cool Eddie interview from 1985 The Guitar Show

[indeedido]

I remember reading an interview with Ed where he describes his meeting Clapton as a disaster because he (Ed) was shit-faced drunk at the time. You can see him pause and reflect regretfully here when he says that he met him.

He could've called Dennis a clueless asshole and that guy would've taken it. Ed put a little known guitar company on the map alright. Oddly enough, Ed chides Gibson, Charvel and Fender. Some 20 odd years later, he's working with Charvel and Fender. Kramer is now owned by Gibson.

AND he's already thinking about marketing shoes too!!!

[Nitro Express]

Ed's "black guy on the phone" remark actually reminds me of a funny story if anyone's interested, it goes a lil' somethin' like this...

Way back in January of 1999, I was an Assistant Manager in Training with a retail picture framing chain. A couple of other AMTs and I had to visit our home office in Stamford CT with our overbearing, no-it-all GM. The whole car ride up, he had been "mentoring" us on how to respond to any of the big wigs questions. How we had nothing to be nervous about and how we should feel at ease discussing any issues we may have had with the company, good, bad or indifferent. He carried on about how he was going to let the call center at our supplies warehouse have it for their incompetence. Meanwhile, I'm thinking, fuck this. I ain't sayin' shit to rock the boat. I just got this job a month earlier, I forgot to shave and I already sweat through my unironed dress shirt. No need to call attention to my sorry ass. So we get there, and the conference room is just like any other high end conference room. My assigned seat was right along side my "I got this" GM. Right out of the gate, he opens up about this girl who didn't know what she was doing, who had left him on hold for ten minutes, and was rude and didn't sound very educated and bla bla bla. Meanwhile, the bigs are listening very intently and are writing all of this down when one of them asks what was the girls name. And his response was...

"I don't know, but I think she was black."

I think I heard a bead of sweat develop on his meaty forehead. Directly across the table was the only African American in the room. A sweet guy from a different store. There was no undoing that one, but in an effort to keep anyone from getting more uncomfortable, an exec asked me how long I'd been involved in framing. I think I gave a wrong answer. I will never forget that and how fucking hard we busted on him on the ride back.

Do I think that makes him and for that matter, Ed Van Halen, racists? Nope. Just ignorant. Racism is deep seeded and far worse. If what they said is racism, then all of the comedians on your Russell Simmons Def Jam Comedy Hour shows and the like that repeatedly open bits with, "white people always do this... White people always do that" are racist. I don't think they are, either. Some shit ya gotta just take with a grain o' salt.

Honestly we take the racism thing way too far. Basically Ed was alluding to he didn't make the kind of music black guys would be into and so one calling up wasn't for him. Must be the wrong number. Stop bothering me you asshole. LOL! We aren't making funk or disco here.

It just was different in those days. You have to remember a black guy had no chance in hell of getting elected as president in the mid 80's and whites and blacks in general did their own things. There was white music and then there was black music. It didn't integrate until all the white fuck kids started imitating black rappers when the 80's were going out. Now you just have music. Then you started having more all black rock and roll bands that were good. Living Color and such. Somewhere it just all blended and nobody cared.

[hambon4lif]

[Starwood]

hamboner stuns the crowd with another tired re-tread! keep 'em comin, Seacrest!

[hambon4lif]

hamboner stuns the crowd with another tired re-tread! keep 'em comin, Seacrest!

Well, I could've made up some story about how I have inside the inside scoop on the new Van Halen album 'cause I'm fucking Ed's maid, but I always found things like that to be classless and vile. I'm sure you know what I mean.....

Secondly, that interview wasn't posted as a world premiere. It was posted as a demonstration on how to speak proper English and conduct yourself in an interview. How Ed was in the same band with Dave all those years and not acquire at least a few people skills is beyond comprehension. You may want to pass that on to his maid.....

I find it humorous and amusing that you would act brave enough to start some shit. It's gotta be the alcohol.
You ever see a wolf fuck a chihuahua? I haven't either, but I'm positive it would end up in quite a mess.

You better hurry up and climb back under the table, Sparky. Van Halen fans everywhere are counting on you to provide them with your next piece of "inside information".

Fuckin' idiot

[Diamondjimi]

Starwood ....... Dragging his ass across the Roth Army carpet since Jan. 2004...

[Little Texan]

Starwood ....... Dragging his ass across the Roth Army carpet since Jan. 2004...

The pile is Starwood, right?

[Diamondjimi]

Those are his post's. He, is what's being dragged across the floor...

[lesfunk]

Snausages!

[lesfunk]

Sorry but Eddie just comes off as a dumb guy who shit a golden egg and believed all the smoke people blew up his ass. I don't care what any of the sheep say. Van Halen would never have reached it's level of success without Roth

[Matt White]

Sorry but Eddie just comes off as a dumb guy who shit a golden egg and believed all the smoke people blew up his ass. I don't care what any of the sheep say. Van Halen would never have reached it's level of success without Roth

Nothing to be sorry aboot...you hit the nail on the head. The guy is a farking MASTER on guitar....and a dullard without one....

[Zing!]

Damn Ed was stewed - his glassy eyes and juvenile attempts at humor are dead giveaways. The 'racket' comments seemed like a slam toward Kramer guitars, but I'm not sure Ed is that quick on his feet to have meant it that way. This says it was from '85 - any idea on the Roth timeline on this one? Before or after April 1st?

[vh rides again]

Damn

I wouldnt want to meet this guy, he would drive me up a wall with his shitty attitude and dimwitted remarks.

I couldnt imagine spending a day with him, let alone a whole concert tour.

He makes ozzy look like a fucking wizard.

[VHscraps]

Damn Ed was stewed - his glassy eyes and juvenile attempts at humor are dead giveaways. The 'racket' comments seemed like a slam toward Kramer guitars, but I'm not sure Ed is that quick on his feet to have meant it that way. This says it was from '85 - any idea on the Roth timeline on this one? Before or after April 1st?

The racket quip was a ref to the Kramer ad campaign - he glances towards a pic of this poster on the wall:

[VHscraps]

The ad appeared in the March 85 issue of Guitar Player, so I guess the interview was from around then.