A new, free video series by British filmmaker Simon Alkin shows Eddie Van Halen’s path to creating his two-handed tapping method on guitar. Simon Alkin’s work brings together talks with band members and music pros. It comes after the release of previously unseen footage from a 1980s Van Halen film.
Ted Templeman, Van Halen’s producer, persuaded Warner Bros. to sign the band for Eddie’s talent. “I didn’t care about anybody else. I just wanted that genius to be recognized by the world,” said Templeman to .
The documentary begins in 1977 when the band was trying to secure a record deal. Then, the film tracks how Van Halen made “Eruption.” What started as a quick warm-up turned into a key track when Templeman pushed to add it to their first album in 1978.
The group recorded their first album in just five days. They created “Eruption” in one perfect take. Others had used two-handed tapping before, but Van Halen took it somewhere new in rock music.
This film fits into Alkin’s bigger series about Van Halen. It also highlights the young band’s ignorance. David Lee Roth joked that “Ted still makes more money than I do on those first two records.”
The story shows both wins and struggles. Eddie often had conflicts with engineers and producers, and he called striving for his vision ‘sound chasing.’
“It always comes through me. I’m the spark plug and the engine, so it is kind of a burden, but it’s a challenge at the same time,” Van Halen said about his place in the band.
You can watch this video and the rest of the series on the .
