IN THIS ISSUE:
(32 pages)

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR (2 pages)
Band photos, letter from the editor

RIGHT NOW (1 page)
Current VH News

MAILBAG (3 pages)
Letters from fans

AND I THOUGHT I KNEW ORLEANS, A BOURBON STREET ADVENTURE WITH VAN HALEN (2 pages)
Hanging out with Edward for a full weekend during the 1985 N.A.M.M. show.

VH ONLINE (1 page)

LITTLE GUITARS (6 pages)

CABO WABO OPENING NIGHT (2 pages)
Collage of photos of VH playing the Cabo Wabo Cantina's opening night on 5/12/90.

THE MAKING OF THE HOT FOR TEACHER VIDEO (2 pages)
Collage of photos from the making of the classic video.

RECORD REVIEWS (2 pages)
Reviews of the VH tribute album, Everybody Wants Some, and the Tribute To Jeff album that Eddie plays on.

DAVE'S BIRTHDAY BASH '81 (2 Pages)
David Lee Roth's Birthday Bash as seen through the eyes of an impressionable eleven year old who attended the wild festivities.

TIMELINE PART 5 (3 pages)
Band history from 1987 to 1990

VH READING (1 page)
Reviews of 6 Van Halen books available through The Inside:
Guitar Wolrd Present: Van Halen
1984: The Ultimate Van Halen Trivia Book
Excess All Ereas
Crazy From The Heat
Fair Warning tourbook
Balance tourbook

NEW MERCHANDISE (2 pages)

CENTERFOLD
Band posing, 1980

BACK COVER
Alex posing with drums, 1979

LITTLE GUITARS!!
By Brad Starks
Intro by Geoff Bell
Special Thanks to Linn Ellsworth and Wayne Charvel

A most detailed look at Edward Van Halen's guitar arsenal.

The Inside is excited to reveal the most detailed account to date of Eddie Van Halen's explosive guitar arsenal. In this, the first of two articles, the essential tools of Eddie's recording and touring history are unveiled, complete with photographs and background information. The supposed size of Eddie's complete collection varies-we've heard between 250 and 500 instruments. These, however, are the cream of the crop. Virtually every note on every Van Halen album and tour would not have been possible without these finely tuned guitars. Next to examining each guitar in a smoky but well-lit room above 5150, this is as close as any of us will come to these now-retired war-horses. Drink deeply; this vaired and highly individualistic collection of guitars helped produce the music that changed music.

Charvel Strat
Year: Circa 1961
Serial No: 61071
Neck: Maple
Body: Northern Ash
Bridge: Floyd Rose

This is Edward's original striped Strat-style guitar and was his main instrument for the first several albums and tours. The Linn Ellsworth-carved body was a second (labeled as such because of minor imperfections in the wood) purchased from Boogie Bodies sometime in 1975 or 1976 for $50, and the neck (another second cut by Ellsworth) was purchased for $30. Boogie Bodies was a small guitar company based in Azusa, CA (it later moved to San Dimas, CA) co-owned by Ellsworth and Wayne Charvel. Ellsworth, a cancer researcher in Seattle, WA, cut necks and bodies in his spare time, sending them down to Charvel, who manned the shop.

Originally, the body came with only the neck and middle pickup cavities pre-routed. Ed, armed with a chisel, excavated a hole to house a rear unit. He placed in this bridge position a Patented-Applied-For (PAF) humbucker from a 1961 Gibson 335. Over the years it has been replaced with various humbuckers (the last known replacement was a Gibson PAF). The brass nut and tailpiece were taken from a circa-1961 Fender Stratocaster. Edward also widened the nut grooves and frequently oiled them with 3-in-1 oil to keep the strings from grabbing. The guitar was first sprayed with black Schwinn acrylic lacquer bicycle paint (Ed's favorite), followed by white. A black homemade pickguard covered the middle and neck pickup routings. The neck was outfitted with Gibson jumbo frets that Edward installed with Crazy Glue, and the headstock featured Schaller machine heads.

When the guitar was initially completed Edward took it to the basement of Roth's parents' home and the rest of the band freaked out over how it looked. He put the guitar through it's paces and they were amazed at how well it stayed in tune, as they'd' seen him experimenting many times with bars, including once sawing the whammy bar of a Gibson 335 in half.

Some time in 1979 (after recording Van Halen II), Edward repainted the body with his now-infamous red, black and white striped concoction due to the fact that the original white and black design was being copied and sold to the general public on mass-produced guitars. Neck and middle-position pickups were also installed, though the neck pickup was for looks only. It was not wired and didn't even work! During the 1979 World Tour, the original neck was replaced with a similar Fender Strat-style neck with a black headstock. This neck was taken from a custom-made black and yellow Strat made for Edward by Wayne Charvel (see the entry on this guitar for more information). The Fender bridge was also replaced during this tour with a prototype Floyd Rose. Named after it's creator, the Floyd Rose was first shown to Ellsworth up in Seattle. Rose came to him for advice on marketing the bridge, and Ellsworth made only one suggestion: show it to Edward Van Halen. Ellsworth introduced the two while the band was passing through Seattle and the rest, as they say, is history. The back was plastered with a myriad of yellow and red bicycle reflectors at an unknown date, each a different size and shape.

In 1983, Edward added a 1971 25-cent piece under one end of the bridge to prevent it from moving around.

Though the guitar has been officially retired, it has popped up in more than one unexpected place over the years. It now sports a Kramer neck with a striped headstock motif that matches the body, which can be seen in the video for F.U.C.K.'s "Top of the World." Edward even brought it to Florida at the beginning of the Balance tour, where he planned to use it on stage, though this idea never materialized.

Ibanez "Shark" Destroyer
Year: Mid 1970's Neck: Rosewood
Body: Korina
Bridge: Fixed

Dubbed "Shark" by Edward, this was one of his main guitars in the club days. Originally white, it was used to record "You Really Got Me," "On Fire" and the rhythm track for "Jamie's Cryin'". Shortly after purchasing the guitar, Ed took it to Wayne Charvel and asked him to paint it black. Charvel said he could do it, but wouldn't be able to tackle the project for at least a month or more. Ed didn't want to wait, so he decided to experiment on his own. He began by drilling a series of holes in the rear of the body. He then used a hacksaw to cut out the shape created by the holes, giving the guitar a rather deformed Flying V-look. Much to his dismay though, this action resulted in a loss of tone that, despite numerous pickup changes, he was never able to return to a satisfactory state. The axe was then painted maroonish-red, with silver stripes. In addition, two metal turnbuckles were attached between the gap created by the saw, which gave the guitar an even wilder appearance. What Edward didn't realize however, was that his hack job went on to inspire an entire line of Charvel Guitars. He showed the guitar to Charvel after it was completed and the luthier liked the way it looked so much, he used the idea to create the Charvel Star Guitar line, which was quite popular for a few years.

The "Shark" was originally outfitted with a white plastic pickguard, but was removed prior to being painted, and never re-attached. The striped design is also rather unique, as many of the stripes themselves are incomplete: some stop partway across the body, while others display oddly cut shapes. The axe also initially came equipped with two volume knobs and a tone knob, the latter of which was removed, presumably after the guitar was repainted.

Yellow and Black Charvel Strat
Neck: Maple
Body: Northern Ash
Bridge: Floyd Rose

Hand built and painted by Wayne Charvel and Grover Jackson (the neck and body were cut by Linn Ellsworth), this guitar was used live on much of the Van Halen II tour. Edward received it just before the photo shoot for the second album's cover art. At this time, the neck featured a black Strat-style headstock with a bone nut and a Charvel logo decal. It is believed that this neck was outfitted with Grover machine heads.

Ed threw in an old Gibson PAF humbucker for the photo shoot (since it was not outfitted with one when it arrived), but didn't care for the sound, so he swapped it out with a DiMarzio Super Distortion. Still not pleased with the tone, he then traded necks with his Charvel Strat during the early part of the VHII tour. The Charvel decal was covered with black electrical tape due to the fact that Ed was not being paid for an endorsement. This neck may now be attached to his Dragon guitar, though it is not known for sure.

The Floyd Rose tremolo is gold-plated as are the machine heads and nut.

NOTE: 19 more guitars are featured in this article!