Latest about Eddie Van Halen
“I was approached to join David Lee Roth’s band, initially… I didn’t want to be Eddie Van Halen part two”: Steve Stevens on laying down the Dirty Diana solo with Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones, recording Rebel Yell – and why Vai got it right with Roth
The Billy Idol guitarist discusses the folk guitar lick he adapted for one of his boss’ biggest hits, his secret-weapon amp, and how his early work is echoed in Idol’s upcoming return-to-punk record
One of California’s top music entrepreneurs has left behind one of the finest vintage guitar collections we’ve ever seen
The astonishing collection includes guitars signed by Van Halen and Gene Simmons – and some extremely rare 1950s Fender Strats
Eddie Van Halen’s tech helped John Frusciante track down a rare wah pedal – but the guitar hero didn’t approve of his gear choice
Van Halen may not have been especially fond of the vintage wah, but he did take the opportunity to share some valuable guitar tech advice with Froosh’s camp during the handover
Sammy Hagar on writing a tribute song to Eddie Van Halen with Joe Satriani – and his recent meeting with Wolfgang
The vocalist says the song will be “a tribute to him, the fans, and that era” – if only he can nail his vocal parts
Alex Van Halen on the first time he and Eddie met David Lee Roth at a show that nearly ended in violence
Pre-Van Halen fame, the brothers were scheduled to play a gig at a local park – only to get replaced by Roth’s band at the last minute
Steve Stevens on following in Eddie Van Halen’s footsteps to record the ‘spiritual successor’ to Beat It
When Jackson and Jones sought to revisit the sound they experimented with on Beat It, they turned to the Billy Idol guitarist for a hard rock edge
Steve Lukather on how Quincy Jones saved Michael Jackson’s Beat It from becoming a heavy metal track
Jackson wanted a rock track for Thriller – and Lukather says Jones had to step in to stop the song from entering fully fledged metal territory
Session ace Paul Jackson Jr. on how he became Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones’ go-to guitarist
From meeting Michael Jackson at 19, to playing with B.B. King and on Daft Punk’s Get Lucky, his career has thrived on variety – but the session great tells us it starts with your ears, not your hands...
Eddie Van Halen details the years of onstage trials and workshop tribulations that shaped the EVH Wolfgang guitar
Back in 2009, GW sat down with a rejuvenated and re-energized Eddie Van Halen to get the full, twisty backstory of the signature model he referred to as “the culmination of 35 years of experimenting with guitars”
