UKC

Sad news re EVH.

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/eddie-van-halen...

He's definately gone to 11 this time.........

might have to get the headphones on and turn it up a bit tonight.

That's not good. Awesome musician. Fond memories of Donnington in '83 or '84 when Van Halen were on just prior to AC/DC and David Lee Roth was in fine form.

Way too young n all. RIP

That’s a crying shame. He was an inspiration to so many.

Very sad news.

I was also at the 1984 Monsters of Rock at Donnington, from that years line up we've also lost Ronnie James Dio, Gary Moore and Malcolm Young....

i saw that! finished work 11.00 previous evening, picked up mate in halifax on way down, saw superb bill, EVH blew even Gary Moore into the weeds, drove back to north northumberland immediately after, started work again 11.00am sunday.....slept quite well on sunday night.......

I was a fan in my youth after getting the first LP. Eddie was a true innovator and Van Halen virtually invented the later 80's style of heavy metal pop/glam rock. Often imitated, never bettered. I read somewhere that in the early days he would sometimes turn his back on the audience to try and conceal his innovative 'tapping' technique. I only saw them once (1980) and they weren't actually on that good form as the sound system seemed to be malfunctioning. Lead/rhythm, whatever you call whatever he was doing he was a true rock legend.

Yup. Certainly one of the inspirations for me picking up the guitar, despite me turning out to be absolutely terrible at it. 

Strangely, it’s the first passing of a rock musician that has made me feel a bit weird. It’s always sad when anyone like this dies, but for some reason it feels really odd he’s gone.

I first saw Van Halen by accident, not knowing who they were, supporting a Black Sabbath tour in ‘78. I found out later that Eddie was a massive fan of Alan Holdsworth, but at the time it was just a mystifying completely new sound. He managed to combine a really melodic approach into really technical hard rock playing and is one of the greats. They certainly gave Sabbath a kick up the backside on that tour. I was straight into Virgin Records the next day for the mighty VH1. RIP

Probably because he was only 65 and this brings things a little closer to home?

Agreed.

Just feels weird having a childhood hero pass.

At 44, I suspect I need to get used to this happening more often...

I think it's also because he always came across a bit like a child genius, all naive Mozartian enthusiasm, amazed at himself, as in the Amadeus film, rather than an old pillock of a geezer in the Van Morrison mould. 

In spades

I've just read the obituary in the Guardian and found that he had a son called Wolfgang . . .

He was a climber too

You sure you are not thinking of Dave Le Roth, I never recall seeing or hearing EVH climbing

Here's Dave prancing around on stage and on rock

youtube.com/watch?v=I4qh_9vH1Ww& How many famous Yosemite routes can you spot? He gets onto the Lost Arrow Spire which is probably the only thing which looks like a bigger plonker than him.