Due October 22 via HarperCollins, the project – according to details shared by the Van Halen Store – sees the iconic drummer share his personal story of family, friendship, music, and brotherly love in a remarkable tribute to his beloved brother and bandmate.
Told with acclaimed New Yorker writer Ariel Levy, “Brothers” is seventy-year-old drummer Alex's love letter to his younger brother, Edward (Maybe "Ed," but never "Eddie"), written while still mourning his untimely death.
In his rough yet sweet voice, Alex recounts the brothers' childhood, first in the Netherlands and then in working-class Pasadena, California, with an itinerant musician father and a very proper Indonesian-born mother—the kind of mom who admonished her boys to "always wear a suit" no matter how famous they became—a woman who was both proud and practical, nonchalant about taking a doggie bag from a star-studded dinner. He also shares tales of musical politics, infighting, and plenty of bad-boy behavior. But mostly, his is a story of brotherhood, music, and enduring love.
"I was with him from day one," Alex writes. "We shared the experience of coming to this country and figuring out how to fit in. We shared a record player, an 800-square-foot house, a mom and dad, and a work ethic. Later, we shared the back of a tour bus, alcoholism, the experience of becoming famous, of becoming fathers and uncles, and of spending more hours in the studio than I've spent doing anything else in this life. We shared a depth of understanding that most people can only hope to achieve in a lifetime.”
There has never been an accurate account of them or the band, and Alex wants to set the record straight on Edward's life and death.
“Brothers” includes never-before-seen photos from the author's private archive; visit the Van Halen Store here.
Eddie passed away in 2020 at the age of 65 from a stroke and other issues following a lengthy battle with cancer.
Van Halen recently delivered the No. 1 Rock News Story Of The Year and were named the No. 2 Rock News Artist Of The Year as part of the 2023 hennemusic Rock News Awards.
Pick up your copy of 1978’s “Van Halen” here.
See also:
Alex Van Halen to publish autobiography Brothers
Wolfgang Van Halen and Mammoth WVH rock Jimmy Kimmel Live
Motley Crue and Van Halen win 2023 hennemusic Rock News Awards
Rock News Story Of The Year No. 1: VAN HALEN
Search Van Halen at hennemusic
