People who criticize Michael don’t understand Music. I completely agree with you that he only wanted to serve the song. Michael has no ego and that makes him better. He was and still is a team player. Plus he’s rocksolid. Playing “fancy“ doesn’t mean you’re a good bassist. Holding down a steady rhythm is harder than most people realize. And yes, his angelic backup vocals elevated the VH sound to a new level.
the modern bassplayers who mostly want to play funk type licks would have made all these old school songs suck. Many Judas Priest basslines are 1 note pedals and that makes the song heavy.
Im glad you said that bc ive said it for years. Michael held down the low end musically and the high end harmonically, rocked steady and most importantly knew how to frame and compliment without getting in the way. I feel they should have gave him the respect of letting him know personally that Wolfie was joining the band so they could all the VH boys could play together. Eddie had health issues so maybe this was a bucket list thing. That being said, Im sure Michael would’ve understood n been totally cool with it but we dont know the full dynamics between the band really so who knows why the VH bros chose to play it that way.
@@Dragonette666 I agree with you that a funky baseline would not work for Van Halen. But don’t forget that funk was essentially born in the 70s. I think the style of music dictates the bass playing. Fuck would definitely not work in a Judas Priest song. :-)
@@trevornever27 It’s an injustice that Michael doesn’t get the credit he deserves. Fine, the rest of the band are superstars, but his contribution was significant and even essential. The many interviews I’ve heard with Michael reveal a very down to earth and amicable guy. It’s likely he would be happy with whatever the brothers decide. I get the impression that Michael just appreciates his life and has no interest in complicating things.
@@qtheband751 agreed!! I totally am saying the same thing… i always favor the unsung heroes and Michael A is def one of those. Ive been a musician for the bulk of my life and would have loved to have someone of that caliber and mindset. Just nice to know im not the only one that thinks so! By the way. Did you hear Roth was using Michaels voice in his live show backing tracks? It came up on an interview with him I saw on YT n even Michael didnt know.
I totally agree that Michael Anthony”s playing and singing is under rated. This Guy has been the backbone of VH and Chickenfoot and neither project would be nearly as good without him. In my opinion he is totally underrated!
yet another person crying about mikey - why not wait until there is a video about mikey and complain then . . . people might actually value your opinion on those ones
@nelsonschumacher7956 Even though Wolfgang is a talented young guy, the shit just didn't grab me like it did with Michael Anthony. If you get a chance, check out Michael Anthony, John5, (yeah, the guy that just joined Motley Crue, Corey Taylor (Slipknot, Stone Sour) and Fred Coury (drummer of Cinderella) doing/playing 'Take Your Whiskey Home' off of the Van Halen 'Women and Children First' album and you will hear and see what I mean. The guy knew/ knows how to bump that Low End. Be safe and take care.
I've long thought Mean Street is Eddie's single greatest expression of his unique style. To me what make's Eddie stand out is how he uses unorthodox techniques to make unique sounds, but those strange sounds are not merely accents but are essential elements to the music
Here in the Netherlands we all play like Eddie and it's quite normal.. No seriously he is a legend and someday there will be a statue of him in Amsterdam. Thanks for the great video Ben
Ed was a fantastic rhythm player, usually overshadowed to most people by his leads. Fair Warning is an awesome, gnarly dark album all around and agreed, Mean Street is just ferocious.
I've always liked him more for his rhythm playing than his leads. Obviously he was amazing doing both, but the rhythm stuff, for me at least, is where his real genius was.
You couldn’t have said it any better my friend. Before I really got into Van Halen and learning damn near everything that I could about Eddie, I was really drawn in by his rhythm playing first and after that it’s been down the rabbit hole ever since and now here I am 🤔😂 I’m 28 now and when I got into the good music I was about 10. I started playing guitar because of Eddie when I turned 14..
Another great hidden riff is on their debut album and it’s on “ On Fire” when Dave and company are singing their butts off during the 3 screams of “ FIRE! ! Fire! Fire!!!” That riff is killer
I agree. I also believe “On Fire” is one of VH’s top three songs and also one of their most underrated tracks. I like the part that follows the first chorus that just explodes and then goes into the ascending solo. That tune is a musical masterpiece.
Man...I think that FAIR WARNING is THE MOST amazing VH album all the times. All those songs are so special. Seriously I can talk a lot about one by one like my favs forever. Great performance
Agreed. And one of my fav solo's is Push comes to Shove. The pre-solo section is fantastic as well. Need a bit of multi tracking and Eventide modulation to pull it off but it's awesome.
Sorry, but most people who love and understand music know Michael is a rocking bassist, especially fans of VH which is quite a lot considering their immense popularity. "Underated" is such an overused term that only serves the person claiming it, like they hold some little known fact. It's not unknown that Michael Anthony is a great bassist and background singer lol...
Couldn't agree more regarding Michael's freight train, unstoppable bass work. Someone had to keep our ears grounded while the two brothers were flinging beats and notes all over the place like a couple of Dutch toddlers on a sugar high!
Eddie's rhythm tracks are OUTSTANDING! Everyone pays more attention to his leads and Eruption stuff, but he played great riffs. Great job breaking this stuff down!
"Dirty Movies". The riffs in that song are incredible, in particular the riff that happens 'fore the chorus. At the 1:20 mark, Ed swaggers out a raunchy, dirty, intricate, bad ass groove that I think is one of his best riffs. A really nice lead licks lashings of swagger to the riffs proceedings, then in comes Dave with the chorus. Theres a lot going on within that stunning strut of sound and the whole damn song in general.
Fully agree on Mike, just saw Him and Sammy over the weekend and they still killed it. his bass playing is so solid to fit the songs and not full of flash. He sand Aint Talking bout Love and killed it as well. I said it to my wife he was the secret weapon in VH.
Fair Warning is one of the best VH albums period. The first time I heard it thought that this is one of the best. Sick rythyms and crazy leads with off timing yet sounded awesome. Its just got everything. Its very heavy which I like. I wish they would have went more heavy with some of the Hagar songs.
1000% agree. I think Fair Warning was the OG line-up's creative zenith. There is not one non-killer track- everyone was playing at their best level. A great record.
Ed was bad ass,his rhythm skills were off the chart.His groove,feel and tone always stood out.He had a certain swagger that he stamped on his riffs.You knew it was him when he played.Thanks Uncle Ben!
I fully agree with your assessment of Michael Anthony's straight forward approach with how he played bass in the band. You put this explanation in perfect wording, in why Michael played this way.
Ed played all the bass on Fair Warning. That's according to Ed himself. Also why the bass playing on that record is so in the pocket with his bro Alex.
Dude. Thank you. Michael is a solid band member. His vocals and backing rhythm are so rock-solid! Eddie rhythm guitar is so chewie and groovy! I definitely appreciate his rhythm playing far more than his brilliant soloing. I've been trying to figure out the backing guitar for that solo forever, and it's just eluded me until now, so thank you!
Yes, I LOVE the intro to the Mean Streets solo, and had trouble finding on RUclips. Everybody goes to the solo solo, and skips that awesome intro to the solo! Fantastic!
There are so many nuances to his playing on every recording that it's really impossible to notice everything at once. I've been learning a lot of stuff from Van Halen and 1984 but I always feel like I'm doing something wrong after listening to the actual songs. His attitude, pick attack and rhythm make it so hard to learn exactly what's on the record. A lot is made of his pickups, amps, body wood etc etc but the real magic was in his fingers, rhythm and his touch. That's where the real goldmine is.
Don’t forget about his Volume pot use. He used his volume alllll the time to manipulate his tone and gain depending on the part he was playing. It’s not talked about much oddly but it’s a foundational part of his playing .
@@silverjaw138 very true. He could accurately move the volume pot in a way that most people would need a volume pedal or automatic MIDI switching for. It might as well have been a gain knob! Haha.
Yes totally agree. People usually come up short with his sound because of the nuances he had with both hands. Thats what sets him apart and makes him so unique. Its just like Buddys Rich's left hand skill, unmatched and once in a lifetime.
I for sure hear Billy Gibbons, especially with his pinch harmonics, and nobody ever talks about that. I always thought that Hot for Teacher was the Van Halen version of La Grange.
@@joekillion7427 Absolutely. And like I said above I hear lots of Townsend in his strumming patterns, especially on bridges, and how he employs suspensions in his chord voices. And then a little Iommi always sneaks in too, I think that's why he loved Dimebag so much, bc Dimebag kinda was like if EVH went the Full Sabbath and Eddie saw that as a road he did not take, but really appreciated.
I've come to think over the years, that the biggest influence on Eddie was Jimmy Page. And that applies here too. Jimmy did a bunch of messed up stuff dropping/picking up beats and creating 'simple' riffs that catch the ear because of the syncopation and timing. Same with lead stuff, using variations of basic well known pentatonic licks, but playing them at unexpected parts of the beat, or out of phase, in terms of which note to start on... Eddie learned that concept and took it to another level. Van Halen did a lot of Zep covers in their early days ;)
Thanks for exposing more magic in my favorite Van Halen song. Like you, I've been listening to this since I was a teenager a million years ago. I still hear new things in this song. It continues to make the hair on the back of my neck stand up. And I still listen to it. A. LOT.
My friend Brent Woods just played with Michael Anthony for the.Eddie trunk 40 year anniversary show. Brent and i have been friends since 7th grade ,and we both took lessons from Randy Rhoads. Anyway, he was music director for the show ,and played with everyone either in rehearsal or onstage and he mentioned that playing with Michael Anthony was like having a bulldozer just laying down exactly what the song needed! I always kinda put him to the side too,but when I saw VH ON every tour with DLR ,I noticed what a machine that both Alex and Eddie were, they played like they knew exactly what the other was thinking!
Perfect timing Ben, I was just working on the bridge and solo section of Mean Street and you gave this much clarity! I never noticed that badass riff under the solo until now, great stuff.
Thats why I love Van Halen, there are so many layers in each track. You can go so deep and the music keeps on giving. There are layers of rhythm and flow in every track.
Badass man!! I'll tell ya what, when I was about 11 or so I figured out by accident that if I didn't plug the headphone jack in all the way I could remove the a lot of the processed sound that comes from mastering. It would always sound like they, who ever you would listen to, like they were playing live. With that riff, when I did that with the jack, that was the only riff you heard and I always thought it sounded killer man. Very rhythm oriented and real choppy. TOTALLY agree 💯 Good job Ben!!
@@BenEller Wow man that's crazy. I also remember trying to show ANYONE that would listen and literally I always ended up by myself trippin on it. But man, it opened up a whole new way to listen to tunes. That's when air playing became a priority, lol. I always loved the raw in it. The more raw the better. You do a killer job playing that by the way bro!!
Michael Anthony is one of the greatest rock bassists ever, period. more complexity doesn't equal better playing. He always places his biggest priority on what best serves the song, which is true musicianship and maturity.
And would any of those songs be as good without his vocals. they'd still be good but the harmonies really gave them something extra. Extra, on top of all the other extra VH had.
ABSOLUTELY noticed it ! The layered tracks add to overall riffage and when each is broken down are amazing and beautifully radical on their own .... Mean Street is of a different universe - wow Very nice work Ben - Your sound and ability are absolutely beautiful ...
I just found this video, and HANDS DOWN, the best I've heard anyone play it other than Ed. You've hit the nail on the head--this is one of the 2 best grooves Eddie ever soloed over. It makes the fur on the back of your neck stand up.
Exactly! For years that solo just stood out to me, but in the last couple of years I started noticing that rhythm riff. Just as smoking as the solo. Long Live Edward Van Halen !!
I am sure we all remember the first time we heard Van Halen! I did 45 years ago and I am still trying to play like him! Uncle Ben you have definitely helped me and I appreciate this one as well!. Great Job!
Ed's rhythm playing is incredible but gets overshadowed by his insane leads! Even the simple rhythm he plays during the Top Jimmy solo sounds dark & sinister AF. Serves the song beautifully.
Hey... I've been talking about that killer rhythm track for many years and agree its a beast. I was in a VH tribute band in the 80s and my brother had Eddie down. Used to sound kind of empty live without that driving rhythm but still great. Gives me goosebumps every time I hear that track. Cheers
Great video! one of my fave EVH riffs is the slow/B section in Panama... that weird F chord (at first fret) is one of my favourite moments in all of music. It is so subversive: super dissonant in the middle of a big ol' party song and just so weird
Awesome, Ben! Mean Street is indeed absolutely Ferocious, percussive rhythm playing, and you've opened up a new chapter in my understanding and appreciation with that killer up-stroke riff. Much appreciated!
This has been one of the most fun licks I've been trying to get down as I transition from playing bass full time to learning the guitar as well. I appreciate your efforts and thoroughness on all these videos. GREAT WORK SIR!!!
@@robert-lz9qf Hell yes. I totally missed how great that song was when I first bought the album (when it came out - fuck, I'm old), but it's freakin' fantastic.
So cool, thanks for this video! What's making this so great is that neither kick nor snare play on the "1+" starting point of the guitar riff, it's only the guitar, bass and ride cymbal. With the kick drum filling up all the "e"s and "a"s and the snare doing the backbeat as the groove's anchor, it makes all 1/16s have a similar weight and the entire thing comes at you like a freight train.
Thank you !! This song and everything in it is just absolutely killer ... phrasing, rhythm track, lead tracks. Sweet Judas!!! Fair warning and VH 1 are my fav albums.
Uncle Ben…there are some hidden gems on OU812 that no one ever talks about…just try playing “sucker in a 3 piece” or “AFU” or “source of infection”….Eddie was on his game for that album!!!!
I once got Uncle Ben to tab out and try to teach me "Finish what you started" I still have his tabs, but my fingers just refuse to move that way! That's one tricky little lick
Ben is this all because VH recorded live and the song/rhythm/riffs organically evolved in the 'live' process. They wrote and practiced the song a certain way but when laying it down they went with that days groove/flow and we got gold, pure gold, it still sounds so fresh and cool today. Love your stuff.
I agree, Mike was the perfect bass player for VH. It worked because all of the right musicians were there at the right time. Ed was incredible, no doubt, but it takes a BAND to do it.
The comment about how if Michael were shredding and tapping with Eddie it wouldn't have worked. I agree. But, that is essentially what happened when David Lee Roth went and made Skyscraper with Steve Vai and Billy Sheehan. That is a ferocious album, and I think it totally worked for them. But the personalities and styles are different there, even though DLR was the common thread. Steve Vai is amazing, but not the same amazing as EVH. But comparing Fair Warning (1981) to Skyscraper (1988) is an interesting thought experiment.
It did work perfectly on Eat 'Em and Smile, but the very next record, Dave told Billy to just play very basic bass lines. Billy left. SkyScraper tour was Matt Bissonette on bass. Would everyone's egos allowed it that in VH ? Who knows?@@daveowczarek
Love the way you talked about Michael Anthony bass playing...each and every member was as important as Eddie for me, and that is clear when you showed the way they interacted with each other's playing. Love Alex Van Halen 's drumming, since I've heard it!
along my way home from my Gfs house in the 80s, for 3 years the last street after a mile walk was East Street, and as soon as I turned on to the street, my mind would say.."this is home...this is East Street"...since then whenever I pass it, it still pops in my head...
Great video! This part of the song is what makes it so awesome. You can hear it but there’s no way to pay attention to everything at one time. But you’re right that’s the groove that makes this song great. And you’re spot on about Michael Anthony. I don’t think anyone else could’ve complemented Eddie and Roth nearly as good as he did. The song “So this is love” that’s a great example of the groove behind the grind!
This is proof why Eddie was the complete package. The media and noobs just focus on his lead work, which is superb, but the REAL magic is his rhythm (I actually spelled it right this time with no spell checker red squiggly line under it!) playing. That's where all the real tasty stuff is. And most guitar aficionados who know the truth about Eddie don't put him in the "shredder" genre of guitar music. Oh, he could shred with the best of them, but it's the Mean Street type riffage that cements his legacy as just a good ol' fashioned rocker.
@@ChuckHaney Yes. I spell it differently every time I write it. Once in a while I get it right and it surprises me. And surprise is another. I always forget that "r".
What an awesome pick! And DLR’s vocals blend so well with the groove. One of my favorite under-the-radar riffs is between the 1:19-1:40 minute mark from On Fire! It’s not a rhythm, but definitely big and nasty, a blast to play as well. It always perks people’s ears up when they hear it!
With you on Michael Anthony! Great guy, excellent musician, fantastic voice and exactly what VH needed on every song. Someone has to hold down the fort and the bass player is often that person and if they are doing their job, that is what they do. Respect to Michael Anthony!! Great video btw! Thanks.
That riff popped into my head out of no where a few days ago. I ALWAYS thought that opening to the video riff was so bad ass and unique. So good to see Ben highlight it!
Man, VH is literally my favorite band, listen to them for 35 years, played tons of VH on guitar, and Mean Streets is in my top ten songs of all time to play!…. And I never heard this riff either!😳 Thank you Uncle Ben! You just handed my ears a new Eddie morsel to enjoy, and I thought I had all the Van Halen carved into my brain forever! Makes you wonder what other hidden gems are hiding in some of those classic tracks
One of my favorite riffs of all time. So emotionally charged that it feels like you’re getting an adrenaline boost when you listen to it. I remember reading that Eddie was pissed off at Dave when he went into the studio and recorded this originally…and you can definitely feel that emotion.
Excellent breakdown of a super-leet riff, and a good reminder to always Use Your Ears to take in as much detail as possible about the music we love. This riff is such a great example of how rhythmic Eddie's rhythm playing was. It's like he was playing drums on the guitar as a counterpoint to Alex's parts. It's all about feeeeeel!
I'm just here to say that Eddie's rhythm skills are under appreciated even though people say his rhythm skills are great on every single RUclips post when people talk about his playing /s
Ed actually played most of the bass parts on Fair warning. Also on the Hot For Teacher intro, Ed doubled his guitar part with bass. It was pulled it out in the mix because Mike wouldn't be able to play the part live.
@@haggbom72 I have no proof about my Fair Warning statement other than my ears. However, this Sunset Sound video backs my HFT comment at around 6:25 ruclips.net/video/5-biL02KxE4/видео.html
Damn right! His rhythm is what shines on this song. Everyone talks about the tapping intro segment. But for me that all went out the window the moment the main riff kicked in. One of the nastiest riffs of all time. Period.
YES, thank you! I don't play guitar, but as a fan I've always been a rhythm guy and hear what's going on behind the solos. Mean Street was always a favorite. Friends thought I was cranking the solo...no! I was cranking that backing guitar! Thank you for being another guy who noticed!
Oh, anybody kinda bummed listening to VH live and crying that we don't hear Eddie's backing guitar because he's human and can only play the lead? Think "Tattoo" as a recent and perfect example. The opening sounds astounding on the album, but crap live, because there's no backing guitar.
Michael is a super tight bass player . I learned most of the bass parts when I was in a band . He was so tight , kept the song together and was woven in perfectly . While I thought I was a hot shot bassist but when learned Michaels parts I had to say they were perfect to hold it together !!!
We all love Michael Anthony, and he still remains the bands best vocalist. But can we talk about the elephant in the room? Was it really him playing bass, or was it Ed? Yes, I know they recorded as a live band, but I’ve always suspected Ed re-recorded some parts on bass and thought I read, for example, that Ed played bass on most of 1984. Anyone else?
I heard back then that Michael played note for note the bass end compositions that Ed completely created. Eddie Van...the emergence of Mozart consciousness.
Awesome lesson, went back to clean up what I was doing wrong and came across this video. Ed used to talk about his rhythm playing and how articulated he was in old guitar mag interviews... Truly one of the most badass interludes in the VH catalogue, which is saying a lot!...Oh, nice gear too!
Alex was completely underrated for years. Ed and Alex were sloppy together. It was beautiful. Their music had a swing to it. They just went for it. Mike's playing created a normal drive that pushed through the mud that was going on around him. It was so unique. Awesome beauty to it all really. They totally owned it. All of it. You just don't find it anymore. Music has changed for the worse in my opinion.
Killer dude. Believe me I noticed it 😂 That chromatic run at the end of the riff is reminiscent of the riff in “She’s The Woman”. I know you know that song is in their demo they recorded with Gene Simmons and is on ADKoT.
Noticed that too! Makes sense since the iconic guitar part before the lead solo was lifted from the original 70s demo of that song. The part Eddie wrote to replace it on the last album doesn't quite match up to the original. VH were masters of reusing old material though.
Thanks so much for watching! What’s the most underrated Van Halen riff?!
Amsterdam
Not sure what it’s called, but the riff Eddie plays at the end of “In A Simple Rhyme”
Light up the sky and hang 'em high are two songs in their entirety that I rarely see anyone get excited about.
Fire in the hole
Though i love everything Ed did, I'm going to go with, " Fire In The Hole" A more recent one b4 ADKOT. The intro is BADASS! 🎸
People who criticize Michael don’t understand Music. I completely agree with you that he only wanted to serve the song. Michael has no ego and that makes him better. He was and still is a team player. Plus he’s rocksolid. Playing “fancy“ doesn’t mean you’re a good bassist. Holding down a steady rhythm is harder than most people realize. And yes, his angelic backup vocals elevated the VH sound to a new level.
the modern bassplayers who mostly want to play funk type licks would have made all these old school songs suck. Many Judas Priest basslines are 1 note pedals and that makes the song heavy.
Im glad you said that bc ive said it for years.
Michael held down the low end musically and the high end harmonically, rocked steady and most importantly knew how to frame and compliment without getting in the way.
I feel they should have gave him the respect of letting him know personally that Wolfie was joining the band so they could all the VH boys could play together. Eddie had health issues so maybe this was a bucket list thing.
That being said, Im sure Michael would’ve understood n been totally cool with it but we dont know the full dynamics between the band really so who knows why the VH bros chose to play it that way.
@@Dragonette666 I agree with you that a funky baseline would not work for Van Halen. But don’t forget that funk was essentially born in the 70s. I think the style of music dictates the bass playing. Fuck would definitely not work in a Judas Priest song. :-)
@@trevornever27 It’s an injustice that Michael doesn’t get the credit he deserves. Fine, the rest of the band are superstars, but his contribution was significant and even essential. The many interviews I’ve heard with Michael reveal a very down to earth and amicable guy. It’s likely he would be happy with whatever the brothers decide. I get the impression that Michael just appreciates his life and has no interest in complicating things.
@@qtheband751 agreed!! I totally am saying the same thing… i always favor the unsung heroes and Michael A is def one of those. Ive been a musician for the bulk of my life and would have loved to have someone of that caliber and mindset. Just nice to know im not the only one that thinks so!
By the way. Did you hear Roth was using Michaels voice in his live show backing tracks? It came up on an interview with him I saw on YT n even Michael didnt know.
I totally agree that Michael Anthony”s playing and singing is under rated. This Guy has been the backbone of VH and Chickenfoot and neither project would be nearly as good without him. In my opinion he is totally underrated!
Backbone?😂
Couldn't have said it better - couldn't agree more.
yet another person crying about mikey - why not wait until there is a video about mikey and complain then . . . people might actually value your opinion on those ones
@nelsonschumacher7956 Even though Wolfgang is a talented young guy, the shit just didn't grab me like it did with Michael Anthony. If you get a chance, check out Michael Anthony, John5, (yeah, the guy that just joined Motley Crue, Corey Taylor (Slipknot, Stone Sour) and Fred Coury (drummer of Cinderella) doing/playing 'Take Your Whiskey Home' off of the Van Halen 'Women and Children First' album and you will hear and see what I mean. The guy knew/ knows how to bump that Low End. Be safe and take care.
@@rongohring3029 Michael kicked Wolfgang's ass as a member of Van Halen. The band was lesser for having the Eddie/Wolfgang nepotism.
I've long thought Mean Street is Eddie's single greatest expression of his unique style. To me what make's Eddie stand out is how he uses unorthodox techniques to make unique sounds, but those strange sounds are not merely accents but are essential elements to the music
Here in the Netherlands we all play like Eddie and it's quite normal..
No seriously he is a legend and someday there will be a statue of him in Amsterdam. Thanks for the great video Ben
Delete that scam
🤣🤣 I believed u for a minute.
@@Robil63 😂😂🇱🇺🎸
Ed was a fantastic rhythm player, usually overshadowed to most people by his leads. Fair Warning is an awesome, gnarly dark album all around and agreed, Mean Street is just ferocious.
Same thing happens to Michael Romeo.
I've always liked him more for his rhythm playing than his leads. Obviously he was amazing doing both, but the rhythm stuff, for me at least, is where his real genius was.
Fair Warning
VH I
1984
VH II
WACF
DD
In that order!
You couldn’t have said it any better my friend. Before I really got into Van Halen and learning damn near everything that I could about Eddie, I was really drawn in by his rhythm playing first and after that it’s been down the rabbit hole ever since and now here I am 🤔😂 I’m 28 now and when I got into the good music I was about 10. I started playing guitar because of Eddie when I turned 14..
Never was a big fan of his lead playing. But his rhythm playing is just incredible.
Another great hidden riff is on their debut album and it’s on “ On Fire” when Dave and company are singing their butts off during the 3 screams of “ FIRE! ! Fire! Fire!!!” That riff is killer
I agree. I also believe “On Fire” is one of VH’s top three songs and also one of their most underrated tracks. I like the part that follows the first chorus that just explodes and then goes into the ascending solo. That tune is a musical masterpiece.
Man...I think that FAIR WARNING is THE MOST amazing VH album all the times. All those songs are so special. Seriously I can talk a lot about one by one like my favs forever. Great performance
Agreed. And one of my fav solo's is Push comes to Shove. The pre-solo section is fantastic as well. Need a bit of multi tracking and Eventide modulation to pull it off but it's awesome.
Sorry, but most people who love and understand music know Michael is a rocking bassist, especially fans of VH which is quite a lot considering their immense popularity. "Underated" is such an overused term that only serves the person claiming it, like they hold some little known fact. It's not unknown that Michael Anthony is a great bassist and background singer lol...
I was 13 when Fair Warning came out. What a great time to be a kid.
Hear About it Later, Push Comes to Shove, So this is Love? and One Foot Out the Door are sadly underrated.
My favorite of all of them.
M.Anthony is so underrated.
He never tried to overplay or overshadow anyone he just kept the groove going.
Whos talkin about mike here????
@@thearcher9940
mikey fans are like vegans - they need to tell us all about him every five minutes
@@nelsonschumacher7956 Tell us you didn't watch the video without telling us you didn't watch the video.
Love Mikey!!
Couldn't agree more regarding Michael's freight train, unstoppable bass work. Someone had to keep our ears grounded while the two brothers were flinging beats and notes all over the place like a couple of Dutch toddlers on a sugar high!
100% Truth right here, this had me Lmao! " Dutch Toddlers on a Sugar High"
Don't forget his backing vocals !!
Cool video. Mike was a human metronome for Ed & Al. The way he plays staccato, dead beats, etc is really cool. Not all Mikes stuff was simple either.
Eddie's rhythm tracks are OUTSTANDING! Everyone pays more attention to his leads and Eruption stuff, but he played great riffs. Great job breaking this stuff down!
Nailed with Uncle Ben's usual precision and a killer tone, too.
Uncle B has some amazing tone
"Dirty Movies". The riffs in that song are incredible, in particular the riff that happens 'fore the chorus. At the 1:20 mark, Ed swaggers out a raunchy, dirty, intricate, bad ass groove that I think is one of his best riffs. A really nice lead licks lashings of swagger to the riffs proceedings, then in comes Dave with the chorus. Theres a lot going on within that stunning strut of sound and the whole damn song in general.
Fully agree on Mike, just saw Him and Sammy over the weekend and they still killed it. his bass playing is so solid to fit the songs and not full of flash. He sand Aint Talking bout Love and killed it as well. I said it to my wife he was the secret weapon in VH.
I agree. I saw Sammy and the Circle a few years ago and realized that most of what I loved about the Hagar era Van Halen was Sammy and Michael.
M.Anthony > Billy Sheehan
@@TheAgentAssassin- I assume you’re joking.
@@BrianGlassEOD lol😅😅
Fair Warning is one of the best VH albums period. The first time I heard it thought that this is one of the best. Sick rythyms and crazy leads with off timing yet sounded awesome. Its just got everything. Its very heavy which I like. I wish they would have went more heavy with some of the Hagar songs.
1000% agree.
I think Fair Warning was the OG line-up's creative zenith.
There is not one non-killer track- everyone was playing at their best level.
A great record.
Uncle Ben, you did it again. I've tripped on this riff before, but nobody has ever broken it down like this. Dance baby!
i've always said it ed's 2nd and 4th fret work is so so durtyyyy!!! so much rhythm stank!!!!
Ed was bad ass,his rhythm skills were off the chart.His groove,feel and tone always stood out.He had a certain swagger that he stamped on his riffs.You knew it was him when he played.Thanks Uncle Ben!
I fully agree with your assessment of Michael Anthony's straight forward approach with how he played bass in the band. You put this explanation in perfect wording, in why Michael played this way.
His rhythm playing is spectacular and never gets enough credit. Not to mention how deep in the pocket Mike & Alex are.
The groove is REAL!!!
Ed played all the bass on Fair Warning. That's according to Ed himself. Also why the bass playing on that record is so in the pocket with his bro Alex.
That chromatic riff is also in "She's the Woman" I believe. Which I think is where the guitar riff came from originally. Greetings from Knox-Vegas!!
Correct! The funky riff used to be in She's The Woman also, in the demo version. Ed had to write a new one for the album DKTruth.
Exactly! I was just gonna say that.
@@billygreenville59 Cheers!
100 Percent Agree. And a lot of time, the so called "simple" stuff, is the PERFECT stuff. Awesome stuff.
Dude. Thank you. Michael is a solid band member. His vocals and backing rhythm are so rock-solid!
Eddie rhythm guitar is so chewie and groovy! I definitely appreciate his rhythm playing far more than his brilliant soloing.
I've been trying to figure out the backing guitar for that solo forever, and it's just eluded me until now, so thank you!
Yes, I LOVE the intro to the Mean Streets solo, and had trouble finding on RUclips. Everybody goes to the solo solo, and skips that awesome intro to the solo! Fantastic!
The rhythm under the solo in House of Pain is symphonic magic.
Couldn’t agree more!
There are so many nuances to his playing on every recording that it's really impossible to notice everything at once. I've been learning a lot of stuff from Van Halen and 1984 but I always feel like I'm doing something wrong after listening to the actual songs. His attitude, pick attack and rhythm make it so hard to learn exactly what's on the record. A lot is made of his pickups, amps, body wood etc etc but the real magic was in his fingers, rhythm and his touch. That's where the real goldmine is.
Don’t forget about his Volume pot use. He used his volume alllll the time to manipulate his tone and gain depending on the part he was playing. It’s not talked about much oddly but it’s a foundational part of his playing .
@@silverjaw138 very true. He could accurately move the volume pot in a way that most people would need a volume pedal or automatic MIDI switching for. It might as well have been a gain knob! Haha.
Yes totally agree. People usually come up short with his sound because of the nuances he had with both hands. Thats what sets him apart and makes him so unique. Its just like Buddys Rich's left hand skill, unmatched and once in a lifetime.
This is well said. We are lowly mortals, staring up at the sun.
EVH always talked about Clapton and May and Holdsworth later on, but I always heard huge amounts of Townsend, Billy Gibbons & Iommi in his rhythm work
I for sure hear Billy Gibbons, especially with his pinch harmonics, and nobody ever talks about that. I always thought that Hot for Teacher was the Van Halen version of La Grange.
@@joekillion7427Eddie's & the band's feel on shuffles really is exceptional - you can't not move to their grooves!!!
@@joekillion7427 Absolutely. And like I said above I hear lots of Townsend in his strumming patterns, especially on bridges, and how he employs suspensions in his chord voices. And then a little Iommi always sneaks in too, I think that's why he loved Dimebag so much, bc Dimebag kinda was like if EVH went the Full Sabbath and Eddie saw that as a road he did not take, but really appreciated.
Yes !!! - gibbons deep groove - also dick dale !!
I've come to think over the years, that the biggest influence on Eddie was Jimmy Page. And that applies here too. Jimmy did a bunch of messed up stuff dropping/picking up beats and creating 'simple' riffs that catch the ear because of the syncopation and timing. Same with lead stuff, using variations of basic well known pentatonic licks, but playing them at unexpected parts of the beat, or out of phase, in terms of which note to start on... Eddie learned that concept and took it to another level. Van Halen did a lot of Zep covers in their early days ;)
Thanks for exposing more magic in my favorite Van Halen song.
Like you, I've been listening to this since I was a teenager a million years ago. I still hear new things in this song. It continues to make the hair on the back of my neck stand up. And I still listen to it. A. LOT.
This along with In ‘n’ Out have such underrated Eddie rhythm playing. He will always be The Master. 🤘🏻🎸 😢
100% right on Michael Anthony
Great vid, thanks
YES!! One of those that slips under the radar, but holds the groove of the song perfectly!
My friend Brent Woods just played with Michael Anthony for the.Eddie trunk 40 year anniversary show. Brent and i have been friends since 7th grade ,and we both took lessons from Randy Rhoads. Anyway, he was music director for the show ,and played with everyone either in rehearsal or onstage and he mentioned that playing with Michael Anthony was like having a bulldozer just laying down exactly what the song needed! I always kinda put him to the side too,but when I saw VH ON every tour with DLR ,I noticed what a machine that both Alex and Eddie were, they played like they knew exactly what the other was thinking!
Perfect timing Ben, I was just working on the bridge and solo section of Mean Street and you gave this much clarity! I never noticed that badass riff under the solo until now, great stuff.
Thats why I love Van Halen, there are so many layers in each track. You can go so deep and the music keeps on giving. There are layers of rhythm and flow in every track.
Fair warning is my favourite album, right ahead of 1978. I'm glad that there are people out there who recognize his killer rhythm skills!
I'm a drummer, not a guitarist, but Ben, your playing is spectacular - effortless flow, power, time, and tone. Love it, Brother!
I think you've covered it in a previous vid, but the main riff on Can't Get This Stuff No More is just heavy awesomeness. Love it 🤘
Badass man!! I'll tell ya what, when I was about 11 or so I figured out by accident that if I didn't plug the headphone jack in all the way I could remove the a lot of the processed sound that comes from mastering. It would always sound like they, who ever you would listen to, like they were playing live. With that riff, when I did that with the jack, that was the only riff you heard and I always thought it sounded killer man. Very rhythm oriented and real choppy. TOTALLY agree 💯 Good job Ben!!
haha dude i remember doing that aaaaaall the time with my Discman!!! Old school!
@@BenEller Wow man that's crazy. I also remember trying to show ANYONE that would listen and literally I always ended up by myself trippin on it. But man, it opened up a whole new way to listen to tunes. That's when air playing became a priority, lol. I always loved the raw in it. The more raw the better. You do a killer job playing that by the way bro!!
Michael Anthony is one of the greatest rock bassists ever, period.
more complexity doesn't equal better playing. He always places his biggest priority on what best serves the song, which is true musicianship and maturity.
And would any of those songs be as good without his vocals. they'd still be good but the harmonies really gave them something extra. Extra, on top of all the other extra VH had.
Glad Eddie showed him everything 😂😂
ABSOLUTELY noticed it !
The layered tracks add to overall riffage and when each is broken down are amazing and beautifully radical on their own ....
Mean Street is of a different universe - wow
Very nice work Ben -
Your sound and ability are absolutely beautiful ...
Fn killer tone!! Love this riff! Fair Warning has riffs by the truck load. Would have loved to hear the riff on One Foot out the Door played on guitar
I just found this video, and HANDS DOWN, the best I've heard anyone play it other than Ed. You've hit the nail on the head--this is one of the 2 best grooves Eddie ever soloed over. It makes the fur on the back of your neck stand up.
Exactly! For years that solo just stood out to me, but in the last couple of years I started noticing that rhythm riff. Just as smoking as the solo.
Long Live Edward Van Halen !!
Always was one of my favorite riffs of the band
I am sure we all remember the first time we heard Van Halen! I did 45 years ago and I am still trying to play like him! Uncle Ben you have definitely helped me and I appreciate this one as well!. Great Job!
Ed's rhythm playing is incredible but gets overshadowed by his insane leads! Even the simple rhythm he plays during the Top Jimmy solo sounds dark & sinister AF. Serves the song beautifully.
Hey... I've been talking about that killer rhythm track for many years and agree its a beast. I was in a VH tribute band in the 80s and my brother had Eddie down. Used to sound kind of empty live without that driving rhythm but still great. Gives me goosebumps every time I hear that track. Cheers
Great video! one of my fave EVH riffs is the slow/B section in Panama... that weird F chord (at first fret) is one of my favourite moments in all of music. It is so subversive: super dissonant in the middle of a big ol' party song and just so weird
Awesome, Ben! Mean Street is indeed absolutely Ferocious, percussive rhythm playing, and you've opened up a new chapter in my understanding and appreciation with that killer up-stroke riff. Much appreciated!
Everything about Mean Street is amazing. The isolated drum track is so good, the rhythms are incredible and that bass! Imma throw this album on today
I am with ya, I always tell people who do not recognize his rhythm mastery to listen to the rhythm track under the mean street solo. Glad you posted!
YES! First time I heard Mean Street i almost drove off the road from the chills. Just an insanely good song
I stopped and listened to the track- so cool that you did a video on it
Fair Warning is my favorite Van Halen album and Mean Street is such a kicking song that always gets me revved up.
This has been one of the most fun licks I've been trying to get down as I transition from playing bass full time to learning the guitar as well. I appreciate your efforts and thoroughness on all these videos. GREAT WORK SIR!!!
Top Johnny is a seriously sick song and the riffs are criminally underated
I meant Jimmy not Johnny. Lol. Sorry
@@mitchrabideau
We know😂
Top Jimmy bro
girl gone bad never gets talked about, Eddies riff on that is bad ass
@@robert-lz9qf Hell yes. I totally missed how great that song was when I first bought the album (when it came out - fuck, I'm old), but it's freakin' fantastic.
Another great video, tons of good info. Thank you Ben!.....and yes; I agree.
Another great video... If you listen to that little run at the end of the riff, it sounds very much like his riff in "She's the Woman".
This!! ^^^^^^
Yup…same chromatic lick.
Because 'She's a Woman' and that interlude in 'Mean Street' were recorded back in 1977ish
ruclips.net/video/lewo6s6c8oo/видео.html
@@futarydary “Voodoo Queen.”
It’s an amazing thing to be able to understand these riffs. Please consider including your intro with the whole band to finish the episode.
Oh god Mean Street is such a banger, thanks for spreading the gospel Ben.
So cool, thanks for this video! What's making this so great is that neither kick nor snare play on the "1+" starting point of the guitar riff, it's only the guitar, bass and ride cymbal. With the kick drum filling up all the "e"s and "a"s and the snare doing the backbeat as the groove's anchor, it makes all 1/16s have a similar weight and the entire thing comes at you like a freight train.
The flanger and phaser really makes a huge difference!! And a little bit of Eventide magic besides the man!!
Thank you !! This song and everything in it is just absolutely killer ... phrasing, rhythm track, lead tracks. Sweet Judas!!! Fair warning and VH 1 are my fav albums.
Uncle Ben…there are some hidden gems on OU812 that no one ever talks about…just try playing “sucker in a 3 piece” or “AFU” or “source of infection”….Eddie was on his game for that album!!!!
I once got Uncle Ben to tab out and try to teach me "Finish what you started" I still have his tabs, but my fingers just refuse to move that way! That's one tricky little lick
Sucka is a feeling fire solo
Yes!!! AFU Naturally Wired!
Ben is this all because VH recorded live and the song/rhythm/riffs organically evolved in the 'live' process. They wrote and practiced the song a certain way but when laying it down they went with that days groove/flow and we got gold, pure gold, it still sounds so fresh and cool today. Love your stuff.
I agree, Mike was the perfect bass player for VH. It worked because all of the right musicians were there at the right time. Ed was incredible, no doubt, but it takes a BAND to do it.
The comment about how if Michael were shredding and tapping with Eddie it wouldn't have worked. I agree. But, that is essentially what happened when David Lee Roth went and made Skyscraper with Steve Vai and Billy Sheehan. That is a ferocious album, and I think it totally worked for them. But the personalities and styles are different there, even though DLR was the common thread. Steve Vai is amazing, but not the same amazing as EVH. But comparing Fair Warning (1981) to Skyscraper (1988) is an interesting thought experiment.
It did work perfectly on Eat 'Em and Smile, but the very next record, Dave told Billy to just play very basic bass lines. Billy left. SkyScraper tour was Matt Bissonette on bass. Would everyone's egos allowed it that in VH ? Who knows?@@daveowczarek
Love the way you talked about Michael Anthony bass playing...each and every member was as important as Eddie for me, and that is clear when you showed the way they interacted with each other's playing.
Love Alex Van Halen 's drumming, since I've heard it!
Mean Street has always been one of the coolest and well...meanest Van Halen songs. The tone is so aggressive.
along my way home from my Gfs house in the 80s, for 3 years the last street after a mile walk was East Street, and as soon as I turned on to the street, my mind would say.."this is home...this is East Street"...since then whenever I pass it, it still pops in my head...
his rhythm was unmatched i always liked the riff behind the house of pain solo
Yes sir agree very much so about Michael Anthony. Held it down while Eddie did his thang.
My biggest go-to guitar has always been my EVH Air Guitar. Goes everywhere and never, ever lets me down. 🤘😎🤘
Great video! This part of the song is what makes it so awesome. You can hear it but there’s no way to pay attention to everything at one time. But you’re right that’s the groove that makes this song great. And you’re spot on about Michael Anthony. I don’t think anyone else could’ve complemented Eddie and Roth nearly as good as he did. The song “So this is love” that’s a great example of the groove behind the grind!
This is proof why Eddie was the complete package. The media and noobs just focus on his lead work, which is superb, but the REAL magic is his rhythm (I actually spelled it right this time with no spell checker red squiggly line under it!) playing. That's where all the real tasty stuff is. And most guitar aficionados who know the truth about Eddie don't put him in the "shredder" genre of guitar music. Oh, he could shred with the best of them, but it's the Mean Street type riffage that cements his legacy as just a good ol' fashioned rocker.
Rhythm is really a strangely spelled word in English, isn't it? Five consonants, one vowel and that vowel is "y."
@@ChuckHaney Yes. I spell it differently every time I write it. Once in a while I get it right and it surprises me. And surprise is another. I always forget that "r".
What an awesome pick! And DLR’s vocals blend so well with the groove. One of my favorite under-the-radar riffs is between the 1:19-1:40 minute mark from On Fire! It’s not a rhythm, but definitely big and nasty, a blast to play as well. It always perks people’s ears up when they hear it!
EVH was as good at rhythm as he was at lead.
No he was BETTER. His rhythm playing is impossible to copy. There is not a person on this planet who can swing like Ed did. NOBODY.
With you on Michael Anthony! Great guy, excellent musician, fantastic voice and exactly what VH needed on every song. Someone has to hold down the fort and the bass player is often that person and if they are doing their job, that is what they do. Respect to Michael Anthony!! Great video btw! Thanks.
Personally, I love the two guitar parts of Dance The Night Away. they're simple but sounds so good.
That riff popped into my head out of no where a few days ago. I ALWAYS thought that opening to the video riff was so bad ass and unique. So good to see Ben highlight it!
Man, VH is literally my favorite band, listen to them for 35 years, played tons of VH on guitar, and Mean Streets is in my top ten songs of all time to play!….
And I never heard this riff either!😳
Thank you Uncle Ben! You just handed my ears a new Eddie morsel to enjoy, and I thought I had all the Van Halen carved into my brain forever!
Makes you wonder what other hidden gems are hiding in some of those classic tracks
heck yeah dude!
One of my favorite riffs of all time. So emotionally charged that it feels like you’re getting an adrenaline boost when you listen to it. I remember reading that Eddie was pissed off at Dave when he went into the studio and recorded this originally…and you can definitely feel that emotion.
I always like House of Pain and Top Jimmy from 1984. Very interesting riffs / songs.
Agree.....and Drop Dead Legs.
@@ginomarchetti5153 : you could say the whole album
Jump and panama are the trademarks popular songs, but the other are really van halen's real work
Girl Gone Bad is a phenomenal song. ALL aspects are amazing from the harmonic tapping intro to the tremolo picking on that blistering lead.
Excellent breakdown of a super-leet riff, and a good reminder to always Use Your Ears to take in as much detail as possible about the music we love. This riff is such a great example of how rhythmic Eddie's rhythm playing was. It's like he was playing drums on the guitar as a counterpoint to Alex's parts. It's all about feeeeeel!
I'm just here to say that Eddie's rhythm skills are under appreciated even though people say his rhythm skills are great on every single RUclips post when people talk about his playing /s
Uncle Ben does the best lessons/breakdowns on RUclips! Fact!
Yep, Michael is VERY underrated. Van Halen wouldn't have worked with someone like Sheehan on bass
Ed actually played most of the bass parts on Fair warning. Also on the Hot For Teacher intro, Ed doubled his guitar part with bass. It was pulled it out in the mix because Mike wouldn't be able to play the part live.
@@bravenstrong source ?
@@haggbom72 I have no proof about my Fair Warning statement other than my ears. However, this Sunset Sound video backs my HFT comment at around 6:25
ruclips.net/video/5-biL02KxE4/видео.html
dude for gods sake hes not "underrated" JFC thats the new buzz word in the comment section
Damn right! His rhythm is what shines on this song. Everyone talks about the tapping intro segment. But for me that all went out the window the moment the main riff kicked in. One of the nastiest riffs of all time. Period.
That riff (starting at the pull off) sounds like Sammy Hagar's "Three Lock Box".
YES, thank you! I don't play guitar, but as a fan I've always been a rhythm guy and hear what's going on behind the solos. Mean Street was always a favorite. Friends thought I was cranking the solo...no! I was cranking that backing guitar! Thank you for being another guy who noticed!
Oh, anybody kinda bummed listening to VH live and crying that we don't hear Eddie's backing guitar because he's human and can only play the lead? Think "Tattoo" as a recent and perfect example. The opening sounds astounding on the album, but crap live, because there's no backing guitar.
That phaser riff is impossible to play like Eddie because of the immense groove he had in his playing haha
Michael is a super tight bass player . I learned most of the bass parts when I was in a band . He was so tight , kept the song together and was woven in perfectly . While I thought I was a hot shot bassist but when learned Michaels parts I had to say they were perfect to hold it together !!!
We all love Michael Anthony, and he still remains the bands best vocalist. But can we talk about the elephant in the room? Was it really him playing bass, or was it Ed? Yes, I know they recorded as a live band, but I’ve always suspected Ed re-recorded some parts on bass and thought I read, for example, that Ed played bass on most of 1984. Anyone else?
I heard back then that Michael played note for note the bass end compositions that Ed completely created. Eddie Van...the emergence of Mozart consciousness.
Awesome lesson, went back to clean up what I was doing wrong and came across this video. Ed used to talk about his rhythm playing and how articulated he was in old guitar mag interviews... Truly one of the most badass interludes in the VH catalogue, which is saying a lot!...Oh, nice gear too!
Jeff Beck had high praise for EVH’s rhythm guitar playing.
You said a mouthful right there brother!
Everything about this song is perfect. It makes me cry.
Alex was completely underrated for years. Ed and Alex were sloppy together. It was beautiful. Their music had a swing to it. They just went for it. Mike's playing created a normal drive that pushed through the mud that was going on around him. It was so unique. Awesome beauty to it all really. They totally owned it. All of it. You just don't find it anymore. Music has changed for the worse in my opinion.
100% agree on your take on Michael Anthony. His playing on the bass was the glue that holds it all together.
Killer dude. Believe me I noticed it 😂
That chromatic run at the end of the riff is reminiscent of the riff in “She’s The Woman”. I know you know that song is in their demo they recorded with Gene Simmons and is on ADKoT.
Noticed that too! Makes sense since the iconic guitar part before the lead solo was lifted from the original 70s demo of that song. The part Eddie wrote to replace it on the last album doesn't quite match up to the original. VH were masters of reusing old material though.
Very nice breakdown. So few people appreciate Eddie's rhythm playing. So incredibly artistic and innovative.
First.
great pick!! just listened to this..this morning. Great job on all your videos. Thank you!