Audiobook11 hours
Van Halen Rising: How a Southern California Backyard Party Band Saved Heavy Metal
Written by Greg Renoff
Narrated by Sean Runnette
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5/5
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About this audiobook
After years of gigging everywhere from suburban backyards to dive bars, Van Halen-led by frontman extraordinaire David Lee Roth and guitar virtuoso Edward Van Halen-had the songs, the swagger, and the talent to turn the rock world on its ear. The quartet's classic 1978 debut, Van Halen, sold more than a million copies within months of release and rocketed the band to the stratosphere of rock success. On tour, Van Halen's high-energy show wowed audiences and prompted headlining acts like Black Sabbath to concede that they'd been blown off the stage. By the year's end, Van Halen had established themselves as superstars and reinvigorated heavy metal in the process.
Based on more than 230 original interviews-including with former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony and power players like Pete Angelus, Marshall Berle, Donn Landee, Ted Templeman, and Neil Zlozower-Van Halen Rising is the first book to tell the untold story of how these rock legends made the unlikely journey from Pasadena, California, to the worldwide stage.
Based on more than 230 original interviews-including with former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony and power players like Pete Angelus, Marshall Berle, Donn Landee, Ted Templeman, and Neil Zlozower-Van Halen Rising is the first book to tell the untold story of how these rock legends made the unlikely journey from Pasadena, California, to the worldwide stage.
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Reviews for Van Halen Rising
Rating: 4.426229491803278 out of 5 stars
4.5/5
61 ratings6 reviews
What our readers think
Readers find this title to be a well-written and enjoyable trip down nostalgia lane for Van Halen fans. It provides an unbiased account of the band's history and offers insights into the LA music scene of the 70s and 80s. While some readers wished for more bandmate stories, overall, it is highly recommended for fans of the band and rock music enthusiasts.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5If you’re a Van Halen fan you can’t go wrong here. Well written and a pleasant trip down nostalgia lane back to the 70’s
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Whether you’re a fan of the band or simply loved rock music from that time, this is a fantastic read. It opens the lid on the LA music scene from the 70s and 80s and shows how Van Halen made it big in spite of numerous false starts and shattered hopes.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It gives a unbiased account of the band. I was hoping for more of the band mates stories, to live vicariously through a rock band.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I loved it, great history of Van Halen, I highly recommend
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A must read for any VH fan. Enjoyable from start to finish.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A biography of one of the biggest rock bands ever, but also a look at Southern California culture in the 70's and the L.A. club industry. The author goes through the years of the changes in band members and styles, with particular attention to Eddie Van Halen's hard work in creating his unique sound and fretboard technique.This book probably wouldn't interest anyone who doesn't like this band, unless the reader has an interest in reading about the struggles of a young band in general in the pre-Youtube days when they had to build a fan-base through appearances and word-of-mouth for years before getting a contract.The first couple of pages are written from the gushing point of view a big fan, which I thought didn't bode well, but the writing became better and the research was extensive, with Renoff interviewing former bassist Michael Anthony and producer Ted Templeman along with lots of people who were involved with the band members along the way.