EDDIE VAN HALEN IN HISOWN WORDS
THE NATURAL
GW, January 1981
MY FATHER HAS been a professional musician all his life, and he said, ‘Kid, you’ve got it,’ Some people have got it and some people don’t. Even people who don’t have it can practice long enough to get it down to a point. But there’s always a difference between a person who has the feel and those who don’t. The difference is in the amount of emotion expressed in your playing. I listened to Debussy by two different pianists and it was like day and night. One guy had it and every note was beautiful. The other guy had lead fingers.
COLLEGE? WE DON’T NEED NO STINKIN’ COLLEGE!
GW, November 1982
ON STAGE, IT’S different… that’s my world, my life. I don’t have to deal with being accepted by jocks or bikers or that in high school. The band is a family and I’m accepted in that family. That’s what made me get into guitar, because I felt like I had nothing to lose. If I couldn’t play guitar, I’d be pumping gas. I mean I got a low IQ. When everybody graduated, all the rich guys going, “Hey, which college are you going to?” and I’m going “College?!? I just went straight back home, locked myself in my room, played guitar, wrote songs, and hoped to God I got somewhere.”
... AND A SONG CALLED “JUMP”
GW, January 1984
next one is going to be a hellified record. The majority of the solos will be overdubs. It just depends on how it feels right. There’s a fast boogie called “Hot for Teacher.” There’s another one called “Anytime, Anyplace” with a live solo in it. Lots of overdubs.
