How To Play Eruption

'Eruption'
Instrumental by Van Halen
from the album Van Halen
Released	February 10, 1978
Recorded	1977
Genre	Instrumental rock,^[1]hard rock^[2]
Length	1:42
Label	Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s)	Michael Anthony, David Lee Roth, Eddie Van Halen, Alex Van Halen
Producer(s)	Ted Templeman

'Eruption' is an instrumental rock^[1] guitar solo performed by Eddie Van Halen. It is widely considered one of the greatest guitar solos of all time, having popularized tapping.^[3]^[4] It segues into 'You Really Got Me' on the album Van Halen, and the two songs are usually played together by radio stations and in concert. The song was also released as the b-side to the 'Runnin' with the Devil' single.

'Eruption' starts with a short accompanied intro with Alex Van Halen on drums and Michael Anthony on bass. The highlight of the solo is the use of two-handed tapping. 'Eruption' was played on the Frankenstrat, with a MXR Phase 90, an Echoplex, a Univox echo unit and a 1968 Marshall 1959 Super Lead tube amp. The Sunset Sound studio reverb room was also used to add reverb. The Frankenstrat was tuned down a half-step. 'Eruption' begins in the key of A flat and ends on an E flat note that is a twelfth fret, 6th string harmonic processed through a Univox EC-80 echo unit.

Home Free Lessons Songs Eruption Tapping Section by Va. Eruption Tapping Section by Van Halen Tutorial Not only do I show you how to play the tapping part of Eruption, but also explain what chords he’s implying/playing with this tapping part. 8) Now for the eruption, add another magical ingredient i.e. Vinegar to the volcano. Kids started clapping and shouting by seeing the amazing volcano that is fizzing and frothing out of the volcano set up. This amazing and wonderful volcano is resulted with the reaction of baking soda and vinegar. EDIT: When VH1 dropped I was 18 or 19, had been playing about 5 years or so and had my own working band. Within just a few short months of it being released there were 12 and 13 year old kids cranking Eruption amazingly well - pretty much just like the record. I decided not to compete and to go my own way.

Eruption This 8-part lesson starts with a complete overview of the sound and then explores every detail and subtle nuance of what many consider to be the greatest guitar solo of all time! (Play Time: 1hr 22min / Video Format: MOV / File Size: 1.56GB). Meanwhile, IGT says the Cash Eruption slot RTP rating is 96%. The action takes place on a reel set typical of many online slots. Five reels and three rows of symbols create 20 win lines. Matching three or more symbols along one of them will award a pay-out. The Cash Eruption online slot also features an Auto Play.

Inspiration[edit]

The 'Eruption' introduction is based on the 'Let Me Swim' introduction by Cactus.^[5] After the intro, an E-flat major quotation of the 'Etude No. 2' by Rodolphe Kreutzer is heard. The end section begins with a series of rapid two-handed tapping triads that have a classical like structure and eventually finishes with a repeated classical cadence followed by sound effects generated by a Univox EC-80 echo unit.^[1]

The piece that would later be named 'Eruption' had existed as part of Van Halen's stage act at least as far back as 1975, when it featured no tapping.^[6] Although one-handed tapping (hammer-ons and pull-offs) was standard guitar technique, 'Eruption' introduced two-handed tapping to the mainstream popular rock audience, and it was a popular soloing option throughout the 1980s. Previously, Baroque-like tapping had been recorded by Steve Hackett of Genesis in 1971/1972.

Initially, 'Eruption' was not considered as a track for the Van Halen album as it was just a guitar solo Eddie performed live in the clubs. But Ted Templeman overheard it in the studio as Eddie was rehearsing it for a club date at the Whisky a Go Go and decided to include it on the album. Eddie recalled, 'I didn't even play it right. There's a mistake at the top end of it. To this day, whenever I hear it, I always think, 'Man, I could've played it better.'^[7]

'Spanish Fly', an acoustic guitar solo on Van Halen II, can be viewed as a nylon-string version of 'Eruption', expanding on similar techniques. Similarly, it was suggested by Templeman for inclusion on the album after he heard Eddie Van Halen playing a classical guitar. In March 2005, Q magazine placed 'Eruption' at number 29 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks. 'Eruption' has been named the 2nd greatest guitar solo by Guitar World magazine.^[8] Chuck Klosterman of Vulture.com named it the best Van Halen song, noting 'if you love Van Halen, this is what you love, and you can listen to it a thousand times without diminishing returns.'^[9]

Personnel[edit]

Eddie Van Halen – electric guitar
Michael Anthony – bass
Alex Van Halen – drums

Accolades[edit]

Publication	Country	Accolade	Year	Rank
Guitar World	United States	100 Greatest Guitar Solos	2009	2^[8]
Q	United Kingdom	100 Greatest Guitar Tracks	2005	29^[10]
Rolling Stone	United States	100 Greatest Guitar Tracks	2008	6^[11]

Eruption Lesson

References[edit]