call me crazy, but I don't think Big River is as good as the Demo version. As rough sounding as it is, I think the vocals are better and the harmony parts are better in Big Trouble. I do wish they had recorded that version with the Ted Templeman sound and added it to Diver Down or WACF.
@@jeffgrummons2954Big trouble was definitely better. And the lyrics made more sense in it too. Same as the original she’s the woman demo, it’s just that it had the mean street bridge in a part of the song.
I love the story that Mike Soldano tells about Eddie calling him to fix his Marshall.. I think it might have been on Valentines or something. He's like 45 mins away and gets there in 15 and Mike can't wait to get into the guts of the "Mystical Marshall" only to find out its bone stock/plain jane.. Guess those hands do matter a lot.. Bravo Ben - this was a tremendous topic, well done sir!
18:56 Eddie went with "but does it sound good?" in all things music. He didn't care one bit about "but is it in the scale?" .. which is what made him so different from Randy!
The Halen's were flown to New York to record this, and they did it through Kiss"s gear if memory serves correctly, A very inexperienced Gene Simmons was giving them directions as producer which did little for their own sound coming through. Check out complete Zero which also has some of the Warner Brothers Demos...as far as getting it exactly right on let's get rockin... Remember Ed's moto... If it sounds good it is good. Great Job Ben, you can never have too much Van Halen...
You touched on the fact that a lot of these riffs feel timeless in away most stuff from the same era doesn't. They have an energy and sparkle that makes them feel like amped up AC/DC or something.
Every video, I'm always amazed at how clean your playing is. My muting is garbage. Another thing to work on this year. I really enjoyed listening to the demos. I've also spent an unhealthy amount of time listening to isolated tracks of Eddie's guitar from the first two albums. Hard to believe that Gene Simmons couldn't get anyone to take an interest in the band.
Eddie has more lost and unused riffs than most guitarists have total riffs in their lifetime. He wasn't just an amazing player, he was incredibly prolific. There's not a ton of repetition across his career.
Great comments! Excellent topic, thanks! hope it’s OK to bring a different topic in. He was no slouch on the keyboard either. I was a late bloomer in appreciation of Edward, but committed to teach myself "Right Now" on the piano, stated and practiced obsessively the day he went home. Still have trouble with the flowing key pressure. I admire all you guitar players,
Incredible job on some amazing little known VH tracks. I'd also love to see a Part II, as well. Here are a few unreleased Van Halen tracks that I'd loved to see covered one day: "Light In the Sky", "Eyes of the Night", "Angel Eyes", "No More Waiting", "Down In Flames" and there's so many more out there, too. Please consider doing a follow-up one day. Well done, Ben!!
This is hilarious - just last night I was zoning out on RUclips checking out the '75-'77 Van Halen stuff, including the Zero demos....and this morning you post this! Ha, awesome!
It's. The damn KISS Love Gun tone ! He was basically auditioning Alex And Eddie for KISS ! Van Halen also played a set on KISS full Love Gun stage! I have a copy ,it's like these guys had never played before! Which is what Gene wanted ,and that is what he wanted to happen! They flew back to LA and when KISS played 3 nights at the Forum, everyone was on the list except Dave!
I love those demos,"Let's get rockin","Babe don't leave me alone" and "We die bold" that they should've released on ADKOT ..Thank you Uncle Ben,great upload.
Btw we need a 5150 song in depth tutorial. You played that song recently on the video that you tested the amp and pedalboard from van halen w-d-w rig. There is a lot of cool riffs on that tune.
I knew EVH had the blues and jazz licks and scales locked down, but I had no idea he was putting prog rock down into his repertoire. Very interesting, but his chord and scale progression may have come from this.
I agree with your point about how Eddie could get away with stuff that doesn't seem to make any sense theoretically but yet he always somehow made it work. For example when I started having a go at Unchained and got to the pre chorus I was thinking "What the?...How? Where did he get this from?!
Thanks for the lessons! Pretty awesome how the riffs of my youth still challenge guitarists today. Including me 48 years later. You can't find footage of him because there were no camcorders of any kind. You had to shoot Super 8 or 16mm film, Which would last 3 minutes and 10 minutes respectively before a reel change. And it was expensive to develop. I couldn't get my Holdsworth and McLaughlin loving friends to go see Van Halen at the Starwood or Golden West Ballroom with me. As you point out, that ordinary Plexi sound with the six band EQ and Echoplex boost was his sound. The _albums_ were a studio sound. Trick micing, high end tube compressors and parametric EQs to sweeten it. The ever present Variac wasn't used but he kept it on his amp to throw people (Rhoads, Lynch, Mars, Cavazo, et al) off his sound. He had a PPIMV master volume that was a specialty of Jose Arredondo on the Plexi by then, knob in back. So he didn't need the Variac as a master volume anymore. I had the same mod made to my Plexi at ARRCO, which was a block from an old Chevy assembly plant. The wait list was like 2 months. If you were lucky. If you called and asked "When will my amp be done?" it would take a month longer.
Ben, do you think with Gene Simmons being a creative bassist that he perhaps supported Mike playing actively rather than the simpler lines that appeared on the debut album?
Big Troubles did go on their album A Different Kind Of Truth in 2012. They called it Big River on that album. Also Lets Get Rockin was on A Different Kind Of Truth and they called it Outta of Space.
Definitely wild to think about! I realized the other day watching Live Without A Net in 1986 Eddie had been playing and developing Eruption for at least 10 years at that point -- this taught me to be nicer to myself about learning and failing in my own attempts at master level technique, and following the man at the top's influences with grace and respect. That book Eruption is so good.
I love how a lot of those riffs from back in the day ended up on A.D.K.O.T. Which ended up being my favorite album for a long time! To me, it was some of his best playing! 🎸🤘🏻
Would love to see you do some early solo breakdowns. I see so many instructionals on the running with the devil solo that are incorrect. Anything from the first four records.
Down in Flames, I got on a bootleg in 1990. It started with the intro of Linda Ronstadt's No Good. After that the song was so good. They should have done Down In Flames in its original form like Bullet Head, instead of Tattoo. That's the one you missed.love to see your take.
Look up the video Ted Templeman Van Halen sessions!! It’s basically a 38 minute van halen album before Van Halen 1. It’s the same coolness as van halen zero because there’s riffs and songs that are from other songs like let’s get this show on the road (romeo delight) ect. But there’s a lot of good tunes that never got made
EVH basically nicked his cadence from Jim McCarty, Cactus, and tapping from John Du Cann, Atomic Rooster. If only the Dutchman would have been humble to tell this truth. Eddie built a career from playing McCarthyisms. ruclips.net/video/MMKCoPDDVgQ/видео.html
These demos tunes are crazy! Also I think Eddie’s mythical Marshall probably had blown components changed out or repaired, and there was a ton of part variation at the time. His was ‘stock’ but probably had some non standard parts. But at the end of the day it was his absolutely bonkers writing and playing.
I haven't had time to read all the comments, so I might be repeating .... But, I believe that Gene flew the out to New York to record the Demos and I think I remember Eddie saying that because Gene produced it ..., it sounded more like a KISS record than he would have liked .... I'm guessing that it was guitar straight to Marshall w/ none of the "tricks" that he used on VH I & VH II .... And I have to wonder that "if" he'd have used his typical rig at that time, how many of those riffs might have become hits ? They certainly sound WAY different when you use the VH I tone to play them ! GREAT JOB !
Several riffs from their early demos would later get used on the ‘A Different Kinda of Truth’ album. In fact 1/3 of the songs were from 70s demos, 1/3 were Hagar/Cherone era demos & the last 1/3 were new songs.
What I would absolutely love is a deep dive into the following songs off the Zero demo album; Light In The Sky (Not the same song as Light Up The Sky), We Die Bold, Who Put Out The Lights, Woman In Love (A deeper dive), Please Don't Leave Me Alone.
I'm reading Eruption too! My favorite lick lately has been the 1:40 bridge for Light Up the Sky. Underrated! And it's that fun, smiley, swinging rhythm that really energizes and inspires me on my own journey to find my own sound and style
@@BenEllerIt used to be on Spotify, but the licensing expired for it. Wolfgang recently commented on it, and basically said that Dave hates ADKoT, so it unfortunately will probably not be reappearing on there.
My brother was up for Thanksgiving with his new Jackson bass guitar and Ampeg BA-110 practice amp, and I played the Ted Templeman demos off RUclips here for him. And he keyed in on "We Die Bold" as quickly as I did the first time I heard the demos. And we were both like "YEP! THAT'S a VAN HALEN tune, and an EDWARD-Riff no doubt!" It has that 'raw, early Van Halen' sound to it because it WAS raw, early Van Halen. And we 'winged' the song as best we could, from memory, the following morning, so he could record us to let this gal he wants as a singer get an idea of what she'd be getting into with a couple of '50-plus' year old, '70s/80s'-style rock players. It's simple, but has to be played 'right' in order to achoeve the 'tone'. Eddie said it best: "A lot of the tone I get comes from my hands & fingers." You gotta REALLY strangle the strings & neck on the guitar mostly, to get the 'sound' he was getting. Learned that fact early on, doing AC/DC songs. Eddoe also said "If it 'sounds' good, then it 'is' good." So, 'syncopated' picking on rythym parts is something you'd hear him do, and he never talked about "All down strokes or up strokes". Your 'ears' will tell you if you're playing it right or not. Ear development at an early age was a Blessing I thank God for my Dad being a Pro-Level Pedal Steel player for, every time I pick up and play. And I thank God He gave us all Eddie Van Halen also, for 65 years. Simply put.
Ben, thanks for these. So many VH treasures out there. If you can in the future, can you deep dive on 2 VH unreleased songs, "We die bold" and, "Light in the sky"? Note: Not light up the sky. ;) Again, thank you for keep the VH torch lit and teaching the awesomeness that was, Edward Van Halen.
Van Halen is such a kick ass guitarist. At one point in time, I read a quote by Van Halen that said "I learned every Eric Clapton song to get this good" and I thought if I learned all of Van Halen's songs, I'd be godlike on guitar. Learned a few, but I kinda dropped guitar for a while. I've been on the grind lately so I don't sound like a step dad and need to start practicing more Eddie riffs. Also, I think Hang Em High is my favorite song by them, but it's easily one of the hardest riffs I've ever attempted. If I ever got a gig and they, I would have to fake the main riff. I know you did a whole video on it (which reminded me why I'll probably never learn the song correctly)
Any and all EVH video's are always 👍 just curious if you have seen Simon Hosford EVH tribute band? I am blown away by how well he plays EVH stuff and the lead singer's channelling of David Lee Roth. Best EVH tribute i have ever seen.
Hands down my favorite is Big Trouble! Always loved that riff and song. They finally released a version of it on a Different Kind of Truth under the name Big River. Good stuff!!! EVH for Life!!!
I've been in love with "BIG TROUBLE" (Big River...ugh) for quite a few years now. That song makes me think of a pre-80s Ed, 16-17 years old playing this song and figuring out the raw Ed that would become the legend. Big Trouble intro sounds just like BOSTON also!
Ben; I am so glad you did this. Those demo's have some killer riffs and killer tunes. The alternative versions of House Of Pain and others are killer also. My favorite solo from those demo's would be Big Trouble. What an awesome solo. Plus the break down before the solo.
I will say a part 2 of the solo's from those demo's would be awesome. Big Trouble, Get The Show On The Road, etc. Maybe your favorite licks from those solo's?
Awesome as always 👍🏼👍🏼, Also I have been looking at how to play Stay Frosty I can get close but maybe you could do a video on it and break it down , it is a kick ass song very much like Ice Cream Man !! Summer songs top down cruising songs for sure Anyway thanks
Good stuff, Ben! Search " Van Halen jamming at his house 1974" . You can hear even at that age (18-19) he already had that wild rhythm style and odd time thing going on. You'll clearly catch "Somebody get me a Doctor" @ the 4:00 mark. Amazing he had that riff as a wee Lad. Love stuff like this. 🤘🤘
All great stuff, but for me The Main Squeeze is the best unreleased one. Great off kilter intro and a classic simple & catchy breakdown part. And a walloping solo of course. This one would’ve been a classic if they’d finished it
Thanks for checking out the LOST Van Halen riffs! Snag the tabs and brown sound bonus video here: www.patreon.com/posts/95924362?
Big Trouble was on their last album. Name changed to Big River I believe. The riff at 19:23 is ‘Outta Space’ on their last album.
True!!
@@BenEller guitar sounds sick man. Great playing.
call me crazy, but I don't think Big River is as good as the Demo version. As rough sounding as it is, I think the vocals are better and the harmony parts are better in Big Trouble. I do wish they had recorded that version with the Ted Templeman sound and added it to Diver Down or WACF.
Don't forget about the bass groove in big trouble Uncle Ben, it's badass too.
@@jeffgrummons2954Big trouble was definitely better. And the lyrics made more sense in it too. Same as the original she’s the woman demo, it’s just that it had the mean street bridge in a part of the song.
I love the story that Mike Soldano tells about Eddie calling him to fix his Marshall.. I think it might have been on Valentines or something. He's like 45 mins away and gets there in 15 and Mike can't wait to get into the guts of the "Mystical Marshall" only to find out its bone stock/plain jane..
Guess those hands do matter a lot..
Bravo Ben - this was a tremendous topic, well done sir!
Eddie was only 23 when he made the first album…let that sink in!!!!!
ALIENS!
I could never wrap my head around that. Same with Nuno -- 23 yrs old when Pornograffitti was released - which was his 2nd album.
Crazy 😮
Still can't believe he's gone😢
Am I alone I thinking some of the most terrifying guitar ever is Eddie pre-tapping and pre-whammy bar?
Alex Skolnick was a teenager when he recorded The Legacy with Testament.
18:56 Eddie went with "but does it sound good?" in all things music. He didn't care one bit about "but is it in the scale?" .. which is what made him so different from Randy!
The Halen's were flown to New York to record this, and they did it through Kiss"s gear if memory serves correctly, A very inexperienced Gene Simmons was giving them directions as producer which did little for their own sound coming through. Check out complete Zero which also has some of the Warner Brothers Demos...as far as getting it exactly right on let's get rockin... Remember Ed's moto... If it sounds good it is good. Great Job Ben, you can never have too much Van Halen...
You touched on the fact that a lot of these riffs feel timeless in away most stuff from the same era doesn't. They have an energy and sparkle that makes them feel like amped up AC/DC or something.
Amped up AC/DC is right. Explains why we can't get enough.
Every video, I'm always amazed at how clean your playing is. My muting is garbage. Another thing to work on this year. I really enjoyed listening to the demos. I've also spent an unhealthy amount of time listening to isolated tracks of Eddie's guitar from the first two albums. Hard to believe that Gene Simmons couldn't get anyone to take an interest in the band.
Eddie has more lost and unused riffs than most guitarists have total riffs in their lifetime. He wasn't just an amazing player, he was incredibly prolific. There's not a ton of repetition across his career.
Great comments! Excellent topic, thanks! hope it’s OK to bring a different topic in. He was no slouch on the keyboard either. I was a late bloomer in appreciation of Edward, but committed to teach myself "Right Now" on the piano, stated and practiced obsessively the day he went home. Still have trouble with the flowing key pressure. I admire all you guitar players,
Loved this! Hope you can do a Part 2 and include We Die Young, Get the Show on The Road, Red Zone, Eyes of The Night.
So cool you showed these, also tap into the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes demos like We Die Bold, Young and Wild.
Incredible job on some amazing little known VH tracks. I'd also love to see a Part II, as well. Here are a few unreleased Van Halen tracks that I'd loved to see covered one day: "Light In the Sky", "Eyes of the Night", "Angel Eyes", "No More Waiting", "Down In Flames" and there's so many more out there, too. Please consider doing a follow-up one day. Well done, Ben!!
This is hilarious - just last night I was zoning out on RUclips checking out the '75-'77 Van Halen stuff, including the Zero demos....and this morning you post this! Ha, awesome!
It's. The damn KISS Love Gun tone ! He was basically auditioning Alex And Eddie for KISS ! Van Halen also played a set on KISS full Love Gun stage! I have a copy ,it's like these guys had never played before! Which is what Gene wanted ,and that is what he wanted to happen! They flew back to LA and when KISS played 3 nights at the Forum, everyone was on the list except Dave!
I love those demos,"Let's get rockin","Babe don't leave me alone" and "We die bold" that they should've released on ADKOT ..Thank you Uncle Ben,great upload.
Excellent stuff Ben. Those demos are badass. I think a couple of these riffs or bits of them popped up on A Different Kind Of Truth?
Yeah! She’s the Woman and several others made it on there!
Btw we need a 5150 song in depth tutorial. You played that song recently on the video that you tested the amp and pedalboard from van halen w-d-w rig. There is a lot of cool riffs on that tune.
I knew EVH had the blues and jazz licks and scales locked down, but I had no idea he was putting prog rock down into his repertoire. Very interesting, but his chord and scale progression may have come from this.
I agree with your point about how Eddie could get away with stuff that doesn't seem to make any sense theoretically but yet he always somehow made it work. For example when I started having a go at Unchained and got to the pre chorus I was thinking "What the?...How? Where did he get this from?!
Have you watched my video on that riff??
@@BenEller No I haven't but I most certainly will later on today when I'm finished adulting, Thanks'
Thanks for the lessons! Pretty awesome how the riffs of my youth still challenge guitarists today. Including me 48 years later. You can't find footage of him because there were no camcorders of any kind. You had to shoot Super 8 or 16mm film, Which would last 3 minutes and 10 minutes respectively before a reel change. And it was expensive to develop.
I couldn't get my Holdsworth and McLaughlin loving friends to go see Van Halen at the Starwood or Golden West Ballroom with me. As you point out, that ordinary Plexi sound with the six band EQ and Echoplex boost was his sound. The _albums_ were a studio sound. Trick micing, high end tube compressors and parametric EQs to sweeten it. The ever present Variac wasn't used but he kept it on his amp to throw people (Rhoads, Lynch, Mars, Cavazo, et al) off his sound. He had a PPIMV master volume that was a specialty of Jose Arredondo on the Plexi by then, knob in back. So he didn't need the Variac as a master volume anymore. I had the same mod made to my Plexi at ARRCO, which was a block from an old Chevy assembly plant. The wait list was like 2 months. If you were lucky. If you called and asked "When will my amp be done?" it would take a month longer.
Ben, do you think with Gene Simmons being a creative bassist that he perhaps supported Mike playing actively rather than the simpler lines that appeared on the debut album?
Van Halen was really a Riff machine!! Amazing!!
I could play Eddie riffs all day. So much fun. Thanks Ben!
Same dude!! Theres something about evh riffs
Agreed! Long live the King!
Big Troubles did go on their album A Different Kind Of Truth in 2012. They called it Big River on that album. Also Lets Get Rockin was on A Different Kind Of Truth and they called it Outta of Space.
I’m 44. My original guitar teacher had the bootleg for those sessions and gave me a copy when I was 13. Mind blown. Love that guitar btw ❤
Definitely wild to think about! I realized the other day watching Live Without A Net in 1986 Eddie had been playing and developing Eruption for at least 10 years at that point -- this taught me to be nicer to myself about learning and failing in my own attempts at master level technique, and following the man at the top's influences with grace and respect. That book Eruption is so good.
I love how a lot of those riffs from back in the day ended up on A.D.K.O.T. Which ended up being my favorite album for a long time! To me, it was some of his best playing! 🎸🤘🏻
Would love to see you do some early solo breakdowns. I see so many instructionals on the running with the devil solo that are incorrect. Anything from the first four records.
Will do!
Down in Flames, I got on a bootleg in 1990. It started with the intro of Linda Ronstadt's No Good. After that the song was so good. They should have done Down In Flames in its original form like Bullet Head, instead of Tattoo. That's the one you missed.love to see your take.
I’m so shocked that they dropped that first riff and didn’t use it again. I was just staring at your fingers hypnotized
It’s so tasty!!!
They were in NY playing through Kiss’s equipment for the demos which is why the amp tones are sort of pedestrian. Still sounds great though
Look up the video Ted Templeman Van Halen sessions!! It’s basically a 38 minute van halen album before Van Halen 1. It’s the same coolness as van halen zero because there’s riffs and songs that are from other songs like let’s get this show on the road (romeo delight) ect. But there’s a lot of good tunes that never got made
ben, on that last song you played, it is identical to Outta Space off A Different Kind of Truth, that might help
Goddamn bro. Wish you could do the whole songs. These are such bangers. Insane that they didn't put them in an album.
EVH basically nicked his cadence from Jim McCarty, Cactus, and tapping from John Du Cann, Atomic Rooster.
If only the Dutchman would have been humble to tell this truth.
Eddie built a career from playing McCarthyisms.
ruclips.net/video/MMKCoPDDVgQ/видео.html
Awesome man. Holy crap that Marshall sounds amazing - modelers/profilers are cool but nothing like playing through a non MV Marshall circuit.
The riffs for "Big Trouble" wound up being used for "Big River" on the Different Kind of Truth album in 2012.
just finished that book a few days ago...great insight from the man himself!!!
Dude you friggin rock!!! Love these videos on Van Halen riffs!!! Please more my dude 🤟🏼
I think that funky “I wanna be your lover “ riff probably came from Gene Simmons
These demos tunes are crazy! Also I think Eddie’s mythical Marshall probably had blown components changed out or repaired, and there was a ton of part variation at the time. His was ‘stock’ but probably had some non standard parts. But at the end of the day it was his absolutely bonkers writing and playing.
So much cool evh coming out on RUclips you're going to be busy learning new old riffs for a while
Cant watch anymore Ben. I suck
If y’all don’t know about the zero version of house of pain.. get to it!
Maybe do We Die Bold?
Great Great video! Thank you 😊
I haven't had time to read all the comments, so I might be repeating .... But, I believe that Gene flew the out to New York to record the Demos and I think I remember Eddie saying that because Gene produced it ..., it sounded more like a KISS record than he would have liked .... I'm guessing that it was guitar straight to Marshall w/ none of the "tricks" that he used on VH I & VH II ....
And I have to wonder that "if" he'd have used his typical rig at that time, how many of those riffs might have become hits ? They certainly sound WAY different when you use the VH I tone to play them !
GREAT JOB !
At 16:00 that reminds me of Take Your Whiskey Home!
Haha id never heard that 'from the high register to the cash register' before. You fun me.
Several riffs from their early demos would later get used on the ‘A Different Kinda of Truth’ album. In fact 1/3 of the songs were from 70s demos, 1/3 were Hagar/Cherone era demos & the last 1/3 were new songs.
I’d love to hear your rendition of Down in Flames.
What I would absolutely love is a deep dive into the following songs off the Zero demo album; Light In The Sky (Not the same song as Light Up The Sky), We Die Bold, Who Put Out The Lights, Woman In Love (A deeper dive), Please Don't Leave Me Alone.
Maybe Ed played Ace's gear for that Gene demo. Sure sounds like a Les Paul to me. We Die Bold and Woman In Love are my favorite demos.
Just got a G4 pedal and looking for some new riffs to play. Thanks uncle Ben.
I'm reading Eruption too!
My favorite lick lately has been the 1:40 bridge for Light Up the Sky. Underrated! And it's that fun, smiley, swinging rhythm that really energizes and inspires me on my own journey to find my own sound and style
Uncle Ben playing Van Halen 🔥🔥🔥🔥
If you slow Woman in Love you can see how Eddie was ZZ Top influenced
Big Trouble becomes Big River on A DIfferent Kind Of Truth. Pretty much note for note and with the intro too.
Nice!!! Wish that record was on Spotify!
@@BenEllerIt used to be on Spotify, but the licensing expired for it. Wolfgang recently commented on it, and basically said that Dave hates ADKoT, so it unfortunately will probably not be reappearing on there.
Big Trouble sounds Caress of Steel-esque Rush-ish influenced to me at first blush.
Wtf they were playing 5hr sets? Hail Halen
We Die Bold riff is sick, do a follow up video on the others
My brother was up for Thanksgiving with his new Jackson bass guitar and Ampeg BA-110 practice amp, and I played the Ted Templeman demos off RUclips here for him. And he keyed in on "We Die Bold" as quickly as I did the first time I heard the demos. And we were both like "YEP! THAT'S a VAN HALEN tune, and an EDWARD-Riff no doubt!" It has that 'raw, early Van Halen' sound to it because it WAS raw, early Van Halen. And we 'winged' the song as best we could, from memory, the following morning, so he could record us to let this gal he wants as a singer get an idea of what she'd be getting into with a couple of '50-plus' year old, '70s/80s'-style rock players. It's simple, but has to be played 'right' in order to achoeve the 'tone'. Eddie said it best: "A lot of the tone I get comes from my hands & fingers." You gotta REALLY strangle the strings & neck on the guitar mostly, to get the 'sound' he was getting. Learned that fact early on, doing AC/DC songs. Eddoe also said "If it 'sounds' good, then it 'is' good." So, 'syncopated' picking on rythym parts is something you'd hear him do, and he never talked about "All down strokes or up strokes". Your 'ears' will tell you if you're playing it right or not. Ear development at an early age was a Blessing I thank God for my Dad being a Pro-Level Pedal Steel player for, every time I pick up and play. And I thank God He gave us all Eddie Van Halen also, for 65 years. Simply put.
This video is a great idea. Thank you so much. Edie was THE riff master when it comes to groove.
6.23 is in the last album with wolfie
RE the tone. It shows what Templeman did - especially on the first album.
Ben, thanks for these. So many VH treasures out there. If you can in the future, can you deep dive on 2 VH unreleased songs, "We die bold" and, "Light in the sky"? Note: Not light up the sky. ;) Again, thank you for keep the VH torch lit and teaching the awesomeness that was, Edward Van Halen.
UNCLE BEN!!!!!…. I was just using your vid to work out “Just like Paradise”….it’s killing me😎
Van Halen is such a kick ass guitarist. At one point in time, I read a quote by Van Halen that said "I learned every Eric Clapton song to get this good" and I thought if I learned all of Van Halen's songs, I'd be godlike on guitar. Learned a few, but I kinda dropped guitar for a while. I've been on the grind lately so I don't sound like a step dad and need to start practicing more Eddie riffs.
Also, I think Hang Em High is my favorite song by them, but it's easily one of the hardest riffs I've ever attempted. If I ever got a gig and they, I would have to fake the main riff. I know you did a whole video on it (which reminded me why I'll probably never learn the song correctly)
This is absolutely fantastic!! Thank you for playing these lesser know bad ass riffs!!!
Awesome, can i suggest "Glitter" and "Act like it hurts" Great playing!
A ton of those riffs ended up on A Different Kind of Truth, which is an amazing album and belongs on the top shelf.
Was gonna say the same..good ear
Yep, there are a lot of Zero riffs in ADKOT.
Any and all EVH video's are always 👍
just curious if you have seen Simon Hosford EVH tribute band? I am blown away by how well he plays EVH stuff and the lead singer's channelling of David Lee Roth. Best EVH tribute i have ever seen.
Check out the 1977 Warner Brothers Demo called the Ted Templeman Sessions.. the bass guitar is very upfront and clear.. interesting mix.
Can’t resist saying also that guitar is just crazy unique. Love it
I TOO skip out on band material for Mammoth recordings 😂😭😂😭
I go to band practice like “no I didn’t learn Tom Petty material but check out this Ed riff”
Hands down my favorite is Big Trouble! Always loved that riff and song. They finally released a version of it on a Different Kind of Truth under the name Big River. Good stuff!!! EVH for Life!!!
so cool that some of these riffs got used in 'a different kind of truth' also UNCLE BEN! your gtr sounds AWESOME
Thanks!
Please do Down in flames!such an amazing song and that use of the flanger in the song,make my arm hair stand up lol
I LOVE YOUR VAN HALEN STUFF BEN! Thank you, thank you!
Glad you like them!
Check out We Die Bold.
When I first heard these demos, it was like a new album.
Heaven on Earth
A Gift from God.
Thanks for sharing this, Ben!
Some tasty licks right there. Love your channel Ben. My playing has improved using your technique lessons. TY.
The tone you have going here is incredible 😮 it has that wild untamed Eddie sound. Love the riffs and I'm also currently on a major VH kick. 🤘
You look like a proud father playing those riffs 🤘🏼 Love it!
I would love to learn Eyes of the Night!!!
Man this is good! Is there any way you can do a video covering the rest of the parts in these songs?
I've been in love with "BIG TROUBLE" (Big River...ugh) for quite a few years now. That song makes me think of a pre-80s Ed, 16-17 years old playing this song and figuring out the raw Ed that would become the legend.
Big Trouble intro sounds just like BOSTON also!
Ben; I am so glad you did this. Those demo's have some killer riffs and killer tunes. The alternative versions of House Of Pain and others are killer also. My favorite solo from those demo's would be Big Trouble. What an awesome solo. Plus the break down before the solo.
I will say a part 2 of the solo's from those demo's would be awesome. Big Trouble, Get The Show On The Road, etc. Maybe your favorite licks from those solo's?
Awesome as always 👍🏼👍🏼,
Also I have been looking at how to play Stay Frosty I can get close but maybe you could do a video on it and break it down , it is a kick ass song very much like Ice Cream Man !! Summer songs top down cruising songs for sure
Anyway thanks
forgot how carl martin plexitone can get this kind of VH tone
Are u setting the plexi amp clean or?
Awesomeness.
Thats a pretty guitar! And nice to hear your thoughts on the master.
Thank you kindly!
Pray to the guitar Gods that somrone will release the Eddie Noodles Tapes. We will have minds blown fo sho!
Good stuff, Ben! Search " Van Halen jamming at his house 1974" . You can hear even at that age (18-19) he already had that wild rhythm style and odd time thing going on. You'll clearly catch "Somebody get me a Doctor" @ the 4:00 mark. Amazing he had that riff as a wee Lad. Love stuff like this. 🤘🤘
That guitar is hot!!!!
ahhh nice! Hey, what is this pink pickup thing? Is this a Suhr pickup?
ah nvm just saw it's a bare knuckle holydiver. Nice choice! I got it on my Ibanez RG652
Great idea for a lesson Ben! How about the intro to “we die bold”? Talk about greasy! So wet. Such swing! What a GOAT. RIP King
Hey dude! Thx 4 the EPIC VH share! Love the crunchy tones on this! Maybe you could do the VH tribute w/Sammy n take Satch's place! Lol! 🤟🔥
All great stuff, but for me The Main Squeeze is the best unreleased one. Great off kilter intro and a classic simple & catchy breakdown part. And a walloping solo of course. This one would’ve been a classic if they’d finished it
hey, can you share a video of how to do the rhythm verses Top Jimmy?
Challenge accepted!
Yessss 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🤘🤘