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...]