The cause of death of Eddie Van Halen has now been confirmed and his body cremated, two months after the rock legend died.
The guitar great passed away on October 6th, following a year-long battle with cancer, aged 65.
Now TMZ has managed to obtain his death certificate. It stated that his immediate cause of death was a cerebrovascular accident, or a stroke. He also had several underlying causes, including pneumonia, the bone marrow disorder myelodysplastic syndrome, and lung cancer.
According to the certificate, Van Halen was also suffering from “other significant conditions,” such as skin cancer on his head and neck, and an irregular heart rate.
His body was cremated 22 days after his death and his ashes have been given to his son Wolfgang. He is expected to honour his father by scattering the ashes in the Pacific Ocean, just off the coast of Malibu in California.
Wolfgang recently reflected on his father’s last years while appearing on The Howard Stern Show. “At the end of 2017, he was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer and the doctors were like, ‘You have six weeks’,” he said. “And then he went to Germany. Whatever the fuck they do over there, it’s amazing because I got three more years with him.”
Wolfgang also confirmed that Van Halen would not continue as a band, saying obviously “You can’t have Van Halen without Eddie Van Halen.”
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Van Halen’s death shook the rock world in October, leading to many notable tributes. During the 2020 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony, he was honoured by fellow guitar greats, Slash, Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, and Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello.
“Eddie Van Halen was the Mozart of our generation,” Morello said at the time. “He had the kind of talent that maybe comes around once a century.”
Van Halen is survived by his wife Janie Liszewski and Wolfgang.
Check out the iconic guitar solo ‘Eruption’ by Eddie Van Halen:
