Alex Van Halen stopped by the Robert Frost Auditorium in Culver City, California, on Thursday to promote his newly released memoir Brothers and discuss his tenure in Van Halen and growing up with his brother Eddie Van Halen.
You can see a few of UCR’s exclusive photos and watch snippets of the conversation below.
Talking to writer Ariel Levy, who collaborated on Brothers, Van Halen reflected on David Lee Roth’s inauspicious first audition for the band, which took place circa 1972. “We started playing a song, and by the time we were done, Dave finally took a first word,” he joked. “Which is a slight exaggeration, but he had a real long drawl. When it was apparent that this was not gonna work, the first thing Ed did is he left the room: ‘All yours, Al!’
“Oddly enough, I must say, I had nothing but respect for Dave, because he was there, he gave it his best shot, and from my view, he did not take it lightly,” Van Halen continued. “So all I could say was, ‘Hey man, I’m sorry, but I don’t think this is gonna work.’ So we left on amicable terms, until the next two years go by. Everybody in town is either going to college, they go out, whatever they do, [and] there’s only a few people left who are actually serious about pursuing a life in music — and I mean a life. This is a full-time job.”
READ MORE: Hear the Full Version of Eddie and Alex Van Halen’s ‘Unfinished’
Alex Van Halen Says Van Halen’s Roth Years Were the Definitive Ones
That time, the pairing obviously stuck, and with Roth at the helm, Van Halen went on to become one of the biggest and most innovative rock bands in history. In Brothers, Van Halen refers to the band’s 1985 split with Roth as “the most disappointing thing I’d experienced in my life, the thing that seemed the most wasteful and unjust. Until I lost my brother.”
Although Van Halen enjoyed a decade-long, chart-topping hot streak with Sammy Hagar, Van Halen told Billboard that he still regards the Roth years as the definitive ones. “What happened after Dave left is not the same band,” he explained. “I’m not saying it was better or worse or any of that. The fact is Ed and I did our best work whenever we played. We always gave it our best shot. But the magic was in the first years, when we didn’t know what we were doing, when we were willing to try anything.”
Watch Alex Van Halen Discuss David Lee Roth Audition at ‘Brothers’ Book Event
Watch Alex Van Halen’s ‘Brothers’ Book Talk Event on 10/24/24
Alex Kluft, UCR
Alex Kluft, UCR
Alex Kluft, UCR
Alex Kluft, UCR
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A ranking of every Van Halen album.
Gallery Credit: Ultimate Classic Rock Staff
