Alex Van Halen recently guested on Talk Is Jericho, hosted by Fozzy frontman and wrestling superstar, Chris Jericho. He discussed his new memoir, "Brothers", which chronicles life with his younger brother, the late guitar legend Edward Van Halen.
In the podcast, found below, Alex shares stories about emigrating the United States, learning to speak English, and the role that music played when it came to fitting in at school. He also discusses his drumming style, developing his sound, and his incredible musical connection with Edward. He gets into the formation of Van Halen, meeting David Lee Roth, the making of the 1984 album, shooting videos for MTV, and Van Halen’s headlining appearance at the US Festival, Alex also shares why he was so pissed off when Edward did the guitar solo for Michael Jackson’s "Beat It", and why Edward hated being called "Eddie".
On the possibility of sharing previously unreleased music from Eddie Van Halen, Alex offered the following
"I've talked about it loosely, and I am rather superstitious, but I can say a couple of things that I've mentioned before. We're gonna go through the 'vault' and go through some of the musical ideas that were there. On the one end of the spectrum is the fact that little licks don't make a song. On the other end of the spectrum, some of those licks are so unbelievably powerful, it's too bad that they ended up in the back of the vault, rather than being records. They will stay there until we figure out how and why and what to do with them. And again, you have to remember, it has to be on the level of where Ed and I, where we used to play. We're not just gonna shovel it in. We have access to some of the greatest musicians on the planet, and a lot of 'em are more than willing to take a chance on some of the stuff."
Alex revealed that the amount of unreleased music amounts to "probably three or four records, if not more. I'm serious. There was some good stuff, some good stuff in there. And you have to remember, when in the thick of it, sometimes the really great stuff kind of passes you by. And it's not until you revisit it going, 'Whoa, I forgot about that. This kicks ass.' But that takes time. And you wanna do it right. I wanna do it right."
Check out the interview below or go to this location.
Alex Van Halen's "Brothers" memoir is out now. As an exclusive bonus, fans who order direct from Van Halen Store will receive their exclusive photo print collection of the young Van Halen brothers (four 4" x 6" photos, suitable for framing). Order here.
In this intimate and open account - nothing like any rock-and-roll memoir you've ever read - Alex Van Halen shares his personal story of family, friendship, music, and brotherly love in a remarkable tribute to his beloved brother and bandmate.
Told with acclaimed New Yorker writer Ariel Levy, Brothers is seventy-year-old drummer Alex Van Halen's love letter to his younger brother, Edward (Maybe "Ed," but never "Eddie"), written while still mourning his untimely death.
In his rough yet sweet voice, Alex recounts the brothers' childhood, first in the Netherlands and then in working-class Pasadena, California, with an itinerant musician father and a very proper Indonesian-born mother—the kind of mom who admonished her boys to "always wear a suit" no matter how famous they became—a woman who was both proud and practical, nonchalant about taking a doggie bag from a star-studded dinner. He also shares tales of musical politics, infighting, and plenty of bad-boy behavior. But mostly, his is a story of brotherhood, music, and enduring love.
"I was with him from day one," Alex writes. "We shared the experience of coming to this country and figuring out how to fit in. We shared a record player, an 800-square-foot house, a mom and dad, and a work ethic. Later, we shared the back of a tour bus, alcoholism, the experience of becoming famous, of becoming fathers and uncles, and of spending more hours in the studio than I've spent doing anything else in this life. We shared a depth of understanding that most people can only hope to achieve in a lifetime.”
There has never been an accurate account of them or the band, and Alex wants to set the record straight on Edward's life and death.
"Brothers" includes never-before-seen photos from the author's private archive.
"A chronicle of family and talent and the passion to create ... the definitive take on Edward Van Halen's life and death from the one who knew and loved him best." - Brothers editor, Sara Nelson
The full 6-minute version of "Unfinished", the final song that Edward and Alex Van Halen wrote together is now available for download at Van-Halen.com.
The song is featured in the audiobook version of Alex Van Halen's new memoir, Brothers. Listen to "Unfinished" below:
