The Van Halen songs Sammy Hagar said was as good as classical music
When Eddie Van Halen died, there was a shockwave that could be felt throughout the musical world. He wasn’t just a guitarist; he was a musical innovator who changed the way that people viewed the guitar. It’s one thing to be a good guitarist, but to be able to look at that solid body and six strings and say, “They’re all playing this wrong,” is one of the boldest moves any musician can make.
It was no surprise that he was so successful, as the moment his playing style was heard by people across the world, they were hooked. His tapping technique meant that he could increase the speed at which he played, but he didn’t just write with the intention of being fast. He didn’t want every song to sound like ‘Eruption’; instead, he was adamant on creating music which had both his innovative playing style and accessible rhythm and melody at the heart of it.
It was sad to see Black Sabbath play their final show recently and not have Eddie Van Halen take to the stage with them. Tony Iommi remains one of the greatest guitarists on the planet, but even he couldn’t believe what he was hearing when Sabbath initially took Van Halen on tour as their support act.
“We took Van Halen on their first big tour, they were with us for eight months,” recalled Iommi, “Eddie was playing things I’d never seen before […] We’re still friends, and we became friends then. Of course, he set off a whole new load of players playing like that, and now I can’t believe some of them. I can’t follow it. I certainly couldn’t do it.”
While Eddie Van Halen was certainly a huge part of what made the band successful, it would be wrong of us not to credit the other excellent artists in the band. Eddie’s brother, Alex Van Halen, had a drumming style that was solid, exciting and could keep up with the fast-paced playing style of his brother. Additionally, frontmen David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar brought a great deal to the band.
When David Lee Roth initially left Van Halen, the band decided to start a new chapter rather than looking to replace him. This meant getting in a different style of singer and going for a new sound. It turns out Sammy Hagar was perfect for this. He and Eddie had similar tastes and ideologies when it came to music, which meant they created an exciting new Van Halen sound which would prove to be some of their most commercially successful music.
Hagar had an ongoing adoration for Eddie Van Halen. He was always impressed by the way that Eddie was constantly looking to expand upon his music, as opposed to discovering a sound that works and sticking to it. There were fans everywhere who loved his playing style, but Eddie wasn’t satisfied with just rolling out the same thing again and again. The result is that when you listen to Van Halen’s discography, you come across a range of different styles, including some songs that Sammy Hagar described as classical.
“Over the years, he kept changing his sound to try and reinspire some new guitar things,” said Hagar, “That’s why he wrote ‘Can’t Stop Loving You’. It’s a classical piece of music, and so is ‘5150’. I had to find a place to sing. But he sat down at a keyboard. It felt fresh.”
