One minute and 42 seconds of Van Halen's guitar transformed music

Opinion by John Covach

Updated 11:57 AM ET, Wed October 7, 2020

Eddie Van Halen plays guitar in 1993.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen plays guitar in 1993.
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Van Halen tunes up backstage before a performance at Lewisham Odeon in England in May 1978, during the band's first world tour.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Van Halen tunes up backstage before a performance at Lewisham Odeon in England in May 1978, during the band's first world tour.
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Eddie, left, smiles for a photo with his older brother Alex in May 1978.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Eddie, left, smiles for a photo with his older brother Alex in May 1978.
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Eddie Van Halen sits in the band's tour bus outside the Lewisham Odeon on May 27, 1978. On the table are cans of Colt 45, matches and a replica hand gun.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen sits in the band's tour bus outside the Lewisham Odeon on May 27, 1978. On the table are cans of Colt 45, matches and a replica hand gun.
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Van Halen strikes a pose at Tokyo Kōsei Nenkin Kaikan in June 1978.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Van Halen strikes a pose at Tokyo Kōsei Nenkin Kaikan in June 1978.
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The band poses for a photo on a wall in Kyoto in June 1978.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
The band poses for a photo on a wall in Kyoto in June 1978.
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Van Halen performs at the Rainbow Theatre in Finsbury Park, London, in October 1978.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Van Halen performs at the Rainbow Theatre in Finsbury Park, London, in October 1978.
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Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli marry at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Westwood, California, on April 11, 1981. Together they had a son, Wolfgang. The couple divorced in 2007.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli marry at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Westwood, California, on April 11, 1981. Together they had a son, Wolfgang. The couple divorced in 2007.
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Van Halen poses with his guitar collection at his home in Los Angeles in 1982.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Van Halen poses with his guitar collection at his home in Los Angeles in 1982.
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Van Halen performs "Beat It" with Michael Jackson during Jackson's Victory Tour in Irving, Texas. Van Halen famously lent his guitar chops to the song, a smash 1983 hit from the landmark "Thriller" album.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Van Halen performs "Beat It" with Michael Jackson during Jackson's Victory Tour in Irving, Texas. Van Halen famously lent his guitar chops to the song, a smash 1983 hit from the landmark "Thriller" album.
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The band poses for a photo by the pool at Eddie's studio, 5150 Studio, in Los Angeles in 1985.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
The band poses for a photo by the pool at Eddie's studio, 5150 Studio, in Los Angeles in 1985.
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Singer-songwriter Sammy Hagar and Eddie hug at the Shout Disco in New York in 1985 at the MTV Awards Pre-Party.
Photos: Remembering Eddie Van Halen
Singer-songwriter Sammy Hagar and Eddie hug at the Shout Disco in New York in 1985 at the MTV Awards Pre-Party.
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Bertinelli and Van Halen, right, perform in the "Saturday Night Live" skit "Dinner at the Van Halens'" on February 28, 1987.
Photos: Remem