I want to earn this.

Yeah. I don't want to be given anything.

Right. You know?

I don't know why people aren't willing to give you that opportunity. I find that annoying. It's a really funny put down of like you'll never be your dad. And when it's like, no, I'm not. And nobody else ever will be. I would rather make my own name, unfortunately, when I have the name Van Halen. It's a bit tough to do. All right, welcome. Thank you. Thank you, Ram.

It's our first time meeting. Yeah. I'm glad to cross-pass with you. Go ahead. So, you know, I'm doing my typical research. March 16, 1991. I'm March 17, 1967. Fellow Pisces. Yeah, my wife is the day before me as well. So they say if you can couple with your same sign That's the best relationship you can have. Well, I guess they're right because it better say that right here recently married Congratulations on being married. I think that's awesome As you know or you're learning Success and love at the same time is super valuable. Absolutely. It's nice to have somebody that you can you know trust It gets a little complicated at times to figure out right? I've had a lot happened in my life in the last you know Six years so I haven't I haven't heard any about that. Maybe we can poke around on it. Yeah, you have a lot to have somebody. I can just kind of trauma down by guess. No, but also share it with. I when I was in my ear hole now, 33. 33. You know, there's a lot of the years of my life where there was all these incredible things going on musically, but because I didn't really have something to come home to, it doesn't mean I didn't have a relationship, but it wasn't anything I look forward to. It's like a black hole in my mind. Totally. This gig, this gig, and then it's like blank. Yeah, because when you find that work life balance, it's super valuable. And I found it really late in life. I mean, I'm 57.

And it's like, no one's more shocked at me than I'm in happy marriage and have children. And so I wish all those things for you. Thank you very much. So everybody in the world wants to talk to you about your pop. And I promised you we weren't going to talk. I'm just a little bit. No, but here's the thing. I would be happy to talk about him with you because you've actually interviewed him before.

So thank you.

I did have that honor.

But my point is... I'm used to it though. No, but here's the thing. I would be happy to talk about him with you because you've actually interviewed him before.

So thank you.

I did have that honor.

But my point is, and when I texted you, thanks to our mutual friend Ross Halfin, I really want this interview to be about you. He stressed that as well. So he's very good. Great. Because I listen, we deal in a world where it's clickbait and low-hang fruit.

And if you trust me, it's not the right word.

If you let me kind of get there, I think you'll understand why I'm talking about the things I'm talking about. It's just like, you know, as we say in wrestling, I'm not swarming you. So here I am in about 97. I'm at 5150 with your father. Sammie's recently left the band. The guitar world who the interview was with. I pitched them. I said, I want to interview Eddie. And they were like, why? And I said because he's one of the greatest musicians in the world. And I feel that Van Halen isn't really getting its respect from the alternative world

Van Halen really stands outside a lot of these other bands that got swept aside in the

Inde grunge era. I think I know you know your grunge world music, right? Yeah, so I was like I really want to introduce

Van Halen and Eddie to an audience that maybe wouldn't understand why Van Halen is so valuable to the alternative community. We're just guitar players in general. Hello. Hello. I mean, come on, everybody, you know? So I think it was Brad Tlinsky was the editor of the time. He was so nervous about the interview, he flew out to make sure I didn't ask your father any of the wrong questions. And your father was amazing with me. And I have this memory and it came back to me today because I was listening a lot of your music and prep for the interview. Wow. And you know, there's a kind of beautiful high readingness to your voice. Like you have a lead singer voice, you know what I mean? Thank you very much.

And as your father felt more and more comfortable with me through the interview, and I'll tell you how I think he got comfortable, because I didn't get the feeling he was sitting around listening to smashing puppets, which was okay. I was just honored to be there in interviewing with him. And, you know, your dad was a cigarette in a guitar, and you know, like so, and I'm chasing

around. interviewing with him. And you know how your dad was. This is cigarette and a guitar and you know air you know like so and I'm chasing around but at some point he said, uh, it plays something. Sure he goes and he kind of does the thing but before you hear it it's me singing. Now, I've heard your father sing 8,000 times, but always in harmony.

Not a lot of people are... But before you hear it, it's me singing.

Now, I've heard your father sing 8,000 times, but always in harmony.

Not a lot of people realize that the tone of the Van Halen harmonies

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