When I got in my car after work this evening at 6:00, I thought, "The first thing I better hear on the radio is some Van Halen."
Thank you, 98Rocks. You never disappoint.
"Oh Pretty Woman" from Diver Down.
After station identification and the intro to Golden Earring's "Twilight Zone," I switched over to Spotify and what had quickly become THE playlist of the day: This is Van Halen.
I opened the sunroof, both front seat windows and cranked it. All the way home. "Dreams," the signature song of Mena High School's Class of 1987 was kicking off as I turned onto E 17th Street and pulled into my garage.
Dreams - Original Blue Angels Video
I continued through this playlist all through preparing dinner, taking my bath, and now...it still plays.
I was well aware of Van Halen from their beginning, but I didn't own an album (cassette) until I got 1984 for Christmas in...1984...because EVERYBODY owned a copy of 1984. (I did have a copy of Thriller, and EVERYBODY had been so excited about Eddie Van Halen playing the solo on "Beat It." That was HUGE news back in 1983.) We'd all seen the video to "Jump", "Panama", and "Hot For Teacher" over and over and over...not on MTV in my hometown but "Night Tracks" on WTBS played them A LOT.
I considered 1984 the first real "hard rock" album I owned. (I would eventually graduate from Air Supply, Tina Turner, and Bryan Adams to Motley Crue and Scorpions in 1985 but that's a whole other blog.) I used the title track as an introduction to our variety show lip-sync act, and I think we used the "Ice Cream Man" solo...
Anyway, my favorite song from 1984 is this one: "I'll Wait"
My first "concert" t-shirt was Van Halen - I bought it from one of the game trailers at the Polk County Fair/Carnival in August 1985 because there was no way I could have actually won it. I think I paid seven dollars for it. It was really cheap; crappy rough fabric that completely lost its shape after I washed it once. But I kept it for years - neck and sleeves cut out and about 2 inches cut off the bottom.
I thought I was soooooo tough. For years I would go into the beauty shops with pictures of Jon Bon Jovi, but I always seemed to come out with hair like...Eddie Van Halen. I'm sure I've got pictures somewhere...
In 1986, my good buddy Christine Cooper and I went to Texxas Jam and got to SEE the first incarnation of Van "Hagar" on a REALLY hot day in July. EVERYONE had waited for the 5150 album that year and it was the third Van Halen album I owned, because of course I bought the first album. That was a great show - I remember Hagar telling the lighting crew to turn off the stage lights and then for everyone to light up their cigarette lighters. That was really, really cool...and they put on a fantastic show. So I consider myself lucky to have seen the great Edward Van Halen in all his glory, even if he was entire football field away and looked like he was only about 6 inches tall.
I wish I still had that concert T-shirt...that was the real deal.
(I like the Hagar years - but I'm not getting into the whole Roth versus Hagar thing.)
I bought 0U812 in '88. For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge in '91. I became a real adult shortly after that and didn't have money for CDs so I missed Balance and the ill-fated Van Halen III. A dear friend of mine from college had made some cassette bootlegs of Fair Warning and Women and Children First for me, which I recently noticed I still have. That's where my other favorite Van Halen song is located:
And the Cradle Will Rock - On Bandstand, no less
The Groovetones actually made a stab at the "Oh Pretty Woman" version in our heydey...
Several early Van Halen tunes feature prominently in the Rockin' Heaven Down "soundtrack," the aforementioned "Panama," "Unchained," and "Runnin' With the Devil."
Sometime around 2012 when I was finishing my doctorate I went on a Van Halen kick and bought every CD I could from Amazon. I still don't have the last three. Looks like I need to pick those up.
The news of Eddie's passing today made me very sad. I knew he'd taken a turn for the worse and was hoping he'd pull through this one, too. Despite his shortcomings, he seemed like he was genuinely a "happy" guy who was very serious about his craft. I'm not even a guitar player, but no one played like him, before or since. I told my students today (some of whom actually knew who I was talking about) that he was the most influential and innovative guitarist in the last 40 years, following Jimi Hendrix.
There is no one carrying that torch. I think Eddie broke the final mold. EVERY guitar player from the 80s on owes him pretty much EVERYTHING.
Even the legends before him...Tony Iommi, Brian May...were paying their respects today. Musicians everywhere are heartbroken. And so am I. Gone too soon and too young. My condolences to Alex, Wolfie, Valerie, and the rest of his family and friends.
So raise your Goblet of Rock, y'all. Rest well, Edward.
Bottoms up!!
