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RIP Eddie Van Halen

Patrick Bateman

By Patrick Bateman
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Ignatius

Ignatius 4017

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On 10/8/2020 at 9:26 PM, tbone_ said:

I hated jump when it came out. But I was 16 and mostly into Maiden, Queensryche, heavy guitar shit etc. It was strange because we all fully respected Van Halen of course but the keyboards were gay af to our crew anyway.

I always wondered what went on in Eddies head to cause him to write and then release that song as the lead single. It was such a departure.

Strangely enough I loved Why Can’t This Be Love when it came out a few years later.

Lol dude you just summarized about 15,000 hours of my drunken/stoned high school conversations to a T....

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 45970

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22 hours ago, Macanudo said:

Question on Eruption.   Eddie has said that in the version that made it onto the album he made a mistake near the top.  Anyone know where he thought he made it?

 

Because the album version seems damn near perfect to my ears.

The only thing I imagine he may be referring to is the 2nd note . . . if he's playing in G#, then going to the F (which is what he does) is a little odd.  A lot of guys would have started that upward run on the D#, which is the fifth in the chord.

To me, it's so ingrained in my memory that I can't imagine it any other way.  And fuck it, it's Eddie.

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HenryJames

HenryJames 66082

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On 10/11/2020 at 6:31 AM, Macanudo said:

Curious how many disliked the keyboards on 1984 but also liked Rush. 

Junior high me had no problems with the keyboards. Would have been like saying you didn’t like Coke or 501s. Probably the only Rush song I knew at the time was Tom Sawyer which was/is meh.

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Bozo_Casanova

Bozo_Casanova 26474

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28 minutes ago, Buzzrock said:

EVH with the SNL band:
 

 


And if you missed it, Jack White killed on SNL over the weekend and threw in a little EVH tribute during his second number. He’s been playing EVH Wolfgang guitars for a few years now.

 

Jack White was fantastic and that rework of Ball and a Biscuit had me all like this:
7028462270f5d441e1ccd093d7616d2b.gif

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 45970

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4 minutes ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

GE Smith no slouch either. 

Well, of course the whole band was incredible.  I know people have a natural fondness for Alex Van Halen and Michael Anthony, but as players neither could pass the first level of auditions to get in that SNL band.  GE & the rest simply simply play at a far higher level.  You can easily hear it in the drums, but also the bass.  I think that's T-Bone Wolk on bass?  (RIP T-Bone)

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Bozo_Casanova

Bozo_Casanova 26474

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2 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

Well, of course the whole band was incredible.  I know people have a natural fondness for Alex Van Halen and Michael Anthony, but as players neither could pass the first level of auditions to get in that SNL band.  GE & the rest simply simply play at a far higher level.  You can easily hear it in the drums, but also the bass.  I think that's T-Bone Wolk on bass?  (RIP T-Bone)

I think it’s apples and oranges. EVH was an innovator and a songwriter and an incredible showman. I mean, Eruption isn’t even a real song. It’s a basically a musical doodle meant for the stage and a less-than-his-best version of  It is arguably the greatest guitar rock instrumental ever recorded.  
On the other hand, everyone in that SNL band was a world-class session musician and could play literally anything. They just can’t come up with the comic zany metal energy or whatever it is that powers Eruption or Hot For Teacher. 
 

There are very few people (Jerry Reed and Glen Campbell come to mind) who are both. 
 

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 45970

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1 minute ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

I think it’s apples and oranges. EVH was an innovator and a songwriter and an incredible showman. I mean, Eruption isn’t even a real song. It’s a basically a musical doodle meant for the stage and a less-than-his-best version of  It is arguably the greatest guitar rock instrumental ever recorded.  
On the other hand, everyone in that SNL band was a world-class session musician and could play literally anything. They just can’t come up with the comic zany metal energy or whatever it is that powers Eruption or Hot For Teacher. 
 

There are very few people (Jerry Reed and Glen Campbell come to mind) who are both. 
 

I don't think I said anything that contradicts this.  I mean, it's not like Alex & Mike contributed a lot to the innovation of Van Halen.  Alex is a capable rock drummer with the worst drum sound ever known to man.  Mike is a decent bass player who sings really great harmonies.

I'm not trashing the band, I'm pointing out that Eddie was playing with musicians who were somewhat on his level in that SNL gig, and it was obvious.  To my knowledge. not one player on that stage besides Eddie was an "innovator", as in "capable of writing and delivering the kind of things Eddie routinely did".  Almost nobody in the rock world was.  But they were a hellaciously tight, highly skilled hard-grooving band, and that's not a good descriptor of Van Halen.  Tight?  Sure.  A big groove or highly skilled?  No.

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Moby Ric

Moby Ric 2058

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It is really cool to see all the tributes from everywhere.  From the football games playing his music both college and pro, the sxm channel tribute.  Musicians from all walks showing their respect.  It shows the impact this man had.  A true musical Titan that crossed many genres.  I am truly grateful to have been on this planet at the right time to witness his talent.  I doubt I will see anything like EVH in my lifetime again.

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Bozo_Casanova

Bozo_Casanova 26474

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3 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

I don't think I said anything that contradicts this.  I mean, it's not like Alex & Mike contributed a lot to the innovation of Van Halen.  Alex is a capable rock drummer with the worst drum sound ever known to man.  Mike is a decent bass player who sings really great harmonies.

I'm not trashing the band, I'm pointing out that Eddie was playing with musicians who were somewhat on his level in that SNL gig, and it was obvious.  To my knowledge. not one player on that stage besides Eddie was an "innovator", as in "capable of writing and delivering the kind of things Eddie routinely did".  Almost nobody in the rock world was.  But they were a hellaciously tight, highly skilled hard-grooving band, and that's not a good descriptor of Van Halen.  Tight?  Sure.  A big groove or highly skilled?  No.

I understand and appreciated your point. My response was mainly color commentary for people who thought you were shitting on EVH. 

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 45970

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I hope nobody thought I would shit on Eddie after my early posts on this thread.  But, understood.

Wait . . . did the post you quoted come across as diminishing anything Eddie ever did?  That was definitely NOT my point.  I was just saying that the SNL band was superior to Alex & Mike, and that (for once) Eddie was playing with his peers.

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Bozo_Casanova

Bozo_Casanova 26474

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10 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

I hope nobody thought I would shit on Eddie after my early posts on this thread.  But, understood.

Wait . . . did the post you quoted come across as diminishing anything Eddie ever did?  That was definitely NOT my point.  I was just saying that the SNL band was superior to Alex & Mike, and that (for once) Eddie was playing with his peers.

Not to me, but I was just expanding on your point. Basically saying that and EVH is a different breed of cat from the SNL guys, on top of the SNL band being at a different level from Anthony and Alex VanHalen. So when you put Eddie with that band, it makes something different altogether from what either do individually. 

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 45970

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1 hour ago, tbone_ said:

That’s the crazy thing about music, and rock and roll especially. You never really know what combination is going to click or why. And it may or may not have anything to do with chops.

I agree, and I think it spreads across the musical spectrum.  It is vitally important that everyone in an ensemble have the same vision.  That vision might be "we're gonna be loud as hell and fuckin' rock", and that's fine.  It might be "we are going to stick to the highest levels of pedagogy and interpret the written chart as perfectly as we can", and that's fine too.

I think it's when the group doesn't all buy into the same goal that things go sideways.

I was a damn good French horn player in high school.  I was offered a full ride to U-Michigan and toured Europe in a national wind ensemble.  When I was ~ 16 years old, I went to a concert by the Canadian Brass, one of the premier brass quartets in the world.  I don't think they were at that level solely because of skill, although they were definitely world class.  They were prolific and approachable.  After the concert I went up and talked to the French horn player, and he literally handed me his horn, asked me to play something, and then he critiqued my playing and gave me a short lesson.  Really?  Blew my mind.  I'll never forget it.

The thing was, that was part of the gig for everyone in that quartet.  They were not only into playing, they were evangelists, and their product was better for it.

At any rate, that singularity of purpose is partially why Van Halen was so great, and it was similarly why Pink Floyd and The Clash and Sly & The Family Stone were so great.  They were all on the same page, which goes a long way towards mitigating any "technical" issues.

 

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Bozo_Casanova

Bozo_Casanova 26474

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12 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

At any rate, that singularity of purpose is partially why Van Halen was so great, and it was similarly why Pink Floyd and The Clash and Sly & The Family Stone were so great.  They were all on the same page, which goes a long way towards mitigating any "technical" issues.

That's an interesting way to think about it. Especially when I think about somebody like James Brown and his often fraught relationship with the JBs. 

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Wally Pryor

Wally Pryor 5261

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On 10/12/2020 at 10:25 AM, Buzzrock said:
And if you missed it, Jack White killed on SNL over the weekend and threw in a little EVH tribute during his second number. He’s been playing EVH Wolfgang guitars for a few years now.

 

 

 
I loved Jack White's statement:
 
i thought it could be a nice gesture for me to use this blue eddie van halen model guitar for one of the songs tonight on SNL. the guitar was designed by eddie (with a few customizations i had added). eddie was very kind to me and saw to it that this guitar was made for me to my specs. i wont even insult the man’s talent by trying to play one of his songs tonight. thanks again eddie for this guitar and rest in peace sir.
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hullabelew

hullabelew 3724

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On 10/12/2020 at 6:47 PM, jimmyjazz said:

I hope nobody thought I would shit on Eddie after my early posts on this thread.  But, understood.

Wait . . . did the post you quoted come across as diminishing anything Eddie ever did?  That was definitely NOT my point.  I was just saying that the SNL band was superior to Alex & Mike, and that (for once) Eddie was playing with his peers.

T-Bone's playing in that clip is incredible.  LOVED that dude.  

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Macanudo

Macanudo 12987

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3 hours ago, hullabelew said:

SNL clip.  I couldn't view the clip that Buzz posted so I found one that would work on my work computer.  

https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/musical-performance---eddie-van-halen/n9553

 

Thanks for posting that.   I couldn't open the other on either.   That was fun to watch.

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