Van Halen to Rock On With Roth

Van Halen's tour with David Lee Roth ended last July with one final triumphant version of "Jump" — but if Eddie Van Halen gets his way, that's not going to be the end of the reunion. "We are a band — it wasn't just a one-off tour we did," says the guitarist, who plans to meet with Roth this summer to play him demos of new songs. "We had a lot of fun on the tour — Dave was a blast. And next time we go out, we're going to have some new stuff, too. I'm looking forward to getting on it." The 75-date tour, which began in September 2007, grossed more than $93 million, making it the most lucrative of the band's career.

June will be a busy month for the Van Halens: Eddie will marry Janie Liszewski, his girlfriend and publicist; and 17-year-old bassist Wolfgang Van Halen ("a permanent part of Van Halen," according to his dad) will graduate with his high school class after taking a year off for the tour. "Wolfie had it the toughest," says Eddie. "He had three or four hours of tutoring every day and then the gig." And after that, Eddie hopes to start recording what could be the band's first new studio album since 1998's Van Halen III (with short-tenured lead singer Gary Cherone) and its first with Roth in 25 years.

"I've got tons of music written, such a variety of stuff," says Eddie, who thinks some of it may surprise fans. "The essence of me is obviously there, and those drums, they're always recognizable. But people expect a certain thing from Van Halen, and this isn't exactly bang-your-head-against-the-wall stuff."

Roth is keeping busy too — he lives part time in New York, where he works as an EMT, an unlikely passion he began pursuing in 2004. His spokeswoman said he couldn't be reached for comment on his future with the band.

At the same time, Eddie is continuing his own side career as an entrepreneur: He just launched a Website, EVHgear.com, where fans can buy replicas of nearly everything he plays and wears, from his signature Wolfgang guitar, which he used on the band's last tour (upgraded over two and a half years to what he calls "NASA quality"), to Converse-style sneakers with his red-white-and-black-striped design, which he's been wearing since the Eighties. "I'm not shoving it down anyone's throat or trying to be a clothing designer," he says. "I just think my tennis shoes are cool, and I love my equipment — everything I put out is exactly identical to what I use."

[From Issue 1072 — February 19, 2009]

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Eddie Van Halen Pimping His New Guitar

(Van Halen) We all know the signature sound, the trademark guitars, the incomparable songwriting, and the innovation. But fans of Eddie Van Halen will soon get a rare, up-close-and-personal peek behind the magic of the legendary guitarist.

Throughout early February, Eddie Van Halen will be appearing in several media outlets chatting about the new EVH "Wolfgang" guitar, his most recent line of EVH products, and giving fans an unparalleled look into his world.

The brand new EVH "Wolfgang" guitar, debuted January 15 at the 2009 NAMM show in Anaheim, CA to a truly amazing reception and created one of the biggest buzzes at the show attended by musical instrument retailers from around the world.

Eddie has destroyed old ways of thinking about guitars and brought the same genius, innovation and creativity from his playing directly into the design and manufacturing process, giving new meaning to the term 'high-performance.' Since its introduction just two weeks ago, the all new EVH Wolfgang guitar is blowing people away, with the massive demand far exceeding all original estimates.

The guitar, which Eddie road tested nightly on the critically acclaimed, highly successful Van Halen 2007-2008 North American tour, boasts loads of features. Among them are stainless steel frets, double-potted custom-wound pickups, five-piece binding on the matching body and headstock, custom-made signature tuning machines and Floyd Rose bridge, and new low-friction pots. Also coming soon is the brand new, D2H (Drop To Hell) Tailpiece. Stay tuned to www.evhgear.com for an exclusive video of Eddie himself explaining, demonstrating and telling the story behind this very unique, innovative patented tailpiece. For information about all EVH Brand Gear and accessories visit www.evhgear.com.

Readers will learn more about Eddie's products and get that rare perspective of his life when he appears on CNN and CNN.com January 30-February 2, February 2 on AOL.com, in the February 6 issue of "Rolling Stone" and in the February 10 issue of "Variety." The "Rolling Stone" interview includes a candid conversation between Eddie and reporter Brian Hiatt, and exclusive photography fresh off of the press.

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