[Dana’s note: As you all know, our very own Eddie Trunk went off a Twitter tirade last night about the disrespectful, and pitiful manner, in which the Grammy chose to “honor” the passing of iconic guitarist Eddie Van Halen. In light of his frustration, and countless others, Van Halen’s progeny, Wolfgang, says he declined an offer to play “Eruption” as a tribute to his father during this year’s Grammy’s.
He wrote on Twitter today (March 15th) “I don’t think anyone could have lived up to what my father did for music but himself,” Wolfgang wrote, explaining that he was then surprised to see the tribute become just a brief display of his guitar. “I didn’t realize they would only show Pop for 15 seconds in the middle of four full performances for others we had lost.”
“What hurt the most,” Wolfgang continued, “was that he wasn’t even mentioned when they talked about artists we lost in the beginning of the show. I know rock isn’t the most popular genre right now (and the academy does seem a bit out of touch) but I think it’s impossible to ignore the legacy my father left on the instrument, the world of rock, and music in general. There will never be another innovator like him.”
Wolfgang acknowledged that his father, who died last year after a long battle with cancer, wouldn’t have cared about any of it. “I know Pop would probably just laugh it off and say, ‘Eh, who gives a shit?’ He was only about the music anyway. The rest didn’t matter.” But he offered to speak to the Recording Academy “not just about the legacy of my father, but the legacy of the rock genre moving forward.”
Wolfgang, who toured and recorded on bass with Van Halen,will releasing his debut solo album as Mammoth WVH (in which he sings and plays all the instruments), on June 11th. Listen to the song You’re To Blame here and his first release, a very touching tribute to his father, Distance, here.
20 Responses
Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, Neil Peart, Keith Emerson, just a short list of ones no longer here that I am still in awe of almost anytime I hear them even though I have heard them each about a million times.
I have a feeling that Van Halen will still be remembered by some future, post apocalyptic type world, maybe by a new generation of fans and players searching for their own expressions against the yokes of one sided authoritism and stupidity that’s sure to be in the near and far future. Really it’s allready here. The same can’t be said for most of the performers on recent Grammy shows.
RobT,
Well said, it is as if the Grammys are a metaphor of the entire Nation, if not the world today. A one sided view with no tolerance for challenge or other opinions.
Trunk complains about these awards shows every year. They don’t care about rock music. I don’t watch them.
F–k the Grammys, f–k the so-called Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, f–k em all!! You wanna feel better? Listen to Molly Hatchet’s “Double Trouble Live!” Trust me! 😉