Van Halen Story: The Early Years (2003) | Full Movie | John Lennon | George Harrison

[Music] well one thing van Halen did to make sure that the venue's would really read their contract writers really carefully as they would say we want you know this much food we certain amount of cigarettes certain amount of cigarette lighters breakfast for the crew at six o'clock we need this much beer this type of beer was much staged and everything had to be exactly just so in order to make sure that the promoters read the writer thoroughly the small print we want M&Ms but with all the brown ones removed no browning yet well they're gonna not read it they made that mistake well that means they're gonna forget the 40 feet of stage or the 18 points for lighting and showed up they saw Brown and a Miss on Eminem's flip-out they trashed the room most people just went there and did it on one weekend you know you go out and you party and then it took you a week to recover right we did it every night van Halen led the way to all of us deviants I mean they live life huge through years of arduous practice and playing the backyard party in small club circuit around Pasadena California Edward and Alex Van Halen Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth earned the right to enjoy the spoils of their success we work real hard don't gain able to do it you know it's not like that for the born with guitars and drums and voices they can say and like some gift and in the process reinvented the landscape of a hard rock music and when we heard van Halen for the first time you know it was like hearing Led Zeppelin for the first time or Jimi Hendrix for the first time you knew it was something amazing they were so [ __ ] good I'll hold onto my chair I mean they were full of full-blown energy and non-stop Van Halen is a six-pack of beer big breasted women riding down the highway running over animals pure unadulterated you know great rock and roll music the girls wanted them the guys wanted to be like them I was 11 walking around the garages I think rock'n'roll original van Halen [Music] the four distinctive personalities that would later ignite the mighty van Halen first flickered into the world during the time when I hip swiveling Walker known as Elvis was recording his earliest tracks at Sun Records and Marilyn Monroe was making her debut on the cover of Playboy in Amsterdam on may 8 1953 young Van Halen a dutch clarinet and saxophone player and his wife Eugenia welcomed their first son Alex you put on a van Halen record even if you don't know that it's a van Halen record as soon as you hear that I know it's him most drummers have a certain style as long as I can remember it was to kick drums I always liked the the sense of rhythm that a double bass player had everything used to be so far out there you know for kick drums and in you know the high hats were always way up here so you're talking about a lot of this this kind of movement with your hands and a lot of that comes from show if a guy can develop a sound that is really identifiable I think that's a big achievement and I think Alex did that a little over a year later on June 20th 1954 michael sohaski who later became known as Michael Anthony was born in Chicago the second of five children I mean if you've seen him on the street you wouldn't know that he was some [ __ ] kick-ass bass player aged 20 then he was without that high voice of Michael Anthony where would they have been can't imagine that band without that vocal without that high-pitched sound and when you really look at Van Halen it's the it's the guitar sound it's that snare sound and Michael holding down the groove in that that vocal a few months later on October 10th David Lee Roth made a flying leap into a prominent surgeon's home in Bloomington Indiana she fold the math and white runs right through Newcastle County Indiana where I was born and my musicals came from then I think the guy's a genius he's the world's greatest entertainer that ever lived in my eyes you know a lot of people will argue that with me but one of the best front bands you're ever gonna see ever David was a party animal let's wave it today wine women and song you read about a favorites who same thing mean party many many baby take a check out here come back tenements a little another one chicks chicks chick that's it and finally on January 26 1955 in Amsterdam Edward Van Halen was born the last member to form the mighty Van Halen [Music] you could always tell an eddie van halen guitar which to me is what makes a great guitar plan but he could do things technically as well which is why I put him in you know and one of those top ten guitar players and walk he has this part of his brain which you would pull semi genius it he recognizes things very very quickly that would take you and I some time to ponder on or someone have to show us or we'd have to go to school or we're gonna have a bit of it and we figure it out later he just goes to google that I know that okay fine that must have been there he created it his own guitar his own sound in his own feel and emotion and that's what drew people to him is uniqueness is his individuality and he changed the way music was played in the eighties way music was heard in the eighties I couldn't believe that someone could make that awesome sound never made a mistake when he was noodling I always hit every note perfect and got better and better early in their lives Eddie and Alex's father began teaching his sons how to play piano mom provided constant encouragement in hopes that someday one of her boys might become a classical pianist mr. Van Halen definitely played a major part in confidence you know he was a musician himself and that house was always music the earliest memories that I have really as far as musically is that our father was was into music and you couldn't help but be touched by it watch him practice and watch him play basically ed and Ed and I were surrounded by music America gained two of its most valuable musical imports in March of 1962 when Jana and Eugenia Van Halen's settled with their two boys in the warm suburbia of Pasadena California when we came on the boat to America my dad would play in the band that was playing on the boat so that we could pay for our passage we were flat protocol he came over here and Ed and I would we play piano here's my dad playing on stage of the band making some money so he could pay for our passage and then it was kind of a novelty and to have two kids playing piano when they moved here they didn't speak English yet so Eddie and now could only talk to each other for a while and that that made him really bond and when Ed and I went to school the only barrier that we had with our language barrier couldn't speak the language we knew I think two words yes and accident actually was the first word in the book that my mother had bought for us and now we're brothers you know they got along I don't one-to-ten they were always on ten you know they were really tight family oh that brother thing was always there they fought a lot they loved a lot you know you know great family guys you know real loyal people my parents bought me a guitar and they bought me a silvertone amplifier and I was playing the thing and I no matter what I tried because what happened dad bought a drum set and he had a paper route to pay for it is the only honest job I've ever had what's the paper that was to buy a musical instrument while he was going on his paper route I'd be sitting there banging one of the drums I really liked the drums I don't know what it was when the first things I remember is that Edward played the drums and I'll play guitar come home from school one day and there's Edward on the guitar else guitar I forget exactly how it happened but eventually adenine switched head played guitar and I played drums I could tell but how he was imitating and listening to different people and being able to play the same thing that this guy when came time to play around after school like kids do that word was always practicing Alex was always practicing they practice at their small home in Pasadena which wasn't big enough for a band to practice so they'd find other people to be in the band so they could utilize the garage Michael so Valesky also showed an early interest in music through his father who played trumpet Mike developed an appreciation not only for rock and roll but for all styles of music including jazz my father was was playing like their father my father was playing in a like a polder type band he played professionally a long time ago with Kay Kyser's Chavez okay by the early 60s David spent much of his time hanging out at his uncle Manny's Club the Cafe Wha in New York City where he witnessed performances by artists such as Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix New York certainly more closely reflects the dinner-table that I grew up that when I was a kid either encourage you mightily or discourage you totally obviously it occurred when Roth's family relocated to Pasadena California David's passion for rock music intensified and with the so molesky's recent mover from the Windy City to nearby Arcadia California in 1966 the stars aligned like notes on a perfect scale with all the future members of the classic van Halen lineup living in the same area in 1971 teenagers Alex and Eddie Van Halen and friend Dennis Travis formed a new group the Trojan Rubber Company during the band's performances Alex would often show off his accomplished drumming skills by playing totalled the 20-minute drum solo made famous by a Ginger Baker of Greene you look at some of the rifts that Ginger Baker did on the end of some songs and you'll you'll find that there's a there's that lineage from Priam to Van Halen to we learn from our elders we pass it down if you're looking at an Alex he's he's looking at Ginger Baker when he skis he's growing up and he's looking at Eddie he's looking at Eric Clapton now you listen to Eric Clapton and you'd listen to Eddie Van Halen you're not gonna hear either one in each of them but Eddie can sit there and play the lick look for lick anything that that Eric ever did ed would sit there and listen for hours on end to Eric Clapton that was basically Clapton I think and you can't help but sit there when you try to emulate these people it kind of gets into your fingers I know Clapton was that was it that was the thing I mean they would warm up on cream songs every day no it's hard to make that sit and move forward it's a very stationary vertical thing but they could do that they've listened to a lot of different music you know a lot better than just the real popular stuff if you have to get it from somewhere it either has to come from within and if you don't have it within then you have to get it from whatever is around you we went down to a place that they were playing when we were like 15 or 16 I mean this is how early Eddie and Alex were playing we went to see him at this venue and man it was just a small place but it was jammed and they were in there and they were doing Black Sabbath stuff as what Eddie and Alex were doing at that time and Dave and I think that was actually before Dave decided he really wanted to be a rock star was when we went and saw that and Dave saw all that energy and all that stuff in that room just sent a cold chill down your spine how good these guys were Van Halen first play and abandoned I wasn't in the band back in high school I listen to him play I watched him play and I said you know what he does with his hands I want to do with my feet I want to do with my voice he's kind of a mentor of mine after playing together for only a year Denis Travis's father got a job as a minister at a church 300 miles away Alex and Edward quickly found another bass player Mark Stone and changed the name of the band to Genesis I went and Kanchan recalled him over a jam and see what happens and it happened I think one of the first real impacts it was Mark Stone the bass player it was amazing that there was three people that could make that much music I knew it early on if they're both virtuosos you know they were few legendary guitar players and I knew Edward was on his way to being there Alex was leader he was like the driving force that gave the band the direction soon the fledgling band discovered there was another outfit a far more successful an established band from England also known as Genesis scrapping the name the band decided to call themselves mammoth instead Edward Handel lead vocals as well as guitar and they continued playing high schools in the backyard parties in the area 15 years old and I went and I saw this band ma'am and at the time everybody was talking about him for them at the time I think it was like a big venue it was Pasadena City College and I didn't know what to expect and I go in there and there's this guy Eddie Van Halen that everyone had been talking about who just played guitar like couldn't believe there was an energy going on and there was something happening and there was you know this mass of people and this this interest of what was going on and you knew that it was more than just like you know a local gambling they work hard it's like they're dudes and they played in the shittiest places that lugging all that gear you know they're the worst places his biker bars and high school dances and all these clubs and you're getting on a four or five and only a burnout you know and they played played more gigs than anybody every opportunity for a show they went and played they met no one ever that uh got something else too tired every opportunity we had our foot in the door across town David Lee Roth was steadily developing his own over-the-top stage persona while fronting his bed red ball jet they had been practicing in his dad's basement of his of his office building in San Marino and they'd been practicing for about four or five months and they was getting more antsy to do bigger venues and be you know more popular now he saw a red ball jet once at the Civic they're playing with cover tunes too but I think they were a little different I think they were more R&B if I recall I don't know if they had a horn player or a keyboard player or something I remember them being a little bit not the norm you know during the summer there was a guy put on shows at Hamilton Park in Arkana Pasadena it's where we met Dave and red ball jet I think the Battle of the Bands kind of helped draw two forces together because I think they would have just been playing in separate backyard parties but then when they played together and they both knew that they you know they weren't gun shy you know we're ready to go we'll battle any day hey Alex it was battle Dave let's battle so there's three battle warriors right there you put those three together and he's pretty tough it was a lead singer at that time and you know things started to kind of build up and I started to notice that it couldn't really take the chores of being heat singer I think in turn Alex wanted one other element they needed that lead singer at that time you know in the early 70s it was kind of a look you know I mean cream worked with Jack Bruce singing but let's appling was working better you know in throwing stones you know what the lead lead man we didn't have any PA equipment when red ball jet was out of work when they didn't have a gig I would approach rock and ask him you know we'd like to rent your PA and he would rent it to us give him ten bucks and this went on for a few months and eventually I just said the ad look you know you're not really capable of being the frontman and singer said Edie rather than paying raucous $10 every time he rent his stuff why not get him in the band and we won't have to pay him $10 and we'll have a lead singer because he at that time of you walked around with a [ __ ] little certain confidence that it was good I felt Dave and Van Halen decided that they would you know do it because they were good for each other they were gonna help each other and there was a lot of talk that there was a new singer in the band that Eddie wasn't singing anymore the first time that I saw was at this party and it was a big party and I'm out comes this guy you know with this bigger than life personality and everybody's like whoa you know this is this is this is different you know what Dave offered was the sexuality that was probably uh it was a flamboyant before everybody that I knew of at the time that was there some of the early van Halen gigs had the same response probably the world's greatest guitar player great man singers gotta go and the reason for that was that Dave at the time was such a blatant clone I mean that's that's really the word of jim-dandy the first time he came to see us was it to wishing you go go actually we'd already been playing concerts ourselves and and do it some headlining and everybody says it's like a there's like a young chimpanzee down there somewhere he was there with a movie camera morning oh if it's all right it takes she said that man really take the way you do a show kind of thing that I want to be site as well sound and want to give my show make them happy and you work hard and that's that should be take art you want like I say if I ask me what you think about David we lost him and your thing and leaders did nothing with me I learned from other people too I just first run a blonde hair and he did a couple of moves and poses but he's got his own thing man I really like I love watching she's entertaining to me most of us that initially did not like Dave really began to like him and acquire the taste for him because he developed more and more character and more and more color and there was human it was great humor there with Dave his wit Dave was doing his [ __ ] back then too I remember he was doing that he was all decked out and dressed up he had it he had a cane that he was prancing around on stage I mean he was he was bad then I mean dave was Dave was the dude I got to hand it to him he was rather unique and he wore clothes that people would never even think of wearing you were skin tight pants that he would find in Hollywood you know Hollywood at that time for us was like oh my god Hollywood Dave was the front man to which all other front men were measured against and some people will say the only bad thing about Dave as well his range isn't that good he's not the greatest singer well I don't really care I just love his voice his voice sounds cool Dave to me he's you know the greatest entertainer that ever lived you know I mean he knew how to stroke the audience he still does the change came the moment that Roth joined the band we figured we needed a new name and it was it was Roth's idea and he said look van Halen sounds nice it's different it's your last name and it could be a good band name and so we decided to go with that Dave knew right away it over and Alex were going you know they were gonna back off and they were awesome musicians and they had the attitude that you know Pasadena is the first stop [Music] I remember at that time going around Pasadena and I was like famous you know everybody knew me now they'd always be trying to give us booze and drugs and stuff that was those pretty nuts somebody would have the balls to host a party at their house and you'd send out flyers and you didn't fight as many people as you could well they are pretty legendary don't they back then there was a lot of them know people don't seem to do that anymore but every weekend there'd be three or four there be a band playing or you know you pay a buck to get in there be a keg I don't know how it was pretty loose as far as that goes but van Halen were playing you'd go over there to be 2,000 people in on the back yard when we can came around you pretty much want to know if Van Halen was playing everywhere you know you know when Van Impe laid there would be a lot of girls they would always try to make the band wait as long as possible because we knew that once the band started that's when the countdown began bands started playing we know we don't know when we know the police are gonna show up sooner or later as that party's got bigger and bigger I mean eventually they became these massive swarms of people you know cars lined up for miles and you know bodies all over the street and everybody trying to get in we might get an hour or two out of it and the cops are gonna be there you look up in the helicopters coming in with the spotlights and there's police cars blocking off the street cops came and busted it there is lady cop cars if the officer told me you know this party is sold out and so big there's so many people history and all these cars we were looking for the party four blocks down where one party were it outside it got out of hand I think somebody get somebody I actually got shot with a shotgun and it was it was nuts if it's your life and your lifestyle where you want eventually end up Hollywood they started playing Hollywood really dave was very ambitious so he knew if you want to get seen by somebody important you got to play Hollywood so they kind of focused on that after a while early in 1974 van Halen scored a coveted residency at the rock Club gazzarri's located on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood Landing this gig helped catapult the band out of Pasadena's backyard beer bashes and thrust them headfirst into tencel town we almost became like the house band and it was funny because after all the years that we played there I could never figure out why Bill gazzarri called Dave man you'd say hey van a couple extra dollars for you he never knew that his name was Dave he thought his name was Van Halen like in Van Morrison [Laughter] gazzarri's was almost its own Island its own scene no pro bands played at gazzarri's in any context it's basically a place for young amateur bands to start out and really try and build their chops and build their talent mark stone was a good bass player you know listen to those tapes that's got he's got some pretty good chops mark good bass player just not where his Road was leaked you know I was a straight-a student in school and and doing the band and I was like split between these two things and and basically I just couldn't keep up for them you know in actuality they we met one day and they actually asked me to leave it seemed that his interests were elsewhere the music for a long time it really hurt you know it was tough it was tough leaving that band you know because I knew they were they were destined for greatness you know and it's just like they say don't leave before the miracle happens and I did the years after high school from high school to getting discovered was where everybody tested their mettle because a lot of people you know that was the end of the fun road now the hard work began as years go on you have to kind of choose which direction you're gonna go in and I think that Edward and Alex knew where they were going Mike Anthony was in a group called snake it's a great singer as well Mike was going to Pasadena College and I know that he would run into either Alex and Dave I think you know I don't think he actually really knew him but he knew of them I'll never forget tonight we went to see Mike and his band snake over at Pasadena High School in the auditorium and think things start happening right then you were doing a show that place called Pasadena High School alone behold the PA blows up into the picture steps Michael Anthony who's been named snake as a PA and he offered us the use of his PA after we got done Eddie came out and he said dude where'd you get that bass player man does that [ __ ] guy play guitar and I said yeah he I mean he doesn't play guitar but I mean he could pick it up and play it damn he is [ __ ] yeah he tripped out on Mikey dug him he did I remember he was doing finals in school and then he called me because he goes you know what I want to talk to you come let's meet up at the rehearsal room he goes Tony I want you to listen to this and I listened to it and it had Thai remember it had four cuts on her they had take your whiskey Oman and two back then and I was blown away I was like this it's unreal she had unreal and Mike was like dude they're hitting me up to play in the band what do you think I were you asking me what the [ __ ] I think for you I mean you got to do what you got to do and they asked him to audition to me the audition him one time and immediately asked him for the job and he took it they kind of took a few pieces and put them together the puzzle and damn there was just a whole new presentation I mean all of a sudden it was like you know frontman and it was a real rock and roll band they started playing immediately because Mike was so [ __ ] good I mean what the hell did he have to learn him do everything you know and then getting with them can you imagine this was great Mike was wearing like gold glitter outfit making a big debut it was why ed was wearing a cape they were pretty wild in here in the driveway playing this backyard party and they sounded great you know I thought wow he's great Mike is perfect rapidly building a following van halen strutted their stuff throughout pasadena and los angeles the band's repertoire was eclectic to say the least they knew 300 songs other people's songs and at first they would only play all the covers get down tonight by KC and the Sunshine Band you know Aerosmith song Zeppelin ZZ Top and they would slowly work their own originals in running with the devil do a House of Pain really old stuff that's one thing too about Van Halen they would kick your ass with a [ __ ] outrageous coffee and then they throw their [ __ ] you know I mean it mix it up I have to go saris it was like every other clubs and we had you have like not 40 stuff that you play KC we're doing we did a couple of those that's kind of stuff to get into the club then after that you start edging in your own original stuff Eddy said that it never sounded just like the band they're playing and it was kind of frustrating because I'd always have the van Halen sound which was really probably a good thing van Halen personified a certain kind of California culture if you know California if you live here and you know what California looks and sounds and feels and smells like all of that all of that was captured in Van Halen's music are they were local boys so obviously we're rooting for him and I had seen I seen it would like a troubadour the places in Pasadena in Pasadena everyone knew about him but they decided they're gonna take it up a notch finally we get a show at a place called Golden West Ballroom in Norwalk California with a UFO or Rodney Bingenheimer was the big emcee it was like the first all original set we ever did as a band and I was like this place like 1,500 to 2,000 people people loved it and my Rodney Bingenheimer really like this and kind of helped got our foot into the Starwood we played there and eventually led to the whiskey everybody wants to play the whisky even today they I get so many calls on groups want to come in there hey you put them in but you never know out of that one you might catch of it you know somebody might catch a good one but then a lot of times they get the very very popular I was the guy who promoted all the shows that the whiskey so I would get different bands I I liked or I saw activity on people like the cab and so I put them on period once they started doing the clubs it really became more about them more of a showcase band you know not a cover band and you know the songs that were playing were true van Halen that ain't no real they believed in their fans I've lived in themselves they practiced every day and then they worked four nights a week at the clubs and we'll turn them back we all start off looking for love attention to music make a contribution make a million boxes are all great at butter or both the nays are great while you work to set your own goals towards ass on all the time they used to rehearse in Dave's basement Dave's basement was probably a room that was about 12 feet and width by about 25 feet in length so these are the steps leading down from this is Dave's house back here where he grew up with his father underneath here is the famous basement where van Halen put their whole tour together dr. Roth was very nice to let the guys go down there and really perfect you know what they were gonna take out on the road I remember they wrote a couple new ones and invited me to the basement which is rare cuz nobody was really allowed in there while they were practicing so I sat on the floor and they played little dreamer yeah you got here yes I remember saying little dreamer that's okay it sounds like something else I'm gonna like being real blase about it but really I thought it was great you know but but I thought they listed me more if I didn't just you know for off at the mouth all the time their writing original was like crazy at that point you know they started just just write another and here's another one like it was no problem you know I remember they played the Civic we really wanted them to play all originals for like the first time and they did but then they did kiss rock and roll all night I mean my favorite ha they shouldn't have done that you know they should have went all the way with all of it with it that was one of their big party tunes at the time so they threw that in but I remember that was the first time they basically played all originals that was a big deal they kept playing the Starwood and drawing more and more people and I think mainly musicians they were probably increasing number of girls for Dave but they're drawing a lot of musicians and there's a big buzz happening and you could see more and more people showing up at every gig gene Simmons discovered them at the Starwood and talk to him backstage that was the first time they met gene Simmons about the makeup and they were loving it I was there when this happened I remember people kind of whispering hey the guys had kissed her they're up there I would try to get them a deal right away I just remember they went to New York and did the demo with gene Simmons and it was just so bitchin all their old songs the first songs that Edward had written were etched on tape the cookbook my chatot who was my van managers no coin what they didn't stand a chance I couldn't get any I'm surprised nothing happened really because the kiss had a lot of clout and Van Halen was rolling at the time and I can't imagine why that didn't work out but they still came back and went right back to work I remember one time we were just in driving around I set out what are you gonna do after after this you know Lou per kid we're living this dream what are you gonna do after and he looked at me and he said Greg there's nothing after this this is gonna be my life forever that was kind of my realization that this is forever they were solidly committed musicians and that's all there is what else do you do that demo eventually wound up in the hands of Marshall Berle the nephew of famed comedian Milton Berle Marshall would later become the band's first manager in May of 1977 Berle brought one of others chairman no Austin and producer Ted Templeman to experience him van Halen performance it was kind of rainy that night we just got up there and played after we finished we were upstairs just like how do you do you know this is more awesome Ted Templeman I'm just kind of like Warner Brothers chairman of the board you know the mouth drops to the floor you know next thing I know they were you know contract time and they'd continue to gig around town I know there's Flyers and say last local appearance we started putting Warner Brothers recording artists on the flyer playing the Pasadena Civic or or at The Whisky they did a whole run a number again once they one more time over there then finally I you know it took a while for things to fall into place but once it did it happened pretty quick van Halen Ravech the Kate song have you really got me for a new generation and released it as a single before the album hit the shelves it received some airplay nationwide and planted the seed for large-scale interest in the band then on February 10th 1978 Van Halen's self-titled debut album was released fantail the ones adalat one of those greatest landmarks of all time for me and it came out of the shoot and it was like oh my god within months the album had gone platinum and Van Halen was now being heard from Pasadena to Poughkeepsie there were certain radio stations that would be impossible to imagine what it would be like to first clear that my first time what's this this is good man this is real guy I never heard anything like this before you have songs like atomic punk and little dreamer and the songs on that album or just blitzkrieg you know right in your face attack you know you can't get any harder more brutal the lyrics are amazing Edwards guitar playing is amazing we're so used to hearing throughout all the 80s and the 90s the flashy guitarists and it's hard to imagine when only there's bad company and foreigner and stuff and then all of a sudden eruption comes out the best kind of rock'n'roll in my opinion you know it's just down and dirty you know nasty stone and rock and roll they came by and has had a perfect time for that generation it was the right man at the right time released a record in January of 1978 and I think February we were they shipped us out to Chicago to join journey and Montrose already on tour because they wanted to promote this record we didn't come back for 11 months he was in a Kentucky I believe it was in Louisville or something and they sounded really great you know everybody I remember everybody looking at you like he's guys are really good you know like sweating over here and stuff and I could tell that there was we can't allow this you know you know we can't go on after this these guys or whatever but yeah I mean it was Montrose and he didn't really care so I don't know what journey could have a problem with really but I seem to recall being sabotaged a couple times after that where I couldn't get any highs or there's something changed and the power amps backstage that I couldn't get to from the board and I just couldn't get a good sound and it seemed very suspicious to me and that kind of crapped those on unfortunately we've toured for six or eight months with this band that pulled in a lot of girls a lot of romantic music a lot of after concert party and I think that we bit into it big time it was fun we were the first band to play and once we were done and our little u-haul truck was packed up there was a bevy of girls waiting to party the other bands were well aware like you know these were these guys I mean not just on stage but off stage it was like they're making their presence felt in many ways as possible we knew that they were going to be huge and what's funny is that when we first met them they knew they were gonna be huge they definitely had that attitude that they knew it was kind of like you know we're gonna be millionaire rock stars in about 15 minutes you know they were just kicking ass so [ __ ] bad that I read totally remember Mike telling me hey we're either gonna be leaving this tour we're throw the tour because we're smoking everybody after that we went with Black Sabbath they sent us straight away over to England as a dream come true you know there they opened for what are their idols remember sitting down in front of the stereo with the needle on the record with Ed we're trying to get the words from Iron Man so we could play it at a backyard party and next thing you know here we are opening up and we've got our gear put away very quickly when we were tuning with him because we all wanted to watch the concert and Ozzy has told the press numerous times since then the van Halen blew him off the stage every night I grew up on Black Sabbath but after Van Halen played it was definitely a notch down at that point we knew that would be headlining after that because we were blown apart every night but it was just a dream come true they they were finally touring the world for the first time there I went gold then it went platinum Eddie started winning awards for the guitarist of the year and that never stopped [Music] finally I've never slapping down the guitar player man guitar guitar stove the year whatever finally same you see I'm telling you the truth eerie the best okay it's official now not only did van hate and tear it up on stage but off stage as well as they quickly became known for their rowdy backstage shenanigans when the second album came out the back you see the dedication and they dedicated to the the Sheridan hotel or the Sheridan in the seventh floor Madison Wisconsin which is really kind of funny because they were there for three nights and they caused a lot of damage to say the least I was at the Madison thing that they apologized for on the second album you know thanks to the Madison Hotel or whatever that they just got out of control and we're just throwing them Dave was throwing furniture out the window I mean it was like the eighth floor we were on or something I'm looking out the window in the snow and there's tables and chairs sticking out of the snow that he's pulling out of there and and alex is going in everybody's room with the fire extinguisher just doing their luggage all white and stuff and you know it was fun and you know my I heard some great stories Mike taping fish to the ceiling of hotel rooms for whoever the sound man to come in and just you know be ranked by the time they get back played a few jokes harmless nothing you know that could have heard anybody except maybe your feelings when the door finally ground to a halt the band's debut album had racked up over 2 million in sales building on the momentum the band returned to the studio on December 10th 1978 to begin recording van Halen true summertime party album of hot nurses yeah material was so damn strong it was so good like somebody give me a doctor it didn't take long for van Halen to to go platinum fueling the frenzy for their headlining tour [Applause] but then in 79 that was the first time that they really felt like they really hit it big with day were the headlining band finally and they did 90-minute shows that were a lot of it improv and a lot of it was just jamming that they haven't really done since I had the privilege and I was lucky enough to be able to sit in the backstage right behind the drummer who had a big speaker with Edwards monitor so I had Edwards guitar coming in one year and Alex's drums coming in the other air and it was almost like being in heaven on March 26 1980 Van Halen's third album women and children first hit records jobs it was 1980 and I had the women and children first tape and I popped in the Walkman and I turned it on and I just hear this electrifying sound almost like the guitar was talking to me like my god you know and then the lyrics come in and the screams and hollers and the whoops and the this and that it was it was rock and roll van halen supported the album with an arena tour and hired a new head of security to oversee the rising superstars lamb the door opens and I turn around and I see this guy with his long blonde hair adorned with jewelry and bracelets so you have security guy I said yeah he said what do you think about excessive amounts of drugs being used I said I had no problem with that and the second question was what do you think about a lot of underage girls congregating and partying in a given area I said that's fine I'm okay with that and then he gets real close and he says can you roller skate I said no but I could learn and Anderson had one of the toughest jobs on the whole tour that was taken care of Dave Roth Dave Roth was a handful to take care of [Music] March 19 1980 was our first show in Victoria British Columbia this is where I experienced one of the wildest scenes I've ever ever imagined to see I mean van Halen once they hit the stage and the kids who are just off the hook they were crazy the the lights and the sound and the screams I've never heard a crowd yell so long without a break Sanderson was was great at taking what could have been a possible problem and diverting it in another way before it even became an issue he was the king we were doing a commercial in in Rome and there was a mirror ball hanging over the stage they rehearsed this thing about three or four times with the mirror bowl way up top now so Dave sees this and he knows that okay we're cool you know situation normal everything set the director at the last minute decides to get creative so he decides to drop the mirror bowl about seven feet above the stage when the lights come on he'll just bring the mirror bowl back up well he drops the mirror bowl as the lights come on Dave does a flying leap nose versus viewable guess who won the beginning of 1981 was a busy time the new record failed one even came out on April 11th the guitar album that was like the guitarists favorite van Halen out with fair warning it's the darkest album angriest album and probably has the best guitar solo later that month and would married actress Valerie Bertinelli what is your response to everyone saying that you and your wife look alike well I think you never see us together in fact most of the guys would find marital bliss but David Lee Roth remained well just a gigolo van Halen roadies would go around in the audience and give all the hot girls van Halen passes and they had a really good system going with a backstage passes it was all Dave's idea of course he would give all the roadies the passes and the roadies would write down their initials on the back of the pass and the girl that four girls that they've ended up with that night he would look on the back of the past and see the roadies signature initials and then he would give that roadie a hundred bucks you put your initials on the pass you give it to the lady at the end of the night Dave is having long mean meaningful discussions with this lady you got paid two hundred and fifty dollars right around there two hundred fifty 100 depends on the lady we had the system to identify where a troublemaker was sector seven row nine there's a fight whatever David saw the system he decided to use this for his own personal recreation tool they would come over to me and he would dance over and say sector four blonde hair red top the next thing I know and give the pass to somebody go out and slap it on her bank she had a she had a backstage pass so the system was a multi-faceted system they've got a lot accomplished on April 14 1982 van Halen released their fifth album diver down it signals somewhat of a creative holding pattern for the band with five of its 12 songs being covers ranging from dancing in the street to Roy Rogers Happy Trails diver down was kind of Dave's out and that's why Eddie doesn't like that much because a lot of fans to give it as the gal with a lot of cover songs or maybe five cover songs and those were all great and then there's seven originals that were great but it was very Dave you know dancing in the streets pretty woman a lot of the songs are covered too on the album and right there was that was like between rock and time I mean dancing in the streets I think there were too many too many inputs there songs that basically ed and I were not interested in doing Ted wanted to look for a hit single Roth was always on a weird tangent somewhere I would have never put a song like dancing in the streets on that record that's not bad hailing in 1983 Edward and longtime engineer Don Landy began building 5150 a fully functioning recording studio in the backyard of Edwards Hollywood Hills home the studio's name is derived from the LA police code designating involuntary psychiatric admission Eddie's a full time true musician so he needs a studio to work all the time in he's not like an average rock star who needs a studio once every three years I never wanted to be poor done for the rock and roll star I was just always wanted to be a musician one of the things I noted about him is he was never very far away from a guitar and a little speaker and he was just always doing something with it or the keyboard was a Malu portable keyboard he's a musician and he loves it when I was at 5150 there was a whole wall of tapes just a whole wall he's just got mountains and mountains of songs a bit sour riffs I think bolstered by the freedom of having his own recording studio Edwards free-flowing creativity inspired him to explore other outlets at the request of legendary producer Quincy Jones Edward recorded two tapes of a fiery guitar solo the second of which would find its way onto what would be come record of the year a lot of people might not realize he was the guitarist on betta he did it for free and was later reprimanded by the manager and Dave and what are you doing playing for free but he just didn't really care he didn't realize it was gonna be the number one song the other members of Van Halen enjoyed their time off as well relaxing and recovering from the epic diver down tour all except for Diamond Dave who caught a bad case of jungle fever Dave likes to do things that scare the [ __ ] out of them after our last show in Argentina we rented a boat and took the boat from Manaus Brazil and our hopes were to land in Peru two and a half weeks up the river we had a few problems the engine blew up and our dinghy sank so we had no way of really going out and getting to to the villages and getting food and so on and so forth but we managed we survived with Casa and Inga pinga was Everclear of Brazil we couldn't go into the water the piranhas were you know everywhere between the piranhas and the mosquitos it was miserable so out came the pinga and bite me I don't care you know have fun do what you got to do we found ourselves in a little Township called taffy and I'm on the phone and speaking to the manager saying you gotta get back we're gonna do the us festival I go I'm in cafe I don't even know if I'm still in Brazil you want me to get back so so we we decided to cut the trip short and get on a plane and go back because we had a you know rehearse and get ready for the us festival Apple Computer honcho Steve Wozniak was the mastermind behind the us festival an historic three-day event showcasing some of Rock's finest vans dangling a staggering sum of 1.5 million dollars to lend his headlining act for the heavy-metal day van Halen scored their biggest payday ever that's a show that you know probably will never happen again in in rock history in America the the acts that played were the best of the best so to speak Oh at least at the top end of the bill you know van Halen was the the major headliner at the site David was absolutely amazing I mean there is this one huge tent with four procced and David of course you know the king of the one-liners and the ten liners he was just had them eating out of his hand originally what we were gonna do is we were gonna turn all the equipment around backwards and show our behind the audience and that way everybody be backstage they made the Guinness Book of Records I think what it came out to be was $13,000 a minute okay they got paid they got paid 1.5 million dollars for an hour and 55 show back then a new van Halen album coming out was just like it was like heaven to hear 10 more songs from Van Halen you've never heard before and it was like the best day of the year when that album came out for their fans the best day of the year 1984 was January 9th when Van Halen's sixth album entitled 1984 was released 84 was a first album that was recorded at 5150 and Eddie will say that he thinks that was the first new van Halen album as he called the new van Halen really started in 84 where he had total control him and Don Landy Edie and Don made 1984 sure I participated I played but the people who made that record were Edie and Don Landy and it went to number two and this going to number one jump was just I mean it was everywhere I used to go out to these clubs dancing and when jump would come on the whole place would light up and 84 the tour would start with the lights are ha the crowds going insane spotlights are just shooting around and you see the silhouette up at the top of the drum riser y'all gonna Jack Daniel's bottle throw the bottle he just knows where it lands and you just see him the lights go on right as he's just airborne michael has a really cool Jack Daniels basic coolest looking bass you ever saw and he would do those cartwheels on the floor and Eddie would slide across the room Alex at the flaming gon thing what more do you want towards the end of the concert Dave would every night we come out and tell the people we're recording you tonight so let's get crazy and you and Larry who was Dave's roadie would come out with the microphone and I come out with a camera and we walk up to the front of the stage there was no cords there was no film there was no electricity it was just two roadies out there with two pieces of equipment aiming him at these people and Dave's going come on go crazy for it I think that was the 99 sold-out shows 99 shows sold out manager had a big smile on his face that whole tour throughout 1984 van Halen steadily gained steam as I await and Panama landed in the Billboard top 15 and hot for teacher became a staple on radio and MTV Dave in particular I think really changed you know the MTV video he was perfect for the role because really he was that way it wasn't like he they got to be big and then he became that way he was that way all the time he really knew how to utilize that meeting I mean he knew how to work them TV beautifully he was perfect and was perfect for them at that time I saw that I had MTV and that came on I'm going yep that's you know that's Dave acting that's Dave the showman and that was the difference between him and Van Halen and that's the creative differences that that helped to you know drive the band apart despite the success of 1984 the relationship between Dave and the rest of the guys was becoming more and more strained along with great music and and great bands and and a great project you know you need a little conflict about fighting on the road that there were a lot of knives that I can truthfully say I didn't have that I didn't enjoy learning how to plant five times only because I did not want to go out there and have to deal with life he come up to me during the show you know I sing honey for those aren't well I mean [Music] I'm looking at I'm going what the hell is this guy dude this guy's gonna show on for me too what what they were doing when they were younger was was was a tight unit they're like a family you know and it's the fame and money and people bugging them and you know the pressures you know and you know just tore my father's really what happened as far as dynamics between Dave and Edie I mean you know in the beginning I think they were a closer knit family I think towards the end there was a lot of you know aggression between them and the Hannah Maas city and you know I could sort of see things deteriorating there is always tension between me and Edward there's always tension between me and the freaking bus driver okay they never got along I mean the worst thing you could say that's that that would that would aggravate one stomach would be band meeting that made people nauseous they'd call a eight o'clock rehearsal time or writing time and Eddie be there and Michael show up on time I would follow in and then they wait till 10 o'clock and Dave would show up at 10 o'clock and start an argument and then leave well after that we've kind of found out that Dave was rehearsing in his basement with a brand new band I remember having a meeting although I could tell Alex was well the hips blood and robberies what I'm quitting right I'm gone Wow this is it this is what I've read about different bands and [ __ ] which you know the thing is everything is gonna happen I'm looking better than guys in 1985 David Lee Roth released his first solo EP crazy from the heat which spawned hit covers of the Beach Boys California Girls and Louis Prima's just a gigolo June it was official David Lee Roth had left Van Halen to pursue a solo career Roxy ego got so big he was gonna make a movie and that got blown out you know so he thought he was gonna be like another Elvis or something he didn't need van Halen anymore you know and then that's really of those guys started resenting them the height of David Lee Roth was deep and wide this was not oh well you know we'll get over it sooner or later yeah so how about dating Betty would cry and Alex would start pulling cupboards off the wall throwing women eating nails and things nearly 30 years since their formation then Halen is celebrated as one of Hydrox most accomplished and innovative groups while both Roth and the rest of them even found success they never quite equal the magic of the original backyard bang there's very small group of people in the world who it's like a little tiny Club of guys and gals who sold over 60 70 million records it's like [Music] [Applause] you fine [Music] [Applause] until we meet again happy tray you if happy - you nearly me [Music] this is the original van Halen logo that I drew way back when I think I was just fooling around and draw on things this is probably the third or fourth incarnation of it but this is the one that we all agreed on that we liked and if we put it on Alex's drum heads and I remember we made a big bedsheet and sprayed it I made a big stencil and when we have it rigged up behind this and you know as Ben come on the stage we pull a cord and when I roll van Halen behind us is you know pretty big stuff for you know light shows from what I heard is that you know once they signs they decided not to use it because we need to really gala T's involved but but I always heard that they liked it and they wanted to use it where van Halen tribute van would cover David Lee Roth what are your fans like they're [ __ ] in the bat Halen dude and they totally do what we're doing because they miss Fanny Lee we don't want anyone thinking that we think that we're like van Halen walking around Dave Lee robbed two guys who never made it was original music yeah found a way to make a living and that was better ripping off man that's right thanks Dave you guys if we're not you know giving you piece of the pie but you know what dude you guys made enough money enough money that's right and you probably got more chicks than we ever [Music] to me that is the ultimate in the band you know yet the ultimate frontman that one of the most innovative guitar players I believe ever [Music] [Applause] [Music] hi this is Doug welcome to the van Halen museum this is from a very rare item from 1978 the Japanese tour book this is one of Edwards or Edward very first guitar if it actually in fact is his guitar nobody can ever really be sure but it's exactly like the one he had if you notice in the pictures here's a picture from the whiskey here's a picture of them somewhere you know notice the shirt the shirt the shirt for sure this is the actual prototype from because it's an actual Gibson pickup it came out when I head with guitars also signed by Seymour Duncan [Music] [Music]

Channel: TheGrapevine

Views: 929,302

Rating: 4.7776337 out of 5

Keywords: The Van Halen Story: The Early Years Movie, The Van Halen Story: The Early Years Full Movie, The Van Halen Story: The Early Years, feature film, full movie, Documentary, Eddie Van Halen, Van Halen documentary, J.J. Jackson, Michael Anthony, David Lee Roth, Alex Van Halen, Edward Van Halen, Mark McLaughlin, Ken Sharp, Eduardo Eguia Dibildox, Rock n Roll, rock and roll, Van Halen rare footage, Van Halen interview, rare footage, rock n rolll biopic

Id: yfUzIrxszn4

Length: 65min 52sec (3952 seconds)

Published: Mon Aug 24 2020