I'll say it again.....watching people's brains melt the first time they ever hear Eddie Van Halen will **NEVER** get old!!!

The thing that motivated Edd to all these different sounds he created on his guitar was that when he was beginning, he could not afford to buy the sound effects equipment. So he found a way to create his own sounds with what he had. Brilliant!!!!

No two Eddie V solo-Eruption's were ever the same..Every night brought something a little different. He was genius!

I know that this was five or six days ago but I have to chime in. I was born in Pasadena in 1957 and at a point in my childhood Eddie Alex and his family moved in Three Doors Down from us. I grew up with Eddie and Alex and their garage bands. And in answer to your question, this is the greatest guitar solo in the history of guitar solos. From GarageBand to actual concerts I've seen them 20 times or more. It actually makes me proud to be able to see younger Generations appreciating this man and his artistic ability. R.I P. Eddie

Saw this tour as a teenager and the thing I remember most besides this solo was the look of perpetual joy on Eddie's face.

This is his “Mona Lisa”, his masterpiece. It’s the greatest guitar solo ever and even Eddie himself tried and failed to recreate it.

Best guitar solo of all time - no question. It is a masterpiece of art.

This is the greatest gitar solo ever. This is regarded as a landmark in Rock music because no one ever even tried doing this before this. This is pure guitar gold!

R.I.P. Eddie 😔 man we miss you dearly but you are not forgotten 🙏🙏

Always fun when rappers discover music for the first time...

He’s in the zone. Having a spiritual experience. Especially in the perfect prayer for him. Presenting it to the one out there

This is the compilation of extremely high level complex artistry of the master himself. Lastly, if you listen to his first album and and follow his advancement of style, he transends from explosive speed to a much more complex exploration in freestyle precision technical riffs and actually slows his play to a much higher level.

My favorite guitar solo is David Gilmour in Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb" live from the Pulse Tour.

Fun Fact, Quincy Jones called Eddie Van Halen up to play on Michael Jackson’s Beat it. It took Eddie only 20 minutes to do his part and asked for no money.

Eddie was ours baby! I will forever since the seventies, be in awe of this man! We miss you brother!

You hit 40, I hit 50, and here's what I've learned. I used to have musical opinions. I'm a rock guy or whatever. That said, I've started saying yes to every person who asks me to go see something live. Last one I went to was some rap guy. He was awesome. Before that, some Christian rock group. Blew my mind. Bluegrass Festival at the Tetons, out of control awesome. 25 years before that, I wouldn't have given anything a shot besides exactly what I defined as acceptable. Every time I think I'm getting confident at something I do which is pretty rare as I'm usually straight top of bell curve average, I'll see something like Eruption AGAIN which makes me think I suck at literally everything I've ever done. I heard this first time early high school, sawvVan Halen a couple times back in high school and college and it pretty much reminds meto just get decent at something. A lot of the bands I grew up with are like that, some still touring, most dying off. Do'n't really care what kind of music it is, you see something entirely great you're a better person. I remember when my dad made me go to Les Mis same night as NCAA BBall championship game one night way back. I was pissed. By the end of the show I was streaming tears, the talent and music was just so entirely great. Embarrassing when you're in your 20s, now, I don't care, I let those emotions fly.

The “cello” sound is a combo of one handed taps on the fretboard, volume swells, copious delay on the signal with a hefty amount of chorus. He was also known to rely on a harmonizer, phaser and flanger to get the sounds he wanted. In addition to being one of the greatest players, he was one hell of an electronics wizard. The vast majority of his guitars, amps and pedals were made for him, by him, in his “shed”.

In my opinion, this is a freestyle improvisation that is based on snippets and pieces of other pieces of Eddie Van Halen’s studio music. But essentially all of his studio music was improvised. Especially eruption. He was just messing around in the studio and they included it on the album because it was so great.

I love seeing these first reactions. looking at some of the comments they have answered most of your questions. I was lucky enough to see him play 5 times and that wasn't nearly enough. One thing that seems to always be omitted from the "best guitarist ever" debate is that Eddie taught himself how to play, built his guitar to make it sound EXACTLY how he wanted it to, had the talent to play the way he did, write GREAT songs the way he did, AND have that stage presence. Oh and that friggin boyish grin. Who else can claim all that? Game set and match. I cried like a baby when he passed.

This is an extended version of Eruption from Van Halen's first album. It was well rehearsed and is not freestyle. But he did augment and change Eruption over the many years he played it - as it was a central piece of what fans wanted to hear when they saw Van Halen live. I saw Van Halen in their first national tour as the warmup band for Black Sabbath- and they had released their first album - and played everything note for note - but as I said - over years more was put into Eruption - so that there are different versions - but Eddie Van Halen practiced extensively for each tour - and had this version down pat.

Masterclass!!! Until this I had never heard a guitar SING! Besides hearing violin and cello at one point you can almost hear words being sung! Incredible ❤❤❤ favorite smile Eddie! RIP

Nothing is better Eddie Van Halen is the greatest of all time. RIP EDDIE 🙏

Ed was incredible. What’s incredible is the respect he had for those who went before him. Roy Clark, Glen Campbell, Cher Atkins, Jerry Reed to name a few. Roy and Glen did a bit where they played the same guitar at the same time, how cool if he and Eddie has done it too. Eruption and Malagueña playing at once.

RIP Eddie Van Halen. The best way I can describe this solo is --- Otherworldly!!!

Hey Black Pegasus, I just love the fact that you're turning younger 'kids' onto EVH. I saw them three times way back when. When they opened for Black Sabbath in Niagara Falls, NY back in the late 70s and then a year later in Buffalo NY, and a couple of years later in Bismark ND when I was in The US Air Force. I've always loved Van Halen, and though Eddie is gone, the music lives on. Keep turning these 'young kids' onto Van Halen.

This should be a recurring thing for awhile, bringing folks together to experience guitar greatness. :) I was lucky enough to have seen Van Halen twice on the Balance tour. It was my very first concert, and my brother took me. It was awesome. At the first venue, Collective Soul opened up for them. At the second venue, Skid Row and Brother Cane opened up for them. Everyone was in top form both times. You would have never guessed that there were problems going on behind the scenes. At the second venue, Sammy climbed the venue's very large speaker stack and got stuck. He kept yelling at Ed to help him get down. They were laughing hard. Ed's live solos had a basic structure to them (playing Eruption, Cathedral, 316, the intro to Mean Street, etc.), but there was improv getting to those pieces. He would incorporate movie themes, animal noises (horses, elephants, whales, etc.). Also, sometimes he would just noodle around. Ed was definitely the Mozart of our time. Also, a lot of guitar tech came about because of him.

Its hard to believe one if the best guitarist in the world is gone. The one and only Eddie Van Halen 💯🔥🤘🏼.... In this solo hes playing excerpts from many of Van Halens songs.

It is a intro to a song and he has done it before but he always does it differently! Pure fucking genius

Thanks for the reaction! It's so great to see people react to Eddie. Unlike most of us, this is what Eddie does when he gets bored. That's why he's so good! At the end, I think that he has Beethoven beat. Also, the smile on his face says it all. He's just having pure joy. It's such a beautiful thing.

This is a compilation of all his best solos from multiple songs. It's totally spontaneous. Eddie was the master.

Steve Vai , Joe Satriani, Jason Becker, Yngwie Malmsteen,Roy Clark, Randy Rhoads. Richie Sambora, Zack Wylde and so on these guitarist are some of the best in the world , doing things Eddie Van Halen wasn't even doing yet. But Eddie was the man that really started this type of playing . Finger picking the lower strings.

This is a collaboration of all his music from the beginning till now that, his solos .

there is something about watching a virtuoso at work...

The original solo is a lot shorter than what you're seeing, and you are correct. In this video he plays eruption, but he's also adding big chunks of improv in between written sections of the original solo. It makes me happy seeing people discover Eddie for the first time. He really was a master. RIP EVH (Here is the original - kzfaq.info/get/bejne/g5pzrdtpqr28kmQ.html)

Eddie was the greatest rock-n-roll guitar player hands down.

Edward Van Halen was a legend, he revived guitar, had a different sound, a different style and took the instrument where it had never been. Making a guitar out of spare parts, changing guitar amplifiers to somewhere completely new and innovative. He was a better rhythm player and songwriter than lead player. Guitar changed with Edward in a way it hasn't since. He was a game changer, and what you feel when you see and hear this performance is something that doesn't happen very often, catching lightning in a bottle.

I am 53 years old and this VH 5150 tour was my first rock concert at the age of 15. The ticket cost me $16.00 and I was less than 20 feet from the side of the stage in San Antonio, TX. This is still the best live show I have ever been to in my lifetime...

You are correct on a lot of your comments. It's a combination of both improv and pieces of music he has written since 1978. I've seen him live eight times. He never plays the same thing the same way twice ever. Something's always different he's always improving . In my opinion he is the greatest guitar player that ever lived. Jimi Hendrix started it and was the man but Eddie Van Halen came out it was like an atomic bomb. He's the Mozart of our generation. In my opinion, I've been playing in bands since the early eighties and he is the original one that did that scissor kick is what. To a point where he had both hips replaced when he was older because of the damage. In my opinion it's not how fast you can play it's how innovative you are he not only changed the way music sounded but guitars were made amplifiers etc you did a good job but your analysis. You were right on. I'm a hard rocker from guitar player from Nashville 🤘🤘

R.I.P Eddie.. you will always be Legend.

Eddie was and probably will always be the greatest guitarist of all time..

Steve Vai Tender surrender is amazing and worth watching. Eddie Van Halen changed the world of guitar playing.

As there are many great guitarist..My belief is Eddie V was the most "influential" guitarist in the 20th century

Best on utube,what ? It's the best on this earth. !! RIP. King edward 😢

Eddie Van Halen was the BEST!! There's no one like him!!

I seen them over 16 times back in the day,, the shows where out of the world

It's my favourite guitar solo on KZfaq and if you check out other players doing a unnacompanied solo, none of them go for 12 minutes straight. Most live unnacompanied guitar solos are 3 to 5 minutes tops. The strength and stamina in Eddie's hands was legendary

Eddie was the innovator. Not many like him.....Way ahead of his time....Truly!!

I was fortunate to have seen Van Halen live 3 times. R. I. P. Eddie You were absolutely awesome.

R.I.P. EDDY..... BEST GUITAR PLAYER OF ALL TIME......

Arguably the best solo. He changes his solo but its basically the same thing just different order. He will change drastically once in a while. Genius the goat. He uses every piece of the guitar

Have been to 12 VH concerts.......BEST LIVE GUITARIST EVER. Eruption has evolved and changed throughout their years. The core eruption has always been there...this solo has been played at every concert and is EVH trademark.

this was his warmup song that he played before every gig , recording , and practice of a new song .because it had everything in it ,

I was born in 69 and my favorite decades of music are in this order 80 70 90. If you love Eddie check out Steve via with David Lee Roth yankee rose and his solo teeth of the hydra

It pieces of parts of other riffs but mixed with Eruption. And Eddie was kind of legendary in his precise finger work. It’s almost a guarantee that he actually practiced this. But having seen him live 12 times, he can improve whenever he feels like it. Also, remember when this video was made they were at 20 years performing live, dude is going to know how to work.

All Eddies solos are always a one off, improvisation, created on the spot, and in the moment. But, Yes, he does follow a certain structure to all of them. He takes all of his very best creations over the years, that all Van Halen fans are awear of. And. He plays all of them at one time. Always changing the order of them and always keeping at least some of the original elements of each. Then everything else is straight random shred, off the cuff. Thats why Eds show solos are a minimum of at least 25 minutes or more. This is the only Band in the world in which all menbers have there own private soloing platform in every single live show they have ever done. All four are played one after the other, with the drums first, then the bass at the halfway point, followed by Eds at the end. Ed has many amazzing live solos to choose from. Over the years. And ever since Ed passed😢, The major majority of Van Halen fans agree this is Eds greatest of all time. And, Yes. This is 100% percent. Hands Down. By miles and miles. The greatest live guitar solos ever played !!! All you have to do is play anyone elses, first. Then, watch Eds again. Its litterally laughable 😂 people !!! Its not even close !!! Night and Day difference. !!!! If you dônt clearly hear and see this, immediately. Then your 100% wrong, and, your dumb too😮

Eddie had a routine, but he improvised his routine as he went along. This particular solo is a video edit of two different nights solos. You'll notice the cigarette at the top of the guitar magically disappears at one point. It's a combination of both a practiced direction, but Eddie always improvised over his known riffs as he played live. The reason their earlier albums were so raw sounding is they put them together with live takes.

The very best guitar solo, that I know of.. A couple of fun facts, this was from the "Live without a net" (VHS) Filmed in New Haven CT on August 17, 1986, I was there, floor seats. Eddies side of the stage. Yes, those are extra picks taped to the guitar. (mostly in case they drop a pick). All the sounds coming from the guitar are from a single pickup, there are no tone controls. He's using a technique called "Tapping". He never claimed to invent, he just brought out to its perfection. I also love how he sticks his cigarettes in the neck of the guitar, to take a drag when he wants to. Most of the solo is a mix, mostly a standard solo but he always added something else. @ 16:30 he's playing with nothing but Reverb and the volume control. If you want to see some more interesting sound, listen to their song Poundcake, He plays the guitar with an electric Drill. The greatest guitar player ever, R.I.P. Eddie Van Halen...

I hear baroque music and Bach in this solo. Chopin also used to put improvisations during his small concerts and it was in 19th century.

He has a combination of various songs. It starts with 316 from For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, it has most of Eruption, Cathederal sounds kinda like a Chello, and the rest is just bits and pieces of other songs, riffs, and sounds.

This is the best guitar solo every recorded - Eddie's at the pinacle of his powers & musicality, playing on his classic frankenstrat out of his (new) 5150 amps. The crest, the cream, the apex of rock guitar.

Saw them twice as a teenager. VanHalen was earth shattering when their first album hit. Was in a HS rock band at the time… this was a game changer. I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve listened to this band and I still love it. I get such joy out of watching young people react to the rock of my day… it’s very gratifying because we did know it was something special happening. Nothing like waiting for that next VanHalen record to come out. Thank you for loving the music of my youth. RIP EVH. BTW - Love what his son is doing.

this eruption seems to be a compilation of Eddie's career to date, with improvisation. the original, was the second track on Van Halen's debut album. that Eruption changed the world.

"Blinded By The Light" as performed by Manfred Mann's Earth Band is an S-tier solo that goes woefully overlooked. It's surprisingly metal.

You should check out Eddie’s son, Wolfgang Van Halen. He plays multiple instruments and does entries songs, songs all parts, plays all instruments himself. It’s fascinating. There is also a nice song he dedicated to his dad after he passed. Lots of home videos. It’s very touching.

i still have one of his picks from that solo! saw them twice in the early eighties when you could literally lean on the stage to watch!

He wrote most of that solo. 316, eruption, cathedral and Spanish fly are all on albums. The other riffs you hear he's been playing a long time but here perfected it. Once in a while he will come up with something on the fly he says and tries to do it again and can't. He never did a solo the same way back to back. He'll play this solo different every night. Every thing is in there just different order. Genius. Hope I answered a few questions.

no matter how many times I see it, it still blows me a way to see what he does with a guitar!!

When Eruption came out on VH1 in 78' it was like a nuclear bomb dropped..kicked rock n roll guitar in the ass...greatest solo ever to this day

As to the question " best guitar solo on the internet " Hands down this is the best...show me anyone to keep you that interested for 13+ minutes in a guitar solo. Ed was the master of the build...the journey of music. R.I.P. Eddie❤

Another Movie with incredible music "Crossroads". The end guitar battle at the end with "Old Scratch" is iconic.

I've seen this video..atleast 100 times..n it never gets old..

I touched that guitar! Can't wait for SRV! SRV IS THE GOAT!!!!

I never get tired of reactions to the Eruption solo. This particular video has one of the crispest sounds!

A lot of the licks & tricks in this, were his warm up exercises he would do backstage before their shows. Someone told him he should make it a part of the show. And so it was.

This is what I've seen explained: You are correct. It's a mix. A bunch of elements are a collection of solos from past songs. There is a basic initial structure. But Eddie will add and subtract from it as time goes on. Add to that whatever experimental stuff he's pleased with. The order will change. The solo elements will change _mostly._ A LOT of things will change in what he does from performance to performance. This is for certain: it was never predictable. And it was always amazing. Hope this sheds some light, and I hope I wasn't misinformed.

Eddie Van Halen really made guitar tapping a thing. That was his brother Alex on drums. I don’t think I have enough time on this planet to become that good at anything! RIP Eddie❤

All of this solo was segments of different things he has done in the past. “Eruption”, “Cathedrals”, etc…. He did mix it up . He was just a bad ass.😊

It's basically a mash-up of all his great unforgettable solos from various songs from the first 5 albums.

I’ve heard this live and was this awesome as you’re seeing/hearing this!!

Anytime Eddie played on KZfaq it is the best! No guitarist argues that he was the greatest. He invented sounds Nobody can duplicate, he invented his own electronic guitar pick-up to achieve the sound he craved... the King..

Prince and the Revolution, Purple Rain Live in Syracuse March 30, 1985. One of the best guitar solos ever.

I can't say what's the best lead on KZfaq but Eruption was from the beginning of his career. He got much better as he progressed. I saw Eddie live twice an he's one of two REALLY talented players I saw that made really difficult guitar look as easy as tying shoes. Eddie is legend, he truly changed how rock guitar was an is played. An yes, he's just riffing during at least part of this. Meaning, he's making it up as he goes. The stuff he came up with in later years was really advanced, Eruption for its time was way ahead but he got much better...... Okay, that lead went way deeper as it went on. That was killer. He was for real

I’m partial to Prince’s solo on While My Guitar Gently Weeps. I can’t remember the event, but it was either Grammy related or Rock hall related done as a tribute to George Harrison. It features Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty, and Steve Winwood.

I was there in person watching Eddie. I’m a guitar player, and when I saw this performance I just wanted to put my lick down

I’m 52, I was a teen when this came out. I feel such joy seeing people experience this. Thanks

Fortunately, I saw him live many times going back to 1980. Around 2011 people weren’t talking about VH as much they had in the past. The band had been on hiatus for so long that people were forgetting, but not me. At the time, I was dating the daughter of a well-known musician and was saying to him “when Ed is gone people will be devastated and he’ll be viewed as one of the greatest of all time” and here we are today😢

FYI eruption is on the album ..every guitarist tries to learn this however this is a very extended free style on top of the orginal that we all learned ..and this was also the intro to" you really got me "

@12:00 that performance is semi-freestyle, each segment of the performance are solos from older songs by this group, but Eddie improvised the bridges to bind them and would add extra riffs and fills to the pieces to make it unique for the show. I saw him in '89 do this solo in Greensboro NC and it was different from the one you see, but still encapsulated the main themes.

His whole solo was bits of Van Halen songs eruption came from when he was just fuckin around on his guitar in the studio and someone was recording him and as they say the rest is history

Sammy Hagar: AKA RED ROCKER, played with Ronnie Montrose, in the band "MONTROSE" early 1970s. "ROCK CANDY" Great tune Ronnie is also (as is Sammy) a great 🎸 axe master. 🕊️✝️♥️🇺🇸🎼

"A lot of people don't recognize that they are witnessing a moment". You are wise beyond your years.

Eddie was flawless in his stage presence. He riffed every freakin concert! That sh*t just flowed out of him.

He was the best ever and his lady was my dream girl. What a life! RIP

I saw EVH play this three times...every time was slightly different...in the moment! It's outlined but the genius of EVH is what makes this THE BEST GUITAR SOLO I've ever seen...and I'm 72! It was different every time but perfection every time.

I love watching young people see this genius for the first time! And this video is perfect b/c it focuses on the most important part of this solo - that man's hands! I've never seen a musician who knew every inch of his instrument like Eddie Van Halen knew that guitar!

This is a combination of all van Halen's songs with free style thrown in between

It's parts of all his solos from different songs over the years combined together

Something many people miss in tge section after the stop pause is when he plucks the springs on the back of the guitar. Such a cool sound.

It started out as Eddies warm up routine. Then the rest of the band convinced him to play it as part of their show. Hence Eruption was born.

Led Zeppelin's Dazed and Confused off their Song Remains the Same live album is a 29 minute version you'll consider an experience to remember.