Intro

Hello and Welcome to this episode of the podcast, "The Mnemonic Tree", where we add a single mnemonic leaf to our Tree of Knowledge.

I’m Jans your Mnemonic Man and today's episode will be on the supergroup of the late 70’s, 80’s and beyond, Van Halen.

Started by the two Dutch brothers Eddie and Alex Van Halen, Van Halen grew to include the bands four original members with the addition of David Lee Roth in 1974, and Michael Anthony also in 1974.

Eddie Van Halen was the wizard on the guitar, (though he actually started with the drums) pioneering many techniques. While Alex Van Halen was the powerhouse drummer who actually started with the guitar. More on that later. David Lee Roth was the charismatic frontman, with the flamboyant persona who had one of the highest kicks I have ever seen. Check that out on the film clip of “Jump”. While Michael Anthony was the bassist and backing vocalist right up to 2006.

Along the way there have been a few lineup changes with Sammy Hagar briefly replacing Roth when he departed, which was then followed by Gary Cherone replacing Sammy Hagar. David Lee Roth did make a comeback in 1996, and then another in 2006 right up to 2020 when the band disbanded. Also, of note Eddie Van Halen’s son Wolfgang replaced Michael Anthony on bass guitar in 2006.

As mentioned, the band disbanded in 2020, which was one month after the unfortunate passing of guitar legend Eddie Van Halen from Cancer.

Today’s mnemonic will be on the four original members of Van Halen.

So, with that being said, we will begin with a summary from Wikipedia.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Van_Halen_Lineup_1984.jpg

Wikipedia Summary

Van Halen (/væn ˈheɪlɛn/ van HAY-len) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1973. Credited with restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene,[2] Van Halen was known for their energetic live performances[3] and for the virtuosity of its guitarist, Eddie Van Halen.[4][5] The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.

From 1974 to 1985, Van Halen consisted of Eddie Van Halen, Eddie's brother, drummer Alex Van Halen, lead vocalist David Lee Roth, and bassist and vocalist Michael Anthony.[6] Upon its release in 1978, the band's self-titled debut album reached No. 19 on the Billboard 200 and would sell over 10 million copies in the United States, achieving a Diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). By 1982, the band released four more albums: Van Halen II (1979), Women and Children First (1980), Fair Warning (1981), and Diver Down (1982), all of which have since been certified multi-platinum. By the early 1980s, Van Halen was among the most commercially successful rock acts.[7] The album 1984, released in the eponymous year, was a commercial success with U.S. sales of 10 million copies and four successful singles. Its lead single, "Jump", was the band's only number one single on the Billboard Hot 100.

In 1985, Roth left the band to embark on a solo career and was replaced by former Montrose lead vocalist Sammy Hagar. With Hagar, the group released four U.S. number-one, multi-platinum albums over the course of 11 years: 5150 in 1986, OU812 in 1988, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge in 1991, and Balance in 1995. Hagar left the band in 1996 shortly before the release of the band's first greatest hits collection, Best Of – Volume I. Former Extreme frontman Gary Cherone replaced Hagar and recorded the commercially unsuccessful album Van Halen III with the band in 1998, before parting ways in 1999. Van Halen then went on hiatus until reuniting with Hagar in 2003 for a worldwide tour in 2004 and the double-disc greatest hits collection, The Best of Both Worlds. Hagar again left Van Halen in 2005. Roth returned in 2006, but Anthony was replaced on bass guitar by Eddie's son, Wolfgang Van Halen. In 2012, the band released their final studio album, A Different Kind of Truth, which was commercially and critically successful. It was also Van Halen's first album with Roth in 28 years and the only one to feature Wolfgang.

As of March 2019, Van Halen is 20th on the RIAA's list of best-selling artists in the United States; the band has sold 56 million albums in the U.S.[8][9] and more than 80 million worldwide, making them one of the best-selling groups of all time.[10][11][12] As of 2007, Van Halen is one of only five rock bands with two studio albums to sell more than 10 million copies in the United States[13] and is tied for the most multi-platinum albums by an American band. Additionally, Van Halen has charted 13 number-one hits on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart. VH1 ranked the band seventh on its list of the "100 Greatest Hard Rock Artists".[14] Eddie was diagnosed with cancer in 2001, and died of the disease on October 6, 2020.[15][16][17] A month after his father's death, Wolfgang confirmed that Van Halen had disbanded.[1]

Extracted from: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Halen]

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Van_Halen_(1978).jpg

Mnemonic

Van Halen – Original Band Members Mnemonic - MEAD

(Picture the band Van Halen drinking a concoction of very strong mead as a tradition before their shows)

1. Michael Anthony – Bassist & Vocalist

2. Eddie Van Halen - Guitar

3. Alex Van Halen - Drummer

4. David Lee Roth – Lead Vocalist

Five Fun Facts

1. The formation of Van Halen started with the collaboration of the two brothers Eddie Van Halen and Alex Van Halen in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Their eponymous first album released in 1978 gave them traction and success burgeoned.

2. Both brothers were born in Amsterdam and were trained as classical pianists during their childhood. Music was in their genes as their father was an accomplished jazz saxophonist, and clarinettist. Interestingly, Eddie started off playing the drums and Alex the guitar. Alex started playing Eddie’s drums when he was busy delivering mail to pay off his kit and ended becoming more skilled than Eddie. So, Eddie pivoted and got right into the guitar!

3. One of the unique talents of Van Halen was Eddie Van Halen who revolutionized guitar playing with his tapping technique. Now I checked this out on YouTube and the best way to describe it is the use of two hands tapping on the guitar neck moving up or down or in the same position. You can check that out on YouTube by typing in Eddie Van Halen and tapping into the search engine, and you will find there is not much Eddie can’t do with a guitar … amazing!

Now just speaking of Eddie Van Halen. One evening after a huge jamming session with his mates C, G, and E-flat, they decided to hit the bar. Anyway, they get to the bar and before they could even down their first beer the barman sees them, and points to Eddie’s three mates and shouts from across the room “You blokes, get out of here, we don’t serve minors!”

4. David Lee Roth joined the band in 1974 and penned such hits as “Jump” and “Panama”. Along the way he also ventured into acting starring in the film “Crazy from the Heat” which was also the name of his autobiography. He left the band in 1985 to pursue a solo career but rejoined the band for a reunion tour in 2007.

5. Michael Anthony started his music with a trumpet which he learned from his trumpeting father. He eventually took up the bass guitar as most of his friends were already playing guitars and drums. One interesting fact is that he is actually a natural left hander, however plays the guitar right-handed.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Los_Angeles-based_band_Van_Halen,_guitarist_Eddie_Van_Halen_airborne_during_performance_in_Los_Angeles,_Calif.,_1984_(22195741815).jpg

Three Question Quiz

Q.1. What was the title of Van Halen’s first album?

Q.2. What year was Van Halen inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Options are 1997, 2007, or 2017

Q.3. Eddie and Alex Van Halen formed the band in 1972 under what name? Options are Woolly, Mammoth, or Tusk

Bonus Q. What female singer was offered the lead singer position after David Lee Roth originally departed Van Halen? Options are Stevie Nicks, Patty Smythe, or Bonnie Tyler

Mnemonic Recap

Van Halen – Original Band Members Mnemonic - MEAD

(Picture the band Van Halen drinking a concoction of very strong mead as a tradition before their shows)

1. Michael Anthony – Bassist & Vocalist

2. Eddie Van Halen - Guitar

3. Alex Van Halen - Drummer

4. David Lee Roth – Lead Vocalist

Three Question Quiz Answers

Q.1. What was the title of Van Halen’s first album?

A. Van Halen

Q.2. What year was Van Halen inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Options are 1997, 2007, or 2017

A. 2007

Q.3. Eddie and Alex Van Halen formed the band in 1972 under what name? Options are Woolly, Mammoth, or Tusk

A. Mammoth

Bonus Q. What female singer was offered the lead singer position after David Lee Roth originally departed Van Halen? Options are Stevie Nicks, Patty Smythe, or Bonnie Tyler

A. Patty Smythe who was a friend of David Lee Roth. She turned down the role.

Word of the Week

gambol

[ gam-buhl ]

verb

to skip about, as in dancing or playing; frolic.

Example

When David Lee Roth was performing, he used to love to Gambol as he belted out our favourite tunes.

Extracted from: [https://www.dictionary.com/]

Website:

https://www.themnemonictreepodcast.com/

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