Rock Friends,
Van Halen IS my band. One of the bands I saw the most, loved the best and had the biggest impact on me becoming a passionate lover of rock music. I will never forget the first time I heard the VH debut. AND saw the record! I flipped. The world changed for little “TC”…..
Released on February 10th, 1978- music was also forever changed. Even the cover was electric (yet so simple)
Who were these guys? And WHAT WAS THAT SOUND? Van Halen not only had incredible talent but they had SONGS- Hands down one of the greatest catalogs of tunes in rock history. Alex and Michael together so tight, (Alex so underrated) Dave reinventing the frontman, magic harmonies. And of course ED.
The charisma, connection and talent coming out of these four young guys was unprecedented. A new sound was born- they were THE band of two decades.
Eddie was my guy. (Until of course he married Valerie Bertinelli!)
There was no one like Edward. And no album EVER like the first Van Halen record. Opening with Runnin’ With The Devil- the perfect introduction to 11 of the greatest tunes of all time- when would we get another record? One year later in 1979. That’s the way rock and roll was back then- LET’S GO! Women and Children First followed in 1980 and Fair Warning in 1981 and on and on…..NOW, please note- I could choose every song on every record, but I’m grabbing a few of my favorite underrated deep cuts and I will include the Sammy era, even though MY Van Halen is the DLR years. That was when I fell in love with them.
Someone asked me recently “Were you a Van Halen Fan Growing Up”? My response?
“In New Jersey here’s what we did…listened to Van Halen , snuck beer and waited for Van Halen to come to town for a concert”.
The band that changed everything. Especially GUITAR.
We lost Eddie three years ago. And WDHA will play Van Halen throughout the day (even more than we already do) on Friday 10/6.
Here are 12 of my favorite underrated songs from the band I still adore.
Van Halen FOREVER! (thank god we have Wolfie carrying on the legacy of talent)
btw….photos included are all my personal VH collection. The sign stays at our studios, but it’s MINE! Thanks to listener Michael for giving it to me.
Van Halen Forever!
Terrie Carr