Free Edward Van Halen: A Definitive Biography by Kevin Dodds Page A

trying to rush-release a copycat version of Van Halen’s take on The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me.” All’s fair, apparently. Of course, the VH version would be unbelievably superior to Angel’s version, so Angel (and Bill Aucoin, and Gene, and Casablanca) would have only succeeded to confuse the market. Somewhere, alone with his thoughts, he undoubtedly referred back to the money disbursement at the wedding and Jan’s “welcome to the music business” remark. Bill Aucoin looked Edward straight in the eyes, knowing how bad he wanted to make it—a kid flying all the way from Los Angeles to New York for his shot at the big time—and told him no. Then he tried to pull the rug out from under him. It was personal.
    Because of Ed’s mistake, Van Halen was in turn rush-released in February to beat Angel to the sucker punch. There wasn’t a whole hell of a lot of time for build-up publicity, and, in the scurry, Dave convinced the band to all shave two years off their ages—age fabrication being a longstanding entertainment industry tradition, no doubt. Because of this, Ed’s age would constantly be reported incorrectly for years. Many years later, Edward said, “I should’ve known when Roth said, ‘Let’s say we’re two years younger than we really are.’ And I’d say, ‘Why? I’m only 22. What’s the difference?’ That still causes problems for me to this day.”
    Within a month, Van Halen was #19 on the U.S. album charts. March 3, 1978 marked the dawn of a new era in Edward’s life. He became Edward the worldwide touring musician. Although he and Alex technically lived with their parents, the road would become home. It was definitely fun at first.

The very first iconic photograph of Edward Van Halen from my own original, well-weathered Van Halen album cover. Photograph © Elliot Gilbert (fair use)

CHAPTER 8 
    Around the World
    The band immediately hit the road with Journey and Montrose blanketing the U.S. in two months time. Edward and the other guys took to life on the road with enthusiasm. Sex, drugs, rock and roll, and competition was their way of life. Edward admitted, “In 1978, I walked around squeezing everything that walked.” In a 2009 Black Sabbath documentary, Eddie said, “It was our first tour. It was 1978. We were doing anything and everything we ever read about and then some.”
    Sammy Hagar had long since departed Montrose, and Ronnie Montrose mostly befuddled Ed with his ridiculously complex set-up. Edward said, “I see Montrose with his $4,000 studio rack with his digital delay and his harmonizer and everything else, and I swear to God, I can’t tell he’s usin’ it. And then he laughs himself silly looking at my stuff. And then later on he’s going ‘Whoa, how do you get that sound?’”
    Journey, though, was a whole other thing. Van Halen hated Journey. Alex once said he made one of them cry, and that he couldn’t say his name “but he sings like this !” (in a mocking high-pitch tone). Steve Perry had only joined Journey about six months prior to the start of the tour, and Journey’s Infinity album (with “Wheel in the Sky”) came out just one month before Van Halen . Steve’s somewhat sissy ways brought the wrath of the macho Van Halen down upon him. His penchant for wearing scarves supposedly to help his throat led to the band and their crew appearing on stage during a sound check wearing scarves tied around their dicks. How long did it take Eddie to get cocky? “When we first started touring, we were third bill. We opened for Ronnie Montrose and Journey. And within two months, they were begging us to stay,” he said.
    Early on in the tour, the band acted out their rock star fantasies of hotel destruction in Madison, Wisconsin at the Sheraton, reportedly destroying the seventh floor. Dave and Al ripped out the screen of the window in Ed’s hotel room and sent his chairs and tables smashing down to the ground below. Very sneakily, Edward went to the front desk