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

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

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

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

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

Eddie Van Halen: what Steve Vai, Allan Holdsworth, Jake E. Lee, Leslie West, and brother Alex told me about “the king”

By Steve Newton One of the biggest regrets of my career in rock journalism–and there aren’t that many, believe it or not–was never getting the opportunity to interview Eddie Van Halen. I did get to chat with his big brother Alex once, and he gave me a really great interview, but it just wasn’t the … Continue reading Eddie Van Halen: what Steve Vai, Allan Holdsworth, Jake E. Lee, Leslie West, and brother Alex told me about “the king”

That time I asked Allan Holdsworth what he thought of Eddie Van Halen

By Steve Newton If you were reading the top guitar magazines back in the early ’80s you may have heard the buzz about this phenomenal British player named Allan Holdsworth. A lot of the buzz was being generated by one Eddie Van Halen, who was touting Holdsworth’s abilities whenever he got a chance. Right around … Continue reading That time I asked Allan Holdsworth what he thought of Eddie Van Halen

That time I asked Alex Van Halen when he first knew that Eddie had the makings of a guitar legend

By Steve Newton Everybody remembers the first time they heard Eddie Van Halen. Or they should, anyway. For me it was sometime in early ’78 when the band’s first single, “You Really Got Me”, scorched the airwaves. It was clear right away that the guy creating the six-string racket had the makings of a guitar … Continue reading That time I asked Alex Van Halen when he first knew that Eddie had the makings of a guitar legend

That time I asked Alex Van Halen about his earliest memories of jamming with Eddie

By Steve Newton I haven’t interviewed that many drummers over the years–mainly because I like talking to guitarists more–but when Van Hagar was heading to Vancouver for a show in 1995 and the opportunity came to chat with Alex Van Halen I didn’t turn it down. And boy was I glad I didn’t, because he … Continue reading That time I asked Alex Van Halen about his earliest memories of jamming with Eddie

Gibson picked the top 50 guitar solos of all time, and boy did they ever blow it

Geez, even Jimi knew Johnny ruled. By Steve Newton Back in September of 2010 Gibson.com posted what it felt were the 50 greatest guitar solos of all time, and boy did they ever blow it. Most conspicuous by his absence is Texas blues-rock legend Johnny Winter. I for one am getting sick and tired of … Continue reading Gibson picked the top 50 guitar solos of all time, and boy did they ever blow it

That time Jake E. Lee of Badlands told me that hearing Van Halen got him back into hard rock

By Steve Newton Millions of rock fans around the world were mesmerized by Van Halen‘s sheer rockingness when it blasted onto the music scene in the late seventies. And Jake E. Lee was mightily impressed as well. When I interviewed Lee back in 1992 before a Badlands show in Vancouver we got to talking about … Continue reading That time Jake E. Lee of Badlands told me that hearing Van Halen got him back into hard rock

That time I asked Steve Vai if he was daunted by stepping into Eddie Van Halen’s shoes with David Lee Roth

By Steve Newton I did my first interview with Steve Vai in May of 1990, when he was just 29. He had just released his solo album Passion and Warfare, and was touring with Whitesnake, which was then basking in the glory of its multiplatinum Slip of the Tongue album. Before Whitesnake Vai had played … Continue reading That time I asked Steve Vai if he was daunted by stepping into Eddie Van Halen’s shoes with David Lee Roth

Leslie West dead at 75: the Mountain man leaves a legacy of timeless guitar riffs and killer tone

By Steve Newton 2020 is apparently not done taking our guitar heroes. After the devastating death of Eddie Van Halen on October 6 of this year, now we’ve lost another six-string legend in Leslie West. As I reported yesterday, West had been on a ventilator the last couple of days, after his heart gave out, … Continue reading Leslie West dead at 75: the Mountain man leaves a legacy of timeless guitar riffs and killer tone