I wish I could play drums as good as Garey plays the floor and his chest.

Alex Van Halen is a legend!!! He is definitely over looked under appreciated!! I have been lucky enough to have seen Van Halen 8 times!!! My favourite band!!!!

The thing that set Alex apart from most other drummers of his generation is that swing thing he and Eddie played often. They got that from their dad who was a professional jazz/swing saxophone & clarinet player. A bit of a throwback style that worked really well when mixed with rock songs.

Alex Van Halen! Wow! He has some serious chops, and I honestly had no idea. My mind is blown! Simply awesome.

I have always thought he was underrated also. Great drummer!

Definitely one of my favorite rock drummers

Alex always had serious chops,he was always overshadowed by his brother on guitar. Always loved Alex's drumming he is super talented..smart cat man!

Very interesting reaction video. Alex Van Halen is one of my favorite drummers of all time. He's an underrated monster of a drummer.

"Everybody should listen to Alex Van Halen" Wise words.

You can't have heard Hot For Teacher, and not know this guy has monster chops.

Alex is a much a part of the signature sound of the band as Eddie. Says a lot about his playing. He doesn't get the kudos and respect he so obviously deserves.

Alex is a truly fine drummer. I've always thought he was underrated when talking about the greats. His drum intro to, Hot For Teacher, remains one of the best, ever. Thanks for your enjoyable analysis.

One of my all time favorite drummers.🥁you rock Alex

Always liked Alex Van Halen

Alex is a solid, creative and underrated drummer, and I love Garey's enthusiasm! Great vid all the way around! \m/

I agree with you, that Alex is the least talked about drummer. He's always been a beast...

Not mentioned here but Alex is a classical pianist first and then a drummer.. pretty badass in its own right 🤘🏻😎🤘🏻

I've seen Halen 13 times. They never disappointed. And Alex was always a monster on the drums. Hard hitter. ☮️

Look, I have been fortunate to have seen 'THE MIGHTY VAN HALEN" 17 times, so yes they are my favorite band.That being said, Eddie says himself he can't play with anybody but Alex, he says"Al is the rock, and I'M the roll", so that says it all

Always has a great snaresound

Alex Van Halen is such an over-looked musician/drummer. Clearly an amazing, drummer.

I saw Van Halen in Amarillo Texas in '79 on their second album tour. Alex Van Halen has always been one of my favorite drummers. I've taken many cues from him in my drumming.

Im amazed at how he caught what Alex was doing. It was all over my head. I didnt catch a thing. It just sounded cool to me. Lol

He's underrated because the band is primarily guitar oriented, you can rarely have Eddie and Alex going at it at the same time. He's a great team player and is technically speaking, number 3 for me behind Buddy Rich and Neil Peart, but yet Alex is my favorite.

Criminally underrated. My favorite drummer of all time.

He's definitely underappreciated. He can hold his own against any other drummer. Saw VH many times and was NEVER disappointed!

My favorite part of this whole solo is that he’s doing with a neck brace!! A FREAKIN neck brace!!

Seen them live, great live band. Alex is a very underrated drummer.

I'll tell you a cool story about Alex. I was fortunate enough to be a guest on their tour in 1998 in Japan, a guest in the audience, not playing. One staple of a Van Halen show is playing You Really Got Me, then going into a different song in the middle, then returning to You Really Got Me and finishing it off. One day at soundcheck Eddie said to Alex "What are playing in YRGM tonight" and Alex said ( I'm sorry, I forgot the song) but he said "blah blah". Eddie said to him, "but the rhythm doesn't match" to which Alex replied "It will tonight". They didn't run through it at soundcheck. Knowing that it was coming I was ready for the upcoming train wreck that I was going to see, I mean, they hadn't even run through it once to even see how it would go. Anyway, the time comes, I'm standing there watching, waiting for the Gods to become human, and, I swear to God, you'd think they played it like that every day of their lives. Not a single miss or uncomfortable adjusting moment. Smooth as silk going in and coming out. Those two are so in tune with each other, and just shows a whole different level of musicianship that us amateurs just will never achieve.

LUDWIG SUPRAPHONIC MY FRIEND!! LUDWIG ALL THE WAY AROUND!!! GODSPEED!!

Yes!!! Thank you for analyzing to the guy who inspired me to start playing drums as a kid! I knew you would enjoy it, especially the end with the backing track latin horns and himself playing his timbales on a prerecorded track. It was nice to finally see another expert player actually analyze and comment on Al's masterful chops and tone. He is indeed overlooked by too many as you said. My personal favorite players for many years now have been Alex, Buddy Rich, Billy Cobham, and Louie Bellson. Thanks for this great video and hope you had a Merry Christmas with family, Garey!

Your channel, Gary, brings me so much joy. Watching you get excited over drummers from all genres and your quick little breakdowns of time and patterns is just so fun. Youre infectious too! Im 46 and just getting back into drumming after a 19 year hiatus, so thanks for doing what you do!

Deff overlooked !!

Your reactions are “Priceless.”

What i always loved of him is his "groove". The way he used the hi-hat, cymbals, toms, bass drum and of course his snare sound.

Alex van Halen = one of the greatest off all times Rock Royalty

I was actually at this concert. Molson Amphitheater in Toronto. I remember being totally mind blown when Alex did his solo. The Michael bass solo was good and same with Eddie's but when Alex's came up I took big notice. I do remember wondering for most of the concert about the neck brace as well lol Oh Garey, just subscribed to your channel over the last couple of week. I LOVE you videos! Keep up the excellent work!!

9:37 Where I grew up we used to refer to AVH as King of the Crash Ride -- back in the day

Alex always brings a smile to my face, and a tap of my feet… He does the best solos of any rock drummer I have ever heard… He is always in full Bosephus Mode!

What i always loved was his "groove". The way he used hi-hat, cymbals, toms, bass drum and of course his snare sound.

Best I've ever scene Alex solo !!.hes goin for it here. !! .neck brace good idea..I

I have to say I agree. This is the best solo that I've seen him play. I like him more for his improv style playing on Women and Children 1st and the more modern Me Wise Magic. A great Rock Drummer

One of my favorites. I only saw him once live but it was enough. I’m old school so back in the late 70s and 80s Alex was king He made a huge impression on me and my playing

Check out Alex's drum work on Outta Love Again from Van Halen 2 album. He's a beast on this song!!

I love your videos because you explain what is going on in the solos/performances instead of adding “oh that’s cool or I like it” like another popular “drum set reaction” channel

It's fun listening to your comments. Thanks for the material.

Alex has always been overlooked but has been a favorite for me when listening to this type of music.

Thanks for reacting to my favorite drummer!

Having seen how excited you became near the end when Alex played along to a prerecorded film of himself,I would like to give a huge shout out to Mick Tucker of The Sweet,probably THE most underrated drummer EVER! Back in 1973,during their famous concert at The Rainbow, on the track The Man with the Golden Arm,half way through his solo, a prerecorded film of him playing was projected onto a screen and he proceeded to trade solos with himself. I don't know if any live film footage of this was recorded,but the whole concert is available on the The Sweet Live at the Rainbow CD. Hard to believe that Mick hadn't been playing double bass for very long before this,and that he was wearing huge platform boots at the time. With the death yesterday of Steve Priest,we are now left with Andy Scott(guitarist) to carry the banner for a band that were a HUGE influence on so many rock bands including Kiss and Motley Crue. They are surely long overdue a place in the Hall of Fame!

"Its a big thick stick"-"He's got a long piece of wood"😂😂😂

Guess this was right after his skiing accident. I remember reading about it in MD in the early 90s.

dude. your ability to break down the patterns AND the feel is really cool. thanks for the insight abd reactive too!! real drummers always geek out!

You’re an optimist among many KZfaq haters. We need more of you.

Ahhhh here we go.My favorite drummer in my younger days 🥃😎

Nice Garey ! Enjoy all your videos

Remember, Eddie started on drums, Alex on guitar.

Alex is a beast 🤘🤘 Ludwig forever 🤘🤘

One of my favourite drummers of all time 🤘🏻🥁🤘🏻

Al is such an awesome & sadly very underrated drummer. You mentioned tribal, his intro for Everybody Wants Some has great tribal drums🤘🏼

Love the excitement

Great review great playing

Amazing review. I like you how you broke it down in such a technical way. I'm not a drummer, so it was eye-opening to hear a professional analysis of this solo. I've always thought Alex was underrated, although it was kind of an innate feeling I had because I lack the technical knowledge on drums. I'm more of a piano/guitar/bass guy. A great song that showcases Alex's chops is Pleasure Dome of their F.U.C.K album.

Do you think it would possible to transcribe the beginning of this solo with the ride and snare permutations? It’s so cool!

Even though Bonzo, will always be my Idol....it was AVH, who set the fire under my ass to pick up the first set of 7A's. 1982 Diver Down album. The 4 kicks and all the toms and rotor toms with the long cylinders blew me away. How in the hell is he able to hit all that? Two years later, hot for teacher came out and i realized how then. Always perfectly tuned and even on the 5150 album when he used electric drums he didnt sacrifice that marching Ludwig snare.

Alex slays. I was too young to recall the genesis of VH, which I think accounts for how much I like Sammy’s VH, but I was raised on it all. I’ll always argue against anyone who claims he’s not “elite.” Great video. I love the analysis and the enthusiasm.

I love his bass drum phrasing on most everything whether all out rock or the more pop VH stuff. Sounds like he really orchestrates every sound he makes versus just grooving while the tape is rolling.

There's a great interview with Eddie Van Halen where he talks about emigrating to the U.S. from the Netherlands. The Van Halens' father played music on a boat and Alex and Eddie played along with their father for passage to the states.

Wow! Incredible.

Great commentary on Alex. Love to hear your take on the legendary Bill Ward. I saw an old California jam YT of him beating on a set to the tune of war pigs.

Love this video dude ! Alex Van Halen has always been a great drummer and David Lee Roth said once that the band was named after him in particular

Alex is extremely under rated. Unbelievable drummer.

Great analysis as always! I love the demonstrations on your chest! You need a set of chest drum pads. Mick Fleetwood had a set he toured with in the 80's! This was a great solo....had no idea he was this good. Interesting tidbit about the background of the VH family...makes me appreciate them even more. Reminds me of the Parcaro family!

Wow- you studied with Michael Derosier? That's so cool. Great player.

I enjoyed watching you enjoy it. Well done.

NICE, love IT.

I always liked Alex’s playing. I hear Baker Bonham and Paice. He’s one of the great rock players 🥁

People debate about Roth vs. Hagar but the Van Halen brothers provide a lot of the band's signature sound.

One of the best drummers in the world.... Undershined because he was always with the world greatest guitarist!! Alex feet were always ready to catch on fire!!

Eddie gets all the props of course but Alex is a fantastic player. Keeps it reigned in for the purposes of the straight-ahead song structures but he has serious chops.

Very enthusiastic analysis! Eddie (RIP) explained in an interview how he and Alex switched instruments. Talk about fate! He also said he never properly learned music theory because he could play by memory and instinct so.he fooled the teacher.

Really....your chest must hurt after these reactions! You beat yourself up dude!! 😎🤘

Awesome ...💜🤟💜

Watching your video on the way south to visit the Van Halen sidewalk scrawl... In the wake of Eddie Van Halen's passing. This video made me laugh cuz your facial reactions to Alex's drumming... Is the same way I reacted anytime I heard Eddie play a solo.... Van Halen's music has brought me an immense amount of joy over the years. in fact Eddie is the whole reason why I ever even learned how to pick up a guitar and play as I'm sure he influenced countless others. My sincerest condolences go out to Alex Van Halen, wolfy, Janie, and of course Val. Eddie Van Halen was loved the world over...and he left us all an incredible catalog of music to enjoy. I really enjoyed the content of this video and have chosen to subscribe continue making great videos

How about analysis of Ed Shaughnessy from Johnny Carson's Tonight Show?

the guy is a phenomenal drummer one of the best in the world of course, when your in a band with your brother who is who his brother was a one in a billion, epoc making, legend hes going to be overlooked

Is it only me who feels a part of Mike Mangini playing is influenced by Alex Van Halen? I really find some touch of Alex in Mangini's playing including that hand cross over pattern..

this tour (96) was the only time I ever saw Van Halen and I can tell you Alex stole the show with his solo, 100%. His drumming is so creative, melodically and structurally on top of keeping his his brother's crazy playing corralled within the song. I see a lot of people who make ridiculously disparaging remarks about his playing but honestly all I hear is. jealousy. thanks for reacting I was pleasantly surprised by it. subscribing now

Gary you are such a cool drum teacher mostly because of your huge knowledge ,objectitvity and just Great Pure enthusiasm for the instrument and the players as if your just starting out..wich is so fantasticly great and your ability to analyze and show examples in such a simple and direct way...is gracious and so much fun...You're the greatest...keep on Rockin' ...and jazzing.. and...fusioning😁😁😁thank you!!!

Wow, great solo. I agree, really underated rock drummer. Definately hear the Baker influence.

It's interesting he keeps the tempo with the hihat. Watching this I started remembering a drum solo from the 60's where the guy had the hihat tempo and was playing off that, but the timing kept changing. And seemed to keep trying to hide his timing errors with rim- taps, or triple cymbal taps. And it just didn't work. To his credit, to regroup, he just started using a stand he had cowbells on without touching the cowbells. Just barely able to be heard on Mike's. Slowed himself, working the dynamics of softness, sort of a crescendo in regaining. Speed and loudness. Before his drum solo was decidedly over. And the band came back on And the songs played on. I just can't remember the guys or bands name. I think he was drunk, but it was a concert and on TV. Which in the 60s was a big deal. Oh well at least, even with the neck brace, here, Alex seems to keep it together.

Alex is definitely an underrated drummer

Alex is in my top two. Him and Neil Peart are my favourites. To the point at the end of the video which is great by the way. Alex’s high hat sound is kind of a cheat. That heavy crash sound is made from using a 15” on top of a 14”. I use it myself. Great sound without pounding the crap out of the hi hats. Thanks again Gary for a wonderful vid. Keep them coming.

Foi tão genial quanto seu irmão !!!

ALEX A GREAT PLAYER💪🏻👍🏻

Never understood why he has gotten absolutely no recognition. I was an avid modern drummer reader where references to drummers just dominate their articles and interviews. So many hundreds of drummers are named but it is so rare to hear 1 mention of Alex. I could be wrong but I think it has to be his personality.

That's why I am so glad that I am left handed and I play open handed. I set my kit up just as a right handed player does, but my ride cymbal is to the left of my hi hats. When I started playing in the 60's as a child and playing in my first bands in the 70's, I always played open handed because I am dominant left. No one else in my family were musicians and I taught myself. I know a lot of drummers play open handed now, but back then, I never saw anyone playing that way but myself. Now Simon Phillips does, and many others. Lefties rule! LOL!

Nice , Alex's an excellent drummer who's always been overlooked because of the guitar God status of brother Eddie. This is a really good solo and the intro to Hot For Teacher is definitely a classic !! If you could do an analysis of Eric Singer's solo " live in Argentina 2009 " with KISS, it would be very appreciated. Keep up the good work Garey.

8:49 "yyyeessss!" (that's what she said)

Touched by the hand of God.

I want to be a good rock drummer! I have a Roland TD-4 set with an Alesis amp to drum along to music. I love Alex and think he is the best!