EVH rips into DLR while on tour.

muttley600 said:
Why? There were loads technically better and what did he do that was original?
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There were technically better players than him somewhere but they were in their bedrooms copying other people while Eddie created a unique sound. He took shredding to a whole new level of mainstream acceptance and paved the way for the 80s shred movement. He literally put a shred solo into a dance-pop tune (Jump) that otherwise doesn't even have guitar. That's dedication to wanking.

The tapping was original, the look of the guitar was original and you can hear a Van Halen song from a mile away. They have distinct sound.
 
lol@ people thinking what they like or don't like is the definition of what's good or bad.

It's all personal taste.

I will say that in every interview I've read with Eddie, he came across as a giant douche-bag to me.
Clearly a great guitarist but he's an a-hole.
Also I think Hager came off better in this exchange saying Eddie is a liar about that bassist..














.
 
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Schwarzenyaeger said:
There were technically better players than him somewhere but they were in their bedrooms copying other people while Eddie created a unique sound. He took shredding to a whole new level of mainstream acceptance and paved the way for the 80s shred movement. He literally put a shred solo into a dance-pop tune (Jump) that otherwise doesn't even have guitar. That's dedication to wanking.

The tapping was original, the look of the guitar was original and you can hear a Van Halen song from a mile away. They have distinct sound.
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Err no... they were not..

Err no he didn't...

Err no it wasn't...

Nought out of three.. Not bad...:thumbs up:
 
I think some especially over the pond are letting personal bias get in the way of what is.

I was in LA, working in the industry at the time, and he did take the world by storm. No one had seen anything like him. He caused quite a stir.

Yes, he was good, Yes, he was doing stuff others weren't. Come on, for crissske, he made it! He made it in LA!!! He rose to the top in Los Angeles, a music city with more talented jaded guitar players than it has failed actors.
like his style and band.....or not, he was fresh, good and did stuff others weren't.
On a personal note, my partner in my shop did work for him and in the early days he wasnt an A hole. Actually quite nice and humble. There was a bit of a white powder issue, but he was cool.
Dave??? Well, that's a different story. Haha.
I've been around, and seen many guitar players once they become rockstars turn into dicks but most don't start out that way. Fame and idol worship from the fans fucks them up. Drugs help too.
Ayway, I dont dig the band, but I respect what Eddie has done and his talents.
 
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miroslav said:
I couldn't stand his voice even when he "could" sing...but music-wise, they are solid.
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Me either. If I was exposed to Geddy Lee's singing as a form of torture...I would tell the torturers anything they wanted to know.
I would beg for the damn water board
 
Yo RFR did you work at Charvels or Berry and Grasmueck?

He hung at Charvels quite a bit and used to get free strings from Kenny at B&G
 
Greg_L said:
Who at that time was "technically better"? And if there were some technically better, they surely did not count as "loads" of people. Remember this was mid 70s. Most rock guitarists were still playing tired ass blues rock licks over and over. This was an era where Ace Frehley, Ted Nugent, and Peter Frampton were "guitar gods". No one was doing what Eddie was doing. The way Jimi blew minds in the 60s, Eddie blew minds in the 70s. He took noodle wanking to a whole new level that re-set the bar for that kind of guitar playing.
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It is undeniable that Eddie van Halen was a major inovater of rock guitar. I'm not a fan of the bands music though. A good friend of mine bought that 1st Van Halen album and said " you gotta here this fucker play guitar!!" I listened and said "man, that guy is a killer guitar player, but the band is playing horror music!"
It just didn't have much of a groove to it IMO.
Then a whole army of neck tapping pretty boy hair bands followed. It was almost as bad as disco.
 
@ Greg. No one is equating anything. Not me anyway. In Eddie's case he "made it" because good.

@TAE, Nope, had a shop called Image guitars right off sunset, later right on the blvd. Everyone came through those doors sooner or later.
 
jimistone said:
It is undeniable that Eddie van Halen was a major inovater of rock guitar. I'm not a fan of the bands music though. A good friend of mine bought that 1st Van Halen album and said " you gotta here this fucker play guitar!!" I listened and said "man, that guy is a killer guitar player, but the band is playing horror music!"
It just didn't have much of a groove to it IMO.
Then a whole army of neck tapping pretty boy hair bands followed. It was almost as bad as disco.
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I agree. I can't stand the music, but I unfortunately have to acknowledge Eddie's huge impact on modern rock guitar.

I like the way they mixed their early albums though. One, or seemingly one guitar track panned hard to one side with all the reverb on the other side. Bass, vocals, drums up the middle. It was a pretty interesting way to mix a guitar band.
 
Greg_L said:
Can we please stop equating "making it" to being good?
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When I first heard Eddie Van Halen, like I said, I thought he was a killer guitar player.....
But, I had already heard somebody else doing lead guitar just as radical and just as fast. A wild hyper guy from Indianola named Billy Marquis. I remember saying upon hearing Eddie " damn, he's as wild and fast as Billy Marquis".
I had never heard anyone, up to that point, who could touch Billy. He was, and still is, the best guitar player I've ever heard. Then, as I found out more about Eddie Van Halen, I realized he was using 2 hands on the fretboard.
Billy did it on a les paul ....picking the stings with his right hand and fretting with his left. He treddled the strings with his pick and had a lightning fast left hand dexterity. It was amazing to watch him play. He was a legend in the Mississippi delta but unfortunately was a stoner and never branched out and got exposure. The saddest thing, in my opinion, is BB king told him after his phenomenal set at the delta blues fest " Billy, you are a damn good guitar player. You could be one of the all time greats if you would learn to play with some dicipline." Billy made one album "the blues and beyond" and instead of smoking on guitar he played very reserved, just basic blues guitar. I know he did it because of that shit BB King said to him. There are some live recordings of him, in his heyday, smoking ass radical jaw dropping guitar...before van Halen ever rolled down the pike.

He was awesome but never "made it" .
He died in a drug rehab center a few years ago from complications due to wirhdrawl. Thats such irony to ingest enough drugs to kill a man day after day and then die from trying to clean up and get straight.
I'm just glad I was fortunate enough to witness his greatness with my own eyes and ears.
Rip Billy Marquis
billy01b.jpg
 
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RFR said:
I think some especially over the pond are letting personal bias get in the way of what is.

................
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:laughings:

So he made it in LA. So what. He wasn't the best, he didn't invent anything, and he influenced a lot of easily impressed kids...

That doesn't equate to being the best or innovative.
 
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