Another piece of
my childhood is gone. The news just broke that Eddie Van Halen lost his
long battle with Cancer today. I'm not alone when I say that the music
he made is an important part of the soundtrack of my life. 1984 and 1985
were particularly fun years for me, and who could forget the Van Halen
album 1984? Such an enjoyable album from start to finish.
My
introduction to Van Halen was their very first album. I was just
starting to collect 45s and albums at the time, and that was one of the
first albums I bought. It was then that I realized I was listening to
one of the greatest guitar players of all time. Eddie was an incredibly
talented musician, and it seems that as the band gained in popularity,
he wanted to expand his horizons and challenge himself more.
I
was one of the fans of the band who wasn't overly fond of what came
after David Lee Roth left. Don't get me wrong, the music is top-notch.
In some ways, it might be even better than what came before it. Eddie
grew as a songwriter and a musician during that time. Gone was the
carefree, party atmosphere of the music, but in its place was something
maybe more meaningful.
I don't know what
happened with Eddie in terms of his relationship with Sammy Hagar or
David Lee Roth. Both members left the band and returned again. The last
time the band played together, it was with David as lead vocalist.
I've
wondered in recent years if maybe Eddie could go back into the studio
and record new music with an entirely different lead singer. Another
opportunity to start over on his terms. Then again, I don't know what
sort of health issues he was dealing with. I think Eddie tried to keep
that to himself as much as possible, which I totally understand.
It
was Roth who caused a stir when he went on tour as a solo artist
again earlier this year. He was saying that he couldn't wait anymore and
that he thought Van Halen was done as a band. I'm guessing David knew a
little bit more than he was saying, but people were pointing a finger
at him and thinking maybe he should keep his mouth shut. I do get a
sense that Roth wanted to go into the studio and make another album and
tour again with Eddie and the band, but it wasn't to be.
We're
left with an incredible music catalog that stretched over 40 years.
There are too many good songs for me to list here. I just know that
whether it was on MTV or the radio, we were always rocking out and
having fun when Jump, Panama or Hot For Teacher came on. Life won't quite be the same. We're all getting older and some of the musicians and
entertainers that we enjoyed when we were younger are passing away.
This
year we lost one of the greatest drummers of all time, Neil Peart of
Rush. Last year, we said goodbye to Eddie Money as well as Rick Ocasek of The
Cars. Now we say goodbye to Eddie Van Halen. We'll never get to hear new
music from him or see a new lineup or the original lineup get back
together for one more tour. That makes me sad. At least we have the
music that was made to remember him by. Thank you for the music Eddie.
Eddie Van Halen, Hall of Fame Guitarist Who Revolutionized Instrument, Dead at 65 Rolling Stone Magazine
