Ahead of the first anniversary of rock legend Eddie Van Halen’s death, publishing company Hachette has announced that Eruption: Conversations with Eddie Van Halen will be published next month.
The book features intimate interviews with Eddie that were mostly recorded on location at Van Halen’s 5150 Studios over the years and were collected by music journalists Brad Tolinski and Chris Gill.
According to Hachette, Eruption: Conversations with Eddie Van Halen, “highlights his greatest triumphs as a ground-breaking musician, including an unprecedented dive into Van Halen’s masterpiece 1984. It takes an unflinching look at Eddie’s early struggles as a young Dutch immigrant unable to speak English, which resulted in lifelong issues with social anxiety and substance abuse.
“It also examines his brilliance as an inventor who changed the face of guitar manufacturing, as well as his turbulent marriage to Valerie Bertinelli and his relationships with bandmates David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar.”
“Our goal was to tell the story of Ed’s entire life through his own words,” says Chris Gill.
“We wanted to do it in an entertaining and informative manner for the general music fan while also going deep into Ed’s contributions as a guitarist, songwriter and musical instrument innovator, as well as one of the greatest guitarists and musicians of the 20th century.”
Van Halen’s death shook the rock world in October last year, 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.
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“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.
For more on this topic, head over to the Classic Rock Observer.
Check out the iconic guitar solo ‘Eruption’ by Eddie Van Halen:
