll band in the land. Kendall was a high school student in Huntington Beach, California at the time he first saw Van Halen perform at a junkyard for one dollar. … [Read more...]
Listen To Tape Four Of Jas Obrecht’s 1980 Interview With Eddie Van Halen
Credit: Neil Zlozower Jas Obrecht's marathon day-long 1980 interview with Eddie Van Halen continues! Obrecht has just released tape four of the interview. Below are his comments on tape four along with the complete audio in HD: Tape 4 of our day-long 1980 interview features Eddie Van Halen at his most reflective. In especially heartwarming sections, he speaks in … [Read more...]
Sammy Hagar On His Time In Van Halen, The Resurgence Of The Van Hagar Era & More On Steve-O’s Wild Ride! Podcast (VIDEO)
Sammy Hagar appeared on Steve-O's Wild Ride! podcast for a career-spanning interview and fortunately for us, Steve-O is a big Van Halen fan with lots of Van Halen questions. Here's a rundown of what Sammy talks about in the interview, which you can watch above: The Montrose days The slow rise to success as a solo artist On joining Van Halen in 1985 The current … [Read more...]