Alex Van Halen says his Brothers memoir is a 'tribute' and 'love letter' to Eddie
It's released in the autumn
Alex Van Halen has spoken for the first time about his upcoming intensely personal autobiography, Brothers.
As revealed by Van Halen Store, the 384-page memoir Brothers is released on 22nd October 2024 via Harper Collins and it sees Alex Van Halen share his personal story of family, friendship, music, and brotherly love in a remarkable tribute to his late younger brother and Van Halen bandmate, Eddie Van Halen.
Alex Van Halen notes that he called his brother Edward – “Maybe ‘Ed,’ but never ‘Eddie.’”
The ‘intimate and open book’ is told with acclaimed New Yorker writer Ariel Levy, and it was written while the 70-year-old drummer was in mourning from Eddie’s death aged 65 in October 2020.
Alex says of his bond with his brother: "I was with him from day one. We shared the experience of coming to this country and figuring out how to fit in.
“We shared a record player, an 800-square-foot house, a mom and dad, and a work ethic. Later, we shared the back of a tour bus, alcoholism, the experience of becoming famous, of becoming fathers and uncles, and of spending more hours in the studio than I've spent doing anything else in this life.
“We shared a depth of understanding that most people can only hope to achieve in a lifetime.”
A synopsis for Brothers reads: ‘In his rough yet sweet voice, Alex recounts the brothers' childhood, first in the Netherlands and then in working-class Pasadena, California, with an itinerant musician father and a very proper Indonesian-born mother—the kind of mom who admonished her boys to "always wear a suit" no matter how famous they became—a woman who was both proud and practical, nonchalant about taking a doggie bag from a star-studded dinner. He also shares tales of musical politics, infighting, and plenty of bad-boy behaviour. But mostly, his is a story of brotherhood, music, and enduring love.
‘There has never been an accurate account of them or the band, and Alex wants to set the record straight on Edward's life and death.’
Alongside the text, Brothers will contain never-before-seen photos from Alex Van Halen’s personal collection.
The greatest guitar solos of all time, including Eddie Van Halen:
75) Pink Floyd – ‘Wish You Were Here’ (1975)
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74) Iron Maiden – ‘Hallowed Be Thy Name’ (1982)
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73) Guns N’ Roses – ‘Paradise City’ (1987)
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72) Guns N’ Roses – ‘Estranged’ (1991)
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71) Bon Jovi – ‘Wanted Dead or Alive’ (1986)
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70) Iron Maiden – ‘Powerslave’ (1984)
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69) UFO – ‘Lights Out’ (1977)
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68) Neil Young – ‘Like a Hurricane’ (1977)
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67) Judas Priest – ‘Beyond The Realms of Death’ (1978)
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66) Free – ‘All Right Now’ (1970)
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65) Extreme – ‘Play With Me’(1989)
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64) AC/DC – ‘Back in Black’ (1981)
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63) UFO – ‘Love To Love’ (1977)
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62) Led Zeppelin – ‘Whole Lotta Love’ (1969)
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61) Eric Johnson – ‘Cliffs of Dover’ (1990)
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60) Stevie Ray Vaughn – ‘Little Wing’ (1984, released posthumously in 1991)
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59) Pearl Jam – ‘Alive’ (1991)
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58) Metallica – ‘Nothing Else Matters’ (1991)
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57) Fleetwood Mac – ‘The Chain’ (1977)
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56) Dragonforce – ‘Through the Fire and Flames’ (2005)
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55) Thin Lizzy – ‘Emerald’ (1976)
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54) Dire Straits – ‘Brothers in Arms’ (1985)
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53) Steve Vai – ‘For the Love of God’ (1990)
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52) Deep Purple – ‘Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming’ (1996)
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51) AC/DC – ‘Thunderstruck’ (1990)
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50) Rainbow – ‘Gates of Babylon’ (1977)
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49) Metallica – ‘The Unforgiven’ (1991)
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48) Rush – ‘La Villa Strangiato’ (1978)
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47) Pantera – ‘Cemetery Gates’ (1990)
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46) Pink Floyd – ‘Shine on You Crazy Diamond’ (1975)
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45) Dire Straits – ‘Telegraph Road’ (1982)
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44) Peter Frampton – ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ (2003)
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43) Slash – ‘Anastasia’ (2012)
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42) The Beatles – ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ (1968)
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41) Pink Floyd – ‘Time’ (1973)
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40) Genesis – ‘Firth of Fifth’ (1973)
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39) Deep Purple – ‘Smoke on the Water’ (1972)
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38) AC/DC – ‘Let There Be Rock’ (1977)
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37) Megadeth – ‘Tornado of Souls’ (1990)
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36) Ozzy Osbourne – ‘No More Tears’ (1991)
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35) Metallica – ‘Fade To Black’ (1984)
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34) Marillion – ‘Easter’ (1990)
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33) Joe Bonamassa – ‘India / Mountain Time’ (2008)
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32) Ozzy Osbourne – ‘Crazy Train’ (1980)
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31) Cream – ‘Crossroads’ (1968)
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30) AC/DC – ‘Whole Lotta Rosie’ (1977)
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29) Led Zeppelin – ‘Since I’ve Been Loving You’ (1970)
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28) Queen – ‘Brighton Rock’ (1974)
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27) Metallica – ‘One’ (1989)
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21) Ozzy Osbourne – ‘Mr Crowley’ (1980)
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20) Derek & The Dominoes – ‘Layla’
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19) Gary Moore – ‘Still Got The Blues (For You)’ (1990)
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18) Prince - ‘Purple Rain’ (1984)
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17) Deep Purple – ‘Child in Time’ (1970)
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16) Bon Jovi – ‘Dry County’ (1992)
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15) The Jimi Hendrix Experience – ‘All Along The Watchtower’ (1967)
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14) Deep Purple – ‘Highway Star’ (1972)
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13) Gary Moore – ‘Parisienne Walkways’ (1979)
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12) UFO – ‘Rock Bottom’ (1974)
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11) Dire Straits – ‘Sultans of Swing’ (1978)
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10) Queen – ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ (1975)
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9) Rainbow – ‘Stargazer’ (1976)
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8) Guns N’ Roses – ‘Sweet Child ‘O Mine’ (1987)
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5) Eagles – ‘Hotel California’ (1976)
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2) Lynyrd Skynyrd - ‘Free Bird’ (1973)
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