David Lee Roth mentions in the new episode of The Roth Show that his band is "Working on a great Van Halen project" but also that he "Can't announce anything, or I'd have to come find you and swear you to secrecy." You can watch the episode embedded below. (Though no clues are to be found in the episode). This makes the second time that Roth mentions Van Halen working on a … [Read more...]
Van Halen News
Flashback: Van Halen 1979 In-Store Appearance
We're featuring our stash of never-before-published photos from Van Halen's appearance at a record store in Seattle, Washington, which took place on April 13th, 1979. The young and hungry band was quite busy at the time—within three weeks leading up to this in-store appearance, Eddie Van Halen painted his Frankenstrat red, the band released Van Halen II, kicked off their … [Read more...]
Van Halen’s Early Days at Gazzarri’s—As Told by The Band, Bill Gazzarri, Rodney Bingenheimer, and Childhood Friends
In April of 1974, Van Halen hit the Sunset Strip, playing their first shows at Gazzarri's! MUST-READ: Eddie and Alex Van Halen, David Lee Roth, Michael Anthony, Bill Gazzarri, Rodney Bingenheimer, and childhood friends discuss Van Halen's formative years playing Gazzarri's on the infamous Sunset Strip (1974-1976). .Bill Gazzarri: Van Halen was the best band that ever … [Read more...]
VHND’s All Access Photo: 1979 Radio Appearance
During their 1979 "World Vacation" tour in support of Van Halen II, the band paid a visit to "Seattle's Best Rock" KISW-FM. Here's Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth with rock and roll disc jockey, Steve Slaton. Slaton hosted a nightly show on KISW called "Disco Destruction" during which he would "blow up" disco records. Van Halen were no disco fans either - Roth would start a … [Read more...]
Backstage with Van Halen at the CaliFFornia World Music Festival
Here's our FUN look back at the 40th anniversary of a giant rock concert in the late seventies, involving Van Halen, Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Cheech and Chong, midget security guards, and a chimpanzee. Van Halen co-headlined the 1979 CaliFFornia World Music Festival, and it was amazing! All photos on this page are from the festival (excluding the Aerosmith photo). Van … [Read more...]
Video: Bruce Springsteen Covers Van Halen’s ‘Jump’ at Dallas Show (with Tom Morello)
Update 4/7/14: Here's a full version of the song, above. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band began their six week U.S. tour tonight (April 6th), opening with Van Halen's #1 hit, "Jump." It was the first time that song has ever been played by the E Street Band. The video is embedded above, but unfortunately cuts before Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello's … [Read more...]
VHND’s All Access Photo: Rehearsals, 1974
Van Halen practicing in 1974, soon after Michael Anthony joined the band, and not long after they scored their first gig on the Sunset Strip. “All Access” Photos is a weekly feature at VHND.com. Every weekend we feature a photo from a roadie, friend, or band insider. Many are never-seen-before exclusives. Tune in every weekend for more! … [Read more...]
Exclusive: David Lee Roth on Van Halen’s “College of Musical Knowledge” (Audio)
David Lee Roth was inspired by our article 40 Years Ago Today – Van Halen Hits the Sunset Strip! so much so that he sent us an exclusive audio describing how important it was for Van Halen to spend years playing Gazzarris in the mid seventies. He calls it their "college of musical knowledge." Listen to Dave's 5-minute recording above. Big thanks to Diamond Dave for sharing … [Read more...]
50 Years Ago: Van Halen Hit the Sunset Strip!
This is the amazing story of how Van Halen broke out of the backyard party scene by playing their first concert on the infamous Sunset Strip! Their gig at Gazzarri's on April 4th, 1974, was their first performance in Hollywood. Landing this gig helped catapult the band out of Pasadena's backyard beer bashes, and thrust them headfirst into Tinseltown! This historic date was a … [Read more...]
Unearthed: Earliest Known Van Halen Interview (1977)
Exclusive: Before Van Halen exploded in 1978 and started being featured in national music magazines, a small rock fanzine covering mostly local Los Angeles bands scored an interview with the lead singer of Van Halen. This interview took place backstage at the Whisky A Go-Go, in September of 1977, nearly half a year before Van Halen's first album hit the record stores! Raw … [Read more...]
Here’s When Eddie Van Halen Painted His Red/Black/White Guitar!
Legend has it that Eddie Van Halen painted his Frankenstrat guitar (also known as The Frankenstein) with the iconic red/black/white color scheme sometime in early 1979. We've just figured out that it was almost certainly the last week of March when he painted it. That makes it 35 years ago this week that the famous guitarist transformed his white guitar (with black stripes) … [Read more...]
Van Halen: Intimate Pics of the Early Days
From Rolling Stone: Amazing vintage photos of Eddie and Co. through the lens of Mark Weiss Greetings From Asbury Park Mark Weiss was still in high school when he began sneaking into New Jersey concerts with his camera in the mid-Seventies. "I'd give the guy at the door three or four dollars," he says. "I'd stuff my camera under a baggy sweatshirt and between bands … [Read more...]