“Very funny”: Eddie Van Halen on the greatest comedians in rock
Hard rock and heavy metal has always had a tendency to boil over into being amusing, whether that’s the intention or not. There’s a certain theatricality to the genre that becomes farcical when played to the extreme, and many musicians who operate within the genre can be accused of taking things to this degree. While regarded as an excellent guitarist, someone with the level of showmanship that Eddie Van Halen had could also be seen as spilling over into becoming high drama, and is therefore somewhat humorous at the same time.
However, that doesn’t negate the fact that he was a blisteringly good musician, one who could bring out the highest level of expertise at the click of a finger. It may have seemed over the top to oblivious onlookers, but for anyone in the know, it was a joy to behold and witness when he began shredding on record and in a live capacity.
This same measurement of being so overblown that it becomes comical can be applied to many other acts in the same genre. You can hardly take one look at Iron Maiden with their 50ft animatronic demon mascot, Eddie, and say that it isn’t amusing to some degree. Likewise, the black and white face paint and pyrotechnic shenanigans of KISS are are also worthy of a little chuckle, despite the fact that it’s simply the visual identity that they’ve chosen to adopt.
But does that make them ‘haha funny’? There’s a fine line between being able to crack a joke and laugh at yourself and being laughed at at your own expense, and not all musicians are gifted with the ability to differentiate between the two, allowing themselves to take things to a point where they become the butt of the joke rather than the architect.
When asked by Guitar Player in 1980 who his current favourite guitarists were, Van Halen obliged by giving his praise to a couple of players that he found to be entertaining. “Randy Hansen is hot,” he began. “I know him real well; he’s a good friend. Now he’s coming out with his own stuff, and I hope to God he succeeds.” He would then continue by singing the praises of Cheap Trick guitarist, Rick Nielsen, who he described as being “very funny”.
“I love the guy,” Van Halen continued. “He’s Huntz Hall.” Referring to the farcical comedy performer who was a member of the Bowery Boys, this is high praise indeed for someone if they’re intentionally looking to make a fool of themselves. In the case of Nielsen, he was hugely influenced by the work of Hall, and modelled much of his stage presence and persona on the actor.
Van Halen would then go on to make comparisons between Cheap Trick and KISS and their varying levels of comedic nous. “[Cheap Trick] are the comedians of rock and roll,” he asserted, “whereas KISS are the circus of rock and roll.” For a band that relied so heavily on their pantomime antics and face paints to entertain in a visual sense, he really isn’t wrong. For Cheap Trick, well, clearly they just loved to have a laugh with it.
