Eddie Van Halen 1955-2020

Legendary guitarist succumbs to throat cancer at 65

 

by Sean Derrick:

I didn’t want to believe it. I knew Edward Van Halen had been battling throat cancer for several years, but still I didn’t want to believe it.

2020 has been a terrible year for a lot of people. From the hundreds of thousands just in the United States who have died from the current pandemic, to the millions who have lost their jobs and homes as well as the intense wildfires that have raged across the US and Australia, the year has…well…sucked boulders. When devastation rears its ugly head, especially for such long periods for so many, the one constant that people tend to gravitate to for comfort is music.

Music has the ability to whisk someone away from their troubles, if only for a few minutes, and provide a reprieve to the daily onslaught of troubles. Most people tend to grasp on to one style that suits them best, but everyone knew Eddie. He transcended genres and influenced so many across the spectrum of music. Just as an example: Brad Paisley, a country music superstar and exceptional guitarist in his own right, played a cover of “Hot For Teacher” during his 2013 stop in St. Louis where he played the entire song on guitar, only speaking a few catch phrases from David Lee Roth’s lyrics. St. Louis wasn’t the only time or tour he has played that cover, but it was the only one I saw, and it was glorious. The fans, country fans were jamming out right along with him. He influenced so many musicians in so many genres it wasn’t even funny. All kinds of performers looked to him as an influence: Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Kenny Chesney, George Lynch, Zakk Wylde, Nikki Sixx, Flea, Paul Stanley, Mike McCready, Jason Isbell, Billy Idol, Brian Wilson, Lenny Kravitz…the list is too large for this space.

This year has been a shitshow for the music world from the outset with the death of the iconic drummer Neil Peart in early January, to John Prine, to Kenny Rogers, Helen Reddy, Adam Schlesinger, Johnny Nash, Ellis Marsalis, Little Richard, Brian Howe, Joe Diffie, Charlie Daniels, and Frankie Banali, for starters. But now comes the announcement yesterday of the death of arguably the most iconic guitarist of all time, and with it a proverbial kick to the gut.

Eddie Van Halen teamed up with his brother Alex and formed a band bearing their namesake. Together with bassist Michael Anthony and vocalist David Lee Roth Van Halen climbed to superstardom, on the heals of Eddie’s marvelous guitar work. But make no mistake, despite the talent of the other three it was Eddie’s axework that led the way.

Sure, there were great guitarists who came before. Icons like Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, B.B. King, David Gilmour, and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, just to name a few. Each one was instrumental (no pun intended) in advancing how the guitar was looked at and heard as a musical piece. What Eddie did when Van Halen burst on the scene in 1978 was take what had been done previously, rolled it up nice and tight, and chucked it away, instead forging his own wonderous path that took the guitar to new dynamic heights, a place that no one had gone before.

“Eruption” was the 2nd song on Van Halen’s self-titled debut album. In reality, it should have been the opening track. The solo that announced, nay, screamed at the world that Edward Van Halen was here to kick ass so you better pay attention, would not be lost in the shuffle. Over the next 40 years kids who took up the guitar yearned to perform “Eruption”. It has been a yardstick for which solos are measured.

That would just be the beginning of a nearly 40 year career cranking out iconic licks and solos in songs like “Panama”, “Poundcake”, “Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love”, “Dreams”, the Michael Jackson classic ‘Beat It”, and of course “Hot For Teacher” (my favorite with the unheard of at the time 32 bars per minute. Yes there are guitarists who are faster but to take one that keeps the tonal qualities and harmony along with are just copying what he did). He even did an incredible bass solo for Sammy Hagar’s 1987 song “Winner Takes It All” because he was contractually obligated not to do any more guest guitar work on other artist’s material.

He influenced so many musicians it wasn’t even funny. Performers from a wide spectrum of music looked to him as an influence: Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, George Lynch, Zakk Wylde, Nikki Sixx, Flea, Paul Stanley, Lenny Kravitz…the list is too large for this space.

Eddie was classically trained on the piano growing up, winning contests and awards along the way, and he incorporated that into several memorable pieces in the mid 80’s on much of Van Halen’s material. Songs like “Jump”, “Dreams”, “I’ll Wait”, and “Right Now” showed his diversity on different instruments (He almost became a drummer after Alex decided to take up the guitar, but switched back when Alex wanted to go back to the drums. I wonder how that would have turned out?). Interestingly enough Eddie never learned to read music. He would learn everything by ear and improvise the rest. During piano recitals growing up the judges were so impressed with his “interpretations” of the pieces he was reciting, even though he thought he was playing them as they were.

To say Eddie Van Halen changed music is an understatement. Pre VH, guitarists and the guitar gods who preceded him each advanced the instrument in incremental steps, but basically used the same formula when it came to delivery. Sure, each had their own distinctive sound and style, but Eddie broke those boundaries and heralded a new era of guitar gods who tried to mimic him with fret tapping, speed, and melodic virtuosos everywhere you turned. In 1978 Eddie was alone at the top, light years ahead of anyone else. By the mid 80’s it seemed like every hair band had a guitarist who tried to emulate him in tonal structure, complexity, and fretwork. Sure, there were great guitarists out there but there could only be one original.

When I first heard “Eruption” I was blown away. “How is he doing that on a guitar?” I thought. Why was I thinking that? Because no one had ever done what he did before. He created a new sound and style. He was so dynamic that he single-handedly ushered in a new era of rock, and did so seemingly without effort. Truth be told Eddie made it seem that way because he would spend every waking moment for years practicing. For a time he would even sleep with his guitar next to him so that if he woke up with and idea he would work it out immediately.

His given name was actually Edward Lodewijk Van Halen, his middle name given by his father in honor of classical composer and pianist Ludwig Von Beethoven. Fitting that a master was named after a master of another time. He passed that naming tradition on to his son Wolfgang ( after the classical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart). Wolfgang actually got to perform with his father as the bassist in Van Halen starting in 2004. That was an honor that he never took lightly.

I am so thankful I got to see/photograph/review Eddie perform four times over the past thirty years. It was truly an honor.

Rest in Peace, Eddie. Thank you for the many great moments of musical comfort you provided to millions.