Jas Obrecht’s chance encounter with a then-unknown Eddie Van Halen on July 23, 1978, led to the guitarist’s first magazine interview, published in Guitar Player’s November 1978 issue. The two would meet again, including for a five-hour conversation in 1980 that explored Eddie’s approach to electric guitar, gear and modifications, his musical upbringing, and the techniques behind his groundbreaking playing.
Published in the magazine’s April 1980 issue, that interview found Van Halen discussing everything from his early music lessons to the importance of phrasing and his approach to guitar solos. He also shared his surprisingly dismissive initial reaction to one of Van Halen’s biggest early hits.
At the outset of the conversation, Obrecht asked Van Halen how he developed his speed. Born in the Netherlands, Eddie had moved to the U.S. with his family at age seven. His answer began with a characteristically humorous account of his classical training.
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“Well, I’ll tell you. They used to lock me in a little room and go, ‘Play fast!’” he began with a laugh. “I was actually trained to be a classical pianist. I had this Russian teacher who couldn’t speak a word of English, and he would just sit there with a ruler ready to slap my face if I made a mistake.
“This started in Holland, and both my brother and I took lessons. Then when we got to the U.S. my dad found another good teacher. Basically, that’s where I got my ears developed, learned my theory, and got my fingers moving.
“Then when the Dave Clark Five and those bands came out, I wanted to go [plays the riff from ‘You Really Got Me’]. I didn’t want to go clink, clink, clink. I still play piano, and I also play violin.”
Some of that classical training found its way into Eddie’s guitar playing, even if he didn’t consciously set out to apply piano techniques to the instrument.
“Things like this are classical,” he said, demonstrating the continuous left-hand tremolo technique heard in “Spanish Fly.” “I know that had some things psychologically come out, but I don’t actually sit down at a piano and try to apply it to guitar.”
“I had this Russian teacher who couldn’t speak a word of English, and he would just sit there with a ruler ready to slap my face if I made a mistake.”
—Eddie Van Halen
The conversation also turned to his solos — both how he approached them and what he wanted them to achieve. Asked what mattered most, Van Halen had a straightforward answer.
“Feeling,” he said. “I don’t care if it’s melodic or spontaneous. If it’s melodic and has no feeling, it’s screwed.”
That emphasis on feel informed an approach that left room for both careful composition and improvisation. Some solos were worked out in advance; others came together in the studio on the spot.
“Sometimes it’s spontaneous, sometimes it’s set,” he explained. “Like the solo in ‘Runnin’ With the Devil’ was set. And the same with ‘Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love.’ By ‘set’ I mean that I figured out something melodic instead of just going for it.”
Other performances were more spontaneous.
“‘Ice Cream Man’ was one,” he said. “That was a first take. The solo in ‘You Really Got Me’ was totally spontaneous. Next time you listen to it, turn the balance to one side, because the way Ted [Templeman] produces, my guitar is always on one side. Listen to it — there’s only one guitar, no overdubs. But it sounds full.”
That willingness to improvise carried over to the stage. Although Van Halen sometimes reproduced his recorded solos, he generally preferred to take a different approach each night.
“I rarely repeat,” he said. “Sometimes I remember the way I did it on the record and kind of follow it, unless they are melodic solos like in ‘Runnin’ With the Devil’ and ‘Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love.’ You know, if I start noodling around, kids go, ‘Hey, that ain’t the same song!’”
Perhaps the most surprising revelation concerned “Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love,” a song that became a defining part of Van Halen’s early catalog. Far from recognizing its potential immediately, Eddie initially thought it was a dud — and waited six months before playing it for his bandmates.
“When I wrote ‘Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love’ I thought it was about the lamest song I ever wrote in my life,” he remarked. “It took me six months before I even worked up the nerve to show the guys, but kids go nuts for it! I love the beginning — Am and G.”
