Customer Reviews

Van Halen 101

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

The only reason I didn't give this book a 1/2 star is because it's not an option when picking the rating. I'm not one who usually jumps on reviewer chatboards to tell people how I feel, but I'm a big Van Halen fan, and was really excited to read this book, and was dissapointed to the point where I felt the need to warn the Van Halen fans of the world. If you're looking for a kick a** biography on this band...keep looking. It might not ever come, but not having anything at all is better than wasting your time and money on this bloated, 400 page turd.

The writing in this book is juvenile to the point of insulting. I don't mind coversational writing styles if it is done well, but it's like this author had only 5 different phrases to choose from in order to describe events in this book. When the term to describe Gary Cherone "...he can sing his d**k off!" appears twice within a couple pages, you have to wonder if the publisher of this book even has an editor on staff.

And ok, I get it, when the first Van Halen album was released in 1978 it ushered in a whole new era in rock music and single handledly reinvented the electric guitar. If I didn't know that the first time you said it, I sure as h*ll knew it by the fifth time I read it.

No interviews with the band members, no classic photos of the band, and I'm not even sure the facts I was given in the book were accurate. When the author uses the terms "I'm pretty sure..." and "I'm guessing..." on multiple occassions, it kinda feels like I'm being told stories by the old stoner guys back home who saw Van Halen in concert back in '81.

The history of the band feels like it was investigated using old Guitar World magazines, and classic video footage from MTV News. The discography section is redundant, and self-serving.
And the chapter entitled "Too Many Notes" should have been scrapped before publishing...again, where's the editor? Who cares if "Eruption" had 850 notes, and "Voodoo Chile" had 1000 notes?!! The only saving grace is the tribute section at the end. But even then, it only takes the first 20 or so "Eddie Van Halen is the best of all times" to get the point.

Van Halen fans, I know we haven't had much to cheer about in the last few years but stay strong, avoid this book, throw on your greatest hits CD and keep hoping for the "real" reunion tour sometime soon!!

Do not buy this book, unless you don't know how do a Google search. In that case, buy it and you'll be blown away by how well researched it is. If you CAN find your way to a search engine, type in Van Halen and learn a whole lot more about a once great band. Crappy books like this are just another example of the crap EVH and company have been giving their fans since Van Halen III.

I am a huge Van Halen fan. I've seen them live several times and started playing guitar because of Van Halen. I'm saying this because this review is coming from someone who loves this band. I absolutely HATED this book. The writing style is so unprofessional that I simply couldn't believe an editor would publish a book like this. Envision if you will Lawrence from "Office Space" telling you a bunch of Van Halen stories that he heard. Sure, it's supposed to be conversational, but it was just plain annoying. An example of the style might read, "This marshall amp was awesome dude. If you ask me, it belongs in the f#%ing Smithsonian!" I'm not exaggerating that at all. The entire book reads like that and it all comes off as some 45-year old trying to relive the glory days. If when you read that, you were annoyed, you will find this book annoying. If you lifted your fist in the air and yelled 'Hell Yeah!', you will love this book. For a book called "Van Halen 101", it couldn't 'feel' any less like a textbook since all of the info comes across a speculation.

My biggest problem overall was with the writing style, but the content really wasn't too original either. I'm reading DLR's Crazy From The Heat autobiography again and it much of the stories and information in 101 is lifted out of that book. By the way, that book is bar none a better book. If you've never read any of the Van Halen biographies out there, then this will all seem new. Otherwise, it's the same info you've heard before, told horribly.

I have to agree with the anonymous reviewer that this book reads as if a 16-year old wrote it. I expected a thorough history of Van Halen when I purchased this book and I got some fan's poorly-written, poorly-researched tribute to the band. The writing style makes the author seem like he's not even sure of some of the stuff he's telling us.

For instance, he totally left off the fact that in 1987 Eddie produced Sammy's then-untitled solo album and played bass on all the songs. Instead the author says something to the effect that they just rested up for OU812.

Also, Van Halen fans don't want to read a "Discography" section, we know what the music sounds like and if we like it or not.

And while the "Tribute" section is impressive, it's not what I call interesting reading.

Save your money. Wait for a Van Halen biography written by someone who is qualified to write one.

I am about halfway through this book and have serious doubts about being able to finish it.

The writing style is juvenile and irritating. The constant references to people as 'cats' and the reader as 'baby' is beyond annoying.

In a rambling dissertation about Eddie Van Halen's guitar solo during the 2004 tour the author didn't even mention that Eddie's son Wolfgang joined him onstage at many venues. That, to many, was one of the tours' most memorable moments. In the discography section he does not mention that on the Van Halen 'Greatest Hits Vol. 1' CD that in the original pressing "Running With the Devil" had verses two and three reversed. Facts like these would have been much more interesting to both the casual and hardcore fans than much of the ramblings presented. I keep hoping for something more insightful in this book but it obviously will not be forthcoming.

The tribute section seems to be the only section worth anyones' time.

The good thing about this book is that the author got about 100 famous guitarists to comment about how influencial Eddie Van Halen is. That section of the book is a very cool tribute to Eddie.

However, the writing style is extraordinarily bad. It's so unprofessionaly written that is very hard to read. (I passed my girlfriend the book to see what she thought of the strange writing style, and she couldn't even get through the first page)! Also, the author is just a fan, with no real inside connection or inside scoop on the band. So, basically, any VH fan with a lot of time on their hands could have written this. And, chances are, if almost any other VH fan would have written it, it would have been written better.

Hopefully some day there will be a VH book written by a band member, roadie, or manager.

I thought Id write a quick review of this book because Im a huge VH fan and have also just finished the Van Halen guitar player interviews book.

If you have purchased or read many of Van Halens interviews, especially Eddie's, you'll know most of the stories in this book, and for most other early stuff just download VH the early years for free off the internet.

I guess its the authors style that got to me the most. Baby, man, period are words to use occasionally in a book. Seeing baby or dude at the bottom of every paragraph gets annoying after a while - as does his relentless praise of eddie re-inventing the guitar. After a while it almost taints eddie like a cling on fan.

Would have liked to see more coverage on the other members of the band and more interesting stories that aren't covered in other books or common knowledge for VH fans.

The best part of the book its its cover.

Van Halen 101 confirms and justifies Eddie Van Halen's rightful place on the throne. Crack it open and within the four hundred odd pages containing every known detail about the band you'll discover superstars have turned out in droves, proverbial hat in hand, bowing their respective head to the King of rock guitar. We could almost envision him holding court over his subjects in his giant red/white/black kingdom.

A few of the many stand out moments. Pat Metheny's admission that listening to Eddie warm up backstage before a concert blew his mind is surreal because you have to be beyond brilliant to impress a true master like PM. Allan Holdsworth lending his two cents on Van Halen's chops and songwriting while speaking about his friendship with Eddie. Metallica's James Hetfield recalling how his first listen to Van Halen as a kid inspired him and continues to inspire him today. Pink Floyd's David Gilmour fessing up about sitting at home practicing endlessly to learn Van Halen's style was priceless. Henry Rollins study of the original Van Halen lineup was perfect. Yngwie Malmsteen complimenting Eddie and elaborating on his influence was shocking because if you know anything about Yngwie he rarely if ever has a complimentary word for anyone especially other guitarists. Autograph's Steve Lynch takes us back to 1984 and provides a detailed account of what it was like to tour with VH at the high of their powers. The departed Dimebag's praise for Eddie served to remind us what a cool and humble man he was in his own right. His partner in crime Zakk Wylde was literally gushing about Van Halen for several pages and concluded his lengthy "State of the Union" style address by proclaiming Eddie the greatest guitarist ever. Mark Tremonti recalling the time Eddie presented him with one of his own signature guitars before a show when Creed opened for VH is something each and every one of us dreams would happen to them.

Peavey owner Hartley Peavey might have them all beat. He recalled how when they were working on 5150 amplifier cabinets together Eddie could consistently tell the difference, by ear, between the two different kinds of wood they where trying out. That's astounding. Normal human beings do not possess anywhere near the type of hearing ability required to pull such a feat off. I've heard a similar story about Tiger Woods as told by Nike reps. Tiger was trying out two different clubs they'd developed for him and he was able to correctly determine, by hand, which of the two clubs was heavier. Scary considering the weight difference between them was only something like 1/28 of an ounce.

What you've heard is but the tip of the iceberg. They've even spoken with one of David Lee Roth's old midget bodyguards. Talk about being thorough. 101's a page turner clearly written by somebody who was completely immersed in the subject matter. Firing out the gate with a touching intro by Queen's guitarist Brian May all aspects of VH are looked at and much insight is given into what made them tick. Great reading, though I found myself skipping back and forth between the pages and the positively mesmerizing cover shot. If there's a better picture of Eddie out there I'd love for someone to produce it. What an image. That's how he should always be remembered. Long live the King.

Pgs 1-2 is the `Foreword' compliments of Queen axe man Brian May.
Pgs 3-120 is the `History' of the group.
Pgs 121-160 is the `Discography' which is self-explanatory.
Pgs 161-286 is the `FAQ,' curiously named and illuminating a diversity of fascinating topics relative to Eddie and the group.
Pgs 287-300 is `The Impact & Influence of EVH,' a close peek at Eddie's influence on the music world and other players.
Pgs 301-386 is the `Tribute' comprised of sensational musicians sermonizing about the prodigious talents and career of Mister Fingers, Eddie Van Halen. As multiple reviewers correctly noted virtually all of the greatest guitar heroes are present.

`History' is roughly 120 legitimate pgs dedicated to their complete story. No pictures, all text. Neither one of my other two books come anywhere near that amount. `The Van Halen Encyclopedia' who's cover read "The history of the world's greatest rock band" dedicated only the first 25 of it's 400 pgs to their history by way of a timeline. 2005's `Eddie Van Halen - Know the Man, Play the Music' was but a meager 106 pgs in total with only 44 actual text pgs dedicated to their history. Fans need not be a math major to safely assume 120 pgs is greater than 44 or 25. VH 101 does not gloss over anything and in fact contains the most detailed history of the group ever presented in book form.

The lack of "dirt" sets a new paradigm for the cliche "sex, drugs & rock n roll" type of books saturating the market for what seems like an eternity. While I'm fully cognoscente of the fact some people choose to live vicariously through their heroes I myself have a life so please don't count me amongst the mindless masses who obsess over backstage shenanigans, hotel room trashing, the lead singer's wang size, guitar player's alcohol consumption, fights between group members and things of that nature. My interests lay elsewhere in other more meaningful matters such as a group's music, talent and legacy.
It is correct that only a half-page was dedicated to David Lee Roth's solo career. After all the title of the book was `Van Halen 101' not `Roth 101.' Some of us would dare say that a half-page was being quite generous considering one could neatly sum up DLR's career after leaving Van Halen with but a single word - "mistake."

As an ardent supporter since 1980 who has stuck with Van Halen through thick and thin VH 101 is a godsend. It's mandatory reading that's currently been lauded by the likes of Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles, Guitar One, Classic Rock and various others under the `editorial reviews' on this very page. Last I checked well-respected publications don't normally make it a habit of endorsing "nonsensical jibberish."
Matter of fact it was a glowing review in the January 2006 issue of Guitar Player that gave me the confidence to buy it in the first place. Personally I feel the negative reviews posted by a few vociferous individuals around here come across as more than a bit disingenuous and blatantly unjust. Save your faux indignation.
If Mr. Sanchez is not one of the world's foremost authorities on Van Halen then my name is Elvis f----n' Presley.

The back of the book says "No BS, no hype - just the facts". Ha! What a load of BS! This entire book is nothing more than a bunch of excerpts taken from various magazines over the years combined with the author's opinions and speculation. Terrible, just terrible!

Not only that, but the author constantly refers to the reader as dude and baby. Every time a sentence would end in baby, I'd want to punch the wall!

Also, every time the word "because" should be used, the author uses the word "cuz". Makes me want to vomit!

And, if I ever in my entire life read again about how EVH can "play his d*ck off", it will be too soon. I don't have to be constantly told throughout the book that EVH can play the guitar, or that the other "cats" in VH can play their instruments. Obviously, anyone purchasing this book already knows that fact.

I was hoping for something more in line with Motley Crue's "The Dirt", but this isn't even close. The band doesn't appear to have been involved at all with the writing of this book. It's nothing but regurgitated magazine articles filled with a bunch of fluff by the author.

Stay away from this book! You probably won't learn anything you don't already know. And, if you're like me, you will walk away extremely irritated at the juvenile manner in which this book is written. Hopefully the band will do a proper biography sometime in the future and give us something better than this poor excuse for a book.