Music was a large part of my childhood. I associate so much of my past, locations, relations, what have you, with songs or albums. Joe Jackson's Look Sharp album, one of my all-time favorites, reminds me of my dad and bad romances. The first B-52s album is good times learning to play poker with my parents' friends. In fact, all of my love for music flows from my family. My mother loved British blues bands and had a dislike for The Beatles. My father loves all music. I have stated this before: he played me Elvis Costello and The Attractions, Black Sabbath, and many, many more all before I was ten years of age. The big one, the life-changer, was Van Halen.
Not Van Hagar, although I do like that incarnation and Sammy Hagar is damn fine guitar player in his own right, but VAN HALEN. Michael Anthony. Alex Van Halen. Diamond David Lee Roth. Eddie Van Halen. Especially Eddie. Those four together make some of the absolute best music ever. Bar none. The first two albums and 1984 were on consistently in my cheap stereo, the first two on vinyl, 1984 on cd. I'd rock out in my room while reading whatever Dungeons & Dragons Endless Quest book I had handy. Van Halen were just the perfect blend of proficient musicianship and bad-assery, all fronted by the cocksure swagger of Diamond Dave.
And then they broke up. Dave struck first with his solo stuff, swapping out Eddie for his own (well, Frak Zappa's) vitruoso guitarist: Steve Vai. Now, Vai is great and all, but, to me, he just does not have Eddie's soul. Diamond Dave ramped up the humor in his solo effort and I liked it, but it ain't Van Halen, who announced Sammy Hagar as their new front man. Ten year old me was actually pleasantly surprised. Me and Sammy go way back. Red. Bad Motor Scooter. His solo albums are good and, as a guitarist himself, it adds something Diamond Dave couldn't bring. I mean, Dave only kinda played guitar on Ice Cream Man and Sammy has some shredding tendencies.
5150 comes out and I get it. And liked it. Still do, actually. Songs about aliens and big solos everywhere. That year, my birthday rolls around, which is about a month before Christmas, and I get the new LIVE Van Halen videotape, Live Without A Net. This video gets watched almost every day. I memorize every little nuance, learning some new curse words in the process. Eddie's extended live solo gets a bit more attention than the rest (although Michael Anthony's Jack Daniels bottle bass earns extra points) as I am fascinated with how he makes all those noises with just his hands. My dad gets around to asking what I want for for Christmas and, after years of asking for Star Wars, G.I. Joe, and Transformers, I just point at Eddie Van Halen's signature Frankenstrat.
Needless to say, I did not get Eddie's guitar but I did get my first guitar, a black Synsonics electric with a speaker and tiny amplifier in the body, straight out of Toys 'R Us, and lessons from Heck Music. That poor guitar got taken everywhere, even school where I had a small recital, showing my rudimentary skills. The whole time, the goal was to be the next Eddie Van Halen. I actually learned to finger-tap before any full chords. So I had power chords and finger-tapping in my arsenal at twelve years old. And was completely terrible.
So what does this have to do with current times and why I still play in bands? Well, to be honest, I really didn't plan on playing ever again after my last band broke up. We were good and just getting tighter and poof it was gone. Drummer could not handle his wife pressuring him to quit so he did exactly that. That was it for me. I put away all my goals into a small part of my brain that was labelled "Shit That Will Never Happen". Little did I realize that I had good friends who knew what I wanted even if I didn't realize it. For a decade, I worked in a band called Fangboy And The Ghouls. I ran sound, hauled equipment, carried a softball bat, and generally handled anything for the band while they were on stage. Occasionally, I would step in and play a couple of songs with them. Fangboy eventually broke up (at least the original incarnation did) and the bass player and guitarist formed The Kill Junkies. My band was done and, as a result, I was disenchanted with going to shows. The occasional Kill Junkies show would draw me out but mostly I brooded at home, my guitars gathering dust.
Jason, one of The Kill Junkies guitarists, calls me up a few months ago. He needs a favor. Crommelin, their lead guitar player, can't make a show they have booked and could I step in for a night. Jason is my best friend, so I agree. We start rehearsing, Crommelin and Jason, both helping me learn the songs quickly, as the show is in three weeks. The show comes and goes without any major problems. A few days later, Jason calls and informs me that they really enjoyed having me around, and truth be told, I missed it. All of it. Practices. Jamming. Writing songs. Being loud. Especially that one. There is nothing like playing a loud guitar.
They asked if I would join permanently. Three guitar attack. I feigned making a decision, but
the answer was always going to be yes. I had realized that the happiest I ever am in life is when I am playing music. Everyone around me knew this but it was something I had to figure out myself. Now, I don't try to be Eddie Van Halen but I try to follow his example. The greatest thing I ever learned from him is to just play what you love and be yourself. There is no one like Eddie Van Halen and I dare say there never will be. He took his love for everything he listened to throughout his life and discovered his own unique style of playing. THAT'S THE KEY. Don't try to be Eddie; learn from him and grow.
It is about being yourself and not caring what everyone else is doing. I am in a hard rock band that has songs about jedis, the bride of Chucky, and voodoo, all the while playing slide guitar on a Gretsch Electromatic, dropping in ska rhythms and utilizing surf picking. Ultimately, I still play in bands because I absolutely love playing music for people with my friends. There is nothing else like it. This year is twenty years since I joined my first band, FERN. I don't see a stopping point any time soon.
If you are interested in what The Kill Junkies sound like, head over to The Kill Junkies Myspace page. We just finished an EP which is getting mixed. It should be available in a couple of months.
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