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RIP EDDIE VAN HALEN – GUITAR LEGEND 0
Australian music fans have awoken to the news that pioneering guitar genius Eddie Van Halen has died at the age of 65 of throat cancer.
EVH burst onto the world stage in 1978 with the release of Van Halen’s debut album which featured the iconic guitar track ‘Eruption’, taking guitar gymnastics to a place we’d never seen or heard before. If Hendrix was the mad professor of rock then Eddie was the supreme athlete, tapping and stretching notes beyond what we thought was capable and like Hendrix, inspiring millions of kids around the world to pick up the guitar and play. The band Van Halen lived two notably successful lives, one with Diamond David Lee Roth out front, delivering hits such as Panama, Jump and You Really Got Me, and then in the mid eighties with Sammy Hagar and the mega selling 5150 album, giving us tracks such as Dreams and Why Can’t This Be Love. Van Halen went on to sell tens of millions of albums and were inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2012, Guitar World Magazine ranked Eddie Van Halen Number one on its list of the “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.”
Eddie will also be forever known as the guitarist who played the blistering guitar solo on Michael Jackson’s Beat It. His blazing guitar solo lasted all of 20 seconds and took half an hour to record. He did it for free, as a favor to producer Quincy Jones, while the rest of his Van Halen bandmates were out of town. “I said to myself, ‘Who is going to know that I played on this kid’s record, right? Nobody’s going to find out.’ Wrong!” he laughs. “Big-time wrong. It ended up being Record of the Year,” Eddie revealed to CNN.
Tributes are flooding in from artists all over the world on social media, none more heartfelt than that of Eddie’s son Wolf.
“I can’t believe I’m having to write this, but my father, Edward Lodewijk Van Halen, has lost his long and arduous battle with cancer this morning. He was the best father I could ever ask for. Every moment I’ve shared with him on and off stage was a gift. My heart is broken and I don’t think I’ll ever fully recover from this loss. I love you so much, Pop.”
Steve Vai, another guitar god has just posted the following:
“Feeling deep sadness and overwhelming appreciation. The appreciation and love for him is bigger though. Let’s take a minute and try to imagine our world if he never showed up. It’s unthinkable. Thank you King Edward. You are deeply loved and will be missed.”
“I’m just devastated to hear the news of the passing of my dear friend Eddie Van Halen. He fought a long and hard battle with his cancer right to the very end. Eddie was one of a very special kind of person, a really great friend. Rest In Peace my dear friend till we meet again”, said Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi.
American guitarist Alex Skolnick summed up what many other guitar players are feeling today when we he posted, “There have been many big losses in the music world but few that just stop you in your tracks, leave you speechless and basically unable to function. RIP Eddie Van Halen.”
Attendees at last year’s Melbourne Guitar Show will fondly remember Simon Hosford and James Ryan’s Van Halen tribute band Fair Warning playing the entire Van Halen debt album to a packed crowd of dropped jaws. Clearly effected by the loss, Australia’s James Ryan posted these words along with some heartfelt riffs on Facebook this morning. “Lost for words and in shock at our great loss. R.I.P. Eddie and thank you so much for your great gifts.”
Eddie Van Halen is survived by his wife, Janie (Liszewski) Van Halen, his son Wolf and brother Alex.
- Dom DiSisto
- Dom DiSisto
BANDING TOGETHER 0
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BANDING TOGETHER
The Australian Music Vault has documented the effects of the 2020 pandemic on the Australian music industry with a video interview series titled Banding Together. These stories will assist research, discussion and reflection for current and future generations. They also provide engaging insights of a resilient and innovative community supporting others while being significantly impacted themselves. WATCH IT HERE
- Dom DiSisto
WIN A FAB ZILDJIAN MERCH PACK IN OUR ’20 SECONDS OF STICKS ON BITS’ COMPETITION 0
The fine people at Zildjian Australia have put together a fabulous prize pack consisting of T-shirts, sticks, lanyards, and all manner of merch. For a chance to win this Zildjian prize pack, send us a 20 second video of yourself creating beats on everyday items. You might create a fill on a windowsill, beats on a seat, a paradiddle on a griddle, a roll on a pole! You don’t need to be a drummer, just have a go! Those videos deemed to be the most creative will win the prize pack. READ MORE
During the duration of the competition (Friday September 18 to October 18, 2020), video entries will be shown on Australian Musician and Zildjian social media platforms, so you can see what you’re up against.
To enter, send your file or link to info@australianmusician.com.au
If the file is over 10mb, you may need to compress your video entry via a file compression app, otherwise send us a dropbox link or send via a large file sending service such as We Transfer OR simply upload to your own social media, give us a link and we’ll download it from there.
Be Like Dan Kerby (Bliss N Eso, 28 Days) below and send us your 20 Seconds of Sticks on Bits
Get drummin’ and get creative!
- Dom DiSisto
LISTEN: NAMM MUSIC HISTORY PROJECT - 5O YEARS SINCE HENDRIX PASSING 0
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LISTEN: NAMM MUSIC HISTORY PROJECT - 5O YEARS SINCE HENDRIX PASSING
It has been almost fifty years since the passing of Jimi Hendrix and this week on The Music History Project podcast, the NAMM Music History team is honoring the man and his music by sharing the impact he made. You will hear from Recording Engineer, Eddie Kramer; Bassist, Billy Cox; Founder of Seymour Duncan Pickups, Seymour Duncan; Studio Musician, Mike Finnigan; Founder of Luthier’s Workshop, Tony Louscher and Founder of Spector Guitars, Stuart Spector as they honour the iconic guitar hero! Listen and subscribe HERE
- Dom DiSisto
ORIANTHI ANNOUNCES NEW SOLO ALBUM 0
Orianthi at She Rocks Awards NAMM Show 2019
Australian born recording artist and acclaimed guitarist, Orianthi has announced the release of her new album, “O” on November 6, 2020 via Frontiers Music Srl. This will be Orianthi’s first new studio album in seven years and her first new music as a solo artist in six years. The first single, ‘Sinners Hymn’ is out now. Watch the lyric video HERE
“The album O is a very inspired album….kept things pretty raw and didn’t overthink it. Marti [Frederiksen, producer, mixer, songwriter] and I wanted to create a unique sound and vibe with every track and we experimented a lot with synths and different guitar tones. Lyrically, a lot of this record comes from life experience and other people’s stories. It’s going to be so fun to play these songs live!” says Orianthi.
And speaking of playing live, Orianthi will host a livestream of a set from the world famous Whisky A Go Go in Los Angeles, CA on Sunday, September 20 at 11.00am Australian eastern time. Tickets are available HERE
In addition to her album release with Frontiers this fall, Orianthi also has a signature acoustic guitar being released in partnership with Gibson Guitars with first-of-its-kind engineering that will be revealed in early 2021. She is additionally endorsed by Orange Amps.
Orianthi’s first major solo artist success, as a singer-songwriter and guitarist, was with the Geffen Records release of “According To You,” which is now RIAA-Certified Platinum® and has over 17 million streams on Spotify. Her music’s ability to transcend time and remain relevant cannot be more clear than it’s recent resurgence on TikTok. There are over 83 million views on the “According to You” hashtag making it a viral trend that is introducing Gen Z to Orianthi for the first time in a big way. Career-long fans are used to seeing their favorite world class guitarist playing arenas with rock royalty and global superstars like Michael Jackson, Carlos Santana, Carrie Underwood, Alice Cooper and more. The juxtaposition of her newly arrived online popularity and her lifelong pursuit of artistic credibility is the nebulous of this shining star.
Pre-order “O” on CD/LP/Digital and stream the new single ‘Sinners Hymn’ Now! https://orcd.co/orianthi
Check out our last conversation with Orianthi at the 2019 NAMM Show, as part of the NAMM Oral History project:
- Dom DiSisto
