#62 Eddie Van Halen & Michael Anthony | The OU812 Interview

In this episode, we have Eddie Van Halen and Michael Anthony. At the time of this interview in 1989, Van Halen was in Japan promoting their OU812 tour and record.. In the interview, Van Halen talks about how Eddie wants to be remembered when he dies, David Lee Roth and Ted Templeman, their album OU812, why Eddie is still not 100% sober, and so much more. We have also added a bonus interview with Eddie alone from 1985. The interview is conducted by Steve Harris. To learn more about Steve, please check out our podcast-only interview with him, which is out now. 00:00 - Intro 01:03 - Start to Eddie Van Halen Michael Anthony interview 01:15 - Is there a formula to make hit records? 01:45 - Eddie Van Halen enters the conversation 02:34 - Is Van Halen more like a family? 03:03 - If David Lee Roth is a businessman 04:13 - Is OU812 more straightforward? 05:38 - How has the age of fans affected the music? 06:42 - How Eddie wants to be remembered when he dies 07:06 - What separates Eddie from his clones 07:43 - Eddie talks about Jimmy Page 08:28 - Can Van Halen burn out musically? 08:55 - His playing when he first learned to play 09:35 - If they think as they get older, they lose certain things 09:59 - If they ever go back to the older Van Halen music and why he build 5150 11:03 - If Eddie ever becomes too indulgent 12:02 - How much input do producers have? Talks about Ted Templeman and Mick Jones 12:45 - David Lee Roth and Ted Templeman’s theory on covering hit songs 13:46 - Guns ’n Roses 14:12 - Drugs and drinking 14:51 - Did Eddie ever go too far with partying? 15:31 - With David Lee Roth leaving, did that lift a cloud? 16:09 - Does Eddie need to drink to write music? 18:03 - Did Eddie and Al go sober at the request of their father? 18:40 - Eddie tells the band to calm down during their first tour 19:22 - Van Halen band meetings 19:48 - Is Van Halen a democracy? 20:33 - What would Eddie have done if he wasn’t a guitarist 21:21 - Eddie talks about playing piano as a kid 23:09 - Does Van Halen bring out violent impulses from fans? 23:42 - Does he like any current bands? 24:27 - Sammy Hagar walks in 24:56 - Why Eddie started playing guitar [Start of the interview from 1985] 25:58 - Was his guitar like his friend 26:51 - Al and Eddie money making scam 28:08 - How Eddie depends on Alex, and how Al took over Ed’s drums 30:58 - What makes Van Halen good? 32:17 - When did Ed know Van Halen was something special? 32:51 - His love for his guitar and family 34:52 - What will it take for him to realize people appreciate him 35:56 - Eddie avoiding fame 36:28 - Why does he go onstage? 37:34 - Does he feel like a rockstar? 38:18 - What he dreamt of when he first started with Van Halen 38:53 - Alex throwing drumsticks at him 40:36 - Why he detunes 41:18 - He hates books 42:28 - The backstory to the song Girl Gone Bad 44:05 - Why was 1984 important to Eddie’s mental health? 44:56 - Eddie Van Halen plays Crossroads 47:50 - How old was he when he learned Crossroads? 48:10 - Is he happy while playing? 48:41 - Why he likes being alone 49:00 - Have people told him he was nuts? 49:15 - How has the success of 1984 changed him 50:06 - Did he think Jump would be a hit? 50:49 - Does he get pleasure from playing music? 51:40 - Could anyone play like Eddie?