Eddie Van Halen’s favourite Van Halen album: “Blaze on the people”
If you look in every corner of the musical world, at some point, you will uncover some form of adoration for Eddie Van Halen. It doesn’t matter what genre you’re interested in; the structure of songs and playing style of some instrumentalists is a direct result of Eddie Van Halen, who completely changed the world of rock with his chaotic finger-tapping technique.
The band knew that they were on to something special before they had even released a song. It was borderline volatile, as the standard of the music was so high and the new sound they were pioneering was so exciting that they knew their first release had to be perfect in order to show the public just how special the band were. They succeeded in their endeavour, but not without some stress, as the band’s original producerwas worried whether frontman David Lee Roth could complement the band’s playing style.
Ted Templeman was working on the band’s debut album with them. He was happy with Lee Roth’s ability to scream and pack a punch with his vocals, but didn’t think he could carry the more melodic parts of the song.
“Some of his vocal performances, to be frank, just weren’t acceptable,” he said, “To be sure, he was distinctive as a singer; his train-whistle screams were identifiable in a good way. But every time I heard him get pitchy or completely miss a note, I worried that the public was going to be turned off by his band because of his limitations.”
After working with Lee Roth for a while, though, he realised the singer had an incredibly diverse range, not just with his vocals but also with his muses. During conversations, he cited various pop culture segments, and his range helped him write songs. Some of the classic tracks available on Van Halen’s debut are the direct result of Lee Roth.
It wasn’t just their producer who ended up happy with the band’s input, though. Eddie Van Halen knew they were on the brink of making something special and was pleased with the finished product, so much so that when asked to name his favourite albums of all time, he included Van Halen’s debut. This isn’t just because he was happy with how it sounded, but he also felt as though it added some much-needed energy back into rock music.
“All we’re tryin’ to do is put some excitement back into rock’n’roll,” he said, “Because it seems like a lot of people are old enough to be our daddies. They sound like it, or they act like it. They seem energy-less. Also, it seems like they forgot what rock’n’roll is all about. We’re very energetic and get up there and blaze on the people.”
He certainly achieved this, as his guitar playing style and the whole energy surrounding the band completely dominated the music industry. Everyone who liked rock music was listening to Van Halen, and everyone who wanted to play rock music was trying to emulate his style. There have been very few guitarists who have impacted music quite as much as Eddie Van Halen.
