Hey Dweezil. Thank you so much for all of the amazing episodes thus far. I have listened to them all multiple times now and really enjoy the attention to detail and the love all of you have for Van Halen. OU812 is where I was finally introduced to the band so I am really anxious for this upcoming episode. Keep up the great work!!! Really excited to see what you have in store for us!!!
My son and I were recently on a long road trip during which we listened to a number of episodes. He's never been "into" music, for him it's always been something that's in the background. However, the stories you and your friends told and clips you played of Eddie couldn't help but put a smile on both of our faces. I want to thank you for putting this together and providing a window for my son into something that was (and still is) important to me.
Hi Arthur, thanks for sharing your story. I'm glad you are both enjoying the podcast. I'm still working on the 0U812 episode. Hope to get it finished asap.
I love the deep analysis of these albums. I hadn’t been into the 5150 album much but this episode made me realize how good a record it really was and it peaked my interest to listen to it with a fresh appreciation after so many years. Really enjoying this podcast.
Here are contenders for possible guitars used for the “I’ll Wait” solo and possibly the “Love Walks In” leads…first is a Kramer Pacer Deluxe. The serial number is B4126 which puts it in the same time frame as the 1984 tour guitars like the 5150, 1984 and Hot For Teacher…roughly 1983. It also has an FRT-5 Floyd Rose which is pretty specific to that time frame. The translated Japanese text claims that this guitar may have been used on ‘The Wild Life’ soundtrack…there are out-of-phase strat tones at places on that soundtrack, so this is possible. The Japanese magazine that this photo was taken from claims that this is all according to Donn Landee, but I can’t verify that. I tend to doubt Landee spoke to a Japanese magazine, but I could be wrong.
This guitar was in Ed’s possession at the time of the recording of ‘1984’ to the best of my knowledge, and it is one of only two guitars that I have seen in his possession between 1983-1989 with single coil standard strat pickups and a Floyd. Also, this newer sunburst strat has the three single coil standard strat configuration with a black Floyd Rose. This picture is from 5150 in 1990, so that may or may not make it less likely to be the guitar used for “I’ll Wait”/“Love Walks In”.
The episode with all of the reverse engineering has not been completed yet so the presets aren't ready. You'll definitely be made aware of the availability of the presets when they are ready!
The lyrics to 5150 are about mathematics and relationships. It doesn’t focus on the numbers as a police code as before but rather as fractions and percentages. Such as 50/50 and 51/50, 51% 50%. “Always one more, You’re never satisfied. It’s only one for me. So why draw the line. Meet you half the way. When you don’t know what that means”
Wow, that's an awesome insight - I never realized that before. It was always sort of a mystery what the song was about, actually think you nailed it there. Someone should ask Sammy about it!
Love that you and Mark noticed the prog influence on the 5150 title track. There's recordings of the band playing some super obscure 70s prog stuff like Captain Beyond from the backyard party days, so it's clear Eddie and Alex were into that sort of thing. That prog influence comes out again later on in the Sammy era in "Pleasure Dome" and "Baluchitherium". I have to think had Eddie actually done a solo instrumental album it might have sounded a lot like this stuff. Wolfgang seems to be really into prog too - he's mentioned Steven Wilson, Tool, Karnivool, and Dream Theater as influences before.
As an aside, I transcribed "5150" years ago for a Hal Leonard project and I believe I got a few key things right that no other transcription has. The main thing is that the pre-chorus is actually played up higher on the neck in the area of the 7th to 9th fret vs. what's usually shown down lower in open position in other transcriptions. You can see this pretty clearly on Live Without a Net:
I love 5150 - i was 15 and it was my first arena show. Really enjoying the episode. I look forward to the future episodes because after OU812 I stopped getting the records as they came out - I was exploring other music by that point.
I’m curious DZ…EVH has been a lifelong inspiration, but I’m curious if you’re feeling that this deep dive with the podcast is going to show itself in your new original compositions. I would imagine this podcast period has to be seeping in to your music. Any thought and observations on how it’s affecting your music?
Hey Dweezil, today I tuned into a live instagram story with Sammy Hagar. Hagar shared a ton of awesome stories during the interview. Hagar mentioned how Bob Weir considered having him perform as the lead singer for Grateful Dead following Jerry Garcia's passing. He also stated that at one point he wanted to perform a Van Halen show with David Lee Roth! He had envisioned a concert where there would be two stages. He described it as being similar to a sporting event in which there would be a Sammy Hagar stage, and a David Lee Roth stage! Apparently David Lee Roth did not want to do it. But IMO, that would be the best of the both worlds. Thank you for hosting the podcast!
Just wanted to say " thanks " for another great episode. 5150 is a VERY special album for me-It's the album that helped me turn my life around. I was a late VH fan. Got into them at 1984 and went backwards. " Eruption " definitely inspired me to pick up the guitar but my life back then was getting pretty tough for me, especially in 1986.
Before 5150 was released, I was dealing with some pretty heavy things in life: Divorced parents, cancer in my family ( I alone had suffered with a brutal form of the chicken pox ), getting beaten up in high school ( I was a 15 year old freshman then ) and personal thoughts of suicide. Listening to this episode reminded me of my feelings when I first heard the album: It was fresh and inspiring without depreciating what came before with Dave. In that way, 5150 inspired me to pursue music as a form of therapy. Edward's own words about 5150 being their first number #1 album helped me even more. In the September 1986 issue of Guitar World, Edward was asked how it felt about 5150 being the first VH album going to the number one Billboard album position: " You know what it showed me? That music overpowers bullshit. "
That statement ( and 5150 itself ) literally started me on a better path in life. Thanks to that music, my life totally changed for the better. Looking back, it's hard to describe the feelings I experienced at that time now that I'm 50. But, 5150 totally changed me forever. It remains my number one favorite Van Halen album ( I actually had the opportunity in 2018 to message Edward on Twitter about the aforementioned and his wife/widow, Janie, messaged me back that Edward was " very moved " by my message ).
Thanks for bringing me back and reminding me that music will always overpower the bullshit in life
Another great episode!! How nervous we’re all VH fans when 5150 came out? It’s different, yes…but still VERY good. The song ‘5150’ is a monster. To me, that song is EVH telling the world…yes, this is different, but I’m still Eddie Mutha Fuckin’ Van Halen. I love these discussions and can’t wait for the next one.
Amazing work, I love what you are doing, so much great info from great players. It is telling how incredible EVH was that players like yourself, Vai, Nuno and everyone else you are with on your episodes are so humbled by his playing. Thank you for all the work, they seem like a lot to put together (maybe a Eat 'em and Smile and the first two Randy Ozzy records when VH is rapped up?).
Regarding the Shark guitar, I always felt that after reading an interview he did talking about the Shark he added the turnbuckles after he cut the chunk out to attempt to restore the sound of the Destroyer as he felt the guitar did not sound the same after the Mod. My two cents anyway, thanks again, what you are doing it great!
Another superb instalment Dweezil - "Thank you" - brilliant ! again a wonderful level of attention to detail and well worth waiting for. You mention about the "Fizzy Sound" Eddie achieved on Get Up & Summer Nights . I recall reading in Guitar World and speaking to someone at a Guitar Show here in the U.K in around '86 that Eddie used a prototype Groove Tube Pre amp on "5150" for certain tracks.
Hi Allen - thank you for the reply ,I would - though we are in the process of moving and the box marked "EVH Magazines" is all packed - and said issue is in there . I will try to locate it once moved and post it.
Wow, amazing episode! I admit that I had never previously heard of Mark Lettieri but really dug his story of when he got into VH and his insights. Going to look into his music.
Quick question, I was wondering if you planning on covering the Star Fleet Project at all?
I loved that Star Fleet Project tape so much. It was like a "behind the scenes" thing for me. Plus it filled the gap between Diver Down + 1984!
I wouldn't mind hearing your thoughts on Eat 'Em and Smile and Skyscraper. It was kind of VH vs Dave during these albums. 5150 vs EEAS, OU812 vs Skyscraper, tour vs tour, Eddie vs Vai. I'd love to hear full episodes with song breakdowns the same way and your thoughts and guest thoughts on Vai's playing as well as his version of the VH stuff live.
Agreed. It’s such a tribute to Pete Townshend’s lead/rhythm style but taking it even further with incredible melodies woven through. As Dweezil says, can you imagine being given THAT music and asked to come up with words and a vocal melody for it?! An impossible task that Sammy was given and he totally rose to the challenge while also delivering probably the single greatest vocal of his entire career!
Hey Dweezil. Thank you so much for all of the amazing episodes thus far. I have listened to them all multiple times now and really enjoy the attention to detail and the love all of you have for Van Halen. OU812 is where I was finally introduced to the band so I am really anxious for this upcoming episode. Keep up the great work!!! Really excited to see what you have in store for us!!!
My son and I were recently on a long road trip during which we listened to a number of episodes. He's never been "into" music, for him it's always been something that's in the background. However, the stories you and your friends told and clips you played of Eddie couldn't help but put a smile on both of our faces. I want to thank you for putting this together and providing a window for my son into something that was (and still is) important to me.
Hi Arthur, thanks for sharing your story. I'm glad you are both enjoying the podcast. I'm still working on the 0U812 episode. Hope to get it finished asap.
I love the deep analysis of these albums. I hadn’t been into the 5150 album much but this episode made me realize how good a record it really was and it peaked my interest to listen to it with a fresh appreciation after so many years. Really enjoying this podcast.
Here are contenders for possible guitars used for the “I’ll Wait” solo and possibly the “Love Walks In” leads…first is a Kramer Pacer Deluxe. The serial number is B4126 which puts it in the same time frame as the 1984 tour guitars like the 5150, 1984 and Hot For Teacher…roughly 1983. It also has an FRT-5 Floyd Rose which is pretty specific to that time frame. The translated Japanese text claims that this guitar may have been used on ‘The Wild Life’ soundtrack…there are out-of-phase strat tones at places on that soundtrack, so this is possible. The Japanese magazine that this photo was taken from claims that this is all according to Donn Landee, but I can’t verify that. I tend to doubt Landee spoke to a Japanese magazine, but I could be wrong.
This guitar was in Ed’s possession at the time of the recording of ‘1984’ to the best of my knowledge, and it is one of only two guitars that I have seen in his possession between 1983-1989 with single coil standard strat pickups and a Floyd.
Also, this newer sunburst strat has the three single coil standard strat configuration with a black Floyd Rose. This picture is from 5150 in 1990, so that may or may not make it less likely to be the guitar used for “I’ll Wait”/“Love Walks In”.
Summer Nights was all about the 1984 olympics
???
EVH Mammoth era very few people talk about the Tony Iommi influence. I don’t know why.
It's a pretty strong influence for sure.
Hi John,
The episode with all of the reverse engineering has not been completed yet so the presets aren't ready. You'll definitely be made aware of the availability of the presets when they are ready!
excellent! Been enjoying tearing through the early years ones today, thanks again for doing this and responding so quick! Hope you had a great day
Loving the podcasts!! Are the kemper VH presets still on the way or where would I find em?
The lyrics to 5150 are about mathematics and relationships. It doesn’t focus on the numbers as a police code as before but rather as fractions and percentages. Such as 50/50 and 51/50, 51% 50%. “Always one more, You’re never satisfied. It’s only one for me. So why draw the line. Meet you half the way. When you don’t know what that means”
Wow, that's an awesome insight - I never realized that before. It was always sort of a mystery what the song was about, actually think you nailed it there. Someone should ask Sammy about it!
Hey Dweezil,
Love that you and Mark noticed the prog influence on the 5150 title track. There's recordings of the band playing some super obscure 70s prog stuff like Captain Beyond from the backyard party days, so it's clear Eddie and Alex were into that sort of thing. That prog influence comes out again later on in the Sammy era in "Pleasure Dome" and "Baluchitherium". I have to think had Eddie actually done a solo instrumental album it might have sounded a lot like this stuff. Wolfgang seems to be really into prog too - he's mentioned Steven Wilson, Tool, Karnivool, and Dream Theater as influences before.
As an aside, I transcribed "5150" years ago for a Hal Leonard project and I believe I got a few key things right that no other transcription has. The main thing is that the pre-chorus is actually played up higher on the neck in the area of the 7th to 9th fret vs. what's usually shown down lower in open position in other transcriptions. You can see this pretty clearly on Live Without a Net:
https://imgur.com/a/44HZ8pd
Absolutely right Ryan! Great work on the transcription!
I love 5150 - i was 15 and it was my first arena show. Really enjoying the episode. I look forward to the future episodes because after OU812 I stopped getting the records as they came out - I was exploring other music by that point.
I’m curious DZ…EVH has been a lifelong inspiration, but I’m curious if you’re feeling that this deep dive with the podcast is going to show itself in your new original compositions. I would imagine this podcast period has to be seeping in to your music. Any thought and observations on how it’s affecting your music?
Hey Dweezil, today I tuned into a live instagram story with Sammy Hagar. Hagar shared a ton of awesome stories during the interview. Hagar mentioned how Bob Weir considered having him perform as the lead singer for Grateful Dead following Jerry Garcia's passing. He also stated that at one point he wanted to perform a Van Halen show with David Lee Roth! He had envisioned a concert where there would be two stages. He described it as being similar to a sporting event in which there would be a Sammy Hagar stage, and a David Lee Roth stage! Apparently David Lee Roth did not want to do it. But IMO, that would be the best of the both worlds. Thank you for hosting the podcast!
Dweezil,
Just wanted to say " thanks " for another great episode. 5150 is a VERY special album for me-It's the album that helped me turn my life around. I was a late VH fan. Got into them at 1984 and went backwards. " Eruption " definitely inspired me to pick up the guitar but my life back then was getting pretty tough for me, especially in 1986.
Before 5150 was released, I was dealing with some pretty heavy things in life: Divorced parents, cancer in my family ( I alone had suffered with a brutal form of the chicken pox ), getting beaten up in high school ( I was a 15 year old freshman then ) and personal thoughts of suicide. Listening to this episode reminded me of my feelings when I first heard the album: It was fresh and inspiring without depreciating what came before with Dave. In that way, 5150 inspired me to pursue music as a form of therapy. Edward's own words about 5150 being their first number #1 album helped me even more. In the September 1986 issue of Guitar World, Edward was asked how it felt about 5150 being the first VH album going to the number one Billboard album position: " You know what it showed me? That music overpowers bullshit. "
That statement ( and 5150 itself ) literally started me on a better path in life. Thanks to that music, my life totally changed for the better. Looking back, it's hard to describe the feelings I experienced at that time now that I'm 50. But, 5150 totally changed me forever. It remains my number one favorite Van Halen album ( I actually had the opportunity in 2018 to message Edward on Twitter about the aforementioned and his wife/widow, Janie, messaged me back that Edward was " very moved " by my message ).
Thanks for bringing me back and reminding me that music will always overpower the bullshit in life
Hi David,
Thanks for sharing your story! I'm glad the episode re-enforced the positive for you. Be well! DZ
Another great episode!! How nervous we’re all VH fans when 5150 came out? It’s different, yes…but still VERY good. The song ‘5150’ is a monster. To me, that song is EVH telling the world…yes, this is different, but I’m still Eddie Mutha Fuckin’ Van Halen. I love these discussions and can’t wait for the next one.
Thanks Brad,
Glad you're enjoying the episodes. The James Valentine EP will be another fun one. It's one of the few that was recorded in person. Best, DZ
Hi DZ,
Amazing work, I love what you are doing, so much great info from great players. It is telling how incredible EVH was that players like yourself, Vai, Nuno and everyone else you are with on your episodes are so humbled by his playing. Thank you for all the work, they seem like a lot to put together (maybe a Eat 'em and Smile and the first two Randy Ozzy records when VH is rapped up?).
Regarding the Shark guitar, I always felt that after reading an interview he did talking about the Shark he added the turnbuckles after he cut the chunk out to attempt to restore the sound of the Destroyer as he felt the guitar did not sound the same after the Mod. My two cents anyway, thanks again, what you are doing it great!
Thanks,
CB
Any chance of getting Phil X on the podcast? I bet you guys would have a blast nerding out about Eddie :)
Another superb instalment Dweezil - "Thank you" - brilliant ! again a wonderful level of attention to detail and well worth waiting for. You mention about the "Fizzy Sound" Eddie achieved on Get Up & Summer Nights . I recall reading in Guitar World and speaking to someone at a Guitar Show here in the U.K in around '86 that Eddie used a prototype Groove Tube Pre amp on "5150" for certain tracks.
If you can find that reference and share it here, that would be great!
Hi Allen - thank you for the reply ,I would - though we are in the process of moving and the box marked "EVH Magazines" is all packed - and said issue is in there . I will try to locate it once moved and post it.
Wow, amazing episode! I admit that I had never previously heard of Mark Lettieri but really dug his story of when he got into VH and his insights. Going to look into his music.
Quick question, I was wondering if you planning on covering the Star Fleet Project at all?
I loved that Star Fleet Project tape so much. It was like a "behind the scenes" thing for me. Plus it filled the gap between Diver Down + 1984!
I wouldn't mind hearing your thoughts on Eat 'Em and Smile and Skyscraper. It was kind of VH vs Dave during these albums. 5150 vs EEAS, OU812 vs Skyscraper, tour vs tour, Eddie vs Vai. I'd love to hear full episodes with song breakdowns the same way and your thoughts and guest thoughts on Vai's playing as well as his version of the VH stuff live.
Dweezil, I am with you! The title track for 5150 is one of my favorite Van Halen songs. Another excellent episode!
Agreed. It’s such a tribute to Pete Townshend’s lead/rhythm style but taking it even further with incredible melodies woven through. As Dweezil says, can you imagine being given THAT music and asked to come up with words and a vocal melody for it?! An impossible task that Sammy was given and he totally rose to the challenge while also delivering probably the single greatest vocal of his entire career!