Joe Satriani will channel Eddie Van Halen (and maybe Ronnie Montrose) on Sammy Hagar’s Best of All Worlds Tour

By Steve Newton Van Halen freaks looking to relive the legendary band’s days with Sammy Hagar at the mike are in for a treat. Hagar announced today that he will be going on the road next summer with a band that includes guitar hero Joe Satriani, former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, and drummer Jason … Continue reading Joe Satriani will channel Eddie Van Halen (and maybe Ronnie Montrose) on Sammy Hagar’s Best of All Worlds Tour

That time Canadian rock-guitar wizard Dave Martone got choked up talking about Eddie Van Halen

By Steve Newton Vancouver-based guitarist Dave Martone knows wicked guitar players. As well as having collaborated and toured with his good friend Joe Satriani over the years, Martone has managed to work with such acclaimed six-string slingers as Yngwie Malmsteen, Jennifer Batten, Tosin Abasi, Greg Howe, Paul Gilbert, and Marty Friedman. But when I interviewed Martone in November … Continue reading That time Canadian rock-guitar wizard Dave Martone got choked up talking about Eddie Van Halen

That time Kim Mitchell described guitar wanking by comparing Joe Satriani to Eddie Van Halen

By Steve Newton I did my fourth interview with Canadian rock-guitar great Kim Mitchell back in July of 1992, when he was touring behind his Aural Fixations album. He’d hired a new batch of musicians to accompany him–because Tom Cochrane had lured some of his regular band members away–and while he was describing how the … Continue reading That time Kim Mitchell described guitar wanking by comparing Joe Satriani to Eddie Van Halen

Famed guitar writer Jas Obrecht releases never-before-heard interview with Eddie Van Halen

Jas n’ Eddie By Steve Newton If you were a dedicated guitar freak in the late-’70s and through to the ’90s, there’s a good chance you picked up a copy of Guitar Player magazine with a cover story written by Jas Obrecht. I still remember picking up a copy that featured an awe-inspiring new guitarist … Continue reading Famed guitar writer Jas Obrecht releases never-before-heard interview with Eddie Van Halen

Vancouver shredder Dave Martone gets emotional thinking about his hero Eddie Van Halen

edgar barseghyan photo ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON NOV. 18, 2020 By Steve Newton When the global pandemic hit last March, Vancouver guitarist Dave Martone was doing pretty well financially. He wasn’t living in a mansion like the guy from Nickelback, mind you, but he was busy as hell, playing an average of 35 gigs a month, … Continue reading Vancouver shredder Dave Martone gets emotional thinking about his hero Eddie Van Halen

Ten years after Van Halen’s 1984, David Lee Roth ponders how condom use changes lyrical content

By Steve Newton Back in 1994 I did my first interview with David Lee Roth while he was promoting his Nile Rodgers-produced Your Filthy Little Mouth album. At one point in the conversation Roth started discussing how the changing times over the past decade–since his last album with Van Halen, 1984–had affected his life and, … Continue reading Ten years after Van Halen’s 1984, David Lee Roth ponders how condom use changes lyrical content

That time David Lee Roth told me that Van Halen’s Fair Warning album had been crucified and buried

By Steve Newton Back in 1994 I did my first interview with David Lee Roth, when he was touring behind his Nile Rodgers-produced Your Dirty Little Mouth album. At one point in the conversation I asked Dave if he was happy with how his career was going, which led him to chat about the ups … Continue reading That time David Lee Roth told me that Van Halen’s Fair Warning album had been crucified and buried

That time David Lee Roth told me what he really thought of Sammy Hagar and Eddie Van Halen

By Steve Newton I did my second interview with David Lee Roth back in June of 2003, when he was touring behind his last studio album, Diamond Dave. The previous year Roth and his replacement in Van Halen, Sammy Hagar, had joined forces for the Sam & Dave Tour, which saw them trek across the … Continue reading That time David Lee Roth told me what he really thought of Sammy Hagar and Eddie Van Halen

That time I asked ex-David Lee Roth bassist Billy Sheehan if he would jump at the chance to join Van Halen

By Steve Newton Back in August of 1989 I interviewed American bass god Billy Sheehan, who was promoting the new, self-titled debut album by his latest band, Mr. Big. The previous year Sheehan had been playing with Steve Vai in David Lee Roth‘s band, so as the conversation was winding down I asked him whether–if … Continue reading That time I asked ex-David Lee Roth bassist Billy Sheehan if he would jump at the chance to join Van Halen

That time Steve Stevens told me that Van Halen producer Ted Templeman helped him keep his sanity on Atomic Playboys

By Steve Newton Ted Templeman is one of the most successful rock-music producers in America. You could say that he is to the United States what Bruce Fairbairn was to Canada. Templeman was at the controls for such stellar albums as Montrose‘s self-titled debut, the Doobie Brothers‘ The Captain and Me, Van Morrison’s Tupelo Honey, … Continue reading That time Steve Stevens told me that Van Halen producer Ted Templeman helped him keep his sanity on Atomic Playboys

That time I asked Alain Caron how he felt about UZEB being called “the Van Halen of jazz”

By Steve Newton Way back in May of 1985 I interviewed Alain Caron, the phenomenal bassist for Quebec jazz-fusion band UZEB. His group was touring behind its second studio album, You, Be Easy, and headed to Vancouver for a two-night stand at the Commodore Ballroom. At one point in the conversation I asked Caron about … Continue reading That time I asked Alain Caron how he felt about UZEB being called “the Van Halen of jazz”

10 minutes on the phone with 29-year-old Steve Vai in 1990

By Steve Newton Steve Vai is one of those guitarists where you watch him play and you’re like: “How the hell does he do that!?” This is the first interview I did with him, when he was only 29, touring with Whitesnake, and had just released his solo album Passion and Warfare. During the first … Continue reading 10 minutes on the phone with 29-year-old Steve Vai in 1990

That time Lars Ulrich told me that he was surprised by how down-to-earth Van Halen were on the Monsters of Rock Tour

By Steve Newton Back in May of 1989 I did my second interview with Lars Ulrich, who called me up from Nagoya, Japan, while Metallica was touring behind its ….And Justice For All album. A year earlier the band had taken part in the Monsters of Rock ’88 Tour, which saw them sharing the stage … Continue reading That time Lars Ulrich told me that he was surprised by how down-to-earth Van Halen were on the Monsters of Rock Tour