RateItAll: The Opinion Network

Eddie was a huge influence on so many, true, and he was great, but I am not a huge fan of him, guitarist like George Bellas, Angelo, Jill Yan, Patrick Rondat, Matt Mills, Al Estrada, and many more, these are far more impressive to the Sword..

Update, I almost forgot my man Joe Stump, and David T. Chastain...

There is no doubt in my mind that Eddie Van Halen is the greatest and most influential rock guitarist of all time. Man I was 16 and learning to play guitar when Van Halen's first albulm came out. Up to that very time, two names were most prominent in the rock guitar World...Hendrix and Page...I personally thought Page was better than even Hendrix at the time, but was amazed at Hendrix's feedback and other techniques. And for that I give Hendrix major kudos because he developed those techniques wholly on his own. But that does not make him even in the top 10 greatest in my opinion. Just about any half decent guitarist with the same amps and guitars can fairly easily play anything Hendrix put out. Now when Van Halen came out with that first album I know for a fact it changed rock guitar forever. I can remember hearing the album in a friend's car for the very first time, (on 8 track tape), and I was blown away instantly...NOT by "Eruption", but by "Ice Cream Man", which just happened to be the very first Van Halen song I ever heard. I asked "who the hell is that"?! My friend replied "Oh thats a new band called Van Halen". I said, "no not the band, the fucking guitarist"! I had never heard anyone play guitar that fast and crystal clear esp at those speeds. And those were the days of analog recording. Just listen to the solos on that one simple song. (That was a ONE TAKE recording, like most others on that albulm).I then borrowed that 8 track and listened to the entire tracks many times over. I was blown away. I can tell you...I loved great guitar work at that time and I know for a fact that practically overnight every other guitar fanatic teen just like me in the WORLD knew Eddie Van Halen was the greatest rock guitarist ever!..The Hendrix, Page "who's best" arguments were out the window...just like that. The only other guitarists I can think of that really comes close to Eddie, (and I'm talking sheer innovative technique and personal technical brilliance in mastering the guitar), is Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. And Steve Vai is a very close second. I mean Steve can play equally well right handed or left handed. There are many great guitarists in the history of Rock, but Eddie Van Halen has influenced far more guitar players than anyone else ever. Love EVH or hate him, that's just the way it is.

And yes he can play the aquistic ...Listen to "Spanish Fly"...

A likeable guy with lots of flash and style but for me its all in one ear and out the other. Doc Watson, John Renbourn and Leo Kotke are as impressive or more when they are warming up and they do it all without a bunch of pedals, cables, processors and guitars that can go to 11.

No other guitarist in the history of guitar playing has had such a profound effect on the instrument as Eddie Van Halen. He not only changed the way guitars were played, but the way they were made as well. He is the most copied guitarist of all time, the entire decade of the eighties was influenced by Eddie so much that most of the music of that era sounded like Van Halen, even some of the greats on this list dabbled in Eddie's "Brown Sound". Now you can say that "I think most of the music from the eighties sucked", but that doesn't change the Fact that Eddies playing influenced an entire period in rock music. His playing and inventions are still seen today because they are commonly used on most electric guitars. When Eddie Van Halen exploded onto the scene in the late seventies, people could not believe what they were hearing and Eddie was concious of this and had to play with his back to the audience, so that people could not copy his playing style before Van Halen broke big. Jimi Hendrix had a different sound when he came out, but no where near the extent of Eddie's playing. This all translated into huge album sales for Van Halen and they were playing stadiums by there second record. Now just because Van Halen sold a lot of records and had successful singles does not prove his greatness, but it does show that people liked his playing enough to make Van Halen one of the top selling artists of all-time.

Update: I just saw Van Halen on their reunion tour with David Lee Roth and my impression of Eddie is even greater then it was before I saw them. When Eddie was playing with Sammy Hagar, his guitar prowess was some what limited because of the style of music that Van Halen played with Sammy as their singer, because with him as their vocalist, they were a more keyboard/piano driven band. Now with Dave back in the fold they are playing the music that made Eddie a guitar "GOD" and this is great because, Van Halen fans that are my age and younger, never got to see these songs performed live because of Sammy's lack of enthusiasm to play them live. Eddie's guitar genius was on full display that night and he hit every note masterfully. This night showed me, without a doubt, that he has NO peers when it comes to this instrument, truly amazing.

I appreciate his influence on hard rock/metal guitar playing but by the same token I can blame him for for all the sh*tty metal bands he influenced - everyone from pisspoor efforts like White Lion and all that hair metal cr@p through to all those late 80s shredders, thrash metal etc. Being influential isnt necessarily a good thing. After all Hitler's an influence on Aryan Nation and the KKK.