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I’ve done a really crappy job of constantly posting to any of my sites, but here at Keefer Madness, I’ve done an extra crappy job. With the recent passing of Eddie Van Halen, I thought it was time to write something here — my own tribute and thoughts on the innovative guitarist and overall music innovator.
Since hearing the news of Eddie Van Halen’s passing on October 6, 2020 (just over a month ago at the time of this writing), it’s been a bit of a shock, yet not at all at the same time.
First Listening
I’ve been a hardcore Van Halen fan for as long as I can remember, but got into the game late, seeing as I was a year old when their original and best album, Van Halen I was released. By the time, I got into the band, they were on their second album with Sammy Hagar, OU812. My dad used to play that cassette in his Jeep Cherokee a lot on weekend trips to the record stores, errands, etc.
Over the next few years, I got everything they released, both as the new albums came out, but also the back catalog with the original/classic lineup, and eventually started getting into tape trading of live shows spanning the band’s career.
Picking a Favorite
I love the whole Van Halen catalog. I’m hard-pressed to pick a favorite, beyond recognizing the true brilliance and raw power of the premiere album. Growing up and first being exposed to the Sammy Hagar era, I don’t have the same alliance that a lot of older fans do to David Lee Roth, but I still recognize how classic all those Roth-era albums are. They still stand-up, and feel as fresh as the day they were released. The 5150 and OU812 albums feel a little more dated, especially 5150 with it’s electronic drums. But even all that said, I love them all.
I never got into the Sam versus Dave thing, but recognize them as two eras and in some ways two bands. I love the whole catalog, including the
Honoring and Celebrating EVH
Whether it’s my Apple Music, YouTube, or Sirius/XM radio, all my audio listenings in the week after Edward’s death centered around the music of Van Halen, and the rock radio talk and honoring of Eddie Van Halen. So many fans and musicians have come out, honoring him as a guitar virtuoso, a guitar innovator, and just an all-around musician. I’ve heard so many musicians (mainly via Eddie Trunk’s SiriusXM shows) Mike McCready (Pearl Jam), Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine/Audioslave), Sebastian Bach (Skid Row), Tom Kiefer (Cinderella), among many others talk about how EVH impacted their playing, their music, and ultimately their lives.
His past bandmates Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony did a video together as well, and I’m happy to hear that Hagar had been in contact with Eddie over the past few months, and the two reconciled. He said he kept it quiet to make sure rumors weren’t out there about yet another reunion. I’m glad the two were able to make peace before one left this world.
Michael Anthony
It’s less clear on whether Michael Anthony, Van Halen’s bassist from the mid-’70s till sometime after 1998. The Van Halen brothers could hold quite a grudge, and it ran super-deep with Anthony for some reason. I think it was a combination of a lot of things, but they resented Anthony touring with Hagar in the years after Hagar and Van Halen parted ways.
On the single Van Halen Gary Cherone album, Van Halen 3, Anthony only played on a handful of tracks, and on the subsequent greatest hits album, he didn’t write or play on any of the new tracks, though he did still do background vocals.
When the reunion with Van Halen / Hagar happened in 2004, had Hagar not insisted, Anthony would not have been part of the tour. Even participating, he was offered a smaller royalties contract for the tour only. They went as far as for a while, Photoshopping out Anthony from photos on their site, till fans complained. I hate how they treated and resented Anthony — by all accounts a super easy-going and friendly guy. This really bugs me to this day.
Impact
Regardless of the grudge and relative seclusion, the Van Halen brothers practiced when outside of touring and making music, Eddie Van Halen had an impact on so many musicians and music, both through Van Halen’s music catalog and performances, but also in his contributions to music technology. EVH was always chasing tone, tweaking, and adjusting things. Early in his career, out of necessity and ignorance, his Frakenstrat was born, melding a Strat-style body with the Humbucker pickup used in Les Paul guitars. He also messed with adjusting the voltage on his guitar amps to give them the tone he was chasing.
He later went on to help perfect the Floyd Rose tremolo system and the D-Tuna system that allowed guitars equipped with it to go from standard tuning to dropped-D tuning by pushing a metal shim of sorts on the guitar bridge. The guitarist also had four patents — all related to the guitar.
In the final years of his life, fans saw most of Edward Van Halen’s output via his EVH brand — new guitars, limited edition guitars, almost all under the Wolfgang name, his only son’s name, along with his 5150 series of amp heads, cabinets, and combo amplifiers.
Output
Albums and tours slowed in Van Halen’s later years, and health (and rehab) rumors always abounded. In hindsight, it seems like Eddie Van Halen fought long and hard cancer multiple times, along with substance abuse. But the guy was a musician through and through. He played daily, most known for the guitar for obvious reasons, but also quite capable on piano, bass, keyboards, among other instruments I’m assuming.
The final studio album, A Different Kind of Truth, the first full album with David Lee Roth since 1984, borrowed and relied heavily on old recordings, riffs, and ideas from as far back as the 1970s in likely an attempt to make it sound more like the classic Roth-era albums, but also as a bit of a shortcut to get to the end product. That’s not a jab, dig, etc., just an observation of what ended up being the last studio album Edward output. They toured twice based on that final album and released a double live album, Tokyo Dome Live in Concert that had the Van Halen trio sounding as strong as ever, and Roth — well being Roth in concert.
Concerts
I was lucky enough to see Van Halen multiple times over the course of just over two decades — six times to be exact at a total of three different venues. My first time was on July 21, 1993.
Hagar Concerts
Living in Chesapeake, Virginia at the time, my dad drove me and a friend down here to Raleigh to see the band at Walnut Creek Amphitheatre for the Right Here, Right Now tour with Hagar fronting. It’s funny that the first Van Halen show ended up being in Raleigh, where I’ve lived for quite a while now. I loved every moment of it, from the concert opening Mine All Mine to the encore finale cover of Neil Young’s Rockin’ in the Free World.
I was old enough and close enough (now living in Durham) for my second time to drive myself and a friend to see them for the Balance tour in 1995, again at Walnut Creek Amphitheatre on September 1, 1995.
It would be the last album Hagar would do with the band, them breaking up the following summer (I remember seeing it on MTV News like it was yesterday). The straw that broke the camel’s back was after coming off of the Balance tour, Hagar wanted to take time off as he and his wife were having their first baby together. The Van Halen brothers wanted to do new songs for the Twister soundtrack. They only managed to piece together Humans Being, though the Van Halen brothers ended up doing a second song, Respect the Wind, an eerie guitar and harpsichord that feels very final, haunting and a good way to pay respect to the now late Edward Van Halen.
Cherone Concerts
Funny enough, the first time fans got to hear Humans Being was with Gary Cherone singing it. While only with the band for a single album, I got to see Gary Cherone concerts twice in 1998, buying tickets once, and getting them a second-time thanks to my college internship at the News & Observer. The first time with Cherone fronting, we traveled to Charlotte, North Carolina’s Blockbuster Pavillion on July 30, 1998, to see the band live. I was an Extreme fan, Cherone’s original band, and was psyched for the new frontman that could and would sing both Roth and Hagar tracks. I do remember thinking Cherone’s prancing on stage was a better fit for Queen than Van Halen, but never having seen Roth live, maybe it wasn’t as bad of a fit as I thought at that time.
A few weeks later, I got to again see the Cherone-fronted Van Halen again and was back at Walnut Creek Amphitheatre where I had seen Hagar twice with the band. The Charlotte and Raleigh shows were essentially the same, but I would have gone two or three more times on the tour had I had the ability to hear the songs and just see, hear, and experience EVH at work.
David Lee Roth Concerts
When Roth originally left the band, I was like 7 years old, so obviously was in no position to get to see them live the first time around. I did eventually get to see Roth twice, first in 2002 when Roth and Hagar toured together — the so-called Sans Halen tour (Song for Song, the Heavyweight Champs of Rock and Roll). Part of that tour was made to entice the Van Halen brothers out of hibernation and possibly do a tour where both Hagar and Roth did their era of songs with the band. While that never happened, it was great
What��s Next
I’ve read that Alex Van Halen and Ed’s son, Wolfgang Van Halen at some point when wounds heal a bit, plan on going through the 5150 studio vaults. While in the past, not a whole lot of extra material has been released by the band, fans, myself included are hopeful that the silver lining of Edward’s passing will be starting to release more of that unheard material from the 5150 vaults as an appropriate memorializing of EVH.
In Closing
I’m no different than any other fan of Eddie or the band. While it’s not like a family or friend passing, it’s still quite jarring. There’s an obvious feeling of finality. There’s never the possibility of another tour with all the band members. Any new material that comes out now will be old recordings. Much to the eye-rolling of my wife, I introduced both of our boys to Van Halen’s music early and often. I had always hoped to one day take Tyler to a VH concert. Now the next best thing will either be Roth solo or more likely for us, Sammy Hagar and the Circle.
Thanks for reading my rambling memorializing, editorializing, and history sharing of Ed and the band with his namesake. Thanks to Edward, the band, and all its members over the years for creating such timeless music, great riffs, lyrics, etc. EVH is greatly missed, but his music will live on. Rest in peace, Edward Van Halen. May your heavenly Frankenstrats always stay in tune.
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Isn’t social distancing fun? Despite what your neighbors may be doing or saying, playdates and parties are not the thing to be doing.
Anyway, here are two videos to watch about the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) that are both well done, and entertaining at the same time.
The Coronavirus Explained & What You Should Do
This video does a great job of explaining Coronavirus. It’s nicely done – both from an informational and visual standpoint:
How To See Germs Spread (Coronavirus)
Remember the guy who did the glitter bomb, GPS-tracking, camera recording packages to catch and exploit package thiefs? His newest video is all about demonstrating the spread of germs. Check it out below.
There are definitely some upsides to all going on right now. A lot of places are being cleaned a lot better than they have been in years — or ever. We might also be going away from antiquated things like the handshake. Sure, neither of those are worth the sickness, isolation, and change in day-to-day routines, but I’m trying to find an upside.
Online Education Resources While Kids Are Home
For those fellow parents juggling working from home and making sure the kids aren’t just YouTubing and playing video games, I started compiling a list of online education resources. Please comment on that posting if you have more resources. As time allows, I’ll update and add.
Be an Adult
Also, let’s all be adults. Be responsible and show some constraint in the coming weeks. That trip to Michaels can be postponed. Make a grocery list, and visit max weekly, or take advantage of online services. Support local businesses where you can, but do it responsibility and minimizing contact.
Use this time to better yourself, do that early Spring cleaning, catch up on reading, and most of all, just be a responsible adult.
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Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
This site has been on hiatus for a while due to life. This is a list I was compiling for our boys based on things friends and family have shared with us. I’ll add and remove as I get other resources. Our recent forced social distancing means the schools are closed, but we’re wanting our kids to do more than just Nintendo Switch, YouTube and Lego. Those are all still happening, but here are the online educational resources we’ve been compiling.
For now, the list is just that — just a list. I’ll try to update with reviews and added information. Yay — living documents!
Disclaimer: We have not reviewed the majority of the links and content here. Please comment if links are broken or inappropriate. We’d also love help classifying links for age ranges, etc.
Categories
Math
Misc
Science
Social Studies
Video
Writing
Math
ABC YA
Fun Brain
Khan Academy
Prodigy
Misc
Highlights Kids
PBS Kids
Reading
ABC YA
Bookflix
Fun Brain
Highlights Kids
Into the Book
Scholastic Learn at Home
Scholastic News
Squiggle Park
Star Fall
Storyline
Science
Highlights Kids
National Geographic
Mystery Doug
Nat Geo for Kids
Suessville
Switcheroo Zoo
Social Studies
History For Kids
Video
YouTube Channels
Full Time Kid
TED-Ed
Make me Genius
Minute Physics
PBS Nova
PBS Parents/Adventurous Learning
Smithsonian
The Spangler Effect
V Sauce
Veritasium: Science, Demos, Interviews
Netflix Programs
Animals
72 Cutest Animals
72 Dangerous Animals: America
72 Dangerous Animals: Asia
72 Dangerous Animals: Australia
A Dog’s Life
Africa’s Deadliest
Africa’s Deadliest
Animal Fight Night
BBC: Life
Baby Animals in the Wild
Bindi’s Bootcamp
Blackfish
Born in China
The Crimson Wing
David Attenborough’s Natural Curiosities
Dolphins: Spy in the Pod
Elephant: Spy in the Herd
Ghost of the Mountain
Growing Up Wild
Hidden Kingdoms
The Hunt
Leopard Fight Club
Lions: Spy in the Den
Peculiar Pets
Penguins: Spy in the Huddle
Polar Bear: Spy on Ice
Race of Life
Shark
Terra
The Lion in Your Living Room
Tiger: Spy in the Jungle
Trek: Spy of the Wildebeest
Tyke: Elephant Outlaw
Virunga
Wild Ones
Wings of Life
Dinosaurs
Dino Hunt
Horizon Dinosaurs: The Hunt for Life
Raising the Dinosaur Giant
Documentaries
Abstract: The Art of Design
American Experience: TESLA
The Beginning of Life: The Series
Expedition Happiness
First Contact: The Lost Tribe of the Amazon
Genius of the Modern
Happy People: A Year in the Taiga
Inside Einstein’s Mind
Life Below Zero
Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things
NOVA: Arctic Ghost Ship
NOVA: Dawn of Humanity
NOVA: Search for the Super Battery
NOVA: The Nuclear Option
Oklahoma City
Pygmies: Children of the Jungle
The Secret
Social Fabric
Story of Maths
The Traffickers
The Toys that Made Us
The Truth About Alcohol
Trump: An American Dream
World
Earth & Nature
A Plastic Ocean
Blue Planet
Desperate Hours: Witnesses & Survivors
Earth’s Natural Wonders
Forces of Nature
Frozen Planet
Full Force Nature
Mission Blue
Nature’s Great Events
Nature’s Weirdest Events
Planet Earth
Planet Earth II
Planet Earth: As You’ve Never Seen It
Tornado Hunters
Weird Wonders of the World
World’s Worst Disasters
Entertainment
Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby
Amazing Interiors
Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown
Bill Nye the Science Guy
Brain Games
Dirty Money
Dream Big: Engineering our World
Explained
Hollywood Weapons: Fact or Fiction
How to LIve Mortgage Free
Lego House: HomeBrick
Liquid Science
The Magic School Bus
Mega Builders
NOVA: Ultimate Cruise Ship
Origins
Print the Legend
Somebody Feed Phil
The “Who Was” Show
Top 10 Architecture
White Rabbit Project
World’s Most Extraordinary Homes
Food/Nutrition/Health
9 Months that Made You
A Leaf of Faith
Food Choices
Food, Inc
Forks Over Knives
Froning: The Fittest Man in History
In Defense of Food
Rotten
Take Your Pills
The C Word
The Cowspiracy
The Founder
What the Health
Geography
72 Dangerous Places to Live
Afghanistan: The Great Game
Encounters at the End of the World
Escape to the Continent
Saudi Arabia Uncovered
South Pacific
The Truth Behind Atlantis
Wild Alaska
Wild China
History
9/11: Truths, Lies & Conspiracy
Auschwitz: The Nazis and the Final Solution
D-Day
NOVA: Secrets of Noah’s Ark
Nazi Mega Weapons
Nazi Megastructures
The Pyramid Code
The Royal House of Windsor
Untold Histories of the United States
The Vietnam War
Vikings Unearthed
WWII in Colour
Mystery
Conspiracies
Secret Tunnel Warfare
The Code
The Forensic Files
The Secret Rules Of Modern Living: Algorithms
Top 10 Secrets & Mysteries
Space
Alien Contact: Outer Space
The Beginning and End of the Universe
Edge of the Universe
Horizon: Secrets of the Solar System
Horizon: Supermassive Black Holes
The Inexplicable Universe
In Search for Life in Space
Into the Inferno
NOVA: Earth’s Rocky Start
Orbit
The Real Death Star
Presidents
How to Win the US Presidency
JFK: The Making of a President
Meet the Trumps: From Immigrant to President
The Wheelchair President
Writing
Typing Club
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Just after the new year, the set of classic NASCAR race cars that wind up and around the contours of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in uptown Charlotte will be all new. The fourth iteration of the exhibition of cars is curated by none other than Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
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No. 21 driver, Paul Menard has now completed his final practice session in his full-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
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The majority of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is composed of oval tracks and races. Road-course races make up a very small schedule, with this weekend's race representing just the third road course of the 2019 season, as well as a cutoff race for the 2019 playoffs. When Paul Menard and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane team take the green flag for the Bank of America Roval 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway it will be the team’s 100th Cup start on a road course.
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Kyle Larson will take the wins where he can, and that doesn't include just taking the checkered flag first.
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Earlier this morning, veteran NASCAR driver, David Ragan announced he will be stepping down from full-time NASCAR Cup competition at the completion of the 2019 season.
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No. 22 Team Penske driver and eventual 2019 Firekeepers Casino 400 winner Joey Logano learned some things about restarts throughout the Summer Michigan race. He talked about some of it. Some of it.
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Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 driver, Erik Jone finished yesterday at Pocono Raceway with a season-best third-place finish and reflected after the race about the entire Pennsylvania race weekend.
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With cooler temperatures and the new package for 2019 making its debut at Kansas, the Spring Kansas race became a little bit more exciting than recent Kansas races. Ultimately, Brad Keselowski and Team Penske celebrated another win.
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Paul Menard capitalized on the No. 21 crew chief Greg Erwin’s call to stay on the track during the race’s final caution period and came away with a season-best sixth-place finish in Sunday’s Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The post Menard Gets Sixth Place Bristol Finish Via Pit Call appeared first on Closet NASCAR Fan.
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Hey all,
I only bug you all in this way once a year, and it’s that time again.
For the fifth year in a row, I’m shaving my head to raise money for pediatric cancer research via St. Baldricks, along with our youngest, Nolan is shaving his for the second year, and Tyler, for his third.
We’ve been blessed in that both boys are healthy, crazy, and relatively normal guys. St. Baldricks has been a way to celebrate that.
Change of Location
In the past, we’ve done events at Lynwood Grill, and Lonerider Brewery last year. This year, we’re doing it before the Carolina Hurricanes game this Thursday night, incorporating our fandom for our NHL franchise into our St. Baldricks experience.
Anyone’s welcome to join the team and come on out to the event, or if you can spare a few bucks, we’d love a donation to get us higher up on the leaderboard for the event.
https://www.stbaldricks.org/teams/mypage/122011/2019
Here’s a before and after from last year’s event:
Donate to Our Team
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With Atlanta and Daytona in the rear-view mirror, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads west, starting with Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend. The single-car team of Leavine Family Racing, with its new combo of driver and crew chief look to make the most out of the new rules and their first race at the 1.5 mile Nevada track.
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After sporting the Motorcraft/Quick Lane colors throughout Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway, the Wood Brothers’ No. 21 Ford Mustang will be going Menards/Moen neon yellow and blue for this weekend’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway — the first track in 2019 to utilize the new rules package.
The post Wood Brothers Ready to Tackle New Rules Package at Atlanta appeared first on Closet NASCAR Fan.
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