| Alex Van Halen | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 8 1953 |
| Origin | Nijmegen, The Netherlands |
| Genre(s) | Hard rock |
| Instrument(s) | Drums |
| Years active | 1972 – present |
| Label(s) | Warner Bros. Records |
| Associated acts |
Van Halen |
| Website | http://www.van-halen.com |
Alexander Arthur Van Halen (born on May 8, 1953) is a Dutch-American drummer and co-founder of the hard rock band Van Halen, along with his brother Eddie Van Halen who plays lead guitar and keyboards.
Contents |
Early life
He was born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, to Jan Van Halen, a Dutch father, and Eugenia, an Indonesian mother. He spent his childhood in Nijmegen in the east of the country. The family moved to Pasadena, California, USA, in 1962. Both Van Halen brothers were trained as classical pianists in their childhood. Although Alex is known as a professional drummer, he began his musical aspirations as a guitarist, with his brother Edward taking up drums. According to Van Halen lore, while Eddie was delivering newspapers to pay for his drum kit, Alex would practice playing on them. It was when Eddie heard Alex's mastery of the Surfaris drum solo in the song "Wipe Out" that he decided to switch and begin learning to play the electric guitar. Alex got some of his earliest drum lessons from Max Toms, who played along with Jan Van Halen at the various Dutch clubs in Southern California. Alex graduated from Pasadena High School in 1971. Afterward, he attended Pasadena City College for a brief period of time taking classes in music theory, composition, scoring and arranging. Occasionally, he would pass by Michael Anthony in the hall—the bassist who would eventually become the third pillar of the future band Van Halen.
Music career and influences
Some of Alex's early bands, all of which included Eddie, were: The Broken Combs (who performed lunchtime concerts at Hamilton Elementary School and featured Alex on saxophone), The Trojan Rubber Company, Genesis, and The Space Brothers. Among his musical influences are Buddy Rich, Keith Moon, John Bonham and Ginger Baker. In 1972, Mammoth was formed and featured Alex on drums, Edward on lead vocals and guitar and Mark Stone on bass. By 1974, Mammoth had a new line-up. Stone had been replaced by Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth had taken over as the lead vocalist. Because of conflicts with another band by the same name, Mammoth changed their name to Van Halen. The quartet paid their dues on the Southern California club circuit: Gazzari's (the first club to give them a break), the Starwood, the Whisky a Go-Go, or Walter Mitty's Rock & Roll Emporium. Within a few years, Van Halen was a club scene favorite. In addition to his musical duties, Al was busy handling managerial duties, booking gigs, etc. for the band, until the arrival of Donn Landee in the late-1970's. Their 1978 album Van Halen was released to much fanfare, influencing many musicians in hard rock. The term "brown sound," which is universally linked with Edward's tone was actually coined by Alex and refers to the warmth of his own snare drum sound. At live shows, Alex is known for being an entertainer, performing aggressive drum solos and with stage pyrotechnics. The only non–Van Halen example of Alex's musicianship can be found on the soundtrack to the movie "Twister". The instrumental "Respect the Wind" (for which the Van Halen brothers were nominated for a Grammy Award in 1997 for Best Rock Instrumental Performance[1]) features Alex on keyboards (with Edward on guitar). The song was used for the movie soundtrack Twister and plays during the end credits of the movie. Alex married Valeria Kendall in 1983 after a two year engagement. The marriage ended in divorce in 1984. Alex has one son, Aric Van Halen with his ex-wife Kelly whom he divorced in 1996. Aric attends North Hollywood's Oakwood High school. He has made news of his own by winning California's CIF Southern Section and State high school cross country championships in 2007. He took the section crown with a time of 15:40 and the state title in 15:59. [1] Alex married Audrey in 2000 and has a Son Malcolm Van Halen
Alex's kits
- From 1978-86 Alex used Remo CS Clear w/Black Dot heads on all of his drums, switching around 1987-88 to Ludwig WeatherMaster Silver Dot heads instead.
- Alex used Regal Tip 3S sticks from about 1978-88 before switching to the Power Rock and AVH models.
- For 1991-93 Alex used Ludwig Silver Dot heads on snares, rack toms, and kick drums, and Remo Clear Pinstripes on his floor toms.
- During the 1995 Balance Tour he used Ludwig Silver Dot heads on his snare drums, Remo Coated Emperors on his rack and floor toms, and Remo Clear PowerStroke 3 kick drum batter heads. Drum kits on this tour were either a forest green or red wine color.
1998 Van Halen III Tour
Shells
- Ludwig 4-ply 16" X 24" Bass Drum - Ludwig WeatherMaster Clear w/Silver Dot drumheads
- Ludwig 4-ply 8" X 10" Tom - Ludwig Clear w/Silver Dot
- Ludwig 4-ply 8" X 12" Tom - Ludwig Clear w/Silver Dot
- Ludwig 4-ply 16" X 16" Tom - Remo Clear Pinstripes
- Ludwig 4-ply 16" X 18" Tom - Remo Clear Pinstripes
- Ludwig Super Sensitive 6 1/2" X 14" Chrome Snare - Ludwig Clear or Coated w/Silver Dot (underside taped)
- Ludwig 3 1/2" X 13" Piccolo
- 13 1/2" L+P Conga
- 12 1/2" L+P Conga
Cymbals:
- Cow Bell
- Paiste 2002 16" Med. Crash
- Formula 602 Heavy Bell
- Paiste 2002 18" Crash
- Paiste 2002 20" Crash
- 22" Signature Series Dark Ride with Heavy Bell
- Paiste 2002 20" Med. Crash
- Paiste 2002 30" Heavy Crash
Alex Van Halen's hi-hat of choice is composed of a 15" Paiste 2002 top and a Paiste 2002 14" Sound Edge bottom. He also uses Yamaha 8210 bass drum pedals with a Roland Electric kickdrum trigger. His sticks are 16" Calato Regal Tip Alex Van Halen/Power Rock (double-butt). Alex's kit was yellow and each of the drum shells as well as the bass drum heads, feature "Van Halen" in Sanskrit written on them.
2004 Van Halen Sammy Reunion Tour
Alex went back to using his full length 17.75" & .570 diameter Regal Tip AVH wood tip model drumsticks.
- 14" Remo Emperor X...snare batter side
- 10", 12" Ludwig Heavy Clear...rack toms
- 16", 18" Remo Clear Pinstripes...floor toms
- 26" Remo Controlled Sound w/Black Dot (and Remo Falam Slams)...2 main kick drums
- Remo Powerstroke 3 Clear (w/Falam Slams)...third smaller kick drum on left side of kit
Kit was a blonde/natural wood finish. Each of the drum shells as well as the bass drum heads, featured Dragon designs on them.
2007-08 Van Halen DLR Reunion Tour
Regal Tip AVH wood tip sticks, Ludwig drums, DW hardware/ hi hat stand, Remo heads, Paiste cymbals, Tama kick drum pedals
- 14" Remo Emperor X...snare batter side
- 10", 12" Remo Coated Emperors...rack toms
- 16", 18" Remo Coated Emperors...floor toms
- 26" Remo Controlled Sound w/Black Dot or Powerstroke 3 Clear (w/ Remo Falam Slams)...kick drums (4-6 kicks?!!?)
From pre-tour rehearsal photos and videos drums seem to be some sort of blue sparkle finish with clear blue octagons on either side of the kit.
References
- ^ List of 1997 Grammy Nominations from Rock on the Net
