Eddie Van Halen: The Complete 1980 Interview - Tape 2 (HD Audio)

If you haven’t already heard it, check out the first hour of this marathon interview, “Eddie Van Halen - The Complete 1980 Interview - Tape 1 (HD Audio),” at • Eddie Van Halen: The C... . The interview you’re about to hear takes up where that one left off.
Like on Tape 1, Eddie plays a lot of unamplified Frankenstrat during Tape 2. Other highlights include him talking about how he was expelled from school in ninth grade, the appeal of working alongside his brother Alex and bassist Mike Anthony, and the disadvantages of being a so-called “rock star.” He delves into how he records in the studio, how the movement of his body is tied into his playing, and how performing onstage is “like having sex.”
Eddie also talks about his admiration of Allan Holdsworth, what he looks for in a solo, and his favorite of his own solos. He discusses his amplifiers and effects. He elaborates on how he boils strings before installing them on his guitar, how he and Mike occasionally tune down a quarter-step, and the pros and cons of tuning a guitar all in fourths. Eddie’s playing throughout this second hour is exhilarating and extraordinary!
I hope you enjoy this unique recording, and be sure to check out the other historic Van Halen interviews on the Talking Guitar KZbin channel. To help us continue producing podcasts, please hit that donate button and send some cheer our way: paypal.me/Talk....
A special thanks to engineer/producer Nik Hunt for enhancing the sound of the 43-year-old master tape. For more guitar-intensive podcasts and articles, visit my online Talking Guitar magazine at jasobrecht.sub.... #vanhalen #eddievanhalen #edwardvanhalen #jasobrecht #talkingguitar #nikhunt #guitarplayermagazine
This podcast is copyright 2023 by Jas Obrecht. All rights reserved.

[@xpicklepie]

I bought the magazine back in 1980. I read that interview until the pages fell apart. It is surreal to actually listen to that interview all these years later.

[@frankrichards3089]

Totally surreal...in the best possible way :)

[@philipreedwallace]

Me too. Lol

[@pythonflying]

Yet it seems like yesterday, in a way.

[@josephbusuttil3030]

Guitar Player Magazine ?

[@michaelpalermo354]

So funny to hear Jas ask Ed about all of his techniques. What has been known to players for years now was so unknown back in 1980. It really goes to show what a Pioneer Ed was. NOBODY was doing what Ed was doing back in 1980. He was simply one of a kind. THE BEST IMO. I can't believe he's gone and that era is long gone. Makes me so sad. I really miss those days. A time in America that will NEVER be the same especially now that our country is almost unrecognizable. RIP Ed and to my youth. 😔

[@walterevans2118]

Great post Michael....Ed was breaking so much new ground in how the instrument was played. As Ed says here in the interview he was breaking the rules in which the instrument was played & expanding its sonic vocabulary with just his hands on the instrument without pedals. They all copied what he had done subsequently but none of those people had his unique approach to the instrument & so they became mere clones of him....Its lovely in this tape to hear the interaction between Ed and Jas & how much Jas was laughing at Ed's stories...Like the tale about the girlfriend who told Ed he loved his guitar more than her...& I think Jas appreciated Ed's free spirited approach to the instrument. For instance when Jas replies to Ed questioning tuning conventions Jas says -'Its so refreshing to hear someone say that'.

[@michaelpalermo354]

@@walterevans2118 Yeah they had a good relationship. Ed trusted Jas.

[@christowing3816]

Agreed 💯 there will never be another 80's and 90's type of living in our lifetime. I'm so glad I grew up in that Era

[@michaelpalermo354]

@@christowing3816 Me too bro.. The kids today don’t have a clue. In our day we were too busy having a blast and we were all doing it TOGETHER. Today’s kids are spending their time trying to figure out which bathroom to use! SMH

[@christowing3816]

@@michaelpalermo354 lmfbo right I went to a concert a few weeks ago seen Alter Bridge and Mammoth WVH I will say this EVH'S son is really good that was my 3rd time seeing him and they haven't disappointed me yet but it was at a brand new venue and the bathrooms were gender neutral coed whatever they wanted to call it. We never had that back in the day. I live in Boston and when I was little my dad would take me to Red Sox games and in the 70's you had to piss in a trough that looked like a giant bathtub no stalls unless you had to drop one

[@NYCguitarist]

i love how hard ed plays, always percussive and bright

[@davewhiting9730]

It's good to hear Ed say nice things about Mike's playing

[@geezberry8889]

amazing piece of history here. ed has so much enthusiasm i feel like i'm in the room with him

[@babydaddy1930]

That was not an interview ....that was a killer guitar lesson

[@walterevans2118]

Ed LOVED to talk about his guitar playing & his ideas so much didn't he ?.....The ENTHUSIASM in his voice. Wonderful...He was SO into it.....He enjoyed talking about this stuff as much as I loved to read it bless him. Love hearing Ed play & sing the riff off beat timings from Allan Holdsworth's stuff on the UK album.

[@anthonywhiteman4488]

Ed was so down to earth. I wish I could have known him and discusses progressive music with him. That first UK album was awesome.

[@vbassone]

Holdsworth!!!!!

[@Zebula77]

What a treasure this is. Thank you so much for uploading. :D

[@gregeaster2479]

Eddie was 10,000 miles ahead of everybody , emotionally, soulfully, tinkering, you name it, he used every single cell in his body to come through his fingers and make a piece of wood ,some metal and 6 strings sound like 4 or 5 people playing guitar. EVH for my money, he is the most important person in the worlds "Guitar Book" that has ever existed. LONG LIVE EDWARD VAN HALEN 🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸

[@vbassone]

He was ahead of everyone except Allan Holdsworth!

[@Swanlord05]

Rip

[@robert-lz9qf]

It's amazing how Eddie reinvented guitar after all the legends that came before him, Hendrix page beck Clapton Blackmore iommi just to name a few so that in itself is beyond amazing, what was it about Eddie??? And I would love to know what he did or how he sounded the very first time he ever held a guitar ditto for al and the drums

[@guyincognito320]

It's so nice to know he needs to warm up to play I'm the One. He doesn't automatically swing on the first try when he's just hanging out talking to someone. I spent 3 years on that

[@knightfall9394]

@@vbassoneallan couldnt even play rhythm guitar or write actual songs so id say ed was ahead of him

[@shackjr]

Incredible! Each interview is a Master Class in Musical Genius and a peak behind the curtain in the wizard's own words.

[@philipreedwallace]

Thank you so much. Ed plays his songs perfectly. You can hear his guitar not plugged in so well. I miss him. RIP

[@luisvillarreal5262]

Hello Jas. Johnny Beane sent me from his live stream show. I’m happy to be the owner of your Masters of Heavy Metal book I got in the 80’s. 🎸👍

[@jeffsheridan9910]

Thank you so much for posting these interviews. It’s a fans dream come true to hear stuff like this in 2023. Rest in peace King Edward

[@shable1436]

Zak Wilde fan

[@anthonywhiteman4488]

Thanks Jas!! These interviews are golden!!!

[@toddmorrissey8372]

So glad Pt. 2 is up now! You have some amazing archives. Keep up the excellent work!!

[@christowing3816]

Thank you for posting these interviews with King Edward. This is amazing to listen to. Wish he was still with us can't even imagine what he would be releasing. Hopefully one day Alex and Wolfgang will did stuff out of the vault. It would be a crying shame if they didn't go through them. Again this had been so awesome to listen to

[@anodeboy]

What an incredible interview I’m listening to the fourth tape right now. Thanks for posting. I miss the brothers because I think Alex died along with him😢 Love you guys have some great memories

[@AnonContributor]

Still have that mag. Defining moment. We are all so lucky to have been alive and around to see and hear Van Halen in the late 70s, 80s, in the 90s, and even their ending days of the 2010s...

[@frankrichards3089]

So cool hearing the audio...i remember every word from the GP interview cool to hear all the stuff you left out( per Ed) Thanks Jas

[@jackbtlr17]

Thank you for posting. This is magic

[@hollylewis5302]

Jas, THANK YOU so much! This was amazing! Wow! In the presence of greatness! ❤🤍🖤

[@JohnnyBeane]

This is amazing! Thank you, cousin in law Jas!

[@RichardFriendartist]

Johnny! :)

[@TalkingGuitarJasObrecht]

Nice to hear from you, cuz! I was gonna email you the link in advance, but don't have your email.

[@JohnnyBeane]

@@RichardFriendartist Richard!

[@JohnnyBeane]

@@TalkingGuitarJasObrecht I'll send it to you.

[@flazjsg]

Great interview Jas! What an amazing talent Eddie was. The unplugged bits are amazing. His internal rhythmic drive was incredible as well. He just had music flowing through his veins. I think he would have been a gamechanger even if he'd been born 50 years earlier and gone into jazz, classical or blues. Complex guy as well. He contradicts himself a lot over the interviews I've heard and read over the years. Hard to know what the real Eddie was like.

[@walterevans2118]

I think one of the ways he contradicted himself was when he talked about what he thought of other players using his licks & ideas but I think he evolved in his attitude to things like that. He clarified this in the 2015 Smithsonian interview he gave when he explained how his attitude & responses had changed to people who learned from him as time went by.

[@flazjsg]

@@walterevans2118 Maybe he just saw himself as another player and not the game-changer he wound up being. Sounds like he didn't know how big his influence was until he got some perspective.

[@walterevans2118]

@@flazjsg Yes, I would agree with that. He did see himself as just another player & only after people began paying him compliments did he get that perspective. He seemed genuinely embarrassed by compliments in interviews actually. Just as Hendrix did. When asked about his impact on other players I remember him saying -'Well, I really didn't set out to make my mark on the world. I just do what I do & other people like it' .

[@steveinmidtown]

Ed's addictions blurred his personality throughout his entire life. Knowing too many addicts, most are helpless & terrified of their demons but don't have the offset of Ed's generational talent as a shield which unfortunately led to the horrific mid 2000's when he looked like a skid row bum. His last few years were miraculous...few can pull out of that kind of death spiral.

[@todd2683]

Awesome share. Many thanks.

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

Back in 1980 when this was originally recorded the 15 year old me would have went absolutely nuts listening to this! I read the Magazine interview over 50 times when it first came out so hearing this would have been a real treat. Admittedly i was a Edward Van Halen fanatic in 1980 He is the one that made me sell my drums and get a Strat in 1980!

[@walterevans2118]

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS JAS 👍👍🙏......Right now I need it ... GOD BLESS YOU.

[@mmikeyhignight8573]

Thanks to ever posted this.. this is like finding an EVH gold mine..Thanks!

[@joanellebracht5311]

Really enjoyed listening to both interviews. They definitely had a better insight for me than the typical televised interview.

[@ricardoivanov5297]

Incredible interviews. Listen to Eddie talk and play (without amp) is a fresh news (and I read all). I hope you put George Lynch's audio cassete 501 (84-85) that is at Southern Folklife Collection (closet for who is not on campus) too on youtube. I think all your full audio interviews are musical historical gems. Thanks

[@jpb962]

At the time of this interview Eddie didn't know or realize that he was creating a whole new era of guitar playing.

[@soundbreak7]

inspired Generations of guitar players

[@dspencer1201]

Back in '84 my guitar teacher told me Edward doubled Ain't Talkin' solo w/ a sitar. Now I know where he got that.

[@mikeyID]

Hey Jas, Johnny Beane your cousin sent me over to watch your interview with EVH. Super cool brother. Great interview

[@mpnickisher]

Hello Jas, your cousin Johnny Beane sent me! Great interview. thank you so much for posting.

[@PLOKIJUHGUITARE]

Thank you Jas

[@MusicTherapyLaz]

Hey hey... you're cousin Johnny Beane sent me! Awesome interview!

[@steveinmidtown]

still hard to comprehend that Ed was making $150 bucks a week, living at home & owed Warner millions at this time. 27:25 - On Fire 28:20 - solo 36:50 - You're No Good intro 37:30 - solo 38:15 - Dance Night Away intro 39:24 - Somebody Get Me a Doctor 39:45 - solo

[@jasoncollins4140]

Cousin Johnny sent me over here to check you out

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

Damn Eddie was a real badass unplugged! He is probably the ONLY guitarist i can enjoy listening to without a amp on a electric guitar! I also learned that it was Jas not Eddie that made up that "Like a race car driver crashing ever now and then". I always though that was eddie's saying but turns out Jas said it originally! And i almost died laughing when Eddie said Alan Holdsworth Looked like a "Dork" because he wore his guitar so high up! 🤣

[@willneal5398]

If you listen to the 1979 interview that’s on KZbin it’s also with jas. Eddie does say that first that’s how he described his playing before he started using the tremolo bar

[@jasonmorris3533]

Lol well I've never seen anyone look "cool" with the guitar high..I couldn't play holding it so high if I even tried.. Luckily

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

@@jasonmorris3533 I would gladly look like a "Dork" if i had the talent of the late great Alan Holdsworth! 😁

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

@@willneal5398 Yeah i checked you are right.

[@jasonmorris3533]

@@These_go_to_eleven_1959 lol Holdsworth is pretty damn amazing.. But I'd def rather be more rock n roll, as far as sound.. I'm in the cool riff, but even cooler solo kinda school of thought..

[@jasondotson]

Thanks for sharing these treasures! Thank you for your great work and dedication.

[@Andrew-pk9vz]

Excellent! Johnny Beane sent me over 🤘🏼

[@RichardFriendartist]

incredible Jas. thank you!

[@GoemonLovesFujiko]

Off to listen to those Holdsworth tracks.

[@meganostra6633]

Man am i glad you released these!! Ive listened to your phone interviews with Ed i dont know how many times! Sure miss him, there will never be an equivalent master of guitar. Thank you man!!

[@Scottocaster6668]

Anything with Eddie gets a 👍 from me. Altho, putting guitar strings in the microwave to dry them after you boil them is not a good idea 😆

[@mookytc]

Thank you so much for this!!!

[@AllenGarberGuitarFun]

Thanks so very much!

[@JohnnyBeane]

😃

[@stephenchaulker5521]

28:36 to 28:45 Worth the price of admission...Solid Gold 💯

[@dudaz_music]

This is amazing stuff, he sounds disappointed when you ask if you’re running out of time for the interview 36:30

[@Ryan-Hall]

Johnny Beane sent me!!! Great job

[@loganschenk7]

13:48 Barre w/right + trill w/left hand 14:20 Pick grip demonstration 14:55 Spanish Fly tapping segment 15:45 FYLT 24:20 YRGM live ‘79 Funk Jam 26:50 Tune-up + On Fire 30:00 ATBL + New riffs 30:30 Unreleased Riff 32:00 Warm-up runs 36:40 You’re No Good 38:09 DTNA 39:18 Somebody Get Me a Doctor 17:28 talks about playing with his brother 18:26 the simple/cheaper the gear the better 19:12 Allan Holdsworth (players he likes to listen to) 20:18 In the Dead of Night 20:58 Types of riffs he gets sick of hearing on the radio 22:35 Sacrificing how he plays to move on stage and wear the strap lower 23:20 Repeating vs Improvising solos live 25:00 “Playing guitar is like having sex” 25:29 How often Ed plays guitar + Fender bandmaster head at home 28:55 Spontaneity and Feeling 30:50 Compliments Michael 32:18 Strings 33:06 Rudy Leiren 33:20 Tuning 34:46 “Fuck the Rules” 37:00 Ed’s favorite solos he’s recorded 38:40 VH2 Recording

[@ploppy9943]

I'm about 20 minutes into this video and I realised Eddie never actually gave us, as fans, his full capabilities. As he said, certain things he did didn't meet with the Van Halen brand and might not have translated well. I know he did some side projects, but I would have LOVED hearing a few solo albums from him. In that same vein, I would have loved to hear what Randy Rhoads would have done after Ozzy. He had told Ozzy shortly before he died that he didn't want to be a "rock and roller" anymore. They both were capable of greater things.

[@betsyhenderson1964]

Love this interview

[@robblackmoreofficial]

Johnny Beane Recomend! 😉 👍

[@JaniceLalla]

Johnny Beane sent me

[@dragonlotion1789]

“we have plenty of time” I thought that was really cool of him for some reason.

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

Yeah Eddie actually enjoyed talking to JAS and Steve Rosen about Music. Jas was extremely lucky to have sat 2 feet from Edward as he played unplugged and talked shop!

[@h0tsex0r]

Thank you

[@scottwhite2757]

Excellent..

[@motownrockerusa]

Who supplied the Snow? Lol 😆 Sounds like you guys were having a blast.. Lol 😆

[@grumpyoldrockers1048]

Wow, just WOW!

[@erictripton]

Thanks, Jas!!! Please release any Steve Morse early interviews

[@TalkingGuitarJasObrecht]

Here's our first one, 1978: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eXm4oGqrhZegfsk

[@mindeloman]

9:37 - Ain't Talkin bout love has electric sitar under the solo?!?!?!?! Never heard that before.

[@frankrichards3089]

Put the strings in the MICROWAVE?? Lol ok Ed

[@erictripton]

Jeez 43 yrs ago....it seems like yesterday

[@jonahkleitsch7652]

Yes!

[@dickysix68]

EVH blended jazz, dance, rock n roll, flamenco (Mexican influence), big band, punk, etc. and infused them with electric sounds like no other. He will be missed.

[@richwalter5322]

Flamenco is not Mexican, it's Spanish

[@odgeUK]

I like the acoustic guitar intro and outro to this clip. What is it from please?

[@TalkingGuitarJasObrecht]

That theme music was composed and recorded by Nik Hunt, who has produced all of my KZbin podcasts. Nik is also responsible for improving the sound of the original interview cassettes. I'm grateful to be working with him!

[@sparkster65]

Ed sounds incredible here, who needs an amp ? Lol

[@TheIronWord]

DORK, damn i havent' heard that slang since 1984

[@dogleg7401]

the one thing about tuning arbitrarily is singing in tune. if i have a tough time with singing certain things Ill play the melody with a piano to get myself in tune. you develop a muscle memory that you can relate to really sing better in tune. if you have a band that is constantly moving around the pitch..lol...it could get strange. Also, I learned my playing along with the first 5 VH records and they all seem to be in Eb accross the board. I don't even notice anything varispeed'd which you get now and then with recordings

[@hollylewis5302]

"You should actually put it in a microwave..." 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣Eddie the trickster.

[@andrewbroughton65]

Hey..that 'in the dead of night ' intro that He played ..is it possible that He stuck it into 'Atomic Punk' ?..it sure sounded similar.

[@cggg5089]

Interesting to hear a pre-Valerie Ed

[@fab.silva1119]

30:58 “Aw, he’s a damn good bass player”. EVH: I miss you a lot buddy but would it have killed you to acknowledge this throughout the MIGHTY Van Halen’s existence?

[@frankrichards3089]

Well he did right here in 1980, however, this was not the case years later. Ed was right here, Mike was a great player.

[@fab.silva1119]

@@frankrichards3089 I went to see the winery dogs play last week. The last time I saw Billy Sheehan play was 1986. Last week he was a total bad mofo - on par with Geddy Lee. Now, according to Ed in this interview, he couldn’t play with a bass player that plays guitar on bass. Nonetheless, if the rumours are true, he tried to sack Mike and replace him with Billy. That would’ve been a total disaster.

[@frankrichards3089]

@@fab.silva1119 Yes I totally agree he is a bad mf

[@mindeloman]

There's A LOT of occasions where Ed promoted the band over what he thought or felt. During Diver Down, critics were calling out the use of cover songs all through that album and he talked about "why shouldn't we make those old songs, ours?" He was promoting their new album and the band. But that album was the beginnings of Dave leaving the band because it that albums caused EVH to build his own studio and take back control. And then what did he say? "I'd rather bomb with my own songs than someone else's." And other than "apolitical blues" on 0U812, I can't recall them ever doing another cover song.

[@fab.silva1119]

@@mindeloman good point

[@pattydill9846]

Johnny Beane sent me over here

[@andrewbroughton65]

I've always wondered what the magazines sales statistics were when Eddie was featured..did they rise or stay the same or ? The GP crew woulda had great insight into who had everyone's attention at the time by their sales numbers.

[@TalkingGuitarJasObrecht]

When it came out, the April 1980 EVH cover story quickly became our best-selling issue. GPI used to get dozens of boxes of each new issue of Guitar Player sent to our warehouse, where I could still find back issues years later. The Van Halens were all gone within a few days. It remained the best-selling issue until I left in 1998, and I don't know if anything published afterward surpassed it in sales. Eddie called me after it came out and told me he liked it. And when I met Valerie for the first time, she asked me to send her a copy, since she'd taken the cover off of hers and hung it on a wall. I was glad to accommodate her request.

[@andrewbroughton65]

Strange that He never mentioned that VHll was mixed -or mastered ?-in a different studio when He talked of the inferior drum sound..is it possible that He didn't know ?

[@johnmacbeth4148]

Ed turned me on to holdsworth after that interview ( like many others)Of course I had to go listen to the UK tune - now I know where those odd punches in take your whisky home come from. I miss Edward Van Halen

[@Swanlord05]

EVH: I DRY MY STEEL STRINGS IN THE MICROWAVE 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂!!!!!!😂😂😂😂😂!@#$!!!!!@#$😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@laynemark7647]

At 5:13 it's hilarious how he said it but straight up truth.

[@chrisb8655]

No, it isn't the straight up truth. He's lying. He saw Danny Johnson and Rick Derringer doing it, so it may have been the other way around. Plus he saw Harvey Mandell tapping. Ed is my favorite guitarist, but he was full of it sometimes in the early days.

[@laynemark7647]

@@chrisb8655 thanks for setting me straight on this.

[@avaobrecht9646]

@johnnybeane Hi cousin! Thanks for sending over your subscribers :)

[@JohnnyBeane]

Hi Ava! You're Welcome! 🙂

[@TalkingGuitarJasObrecht]

My whole enjoyed the show -- we're grateful!

[@MusicTherapyLaz]

Yeah... thanks Johnny Beane... now we know the truth about the String Boiling... and who needs to know the chords anyway... just play what you feel! 😎🤘🎸

[@driven9863]

You should put a link for interview 1

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

I made the entire interview a playlist. 👍

[@crusTodd]

....Put the strings.....IN THE MICROWAVE TO DRY THEM !!! WHAAAAT?

[@georgeshepherd3381]

Thinking about evh wanting a 3/4 size 335. Would he use a 336 or 339 or a Les Paul ES?

[@RichardFriendartist]

I find it interesting in both parts he does actually reference Hendrix. Later he would never really tip his hat to Jimi. (not saying he ripped off Jimi) but it seemed unlikely as a young player you'd not check him out along with Clapton, Page, and Beck etc. Blackmore too is in Ed's playing a little at times way back/

[@flazjsg]

To me, Eddie's lead playing sounds like a cross between Blackmore and Holdsworth. I hear very little Clapton in his playing, other than the way he might start or end a phrase, but the body of the solos is the guys I mentioned. As Eddie has said, that tenor saxophone style of phrasing was important to him (Blackmore is also a big saxophone fan for lead work.) A lot of his riffs really vary. There's clearly a big Ted Nugent influence with some of his main riffs (like "Somebody Get Me A Doctor",) and one of the tunes he played during this interview - "I'm the One", but you can hear traces of nearly every big-time classic rock artist in his riffs and rhythm work. "Unchained" is a Stones-type of chordal thing - like "Brown Sugar." There's also some ZZ Top amongst others - "Bottoms Up" is basically "La Grange". I also hear some Brian May in Eddie's rhythm work.

[@flazjsg]

The funny thing is that guys like Satriani and Vai always mention Hendrix, but don't sound like him. They sound way more like EVH! People are weird with their influences - what they say influenced them by what they sound like are two completely different things.

[@RichardFriendartist]

@@flazjsg yeah. I didn't want to stir up any shit with my comment. I just know another year or so from this interview Ed was a dead-end when it comes to Hendrix conversations, and really wouldn't acknowledge him at all. I think because both were SO innovative with the instrument and used Strat style guitars people tried to overly connect the dots. Ed really wanted to define himself and what he'd achieve so I kind of get why it went that way. and good call with ZZtop. I did know that. I'll have to check out more Nugent. I really only know his radio tunes....but it will be fun to hear some of those origins. Any idea what Sax players Ed and Blackmore might have been into? I'd love to check that out!

[@flazjsg]

@@RichardFriendartist Someone else pointed out that ZZ Top reference to me - I didn't originally catch/hear it, but it's so obvious when you hear it knowing that. Ed wasn't a "thief" - he really assimilated other styles and riffs and was able to give them a new rebirth. A lot of lesser players just steal stuff. I think it's the same with Ted with the absorption of the style. I'm not super familiar with Ted's deep cuts, but listen to the rhythmic intro and volume dynamics of "Great White Buffalo", and you can hear that the structure of Ted's riff is assimilated for "Somebody Get Me A Doctor." Ted's really good at coming up with driving rhythms and licks. Since Ed's dad was a sax player and clarinetist, I'd probably listen to the great saxophone players of the swing era. Check out Lester Young with Count Basie in the late 1930s on "Clap Hands Here Comes Charlie", "Jumpin' at the Woodside", "Every Tub" or "Lester Leaps In." Any good jazz or blues from that era probably was heard in EVH's home. I think Eddie had the same drive and freedom Lester shows in those. Playing with and against the rhythm. The way they slur the notes at the end of a rapid-fire phrase. Lots of freedom.

[@RichardFriendartist]

@@flazjsg cool thank you. !

[@bonzey1171]

Just do a John McLaughlin🤣pretty funny stuff. Ed was right, Holdsworth was the man

[@stevebracher6998]

Long Live the King

[@janiterinadrum1627]

Just think about how many bands since 1980.. Will never be able to have an interview dissecting their instrumentation.. I mean think about it.. who’s gonna want to listen to U2 or may be Green Day talk about what type of guitars they used and how they accomplish the guitar solos or their baseline?… it ain’t gonna happen because no one wants to listen to that I know that those two Bassett made quite a bit of money, but so did *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys and who ask them about that bass player or guitar player.??? that would be nobody… there’s levels to this.. and some people are on the lower level

[@donavonmacallister3101]

Didn't know he tunes a quarter step down.

[@monkeyrater]

These tapes are a gold mine. I doubt there is any other interview in existence where Eddie opens up about his technique and equipment as he does on these tapes. Basically from Diver Down onward all the interviews he gave were just bullshit as he became cynical after the failure of Fair Warning (VH's magnum opus) to sell. Of course later in life it went beyond cynical and he would just outright lie about everything and make up stupid stories that never happened. Jas asks good questions which brings out Eddies honest enthusiasm for what he does.

[@flazjsg]

Cocaine's a helluva drug!

[@eddieisgreat5150]

What did eddie lie about, or what stupid stories?

[@monkeyrater]

@@eddieisgreat5150 He went out of his way to burn bridges with Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony by making up stupid stuff like Michael is tone deaf and he had to make videos to teach Michael how to play bass. He made up stuff how the song Beat It "didnt have chords" and he had to fix the song by adding chords. Just a lot of stupid stuff.

[@flazjsg]

@@eddieisgreat5150 In early interviews he said he learned his theory, how to read music and got his "fingers moving" via his classical piano training. In later interviews he claimed he never learned how to read music - which is absurd if you spent 10 years playing concert level classical piano pieces. Maybe he never became a great sight-reader, but clearly he could read. He said in this interview he learned from guys like Hendrix but in later interviews he never listened to Jimi and didn't care for him. He praises Michael Anthony here, then trashes him in other interviews - even around this same time-frame (see Steve Rosen on that one.) He was a complex guy. I tend to blame the drugs. If you read Van Halen Rising, you'll see that he even copped his tapping from a friend who'd gone to see Canned Heat guitarist Harvey Mandel. Does EVH ever mention that? Nope.

[@Lefty-Guitar-Enthusiast]

Years of vodka and cocaine

[@steveweiman4708]

29:00 “ what should a good solo do?” “ You should feel it, if it’s melodic, and has no feel, it’s fucked.” “ what should a good rock ‘n’ roll song do?” “ Move you in any way… Depress you, make you happy, horny, rowdy, anything…. Amen

[@Vltor311]

Disclaimer: Don’t boil your strings 😂

[@GoemonLovesFujiko]

I used to do it all the time. He’s right. But I would dry them with a hair dryer.

[@chowderlimits2851]

Lol. And don’t dry them in the microwave! 😝

[@robert-lz9qf]

Yeah eddie had to get used to the fact that every guitarist after him was just rippin him off completely, every metal group in the whole decade of the 80s tried to look and sound like vh, every lead singer tried to look like roth and every guitarist tried to look and sound like eddie

[@kinkinmyslinky967]

Is there video of this too?

[@janiterinadrum1627]

Edward is a 25 year old kid at this point… think about that for a second think about what you were doing when you were 25 years old, that would have to blow somebody’s mind. It would be hard to deal with the same alone the money of the people kissing your ass it could ruin even the strongest people.

[@toddmorrissey8372]

"Put them in a microwave"?? Ah, no. You do NOT put metal inside a microwave. I think that may have been one of the wive's tales he threw out there to throw people off his trail, so to speak.

[@elec123]

Nothing gets pass u huh 😂

[@Peanutbutterb00b5]

This sounds a lot like Alex … not Ed.

[@GoemonLovesFujiko]

Not at all. It’s totally same voice Ed has had all along only a bit higher with his young age. Same voice. Same accent. Alex has a deeper voice

[@hectorvillarreal8578]

Strings in the microwave? Monkey see Monkey do..not me

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

I agree with him about stretching the strings before putting them on the old Pre fine tuner Floyd rose but i would not put them in a microwave! Those older Floyd's were not quite as easy to get in tune.

[@paulc9434]

How I miss this dude. Guitar is not the same, sorry.

[@johnhernandez1505]

It's fucking awesome to hear the interviews I used to read.. Thank you for posting. 🎸😎🎸