IN spiritu humilitatis, et in animo contrito suscipiamur a te, Domine: et sic fiat sacrificium nostrum in conspectu tuo hodie, ut placeat tibi, Domine Jesus Christus & Deus.
AMEN
He was the main songwriter and guitarist of the American rock band Van Halen, which he co-founded in 1972 with his brother, drummer Alex Van Halen, bassist Mark Stone, and singer David Lee Roth. He is regarded as one of the all-time greatest guitar players in rock history and was well known for popularizing the tapping guitar solo technique, allowing rapid arpeggios to be played with two hands on the fretboard
I met Mr. Eddie Van Halen & Mr. Eddie Money one day.
I helped him to bed that night, due to intoxication, as a friend, as he wasn't able to walk by himself too.
We just all happened to be at the same place at the same tiang ou together we did, all kicked back & enjoying the evening. I cooked supper that night for us all. This was back in the days when I lived in California, in the fall of the year 1992.
He was married to Valerie Bertinelli at the time, however, she was not present.
I was separated from my then-husband, technically single but not yet legally single, it's the same thing, don't you think, technically or legally, when it's really over - it's really over?
I loved his smile, I think it could brighten up any room, that grin. He was cool to hang out with.
Early life
Born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Edward Lodewijk Van Halen was a son of Jan Van Halen and Eugenia (née van Beers). Jan was a Dutch jazz pianist, clarinetist and saxophonist, and Eugenia was an Indo (Eurasian) from Rangkasbitung on the island of Java in the Dutch East Indies. The family eventually settled in Nijmegen, Netherlands.
The family moved to the U.S. in 1962 and settled near other family members in Pasadena, California where Eddie and his brother Alex attended elementary school. The brothers learned to play the piano as children starting at the age of six. They commuted from Pasadena to San Pedro to study with an elderly piano teacher, Stasys Kalvaitis.
Van Halen was never taught to read music; instead, he would watch recitals of Bach or Mozart and improvise. Between 1964 and 1967, he won first place in the annual piano competition held at Long Beach City College. His parents wanted the boys to be classical pianists, but Van Halen gravitated towards rock music. He was greatly influenced by British Invasion bands like The Beatles and The Dave Clark Five. Consequently, when Alex began playing the guitar, Eddie bought a drum kit for himself; however, after he heard Alex's performance of the Surfaris' drum solo in the song "Wipe Out", he gave Alex the drums and began learning how to play the electric guitar. According to him, as a teen, he would often practice while walking around at home with his guitar strapped on or sitting in his room for hours with the door locked.
********** ABOVE - EDDIE VAN HALEN W/FIRST WIFE - VALERIE BERTINELLI *********
In 1980, Van Halen met actress Valerie Bertinelli at a Van Halen concert in Shreveport, Louisiana. They married in California eight months later on April 11, 1981, and had one son, Wolfgang, in 1991. In 2005, Bertinelli filed for divorce in Los Angeles after four years of separation. The divorce was finalized in 2007.
Speaking at an event at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in 2015, Van Halen discussed his life and the American Dream saying "We came here with approximately $50 and a piano, and we didn't speak the language. Now, look where we are. If that's not the American dream, what is?
At the 2020 Billboard Music Awards, Eddie Van Halen was honored by several former musicians he worked with. Jack White from The White Stripes, G. E. Smith, Charlie Benante from Anthrax, and Dierks Bentley gave speeches as a tribute to his career. Wolfgang Van Halen also shared several personal photos between him and his father.
The following year, Eddie proposed to his girlfriend, Janie Liszewski, an actress and stuntwoman who was Van Halen's publicist at the time. The two married in 2009 at his Studio City estate, with his son Wolfgang and ex-wife Bertinelli in attendance. His brother Alex Van Halen is an ordained minister and he officiated Eddie's 2009 wedding and his former sister-in-law Valerie Bertinelli's wedding in 2011.
He had a stroke at Saint John's Baptist Health Center in Santa Monica, Los Angeles County, California, on October 6, 2020, at the age of 65, surrounded by his wife, Janie; son, Wolfgang, bassist of Van Halen from 2006; ex-wife, Valerie Bertinelli; and brother, Alex, co-founder and drummer of Van Halen. His son, Wolfgang, confirmed his leave from band, retirement, on social media later that same day. Some of Van Halen's childhood landmarks in Pasadena became memorials where fans ld hope for recovery.
On November 16, 2020, Wolfgang announced on The Howard Stern Show that Van Halen would not continue as a band, saying "You can't have Van Halen without Eddie Van Halen".
My favorite songs/albums with him/them would be - "And the Cradle Will Rock..."
"Jump", "Why Can't This Be Love", "When It's Love", and "Right Now", oh, there are so many of them.
********** Above - Eddie Van Halen in the year 2015 **********
What a great music artist, his music speaks volumes for itself and him too. He got to do what he loved and was/is excellent at it.
I am a fan, truly -
By ( with the help of Wikipedia)
Deborah "Debbie" Kim Kennedy
10/22/2021
A.K.A.
Bouvier
Guffey
Garner
Colver
Hicks