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Van Halen's Beginnings ... a cool story!


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The Early Years of Van Halen: A Paper Route, a High School Essay, and a Couple of Lucky Breaks

It took a decade of false starts, misfires, and acrimony, but David Lee Roth’s return to Van Halen after a 22-year absence was not only a dream come true for many faithful fans, but it produced a blockbuster tour that began in September of ’07 and is still rolling on, scheduled out as far as April ’08.

It’s now been 30 years since Van Halen’s Warner Bros. debut became a breakthrough commercial success. Considered one of the most wildly influential hard rock albums ever, Van Halen has inspired many a critic to compare guitarist Eddie Van Halen—aged 22 at the time of its release—to Jimi Hendrix in terms of his immediate and enduring impact on guitar playing.

But like many a vaunted overnight success story, Van Halen’s was a long time coming. Having emigrated to California from .........................................

Please read the rest of this article here:

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/Feat...20Van%20Halen_/

Thanks for checking this out ... !

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"Having emigrated to California from Holland with their parents in 1962, Alex and Eddie Van Halen had some classical piano training before embracing their instruments of choice—albeit exactly opposite of the ones they’re known for. Al originally studied flamenco guitar, while Ed, inspired by the Surfaris’ “Wipe Out,” delivered newspapers to buy a $125 Japanese-made drum kit.

“I’m out throwing the paper—five in the morning, in the rain, with a bicycle with a flat tire,” Eddie once groused. “And my brother is practicing on my drums. He got better so I said, ‘You take my drums.’”

Eddie’s second instrument choice was a $70 Teisco Del Rey with four pickups: “I used to think the more pickups, the better!”

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That's interesting - I never knew about the classical influence before.

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