Edward Van Halen was the guitarist and lead songwriter behind the band that bore his name: Van Halen. Eddie’s technical and melodic prowess – most famously his iconic use of the two-handed tapping technique – sparked an arms race in the 1980s rock scene, birthing the shred guitar movement.
Van Halen was also renowned for his tonal innovations and famed for relentlessly modding and, later, designing his guitars and amps – notably, the Frankenstein guitar, the Peavey 5150 amp, and the Peavey Wolfgang – before establishing the EVH brand. He passed away in 2020, but is widely regarded as the greatest electric guitar player of his generation – and, arguably, of all time.
Latest about Eddie Van Halen
Steve Stevens on resisting shred, how Paco de Lucia made him go nylon, and Billy Idol’s eternal appeal
Billy Idol’s collaborator of 40-plus years transcends the punk-rock guitarist mold, taking in flamenco, jazz‑fusion, prog and classical styles – and he is as excited about guitar today as he was when he first picked one up
Eddie Van Halen's 5150 Studios was decades ahead of its time – but it required a white lie to build
LA homeowners were forbidden by the city's zoning laws to build a home studio on their property. But what's rock 'n' roll without breaking a rule here and there, and sticking it to the man?
Wolfgang Van Halen on one the most overlooked and underrated aspects of Eddie’s playing
Eddie Van Halen’s talents reshaped the guitar scene in the 1980s, but his son says there’s far more to his craft than tapping
“All the grin-inducing firepower of the full-flight 5150”: EVH 5150 Iconic Series 15W EL34 Head
The bombastic benchmark of the ‘brown’ sound has been channelled through a single-ended EL34 power section and hybrid preamp, with significant volume and price savings
Paul Reed Smith on how he built his brand, secret PRS players – and why the internet is wrong about tonewood
Once the guitar brand for the one percent, the smash-hit success of the SE line took PRS Guitars mainstream, but for Smith, it’s still about trying to raise the bar and find new sounds
New compilation album of old Van Halen rehearsals with Eddie, Alex and Wolfgang is reportedly on the way – and it won’t feature a singer
The recordings come from the 5150 Studios soundboard as the band rehearsed ahead of their 2007 tour
From Eddie Van Halen’s “uncanny genius” to his brutal crash-testing, inside the making of the EVH 5150 III
Wolfgang Van Halen and EVH Gear's Matt Bruck on the difficult birth of a modern tube amp legend, and arguably the best metal amp you can buy right now
Why a tour supporting Van Halen led to Steve Stevens recording a flamenco album
After weeks of rock 'n' roll overstimulation, Stevens pivoted and spent a year traveling with a nylon-string
