On October 6th, 2020 Eddie Van Halen recently passed away due to throat cancer. His name may not sound familiar, but you’ve probably heard some of his most popular songs such as “Jump”, “Runnin’ with the Devil”, or even “Panama”.  

Eddie was truly an inspiration, he played in a band with his brothers known as Van Halen. This band brought Eddie’s talent to life where they created some extraordinary music. The brothers were truly a talented group until the band split up after David Lee Roth, lead singer at the time, felt threatened that Eddie was playing music individually outside of the band. But this didn’t stop Eddie, he continued to create his music and went on to be successful. 

One of Eddie’s greatest solos, “Eruption,” was released February 10th, 1978. This song is nothing like you’ve heard before and it is often seen as one of the greatest guitar solos of all time, but Eddie didn’t think so. Eddie criticized one of his best songs insisting that he could have played it better. What makes this song special is how well Eddie executed the finger tapping technique on his guitar. Although this technique was invented before Eddie, he popularized it to create the distinct sound that makes his songs recognizable. 

What makes Eddie such a talented musician is that he taught himself how to play guitar. Although he got inspiration from previous piano lessons, he completely was self-taught. 

However, Eddie was unfortunately diagnosed with cancer in the year of 2000. While Eddie sought treatment, he never stopped his passion for music. He fought cancer for years until he unexpectedly passed away. Eddie Van Halen was truly a legend and will forever live on in our hearts. After over 40 years since his first few songs were released, they still play on the radio to this day. “The name Van Halen, the family legacy, is going to go on long after I’m gone,” Said by himself, Eddie Van Halen.