As a 16 year old guitarist who first heard Van Halen 1 in a friend's basement in 1978, to me, his death marks the passing of the most influential guitar player in history. There were guitarists I liked more, but Eddie was a force of musical nature, like Mozart. You can’t know what it was like in 1978 unless you were there. The world was already full of hot shot guitar players as guitar solos were still popular and necessary in songs, if you can believe it. We were surrounded by solos. Out of an already elite atmosphere comes someone who pushed the boundaries even further, reinvented the guitar, by borrowing, stealing and adding his own personality. This was no Berkeley grad snob with an ‘education’, but a natural innovator who could not even read music. We heard ‘eruption’ and could not even understand what we were hearing. Was it a guitar, a keyboard, voodoo magic? And this was right in the middle of disco! All the tech heads who came after: Steve Vai, Satriani, Malmsteen, would not have existed without VH. They added more speed and technique but none could match the natural personality and songwriting chops of Eddie. I stress songwriting, and the ability to make a song memorable by the masses, not just guitar players. How many people (non guitarists) do you know that can tell you the title of one song from any of these other guitar players? VH not only wrote the most iconic hard rock riffs in history, He is mostly known for hot solos but he was a seriously underrated rhythm. player. His sense of melody, feel and tone, and playing FOR the song, were unmatched, and still are to this day. He is a once in a generation comet we will likely not see again. Van Halen, the band, through sheer force of talent and showmanship, influenced every rock band in the 80’s, creating a copycat machine of terrible bands and players who tried to be VH, or David Lee Roth, and failed. This stink of hair bands and ever accelerating , million notes a minute guitar players could only be erased by the arrival of Nirvana and grunge in 1992. Suddenly, guitar solos were passé, and I was glad to see the clone wankers go the way of the dinosaur. Today, most under 30’s don’t even know who Van Halen is or was. His music, his instrument, the guitar, and guitar solos, no longer fits in with what is cool. Real musicians with actual talent, the abiilty to perform live, put on a show without backing tracks or silicone inflated buttocks, no longer matter in the “music” world. It’s now George Orwell’s 1984, with covid banning live music everywhere. You can read the book, but I’m going to listen to the last album by the original Van Halen. Download this track in Hi res flac or wav: https://thesixmilliondollarguitar.bandcamp.com/album/women-and-children- ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nfx142_rmQQ

I've seen and heard a lot in my 7 years on the street. From the highs of people crying with happiness over my playing to the lows of being attacked and everything in between. What I have never heard yet is someone telling me I'm taking up valuable space that could be better used by homeless people and beggars. It's a joy to hear something new that I've never heard before, and I hope skateboard dude comes back to regale me with other nuggets of wisdom. Patreon support/Online guitar lessons on skype:https://www.patreon.com/Shatnershairpiece 2000 original guitar jams on bandcamp: https://thesixmilliondollarguitar.bandcamp.com/ Paypal tip/Google pay tip/Apple tip/cc tip: https://busk.co/30027 Tip with 'buy me a coffee' https://www.buymeacoffee.com/RobinSpanell Shatnershairpiece t-shirts! https://www.redbubble.com/people/RobinSpanell/shop?asc=u - Want a song request for a gift? $100 gets you an extended jam of your choice! - Get my book 'The Joys of Busking' on pdf for a minimum $10 tip on paypal - Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7EL6MC3QrqFd_8RBmbdhow/join #busker #idiots #live #street #guitar ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqE6c20P2Pk

Sept 23/22. 90 minute completely improvised guitar solo tribute to the music of 'The Six Million Dollar Man', one of my main musical influences in 1974. I played a lot of music inspired by the show in 2022. This theme I first heard on episode 2, season 1. I rebuilt it the way it should be! This is a non AI zone. Music performed by a human in real time. Getting to be a rare thing these days. 03:53 Woman stops to listen, then gets close to my amp. I'm surrounded by thieves out here and when they get too close, I'm paying very close attention. Sometimes they just grab and run. 03:23 Psychotic tells his dog to piss on me. I can't make this sh..t up. ? It's bandcamp Friday! https://thesixmilliondollarguitar.bandcamp.com/album/youre-a-lot-better-than-motley-crue-live-sept-23-22 ? Patreon support: https://www.patreon.com/Shatnershairpiece ? 8000 guitar jams on bandcamp: https://thesixmilliondollarguitar.bandcamp.com/ ? Hidden video access! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7EL6MC3QrqFd_8RBmbdhow/join ? Paypal tip: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/6milliondollarguitar?locale.x=en_US ? Google pay tip/Apple tip/cc tip: https://busk.co/30027 ❤ Tip with 'buy me a coffee' https://www.buymeacoffee.com/RobinSpanell ? Shatnershairpiece t-shirts! https://www.redbubble.com/people/RobinSpanell/shop?asc=u ? Want a song request for a gift? $100 gets you an extended jam of your choice! #busker #guitar #live #music #live #amazing #instrumental #relaxing #inspiration #guitarsolo #crazy #parkerfly buckethead, Frank Zappa, Michael Schenker, Robin Trower, blues, Frank Marino, Ronnie Montrose, Mahavishnu orchestra, Jimi Hendrix, Mick Taylor, Billy Gibbons, Pat Travers, UFO, Thin Lizzy, Montrose, Gamma, Rolling Stones, ZZ top, Mahogany rush, Kansas, BB King, Pink Floyd, Kraftwerk, Tangerine dream, Rory Gallagher, The Police, Sting, Allman brothers, Santana, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Steve Vai, fusion, progressive rock, Billy Cobham, Tommy Bolin, Gov't mule, Blue Oyster Cult, Buck Dharma, Scorpions, Dire Straits, Boston, Mark Knopfler, Joe Satriani, Pat Thrall, relaxation music, spiritual music, music for studying, music for learning, background music, music for meditation, music to relax, instrumental music, minecraft music, study music, music for homework, yoga music, spiritual music, ambient music, relaxdaily, chillout, slow music, piano music, soothing music, new age music, peaceful music, beautiful music, de-stress music, sleep music, entspannungsmusik, musica relax, relaxing music, musica rilassante, spiritualismo, zen music, massage music, spa music, enya, soundtrack, soft music, slow music, musica anti-stress, ea games, healing music, wellness music, piano music, guitar music, mood music, youtube music, relax music playlist, 16:9, HD, tranquil music, slow instrumental, peaceful music, positive, minecraft, game music, slow background music, music for meditation, musica relax, wonderful music, chill study music, musica chillout, chillout study music, relax daily, nujabes, new age music playlist, musica de relax, homework music relaxing, musica rilassante playlist, ambient music for studying, music for relax, soft instrumental music, best soft music, peaceful tunes, soft tunes, peaceful background music, peace music, positive background music, soothing background music, entspannungsmusik baby, baby music, soothing music, relaxing study music, guitar music, musica zen, slow music instrumental, background music instrumental, slow instrumental music, slow instrumentals, mood music instrumental ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kR7XiscTAs

UFO classic from the 'force it' album, 1975. ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B62Geyr7pkQ