Wolfgang Van Halen spoke candidly about living as the only child of Eddie Van Halen — arguably the greatest guitarist that ever played the instrument. While promoting his debut album, Mammoth WVH, which drops on June 11th, he shed light on his life experiences to London’s Telegraph.
Wolfgang, who’ll be out on tour this summer and fall opening for Guns N’ Roses, spoke both honestly and lovingly about his late-dad, explaining, “Growing up, he certainly was the secondary parent. But, still, any time he was home, we bonded just as much as any son and father. When we eventually played together, that’s when (our relationship) was the best, because we got to see each other every day.”
He went on to say, “I think I was forced to mature way earlier than people are normally asked to. As wonderful a father as he was, he had a lot of demons. They would come out every now and then. It’s why my parents split.”
Wolfgang, who’s now 30, spoke in-depth about Eddie’s illness and how it affected him, recalling, “He was diagnosed with (stage four) lung cancer (in 2017). We got some good, liveable years, but that was the beginning (of the end), I would say. It really didn’t take a turn for the worse until the end of 2019. There were still positive moments in between, but that’s when it took a nosedive. So many different health issues stacked on top of each other. He just buckled under the weight of it all.”
Wolfgang added, “When you grow up you always know, ‘One day I’ll have to take care of the parent,’ but I didn’t expect it to happen so soon. While it was happening, I was like, ‘OK, it’ll happen later,’ but little did I know I was already in the middle of it.”
- Guns N’ Roses / Mammoth WVH 2021 North American tour dates (subject to change):
July 31 – Hershey, PA- Hersheypark Stadium
August 3 – Boston, MA – Fenway Park
August 5 – East Rutherford, NJ – MetLife Stadium
August 8 – Detroit, MI – Comerica Park
August 11 – Fargo, ND – FargoDome
August 13 – Missoula, MT – Washington-Grizzly Stadium
August 16 – Commerce City, CO – DICK’S Sporting Goods Park
August 19 – Los Angeles, CA – Banc Of California Stadium
August 22 – Portland, OR – Moda Center
August 25 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center at San Jose
August 27 – Las Vegas, NV – TBA
August 30 – Phoenix, AZ – Phoenix Suns Arena
September 1 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center
September 4 – Napa, CA – BottleRock Napa Valley (Guns N’ Roses only)
September 8 – Indianapolis, IN – Lucas Oil Stadium
September 11, 12 – Atlantic City, NJ – Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena
September 16 – Chicago, IL – Wrigley Field
September 18 – Milwaukee, WI – Summerfest at American Family Insurance Amphitheater
September 21 – St. Paul, MI – Xcel Energy Center
September 23 – Columbus, OH – Schottenstein Center
September 26 – Baltimore, MD – Royal Farms Arena
September 29 – Raleigh, NC – PNC Arena
October 2, 3 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Live Arena
FAST FACTS
- Wolfgang Van Halen first performed live with Van Halen on the band’s 2007-2008 world tour, which also marked the return of original singer David Lee Roth. He made his recording debut on the band’s 2012 album A Different Kind Of Truth.
- Wolfgang has also toured as a member of Alter Bridge guitarist Mark Tremonti‘s self-named solo band and played bass on Tremonti‘s second album, 2015’s Cauterize.
CHECK IT OUT: Mammoth WVH’s 2021 video for “Don’t Back Down”: