This is not my man. But I think you might enjoy this. Or check out Tom MacDonald and try to play along for yourself. This video is someone playing along to a Tom MacDonald song. th-cam.com/video/W140FrqFcGE/w-d-xo.html
I met and knew Eddie Van Halen and Alex Van Halen, that explination is dam near what Eddie taught me about making a song his way. Only one little piece he suggested on how he figured that out was from obviously Claptons song with the hook or riff. Just clapton used more bluesy stuff based on dm stuff.
Eddie kept the intros and choruses Major because he understood that most people are drawn to the happier/fun sound of Major keys. Brilliant analysis man.
And that's important to understand! The intent of making a song for the masses is far different than making a song for yourself or your other music friends
@@Guitargate awesome breakdown! Question I had was did he write everything as visual patterns or what sounds good because in his interviews he mentions many times, not knowing any music theory.
Wow…guitar teacher I went to back during HS in the 80’s really pushed major keys and using the major scale and to me. You summed up the some of the same concepts he did but with more clarity and a better explanation. My hats off to you, this is absolute gold
@@DougMorris71 so yes they tune down so they can heavier strings. The whole band has to be the same pitch though. I’m sure you’re not saying that just the guitarist tunes down but the others don’t right?
I think Eddie's fantastic rock song writing chops happened due to the garage band presence of his brother Alex jamming on drums behind him since they were young. Playing lead guitar all by yourself with a drummer is no fun. Riffing on rhythm guitar by yourself with a drummer is a BLAST!
I've noticed that most good/great players were music fans first. I know that's how it works for me. The more music and different kinds of music, you were exposed to, as you grew up, is there in your subconscious and influences everything you play. Like Motown and many others, if you're humming the tune before it's over, they got you...
There's a famous story that when Quincy Jones brought Eddie in to solo on "Beat It" that he restructured the song for a better section to solo over and surprised Quincy and Jackson with it. Probably made it BETTER.
The wanted him to solo over the monotone part of the song right before where the solo is now. Eddie convinced them to solo over the verse part instead.
Eddie was a rare genius. His solos where always absolutely perfect for the song. He also always did something in his songs where you didn't get enough of it. Always some part that you rewind and listen over and over trying to get enough.
To this day Eruption has my interest. In the gym I love hearing tunes like Mean Street, Ain't talk bout love, etc. Those riffs give you instant energy.
Remember that VH played SO many early shows playing other people's music...the backyard parties, etc. He knew what got the crowd going. Add to that...he was a natural musical genius. Remember that as a kid he just watched his teacher play the piano and copied him LOL. It came easy to him.
This was very interesting! Their song structure reminded me a lot of what I first learned in giving presentations to people: Tell them what your going to tell them; Tell them; Tell them what you told them. It reinforces all the main points for the audience to walk away with.
Thanks man putting this up for free. Most kids these days will never appreciate the knowledge that they have access to today versus when I was a kid early 90s.
Ah, yes, the ol’ “kids these days” that every ignorant person of every generation says about the generation younger than them. Go yell at kids for skateboarding or something
This! I actually have trouble trying to learn evh riffs if which ever tutorial video I'm watching doesn't use a backing track. Even with a metronome it doesn't always work, you need Alex and Mike to figure out Eddie's timing
@@deadmanswife3625 basically you need drums, bass, and in some cases, keyboard to fill the gaps. You can often hear guitar parts that aren't even there because your brain or ears cant always distinguish which is which, which can make learning his songs by ear a nightmare. That's how good all the instruments blend together. Brilliant songwriting.
“The song is the vehicle.” If Prof. Palmissano writes a Van Halen music theory book, that’s the EVH book I would buy. Not a book of nostalgic photos and memories. Michael : thanks for keeping VH alive ! (I am happy to design it for free:)
FTR, I almost cried when you got to the Jump solo pattern. I would bet Eddie had no idea he was doing these things, but that was the beauty of his genius - what made Eddie special was INSTINCT.
@@daverich267 My understanding is that he knew theory but wasn't good at reading the classical piano music and didn't even need to. He knew theory and chords as did Alex.
@Dave Rich from my understanding, maybe a doc on his life or similiar, he COULDNT read music, just copied what he heard, piano, guitar..plan was Eddie gonna play drums n Alex guitar as kids, but mutually agreed to switch. Am thinking that even after all his years, never really did bother to "learn" to read music. Maybe mistaken, but that's what I am thinking.
I solely watch this guy because of his love and excitement for music. I’ve met so few people in my personal life like this. It’s pretty much been just me for 99.9% of my life. So nice to tap into other people who get it.
I was a little tipsy and listening to some VH hidden gems last week. I must have listened to Little Dreamer 3 times in a row. I can't get the song out of my head. Such a haunting and mesmerizing tune.
The formula is simplicity and melody.. And a rhythm and pulse that makes you dance. The average listener doesn't want complicated they want something pleasant they can hum along to and tap their toe.. Interesting how you decipher Ed's song structure.. totally on board with Hook riff and call response.. Great vid Thx.
I love how you break everything down and explain why this chord goes with that chord. You make it clear and understandable. It makes perfect sense after you break it down. I like to watch how bands communicate and interact with each other when they play and i see you dig that too.
Michael, that is so true. So many great players write music that is over everyone else's head. I struggle with this in my own music. I have to write something that is entertaining for my target audience but at the same time fun for me to play. I don't want to make music just for musicians. But I want them to appreciate it always. That keeps me thinking of a good hook or theme, but also pushing the boundaries of my abilities musically.
Awesome job! Eddie was and always will be my favorite musician and he had so much more to give! He was a pioneer, an inventor, a killer piano player and of course he had his very own style of guitar playing! I am smitten! Since I am 13 years old I am listening to Van Halen! Eddie, rest in peace! We owe you a tremendous debt!🤘💎
Man... I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS CHANNEL!!! Amazing content! Just pure musical joy. Keep it coming. I'm glad I just came across the channel now I can just binge watch all the videos. I'm a huge van halen fan and have always noticed that there were similarities in his songs but now I can put it together. Genius! Thank you!
As a bass player (examples on my channel, if anyone is interested), who is dabbling in guitar (when I say dabbling, I mean obsessing about Eddie, Jimmy, etc. I can completely relate to the idea of the note duration being critical to the groove. Everyone talks about 'pocket' and 'ahead' or 'behind' the beat. But, the real magic lies in the release.
Totally agree...I play both bass and guitar--bass in mostly cover bands, guitar on original tunes. I was in a band that played a fair amount of VH tunes, and that quarter note pulse in Runnin' With The Devil is NOT easy to play and have it sound correct. It helps if you have a great drummer, which we did.
Just thought you should know that someone on FB took the time to make a post saying that he "still likes to watch my videos but that you're his favorite YT guitarist and that he wants to watch ALL your videos." I was like: First off, ouch, second, couldn't you just make a post about how much you like Palmisano and leave me out of it? haha. ;) Congrats on all the success guitar brother. Just though I'd share that.
Campfire songs with solos, marching songs with solo vocals, gigues with improvisation sections, church hymns. You get the picture. Music for the people even those with no musical training, based on strong rhythms, repetitive phrasing. Short phrases. House music, Drum & Bass. Its amazing that in the end, the people might not even be bothered about the words in the songs, just the primal rhythms and chaotic noise making. Eddie and Van Halen? The personality that shines through the performance. Gifted musicians.
Dude, this was killer! I like to write songs, however I'm not well versed in music theory, but I know enough to keep up with a lot of what you're talking about and I'm hoping to glean some ideas from this series. One band that I could listen to their first album through and through, over and over again, is Boston. Their riffs, harmonies, melodies, and vocals are unreal. Being a band that came up in the 70's, they're sort of in the same vein as Van Halen and it would be awesome if you could break down their hit song formula. I recently fell in love with the channel after watching you REACTS videos. Your emotion and the way you break down the song and the lyrics is inspiring for me to write better. Thanks for the great info, keep up the good work!
I always gave great credit to Michael the bassplayer for Van Halen's success. He wasn't trying to play "lead bass", just played super-basic, often one-note, bump-bump-bump basslines, but the best thing he did was provide high-quality, sweet-sounding backup vocals lending essential smooth harmony to smooth out the rough sound of the lead vocals. Some people can sing harmony without thinking about it. That effortless vocal harmony from Michael is the final icing on the cake that brought the music to stick in the average listener's head.
@Doug Selsam - You sound like an absolutely delightful gentleman who not only appreciates the subtleties of creating hit rock songs, but also deserves some credit for probably being a relatively good-natured, well-adjusted, hetersexual male with several pounds of swinging pig iron who gave many thanks & committed many years to the tremendous alter of The Mighty Van Halen. In short, like many reading these words you probably have a low tolerance for bullshit. You laugh a little louder, think a little quicker, respond a little wiser, love a little harder, care a little deeper, fight a little stronger, & drive a little faster. As a fan of Van Halen's since 1978, & a friend of Michael Anthony's since 1992, I have always said & he has earned the maximum amount of personal & professional credit for the group's legendary stratospheric success, a full 25%. Further, I believe that if at any time in the band's history Michael would have become less like himself & more like Ed, Alex, Dave, or Sam in terms of lifestyle, goals, outspokenness, self-importance, and/or his ability to be even keel & de-escalate tension, "Van Halen" as an ongoing business concern would have most certainly self-destructed a long ago.
@@showtime951 Thanks Showtime951 The average listener remembers the chorus of the song, which is usually also the name of the song. Michael's voice is a major ingredient defining the sound of the chorus sections of the songs. Therefore, it is Michael's voice that defines the Van Halen sound for the average listener. Of course we musicians tend to focus on the complexity of master-musicians we idolize, but average listeners often don't even know the name of the band, let alone who in it can do guitar tricks etc. They just hear the chorus, and in the case of Van Halen, that is mostly thanks to Michael's sweet and effortless harmonies.
Thanks Michael for this video. I've watched it 3 times now and I think it's gotta be one of your best! I can't imagine all the time you must have spent listening to/transcribing these songs. Do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life.. Keep up the good work. Cheers!
Nice! I would add a few points. 1. Eddie's use of symmetrical scale and arpeggio shapes across the neck can be described (in his words) as "falling down the stairs and landing on your feet." Patterns can give the listener something to identify and accept even if there are dissonant notes along the way. Resolving the pattern at the end is "landing on your feet" . 2. I think Eddie's triad choices/voicings were also influenced by how the top notes connected. Dance The Night Away and Running With The Devil are great examples of this. The highest pitch of each chord is on the B string and the notes don't move very far from chord to chord. CHEERS!
DUDE. thank you so much for this analyzation of these songs and not dumbing it down too much or over simplifying the explanation. I was never able to afford music school and as such have been almost entirely autodidactic in my pursuits of music theory and learning about songcraft. I have been experimenting in so many different ways with my decisions in my singwriting and i feel like i am just on the verge of things blowing wide open but just need a mentor of some sort to help push me over. THANK YOU thank you again, please do more song writing analysis like this i cant get enough of it. And you are so naked in your transparency about how you relate to music, your shortcomings and insights. Its so refreshing and valuable and selfless. I truly hope you prosper with this channel. You have a serious gift.
I just want to say that I absolutely did not understand a thing you said but I was absolutely glued to your every word. I don't read music nor do I know my chords but this was very entertaining. I think what got me during this video was that I felt like you took us into the brain of EVH and what he was thinking. I love your videos and have discovered so many different artists.
Dude... what an AMAZING video! I don't know much about theory and all that jazz but I love learning about it and learning how the greats just seem to know how to use it often without knowing it. The revelation about Eddie going to the black keys for his solo sections blew my mind! It's such a simple trick but it works so effectively and draws your ear to it because it just hits you out of nowhere. I absolutely loved this breakdown and can't wait to see what else you bring out like this. Thanks for the effort and time you give to bring us such great knowledge about great music.
Love the way you are able to back things down so they are simple to understand. Your enthusiasm is contagious you have made me pick the guitar up again Thank You
Really interesting, and I appreciate how much time you put into research in order to make this very informative video! It has been a while since I have watched a 30 minute TH-cam video. Well done. By the way, guitar stands are cheap, man! 😁
Hahahahahaha This post is funny great on 3 levels. #1 Cliche; calls a yapper a genius. #2 This guy will never produce a "hit" as hits no longer exist unless it is pop music; no matter how good one is. #3 The guy/producer of the video gives a support to #2 as they know it is a lie. So funny. Rock on phoney.
Best video ever, in my opinion. I always wondered about that. Thanks so much for sharing this and put in the work. Almost feels like "the secret" is uncovered. Love it!!
Hot dayum you are providing a lot to think on! Super glad you have it posted on guitar gate to peruse. I had never thought on it before but your breakdown has described perfectly why VanHalen tunes so often just make me feel good. They were designed to. Eddie wanted us all to be happy.
When and why music changed from wanting us all to be happy and love each other differences an all.. I'll never know, but have a few ideas why when I see today's climate to how people interact with strangers. To me if you "listen to garbage your head fills with trash" is a perfect example of what most mainstream music today.
Eddie made us happy, optimistic. I listened to Mine All Mine before going into the grad school entrance exam. The song washed away all my worries. I aced the exam, and got in to grad school.
Absolutely brilliant video. So in depth. I can't even imagine how may hours research you put it. I did notice may years ago that VH made their hooks sound sweeter by using alternating with minor verses. When its major all the way you can become desensitized. But You blew it open to to so many other levels. Very well done. Thank you.
You’re awesome, just found your channel and gotta check out everything now. You are as enthusiastic about these patterns and fascinating spirals into unexpected dissonance and harmony as I am, maybe because music is truely a philosophy for those who appreciate the depth of making sounds, holding a vessel for the patterns to find their way down the river, through the woods, into the void, wherever it may roam. All great songs have something about them that sets them apart and I can almost always guarantee it stems from thinking about music this way (or maybe not “thinking” which also adds to its transcendent and intuitive nature). Peace !
Thank you, Michael for the dedicated effort in finding the key to the buried treasure I created and that Edward, of course made famous. It's exciting to see the enthusiasm of a young player discovering the magical way through the harmonic brown maze. Eddie was a great guy and a relentless student but I don't know how many times I thought from across his bedroom at 11pm on a Wednesday night, "If this asshole says 'one more time, slower' or 'why' again I'm going to bury him under this fucking house."
When I was young and was composing on the guitar but noodling on the piano I was learning music theory at school. Once I had the basics of scales and chords in my head I switched instinctively to Piano for composition and arrangement because being able to see every note that exists right there in front of you made things 100 times easier. Chord inversions were not taught to me I just found the most pleasing ones. On a guitar chord discovery is more how I would describe the process. It's very creative. A lot of Foo fighter riff are just a 15 year old in his bedroom goofing around. I think Eddie had the advantage of Piano theory when he picked up the guitar and had an fabulous innovative mind and was a true artist who knew he needed structured hard rules to help contain his crazy ideas.
Congrats for your professionalism, accuracy and above all for the great passion you give. You made me relive the emotions of transcribing Eddie's solos over thirty years ago.
As an 80s teenager struggling to play guitar, but with years of piano lessons behind me, I remember having the revelation that EVH's chords were just three-string triad inversions in the same voicings one would use on the piano. They weren't the barre chords and power chords of the other bands I was listening to at the time.
Your passion for music is infectious my friend. I would go through tunes for hours and spend days figuring out the parts and put them in the sequencer. Love it.
Enjoyed this - I "graph" songs that I like as well to see how they're put together. Noticed your t-shirt too - saw Humphrey's McGee on the "JamCruise" cruise in 2012. Good stuff.
I feel like you have been reading my mind. I was just realizing all of this within the last few weeks. Another interesting observation is the change in rhythm when he goes to the interlude on black keys. This really accentuates the solo and makes it feel like it comes from out of this world (or at least the world of the rest of the song!)
Great video, one of the best videos explaining why VH's songs worked so well. Most people want a simple song that takes them someplace else and doesn't take too much to listen to but still makes you want to move your head or your body along with the music. Great job Michael.
Great analysis, very interesting. I always thought that was what made Eddie unique among the "guitar god" types, he had a knack for coming up with catchy hooks that non-guitar people could like, combined with technical guitar wizardry that the guitar nerds like me could get into. He was just so inventive in his playing.
Mikey’s contribution is so important. Back then in VH, and now with the Circle. He often gets forgotten about by a lot of people, but what he added/adds was/is crucial. Not just part of the rhythm section. His vocals were/are awesome. My wife and I went to see Sammy (post VH) and Mike was there with him. Mikey sang a couple songs as lead vocalist and he was great! A little departure from this lesson/analysis, but a little related.
Michael was underrated, but so great, and idk what happened in the whole VH Roth/Hagar back n forth drama, but hated that Michael was out when the last cast got together.❤
@@SoulofAlice After the VH3 record and tour, Mikey was mistreated by the brothers. Sammy commented on it, too. Then Mikey was accused by Ed that he really didn’t know how to play the bass. Ed said that he had to show him what to do on everything and would make video tapes for Mikey to watch and learn how to play the songs. I don’t believe that for a second and Sammy was outraged and even spoke out about it. Mikey’s cut of the money was reduced at the time of the reunion tour as well. He went along with it and agreed because he loved to play for the fans and that was more important than the money for him. Ed was a strange cat. Nobody can deny his musical genius, but he had issues when it came to a lot of people, except Al, I guess. I was so disappointed to hear a lot of what he said over the years. I’ve been trying to imitate him with my Kramer guitars since 1985, when Sammy joined VH. Anyway, it’s all in the past and none of it takes away from the music and I don’t think that there’s a fan out there, whether you like Sam or Dave, that doesn’t appreciate and recognize the talent and all around goodness of Michael Anthony.
I was just telling a friend this very thing two days ago! That's rad how you really started breaking it down! Eddie really had himself together and this helps prove that he knew exactly what he was doing!
Well worded on the understanding of what made him tick. It’s a different angle but I think you did a good job at scratching the surface.I had to come back and comment lot of great thinking info. You gave me so much to chew on. I think this video is right at the top as your best. Looking forward to the new series/angle.
Eddie was a comet, rare ...they only come around once in a lifetime and shine bright. Then they're gone and only then do we start to understand what we witnessed.
This video made the world a better place. Excellent sleuth work! I love how you figured out he was using piano patterns in that way and lord knows a minor verse to major chorus always leads to a hit song. I vote for more of these.
I'd been a bar-chord player forever. I started listening to Steely Dan and found keyboard parts on my guitar. I could then see that this is what Ed had been doing all the way back to the first album. Ed's keyboard background applied to guitar. Panama, Jump and Dance the Night Away are the same riff! And Ed wrote stuff like Hear About It Later on piano.
Smashing job. I really appreciate this. Thanks a lot. It's fascinating how different people approach songwriting. Some of the greats go by patterns and feel rather than music theory, even avoiding going too deep into theory out of concern it will rob their ability to think outside the box. Others use theory as the basis for everything they write. Fascinating stuff.
What I find interesting is that I suspect EVH didn't consciously attempt to follow these patterns. I think he played what sounded good to him, and what resulted is this patterned signature writing style. It is for us, analyzing, to find and identify/label the patterns.
This can be done with every musician. They have their own style and what sounds good to them. If presented with the same analysis as this video they would probably be just as baffled as we are watching.
@@billybreathes8088 The fact you think my comment implies he didn't know what he is doing is very telling. I don't think he vomited out random chords and riffs... LOL I just don't think he analyzed it the way Michael is and thought, 'yep, gotta stick with simple major chords!'
@@mjcs6399 Many interviews with EVH show him saying that he didn't read music and didn't know theory. He knew more theory than he thought he did; he just knew it on an instinctive level instead of a formalized one using music-school terms.
Exactly, he didn’t read music and probably would never be thinking ‘sus chord’ or triad ..just seemed to write songs by sound and feel. But I do appreciate this scientific breakdown. It makes sense
Also, almost all of Van Halen’s music is upbeat and positive. Maybe the lyrics have a darker meaning, but the music is uplifting. It goes up, not down, if you know what I mean. It was a reflection of Eddie’s positive attitude and infectious smile, at least when he was on stage. They were a fun-loving band.
It's so easy to underestimate the amount of work that has gone into this new format when you speak so easily about the subject! I have a feeling this is going to be a very popular series👍🏼 Plus, you wear the coolest t-shirts on youtube🤣🤣🤙🏼🤙🏼🤙🏼
I only enough piano or guitar to appreciate those who do it well. But, from this video, I just played the right hand chords from Jump on my grandfather's piano. It's the first time I have made something cool come out of that instrument! If only the guitar could come to life, too. So fun!
Haha. He discovered they use Triads 😆🤣 that’s not a formula😂 you guys are all buying this. He stumbled onto the secret of life too. Everybody uses Oxygen 🤣 Wow did the Beatles use triads?? Guitar Hooks? Geez every rock song has a hook!! Even Joe Walsh said gotta have a guitar hook🤣joe isn’t Van Halen tho. Seriously why is I IV V chords the secret 🤫 James Taylor is Van Halen in disguise. (Guitar hooks, sus chords. Pedal bass notes ringing over triads. You could apply this to any band. This guys just trying to make money from revealing his in-depth conversation with Captain Obvious. 🤣
If YOU would like to devote some time to analyse how EVH constructed his songs instead of criticising someone who has ACTUALLY DONE IT, then go right ahead and enlighten the rest of us. But I doubt that you will, so just shut the F.U.C.K. Up .... because no one is interested in your misery gutz mouth spew !
When you were talking about Eddie being visually oriented, it reminded me of an interview of his that I read. When he was learning piano he said that he never learned sheet music and he would just watch his teacher play and memorize the finger patterns. He said that his teacher thought that Eddie could read sheet music and that he was able to trick him for 6 years.
Great work, your enthusiasm is what drives it home. Eddie always blew me away, how incredible it is to figure out his "recipe", his playing mostly intimidated me, and seemed unattainable . Love your take on this
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Get the PDF's & Handwritten Song Notes: www.guitargate.com/vanhalenhitsong
This is not my man. But I think you might enjoy this. Or check out Tom MacDonald and try to play along for yourself. This video is someone playing along to a Tom MacDonald song.
th-cam.com/video/W140FrqFcGE/w-d-xo.html
I met and knew Eddie Van Halen and Alex Van Halen, that explination is dam near what Eddie taught me about making a song his way. Only one little piece he suggested on how he figured that out was from obviously Claptons song with the hook or riff. Just clapton used more bluesy stuff based on dm stuff.
Michael , thank you for this. Shared your video and pdf with all my songwriting friends and music students. Pure Gold
@@christopherspohn8071 Right on!!! Thanks!
@@rikkousa Thanks so much!
Eddie kept the intros and choruses Major because he understood that most people are drawn to the happier/fun sound of Major keys. Brilliant analysis man.
And that's important to understand! The intent of making a song for the masses is far different than making a song for yourself or your other music friends
@@Guitargate awesome breakdown! Question I had was did he write everything as visual patterns or what sounds good because in his interviews he mentions many times, not knowing any music theory.
Wow…guitar teacher I went to back during HS in the 80’s really pushed major keys and using the major scale and to me. You summed up the some of the same concepts he did but with more clarity and a better explanation. My hats off to you, this is absolute gold
@@DougMorris71 wait what? All that does is change the key. To make a key minor you have to lower the third.
@@DougMorris71 so yes they tune down so they can heavier strings. The whole band has to be the same pitch though. I’m sure you’re not saying that just the guitarist tunes down but the others don’t right?
Man, this is one of the best videos analyzing EVH I’ve ever seen!! This is pure gold 👏🏼
Thanks!
@@Guitargate greetings from Chile dude! 🙌🏼
I don't even play guitar and found this interesting as hell. I played drums for years, but was right into this explanation.
I have no business being here. So lost. 😂. But this is mind blowing
100% of this goes over my head, but your enthusiasm for understanding the work of the master is riveting.
Yup, I’m just a guitar hack who happen upon this video. Fascinating none the less, and clearly demonstrates Eddies talent, creativity land ear.
Couldn't have said that any better.
Yea I was lost after 5 min but watched for 17 because of his passion haha
I think Eddie's fantastic rock song writing chops happened due to the garage band presence of his brother Alex jamming on drums behind him since they were young. Playing lead guitar all by yourself with a drummer is no fun. Riffing on rhythm guitar by yourself with a drummer is a BLAST!
I've noticed that most good/great players were music fans first. I know that's how it works for me. The more music and different kinds of music, you were exposed to, as you grew up, is there in your subconscious and influences everything you play. Like Motown and many others, if you're humming the tune before it's over, they got you...
Yeah, absolutely not lol....
Eddie was one hell of a lead player and his rhythm was absolutely miraculous.
It's funny that he n Alex started on opposite instruments, thank God they traded!!
The part about grove being the relationship of drums setting the interval and the bass the length of the interval life was equally as brilliant!!!!!
Facts. !!
Were the drums tuned to the c, f and g too?
There's a famous story that when Quincy Jones brought Eddie in to solo on "Beat It" that he restructured the song for a better section to solo over and surprised Quincy and Jackson with it. Probably made it BETTER.
It' was the best song for Ed's histrionic wankery
The wanted him to solo over the monotone part of the song right before where the solo is now. Eddie convinced them to solo over the verse part instead.
@@mesabog2 Jones and Jackson owe everything they had to one Ed Van Halen,who is God
Steve Lukather played the rhythm guitar and the song was already written. Eddie just played the solo to an already written and recorded section.
@@zekiah9984 not what I heard. I heard Ed gave Steve some pointers on how to play basic guitar
Eddie was a rare genius. His solos where always absolutely perfect for the song.
He also always did something in his songs where you didn't get enough of it. Always some part that you rewind and listen over and over trying to get enough.
He did slight variations
To this day Eruption has my interest. In the gym I love hearing tunes like Mean Street, Ain't talk bout love, etc. Those riffs give you instant energy.
I like how you said "rewind". We are kids of the 80's !
Remember that VH played SO many early shows playing other people's music...the backyard parties, etc. He knew what got the crowd going. Add to that...he was a natural musical genius. Remember that as a kid he just watched his teacher play the piano and copied him LOL. It came easy to him.
Amazing
This was very interesting! Their song structure reminded me a lot of what I first learned in giving presentations to people: Tell them what your going to tell them; Tell them; Tell them what you told them. It reinforces all the main points for the audience to walk away with.
I always wondered if people doing that had Alzheimer or what... repeating three times the same thing 😂
That's exactly right. It's not unique to music. It's storytelling.
That's exactly right. It's not unique to music. It's storytelling.
@@Guitargate you need to repeat that one more time. Lol
Thanks man putting this up for free. Most kids these days will never appreciate the knowledge that they have access to today versus when I was a kid early 90s.
Right?👍
Facts!
100%
Ah, yes, the ol’ “kids these days” that every ignorant person of every generation says about the generation younger than them. Go yell at kids for skateboarding or something
@@SnailHatan major difference between access to knowledge today vs early 90’s. Very simple to understand that. Don’t be stupid.
I’ve always wondered, my whole life, what is it about Van Halen songs that are just so perfect? This is it. Great video.
Definitely didn't expect to watch the whole 30min video. Now I'm late for bed, haha. Great video Michael!
Thanks David!!!
DONT SLEEP ;-)
me too. halfway through but i need my bed!!
does your bed have a timer? jk
What he said....
If you isolate Eddie’s playing it almost doesn’t make sense, but it does. Crazy musician. Insane
because a lot of the playing gets shape based...not diatonic
@@Feverdream7777 care to elaborate?
This! I actually have trouble trying to learn evh riffs if which ever tutorial video I'm watching doesn't use a backing track. Even with a metronome it doesn't always work, you need Alex and Mike to figure out Eddie's timing
@@drdj2626 I guess we're not going to get the elaboration
@@deadmanswife3625 basically you need drums, bass, and in some cases, keyboard to fill the gaps. You can often hear guitar parts that aren't even there because your brain or ears cant always distinguish which is which, which can make learning his songs by ear a nightmare. That's how good all the instruments blend together. Brilliant songwriting.
“The song is the vehicle.” If Prof. Palmissano writes a Van Halen music theory book, that’s the EVH book I would buy. Not a book of nostalgic photos and memories. Michael : thanks for keeping VH alive ! (I am happy to design it for free:)
Not surprising that EVH played the guitar like a keyboard. Eddie started out as a classically trained pianist as a kid.
And he's denied publicly being able to read music which I thought was odd.
@@williep1626 He says that because reading music doesn't match his bad boy rock image
He didn't need to, it was something you use if you'd never heard it before...
FTR, I almost cried when you got to the Jump solo pattern. I would bet Eddie had no idea he was doing these things, but that was the beauty of his genius - what made Eddie special was INSTINCT.
He probably knew as he was classically trained.
@@rodneylee4026 Agree and with their dad being a Jazz Musician and music being talked about at the dinner table, I'm certain you are correct
@@daverich267 My understanding is that he knew theory but wasn't good at reading the classical piano music and didn't even need to. He knew theory and chords as did Alex.
Eddie had no idea - are you sure?))
@Dave Rich from my understanding, maybe a doc on his life or similiar, he COULDNT read music, just copied what he heard, piano, guitar..plan was Eddie gonna play drums n Alex guitar as kids, but mutually agreed to switch. Am thinking that even after all his years, never really did bother to "learn" to read music. Maybe mistaken, but that's what I am thinking.
I solely watch this guy because of his love and excitement for music. I’ve met so few people in my personal life like this. It’s pretty much been just me for 99.9% of my life. So nice to tap into other people who get it.
It was also impressive that you identified the relationship between the bass and drums in VH songs as well. I wasn’t expecting that.
This video was a game changer in helping me write music. I'm also fascinated as to what makes a song a hit. Thanks for this! 🙏🏾
Love the facial expressions! Superb video, thanks very much.
I was a little tipsy and listening to some VH hidden gems last week. I must have listened to Little Dreamer 3 times in a row. I can't get the song out of my head. Such a haunting and mesmerizing tune.
The formula is simplicity and melody.. And a rhythm and pulse that makes you dance. The average listener doesn't want complicated they want something pleasant they can hum along to and tap their toe.. Interesting how you decipher Ed's song structure.. totally on board with Hook riff and call response.. Great vid Thx.
Eddie was one of a kind. We were blessed to have him. R.I.P.
I love how you break everything down and explain why this chord goes with that chord. You make it clear and understandable. It makes perfect sense after you break it down. I like to watch how bands communicate and interact with each other when they play and i see you dig that too.
This is essentially a Master Class in Hit Song writing. Thank you for this Michael. I will be going back through it and taking notes.
Michael, that is so true. So many great players write music that is over everyone else's head. I struggle with this in my own music. I have to write something that is entertaining for my target audience but at the same time fun for me to play. I don't want to make music just for musicians. But I want them to appreciate it always. That keeps me thinking of a good hook or theme, but also pushing the boundaries of my abilities musically.
Exactly
Genius. I've listened to Van Halen my whole life and learned something new today. Would love to see you do this for the Beatles or Stones.
Awesome job! Eddie was and always will be my favorite musician and he had so much more to give! He was a pioneer, an inventor, a killer piano player and of course he had his very own style of guitar playing! I am smitten! Since I am 13 years old I am listening to Van Halen! Eddie, rest in peace! We owe you a tremendous debt!🤘💎
Man... I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS CHANNEL!!! Amazing content! Just pure musical joy. Keep it coming. I'm glad I just came across the channel now I can just binge watch all the videos. I'm a huge van halen fan and have always noticed that there were similarities in his songs but now I can put it together. Genius! Thank you!
As a bass player (examples on my channel, if anyone is interested), who is dabbling in guitar (when I say dabbling, I mean obsessing about Eddie, Jimmy, etc. I can completely relate to the idea of the note duration being critical to the groove. Everyone talks about 'pocket' and 'ahead' or 'behind' the beat. But, the real magic lies in the release.
You’re on it.
Totally agree...I play both bass and guitar--bass in mostly cover bands, guitar on original tunes. I was in a band that played a fair amount of VH tunes, and that quarter note pulse in Runnin' With The Devil is NOT easy to play and have it sound correct. It helps if you have a great drummer, which we did.
What a great video. Impressive breakdown of the formula. Can't wait to see more of these
53 yrs old and this is the biggest breakthrough I have ever seen...made it fun and interesting again
Just thought you should know that someone on FB took the time to make a post saying that he "still likes to watch my videos but that you're his favorite YT guitarist and that he wants to watch ALL your videos." I was like: First off, ouch, second, couldn't you just make a post about how much you like Palmisano and leave me out of it? haha. ;) Congrats on all the success guitar brother. Just though I'd share that.
Ha!! Thanks brother. You’re crushing it my friend. Love your stuff.
Campfire songs with solos, marching songs with solo vocals, gigues with improvisation sections, church hymns. You get the picture. Music for the people even those with no musical training, based on strong rhythms, repetitive phrasing. Short phrases. House music, Drum & Bass. Its amazing that in the end, the people might not even be bothered about the words in the songs, just the primal rhythms and chaotic noise making. Eddie and Van Halen? The personality that shines through the performance. Gifted musicians.
Dude, this was killer! I like to write songs, however I'm not well versed in music theory, but I know enough to keep up with a lot of what you're talking about and I'm hoping to glean some ideas from this series. One band that I could listen to their first album through and through, over and over again, is Boston. Their riffs, harmonies, melodies, and vocals are unreal. Being a band that came up in the 70's, they're sort of in the same vein as Van Halen and it would be awesome if you could break down their hit song formula. I recently fell in love with the channel after watching you REACTS videos. Your emotion and the way you break down the song and the lyrics is inspiring for me to write better. Thanks for the great info, keep up the good work!
I always gave great credit to Michael the bassplayer for Van Halen's success. He wasn't trying to play "lead bass", just played super-basic, often one-note, bump-bump-bump basslines, but the best thing he did was provide high-quality, sweet-sounding backup vocals lending essential smooth harmony to smooth out the rough sound of the lead vocals. Some people can sing harmony without thinking about it. That effortless vocal harmony from Michael is the final icing on the cake that brought the music to stick in the average listener's head.
@Doug Selsam -
You sound like an absolutely delightful gentleman who not only appreciates the subtleties of creating hit rock songs, but also deserves some credit for probably being a relatively good-natured, well-adjusted, hetersexual male with several pounds of swinging pig iron who gave many thanks & committed many years to the tremendous alter of The Mighty Van Halen.
In short, like many reading these words you probably have a low tolerance for bullshit. You laugh a little louder, think a little quicker, respond a little wiser, love a little harder, care a little deeper, fight a little stronger, & drive a little faster.
As a fan of Van Halen's since 1978, & a friend of Michael Anthony's since 1992, I have always said & he has earned the maximum amount of personal & professional credit for the group's legendary stratospheric success, a full 25%.
Further, I believe that if at any time in the band's history Michael would have become less like himself & more like Ed, Alex, Dave, or Sam in terms of lifestyle, goals, outspokenness, self-importance, and/or his ability to be even keel & de-escalate tension, "Van Halen" as an ongoing business concern would have most certainly self-destructed a long ago.
@@showtime951 Thanks Showtime951
The average listener remembers the chorus of the song, which is usually also the name of the song. Michael's voice is a major ingredient defining the sound of the chorus sections of the songs. Therefore, it is Michael's voice that defines the Van Halen sound for the average listener. Of course we musicians tend to focus on the complexity of master-musicians we idolize, but average listeners often don't even know the name of the band, let alone who in it can do guitar tricks etc. They just hear the chorus, and in the case of Van Halen, that is mostly thanks to Michael's sweet and effortless harmonies.
Thanks Michael for this video. I've watched it 3 times now and I think it's gotta be one of your best! I can't imagine all the time you must have spent listening to/transcribing these songs.
Do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life..
Keep up the good work. Cheers!
This is a fantastic deep dive into EVHs writing!
Nice! I would add a few points. 1. Eddie's use of symmetrical scale and arpeggio shapes across the neck can be described (in his words) as "falling down the stairs and landing on your feet." Patterns can give the listener something to identify and accept even if there are dissonant notes along the way. Resolving the pattern at the end is "landing on your feet" . 2. I think Eddie's triad choices/voicings were also influenced by how the top notes connected. Dance The Night Away and Running With The Devil are great examples of this. The highest pitch of each chord is on the B string and the notes don't move very far from chord to chord. CHEERS!
DUDE. thank you so much for this analyzation of these songs and not dumbing it down too much or over simplifying the explanation. I was never able to afford music school and as such have been almost entirely autodidactic in my pursuits of music theory and learning about songcraft. I have been experimenting in so many different ways with my decisions in my singwriting and i feel like i am just on the verge of things blowing wide open but just need a mentor of some sort to help push me over. THANK YOU thank you again, please do more song writing analysis like this i cant get enough of it. And you are so naked in your transparency about how you relate to music, your shortcomings and insights. Its so refreshing and valuable and selfless. I truly hope you prosper with this channel. You have a serious gift.
I just want to say that I absolutely did not understand a thing you said but I was absolutely glued to your every word. I don't read music nor do I know my chords but this was very entertaining. I think what got me during this video was that I felt like you took us into the brain of EVH and what he was thinking. I love your videos and have discovered so many different artists.
Dude... what an AMAZING video!
I don't know much about theory and all that jazz but I love learning about it and learning how the greats just seem to know how to use it often without knowing it.
The revelation about Eddie going to the black keys for his solo sections blew my mind! It's such a simple trick but it works so effectively and draws your ear to it because it just hits you out of nowhere.
I absolutely loved this breakdown and can't wait to see what else you bring out like this. Thanks for the effort and time you give to bring us such great knowledge about great music.
Miles Davis to Les Paul: "What's the secret?"
Les Paul to Miles Davis: "Play...the...melody."
YES
So, what's in a hook that puts the worm in your ear?
Wow this video is pure gold, thank you for making it!
Love the way you are able to back things down so they are simple to understand. Your enthusiasm is contagious you have made me pick the guitar up again Thank You
Really interesting, and I appreciate how much time you put into research in order to make this very informative video! It has been a while since I have watched a 30 minute TH-cam video. Well done. By the way, guitar stands are cheap, man! 😁
Thanks my friend!!
I have guitars all over my house , no stand either. 😂🤟
Guitar stands take up way too much floor space. Guitar wall hangers are the way to go!
@@Guitargate IT'S THE DEVILS MUSIC MAN . Formulaic to hypnotise the masses.
@@timothy5974 Rockefeller?
YOUR A FRICKEN GENIUS! I HAVE A FEELING YOUR FIRST ORIGINAL WILL BE A MAJOR HIT. CANT WAIT!
Thanks Jeff! SOON
Hahahahahaha
This post is funny great on 3 levels.
#1 Cliche; calls a yapper a genius.
#2 This guy will never produce a "hit" as hits no longer exist unless it is pop music; no matter how good one is.
#3 The guy/producer of the video gives a support to #2 as they know it is a lie.
So funny.
Rock on phoney.
That video was AWESOME!
Thanks so much for it, the black and white key thing was really eye opening.
Best video ever, in my opinion. I always wondered about that. Thanks so much for sharing this and put in the work. Almost feels like "the secret" is uncovered. Love it!!
Hot dayum you are providing a lot to think on! Super glad you have it posted on guitar gate to peruse. I had never thought on it before but your breakdown has described perfectly why VanHalen tunes so often just make me feel good. They were designed to. Eddie wanted us all to be happy.
EXACTLY
When and why music changed from wanting us all to be happy and love each other differences an all.. I'll never know, but have a few ideas why when I see today's climate to how people interact with strangers. To me if you "listen to garbage your head fills with trash" is a perfect example of what most mainstream music today.
Eddie made us happy, optimistic. I listened to Mine All Mine before going into the grad school entrance exam. The song washed away all my worries. I aced the exam, and got in to grad school.
Man saw your reply after I wrote mine. I should have said I’m with this guy
Absolutely brilliant video. So in depth. I can't even imagine how may hours research you put it. I did notice may years ago that VH made their hooks sound sweeter by using alternating with minor verses. When its major all the way you can become desensitized. But You blew it open to to so many other levels. Very well done. Thank you.
You’re awesome, just found your channel and gotta check out everything now. You are as enthusiastic about these patterns and fascinating spirals into unexpected dissonance and harmony as I am, maybe because music is truely a philosophy for those who appreciate the depth of making sounds, holding a vessel for the patterns to find their way down the river, through the woods, into the void, wherever it may roam.
All great songs have something about them that sets them apart and I can almost always guarantee it stems from thinking about music this way (or maybe not “thinking” which also adds to its transcendent and intuitive nature). Peace !
I love watching your videos and learning as much as I can. Keep it up , these videos are very interesting to me.
Thank you, Michael for the dedicated effort in finding the key to the buried treasure I created and that Edward, of course made famous.
It's exciting to see the enthusiasm of a young player discovering the magical way through the harmonic brown maze.
Eddie was a great guy and a relentless student but I don't know how many times I thought from across his bedroom at 11pm on a Wednesday night, "If this asshole says 'one more time, slower' or 'why' again I'm going to bury him under this fucking house."
When I was young and was composing on the guitar but noodling on the piano I was learning music theory at school. Once I had the basics of scales and chords in my head I switched instinctively to Piano for composition and arrangement because being able to see every note that exists right there in front of you made things 100 times easier. Chord inversions were not taught to me I just found the most pleasing ones. On a guitar chord discovery is more how I would describe the process. It's very creative. A lot of Foo fighter riff are just a 15 year old in his bedroom goofing around. I think Eddie had the advantage of Piano theory when he picked up the guitar and had an fabulous innovative mind and was a true artist who knew he needed structured hard rules to help contain his crazy ideas.
Enjoying this a lot! Looking forward to more of these. Subscribed.
Congrats for your professionalism, accuracy and above all for the great passion you give.
You made me relive the emotions of transcribing Eddie's solos over thirty years ago.
Eddie Van Halen's fast, technical passages in his guitar solos, apart from Eruption, were almost never longer than a bar.
As an 80s teenager struggling to play guitar, but with years of piano lessons behind me, I remember having the revelation that EVH's chords were just three-string triad inversions in the same voicings one would use on the piano. They weren't the barre chords and power chords of the other bands I was listening to at the time.
This was a really great episode, sharing!
Thank you!
Your passion for music is infectious my friend. I would go through tunes for hours and spend days figuring out the parts and put them in the sequencer. Love it.
Enjoyed this - I "graph" songs that I like as well to see how they're put together. Noticed your t-shirt too - saw Humphrey's McGee on the "JamCruise" cruise in 2012. Good stuff.
I feel like you have been reading my mind. I was just realizing all of this within the last few weeks. Another interesting observation is the change in rhythm when he goes to the interlude on black keys. This really accentuates the solo and makes it feel like it comes from out of this world (or at least the world of the rest of the song!)
Your insights are brilliant! Thank you so much for sharing, this was super interesting and helpful.
Honestly, that’s the best video I saw in a LONG TIME! Huge thumbs up! Tons of sharing here to that video! Congrats man!
Fascinating breakdown. You're an excellent communicator.
Great analysis, especially the pattern observation. Genius can take the simple and make it seem complex. The man knew how to play to his audience.
That was an incredible video. I felt your excitement! It made me excited too..I couldn't stop watching!
Great video, one of the best videos explaining why VH's songs worked so well. Most people want a simple song that takes them someplace else and doesn't take too much to listen to but still makes you want to move your head or your body along with the music. Great job Michael.
Great analysis, very interesting. I always thought that was what made Eddie unique among the "guitar god" types, he had a knack for coming up with catchy hooks that non-guitar people could like, combined with technical guitar wizardry that the guitar nerds like me could get into. He was just so inventive in his playing.
Mikey’s contribution is so important. Back then in VH, and now with the Circle. He often gets forgotten about by a lot of people, but what he added/adds was/is crucial. Not just part of the rhythm section. His vocals were/are awesome. My wife and I went to see Sammy (post VH) and Mike was there with him. Mikey sang a couple songs as lead vocalist and he was great!
A little departure from this lesson/analysis, but a little related.
Michael was underrated, but so great, and idk what happened in the whole VH Roth/Hagar back n forth drama, but hated that Michael was out when the last cast got together.❤
@@SoulofAlice
After the VH3 record and tour, Mikey was mistreated by the brothers. Sammy commented on it, too. Then Mikey was accused by Ed that he really didn’t know how to play the bass. Ed said that he had to show him what to do on everything and would make video tapes for Mikey to watch and learn how to play the songs. I don’t believe that for a second and Sammy was outraged and even spoke out about it. Mikey’s cut of the money was reduced at the time of the reunion tour as well. He went along with it and agreed because he loved to play for the fans and that was more important than the money for him.
Ed was a strange cat. Nobody can deny his musical genius, but he had issues when it came to a lot of people, except Al, I guess. I was so disappointed to hear a lot of what he said over the years. I’ve been trying to imitate him with my Kramer guitars since 1985, when Sammy joined VH.
Anyway, it’s all in the past and none of it takes away from the music and I don’t think that there’s a fan out there, whether you like Sam or Dave, that doesn’t appreciate and recognize the talent and all around goodness of Michael Anthony.
This was an awesome video! I think I'm gonna need to watch it again to really absorb all that info. So damn cool!
I love how passionate you are about this. You can see the excitement even in simple things you say.
I was just telling a friend this very thing two days ago! That's rad how you really started breaking it down!
Eddie really had himself together and this helps prove that he knew exactly what he was doing!
Michael, that was killer. You put so much work into your research and synthesized it in a way that a hack like me can apply right away.
Thanks David!
This was really cool! Your enthusiasm is so obvious and infectious, it had me smiling all the way through. :)
This is great! I've heard a few of these points from others. But you've put it all together! Thanks!
Well worded on the understanding of what made him tick. It’s a different angle but I think you did a good job at scratching the surface.I had to come back and comment lot of great thinking info. You gave me so much to chew on. I think this video is right at the top as your best. Looking forward to the new series/angle.
Thanks kevin! I’ll get better as I do more. Same as anything else!
@@Guitargate off to a pretty darn solid start!
Eddie was a comet, rare ...they only come around once in a lifetime and shine bright. Then they're gone and only then do we start to understand what we witnessed.
This video made the world a better place. Excellent sleuth work! I love how you figured out he was using piano patterns in that way and lord knows a minor verse to major chorus always leads to a hit song. I vote for more of these.
This is great! Looking forward to this series!
I'd been a bar-chord player forever. I started listening to Steely Dan and found keyboard parts on my guitar. I could then see that this is what Ed had been doing all the way back to the first album. Ed's keyboard background applied to guitar. Panama, Jump and Dance the Night Away are the same riff! And Ed wrote stuff like Hear About It Later on piano.
Smashing job. I really appreciate this. Thanks a lot.
It's fascinating how different people approach songwriting. Some of the greats go by patterns and feel rather than music theory, even avoiding going too deep into theory out of concern it will rob their ability to think outside the box. Others use theory as the basis for everything they write. Fascinating stuff.
Thanks for this video, your work is much appreciated.
What I find interesting is that I suspect EVH didn't consciously attempt to follow these patterns. I think he played what sounded good to him, and what resulted is this patterned signature writing style. It is for us, analyzing, to find and identify/label the patterns.
This can be done with every musician. They have their own style and what sounds good to them. If presented with the same analysis as this video they would probably be just as baffled as we are watching.
No dude.
He knew exactly what he was doing.
@@billybreathes8088 The fact you think my comment implies he didn't know what he is doing is very telling. I don't think he vomited out random chords and riffs... LOL I just don't think he analyzed it the way Michael is and thought, 'yep, gotta stick with simple major chords!'
@@mjcs6399 Many interviews with EVH show him saying that he didn't read music and didn't know theory. He knew more theory than he thought he did; he just knew it on an instinctive level instead of a formalized one using music-school terms.
Exactly, he didn’t read music and probably would never be thinking ‘sus chord’ or triad ..just seemed to write songs by sound and feel. But I do appreciate this scientific breakdown. It makes sense
Also, almost all of Van Halen’s music is upbeat and positive. Maybe the lyrics have a darker meaning, but the music is uplifting. It goes up, not down, if you know what I mean. It was a reflection of Eddie’s positive attitude and infectious smile, at least when he was on stage. They were a fun-loving band.
This is amazing man. PLEASE keep doing these kinds of videos!
Great video! It is amazing how many songs follow these patterns. I listen for them and it's really cool when I find one.
Eddie's a genius. The DaVinci of guitar. But let's not forget that no song will be a hit without good vocal melodies and hooks.
Wow, the white keys/black keys discovery is so huge! It was such a simple minded idea, but holy smokes did it work well! Unbelievable!
That analysis absolutely blew my mind!!!! Thank you for your study. I was on edge with each component explanation.
Subscribed
It's so easy to underestimate the amount of work that has gone into this new format when you speak so easily about the subject! I have a feeling this is going to be a very popular series👍🏼
Plus, you wear the coolest t-shirts on youtube🤣🤣🤙🏼🤙🏼🤙🏼
I only enough piano or guitar to appreciate those who do it well. But, from this video, I just played the right hand chords from Jump on my grandfather's piano. It's the first time I have made something cool come out of that instrument! If only the guitar could come to life, too. So fun!
Ah, major triads. Who would have thought! (🤫) Hendrix is also a champion of using those. Can’t wait to see your notes.
For sure!
John frusciante (a huge Hendrix fan) seems to use those a ton too
Haha. He discovered they use Triads 😆🤣 that’s not a formula😂 you guys are all buying this. He stumbled onto the secret of life too. Everybody uses Oxygen 🤣
Wow did the Beatles use triads?? Guitar Hooks? Geez every rock song has a hook!! Even Joe Walsh said gotta have a guitar hook🤣joe isn’t Van Halen tho. Seriously why is I IV V chords the secret 🤫
James Taylor is Van Halen in disguise. (Guitar hooks, sus chords. Pedal bass notes ringing over triads. You could apply this to any band. This guys just trying to make money from revealing his in-depth conversation with Captain Obvious. 🤣
If YOU would like to devote some time to analyse how EVH constructed his songs instead of criticising someone who has ACTUALLY DONE IT, then go right ahead and enlighten the rest of us.
But I doubt that you will, so just shut the F.U.C.K. Up .... because no one is interested in your misery gutz mouth spew !
Zrag. Triads, oxygen, we all use them eh? Sounds so simple. Some use them better than others. Check Wim Hof for starters on oxygen.
Great work on this! You can hear the excitement!!!!!
One of the best videos I have ever seen on TH-cam! Well done, dude.
It's all about the *hook, and building around it. Eddie pumped out hooks like a machine!
Dimebag too!!
@@Ssbad24 yes he did! He was the crunch master! RIP
Not even in the same discussion as EVH. A universe away.
EVH wrote most of his hooks before they were signed. He was out of hooks after 1996.
There's an entire vault of unpublished archives tracks. Imagine what's in there? Not sure if his son released or not.
When you were talking about Eddie being visually oriented, it reminded me of an interview of his that I read. When he was learning piano he said that he never learned sheet music and he would just watch his teacher play and memorize the finger patterns. He said that his teacher thought that Eddie could read sheet music and that he was able to trick him for 6 years.
EVH was a pathological liar. He told tall tales.
I enjoyed how enthused you were, like you just discovered a new element or something and need to tell the world about it. Nice sleuthing!
Great work, your enthusiasm is what drives it home. Eddie always blew me away, how incredible it is to figure out his "recipe", his playing mostly intimidated me, and seemed unattainable .
Love your take on this