S.O.D. "Eruption/Mean Street" by Van Halen

10/21/2020  There are 12 essential Eddie Van Halen songs listed.  Here are two of them, and you should most definitely check out the others.  Eddie was the primary songwriter for Van Halen.  Guitar is the only instrument listed on Wikipedia, but he was also a remarkable piano player, winning competitions as early as age 9.  He helped put his first band together with brother Alex in the fourth grade called The Broken Combs.  Eric Clapton is his biggest influence, but he thinks of himself as being more like Jimmy Page.  

The tapping style of guitar playing was taken to the extreme with Van Halen, as he consistently outdid himself, and would come up with extremely difficult versions that were near impossible to duplicate.  He did not create the style, as it has been used for decades by Flamenco guitar players.  

After battling drug and alcohol abuse for years, he claims to have been sober since 2008. The damage had been done however with tongue cancer, and then throat cancer which took his life on October 6, 2020.  Many believe that he is the best guitar player to ever walk the earth.  We believe it is worth your while to check out the comments/eulogies given by friends, family, and fellow musicians.