Alex Van Halen
Born	May 08, 1953 (1953-05-08) (age 54) Nijmegen, Netherlands
Genre(s)	Rock
Affiliation(s)	Van Halen
Years active	1972-present
Official site	www.van-halen.com

Alexander Arthur Van Halen (born on May 8, 1953) is a drummer and co-founder of the hard rock band Van Halen, along with his brother Eddie Van Halen who plays lead guitar and keyboards. Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... Image File history File links Avh2005. ... May 8 is the 128th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (129th in leap years). ... 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Netherlands. ... Country Netherlands Province Gelderland Area (2006)  - Municipality 57. ... For other uses, see Rock music (disambiguation). ... Van Halen is an American rock band. ... May 8 is the 128th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (129th in leap years). ... 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... A drummer in Action A drummer is a person who plays the drums, particularly the drum kit, marching percussion, or hand drums. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Van Halen is an American rock band. ... Edward Van Halen (born Edward Lodewijk van Halen on January 26, 1955 [1] in Nijmegen, Netherlands), is a guitarist, songwriter and producer most famous for being leader and a co-founder of the hard rock band, Van Halen. ...

Early life

He was born in Nijmegen, Netherlands to Jan Van Halen, a Dutch father, and Eugenia, an Indonesian mother. The family moved to Pasadena, California in 1962. Country Netherlands Province Gelderland Area (2006)  - Municipality 57. ... A native of Sweden, Jan Van Halen is an accomplished bandleader who is also a skilled saxophonist and clarinetist. ... Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. ...

Both Van Halen brothers were trained as classical pianists in their childhood. Although Alex is known as a professional drummer, he began his musical aspirations as a guitarist, with his brother Edward taking up drums.

According to Van Halen lore, while Eddie was delivering newspapers to pay for his drum kit, Alex would practice playing on them. It was when Eddie heard Alex's mastery of the Surfaris drum solo in the song "Wipe Out" that he decided to switch and begin learning to play the electric guitar. Alex got some of his earliest drum lessons from Max Toms, who played along with Jan Van Halen at the various Dutch clubs in Southern California. The Surfaris were an American surf music band formed in Glendora, California in 1962. ... Wipe Out is a song written by Bob Berryhill, Pat Connolly, Jim Fuller and Ron Wilson. ...

Alex graduated from Pasadena High School in 1971. Afterward, he attended Pasadena City College for a brief period of time taking classes in music theory, composition, scoring and arranging. Occasionally, he would pass by Michael Anthony in the hall—the bassist who would eventually become the third pillar of the future band Van Halen. Pasadena High School (PHS) is a four year comprehensive secondary school located in Pasadena, California. ... Pasadena City College (commonly abbreviated and known as PCC) is a community college located on Colorado Boulevard in the Los Angeles suburb of Pasadena, California, USA. PCC mainly serves people who live in the cities of South Pasadena, San Marino, Temple City, Pasadena, Burbank, La Canada Flintridge, Arcadia, Sierra Madre... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Van Halen is an American rock band. ...

Music career and influences

Some of Alex's early bands, all of which included Eddie, were: The Broken Combs (who performed lunchtime concerts at Hamilton Elementary School and featured Alex on saxophone), The Trojan Rubber Company, Genesis, and The Space Brothers. Among his musical influences are Buddy Rich, Keith Moon, John Bonham and Ginger Baker. Bernard Buddy Rich (September 30, 1917 Brooklyn, New York – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. ... Keith Moon (August 23, 1946 – September 7, 1978) was the drummer of the rock group The Who. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Peter Edward Ginger Baker (born August 19, 1939, Lewisham, South London) is an English drummer and singer who gained fame as a member of the Graham Bond Organisation (GBO) and Cream from 1966 until 1968. ...

In 1972, Mammoth was formed and featured Alex on drums, Edward on lead vocals and guitar and Mark Stone on bass. By 1974, Mammoth had a new line-up. Stone had been replaced by Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth had taken over as the lead vocalist. Because of conflicts with another band by the same name, Mammoth changed their name to Van Halen. This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Van Halen is an American rock band. ...

The quartet paid their dues on the Southern California club circuit: Gazzari's (the first club to give them a break), the Starwood, the Whisky a Go-Go, or Walter Mitty's Rock & Roll Emporium. Within a few years, Van Halen was a club scene favorite. The Whisky A Go-Go is a nightclub in West Hollywood, California, at 8901 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip. ... Walter Mitty is a fictional character in James Thurbers short story The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, published in 1941. ...

In addition to his musical duties, Al was busy handling managerial duties, booking gigs, etc. for the band, until the arrival of Donn Landee in the late-1970's. Their 1978 album Van Halen was released to much fanfare, influencing many musicians in hard rock.

The term "brown sound," which is universally linked with Edward's tone was actually coined by Alex and refers to the warmth of his own snare drum sound.

At live shows, Alex is known for being an entertainer, performing aggressive drum solos and stage pyrotechnics.

The only non–Van Halen example of Alex's musicianship can be found on the soundtrack to the movie "Twister". The instrumental Respect the Wind (for which the Van Halen brothers were nominated for a Grammy Award in 1997 for Best Rock Instrumental Performance^[1]) features Alex on keyboards (with Edward on guitar). The song was used for the movie soundtrack Twister and plays during the end credits of the movie. Twister is a 1996 disaster film starring Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton as storm chasers researching tornadoes. ...

Alex has one son, Aric Van Halen with his ex-wife Kelly who he divorced in 1996.

Alex's kits

• From 1978-86 Alex used Remo CS Clear w/Black Dot heads on all of his drums, switching around 1987-88 to Ludwig WeatherMaster Silver Dot heads instead.
• Alex used Regal Tip 3S sticks from about 1978-88 before switching to the Power Rock and AVH models.
• For 1991-93 Alex used Ludwig Silver Dot heads on snares, rack toms, and kick drums, and Remo Clear Pinstripes on his floor toms.
• During the 1995 Balance Tour he used Ludwig Silver Dot heads on his snare drums, Remo Coated Emperors on his rack and floor toms, and Remo Clear PowerStroke 3 kick drum batter heads.

1998 Van Halen III Tour

Shells

• A: Ludwig 4-ply 16" X 24" Bass Drum - Ludwig WeatherMaster Clear w/Silver Dot drumheads
• B: Ludwig 4-ply 8" X 10" Tom - Ludwig Clear w/Silver Dot
• C: Ludwig 4-ply 8" X 12" Tom - Ludwig Clear w/Silver Dot
• D: Ludwig 4-ply 16" X 16" Tom - Remo Clear Pinstripes
• E: Ludwig 4-ply 16" X 18" Tom - Remo Clear Pinstripes
• F: Ludwig Super Sensitive 6 1/2" X 14" Chrome Snare - Ludwig Clear or Coated w/Silver Dot (underside taped)
• G: Ludwig 3 1/2" X 13" Piccolo
• H: 13 1/2" L+P Conga
• I: 12 1/2" L+P Conga

Cymbals:

• J: Cow Bell
• K: Paiste 2002 16" Med. Crash
• L: Formula 602 Heavy Bell
• M: Paiste 2002 18" Crash
• N: Paiste 2002 20" Crash
• O: 22" Signature Series Dark Ride with Heavy Bell
• P: Paiste 2002 20" Med. Crash
• Q: Paiste 2002 18" Heavy Crash

Alex Van Halen's hi-hat of choice is composed of a 15" Paiste 2002 top and a Paiste 2002 14" Sound Edge bottom.

He also uses Yamaha 8210 bass drum pedals with a Roland Electric kickdrum trigger. His sticks are 16" Calato Regal Tip Alex Van Halen/Power Rock (double-butt).

Each of the drum shells as well as the bass drum heads, feature "Van Halen" in Sanskrit written on them.

2004 Van Halen Reunion Tour

Alex went back to using his full length 17.75" & .570 diameter Regal Tip AVH wood tip model drumsticks.

• 14" Remo Emperor X...snare batter side
• 12", 13" Ludwig Heavy Clear...rack toms
• 16", 18" Remo Clear Pinstripes...floor toms
• 26" Remo Controlled Sound w/Black Dot (and Remo Falam Slams)...kick drums

Each of the drum shells as well as the bass drum heads, featured Dragon designs on them.

References