When The VAN HALEN Brothers Met HEART's Wilson Sisters
September 27, 2012, 11 years ago
The VAN HALEN News Desk has posted an excerpt from HEART's new memoir Kicking And Dreaming: A Story Of Heart, Soul And Rock & Roll by Jessica Hopper which features the Van Halen brothers on the road in 1979.
Here’s the full story from Nancy Wilson herself:
At one hotel, we met Eddie and Alex Van Halen. Over the course of a few hours, they had a Kamikaze-drinking contest, followed by a cocaine-snorting fest. Once they were good and loose, they got into a fistfight. Moments later, they were hugging each other and falling down, saying, “I love you so much, man.” They would cycle through this pattern every hour.
Eddie and Alex let it be known that if Ann and I wanted to sleep with them, they would be amenable to that. Their concept was two brothers with two sisters: lnstead of the Wil-Shers, we could now be the Wil-Halens, except they wanted us in one bed. It wasn’t the only time we had that offer, and as with every other request, we turned it down.
Talking with Eddie that night, he said he really admired my acoustic playing.
“You should play your acoustic guitar onstage,” I said.
“I don’t own an acoustic guitar,” Eddie said.
Eddie Van Halen–at that point one of the greatest living guitar players, when he wasn’t punching his brother in the face–didn’t own a single acoustic guitar. I couldn’t believe it. But he swore it was true.
“I’m going to buy you an acoustic guitar right now,” I announced.
Read more at the Van Halen News Desk.
