Knowing all of VH's Songs

**EVHfan5150** · 03.24.23, 06:32 PM

Hey all, got a question. I play guitar......I'm pretty decent at playing.....especially blues. But, as we all are, I'm a huge EVH fan. How much would it help me, if I knew all of VH's songs. I know......huge undertaking. I've got Runnin with the Devil down pretty good, Ain't Talkin 'Bout Love, and workin on You Really Got Me. I figure, if I knew all of Ed's stuff, I would be able to play 'bout anything.

**ScottyBHarris** · 03.25.23, 10:59 AM

Go for it dude! I learned every VH song from VHI thru 5150 (I also know a few others from the Sammy era, and CGTSNM). Ed was a blues player at heart, and you'll learn a lot from diving deep into the catalog.

Rock On!

**joezlo** · 03.25.23, 11:00 AM

Originally Posted by EVHfan5150

Hey all, got a question. I play guitar......I'm pretty decent at playing.....especially blues. But, as we all are, I'm a huge EVH fan. How much would it help me, if I knew all of VH's songs. I know......huge undertaking. I've got Runnin with the Devil down pretty good, Ain't Talkin 'Bout Love, and workin on You Really Got Me. I figure, if I knew all of Ed's stuff, I would be able to play 'bout anything.

If I had to pick 2 songs off each record as a way to learn Ed techniques:

-1) We Die Bold, Somebody Get me A Doctor
1) Eruption, I'm the One
2)Dance the Night Away, Spanish Fly
3) Everybody Wants Some, Romeo Delight
4) Mean Street, Unchained
5) Cathedral, Little Guitars
6) Hot For Teacher, Girl Gone Bad
7) Summer Nights, 5150
8) Source of Infection, Black & Blue
9) Poundcake, Runaround
10) Amsterdam, Aftershock
11) Fire in the Hole, Year to the Day
12 - BOV1 & BOBW) Me Wise Magic, Learning to See
13) Chinatown, As Is

You get techniques, tones, tuning tricks, and a balance of riffage through that.

**EVHfan5150** · 03.25.23, 04:32 PM

Thanks! Now the question is, is there a tab book out there with all of VH’s songs or do I YouTube? LOL!

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**noise next door** · 03.25.23, 05:32 PM

Originally Posted by EVHfan5150

Thanks! Now the question is, is there a tab book out there with all of VH’s songs or do I YouTube? LOL!

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https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Song.../dp/0739044931

**joezlo** · 03.26.23, 06:26 AM

Originally Posted by EVHfan5150

Thanks! Now the question is, is there a tab book out there with all of VH’s songs or do I YouTube? LOL!

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Do both. Maybe even slow a 33 down to 16 if you've got records.

HOWEVER!

Start with YOUR EAR FIRST!

**rvk5150** · 03.26.23, 07:26 AM

Originally Posted by noise next door

https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Song.../dp/0739044931

I second this....I own this book and it is super useful. Also, Ultimate Guitar has all the tabs and more for a lifetime and costs like $30 a year to subscribe, unlimited possibilities.

I also loved JF Rocks...I had the whole collection of CD-ROMs and such but lost everything when our basement flooded a few years ago; I have looked and looked and never been able to find anyone that has them and unfortunately the site removed everything and claims the masters are all gone....it was a great resource.

**ScottyBHarris** · 03.26.23, 07:56 AM

You can learn a lot from Allen/Garbeag on this site, and YouTuber Doug Steele, as well as Carl Brown over at https://guitarlessons365.com/song-lessons/#tabs-2.

I also learned a lot from Licklibrary.com.

**joezlo** · 03.27.23, 08:06 AM

Originally Posted by rvk5150

I second this....I own this book and it is super useful. Also, Ultimate Guitar has all the tabs and more for a lifetime and costs like $30 a year to subscribe, unlimited possibilities.

I also loved JF Rocks...I had the whole collection of CD-ROMs and such but lost everything when our basement flooded a few years ago; I have looked and looked and never been able to find anyone that has them and unfortunately the site removed everything and claims the masters are all gone....it was a great resource.

It Still have the CD with Italian Spider somewhere at my parent's house!

**Tyler_279** · 03.27.23, 01:21 PM

Originally Posted by EVHfan5150

Thanks! Now the question is, is there a tab book out there with all of VH’s songs or do I YouTube? LOL!

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songsterr.com

**garbeaj** · 03.27.23, 05:16 PM

Originally Posted by EVHfan5150

Thanks! Now the question is, is there a tab book out there with all of VH’s songs or do I YouTube? LOL!

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Almost every bit of every official TAB and almost every online lesson is wildly wrong. I’ve spent a lifetime correcting the official TAB books and I’m still working on it today over 40 years after I started working on it.

Most of the sources that have been mentioned in this thread will cause you A LOT of problems and will certainly lead you to have no idea how to accurately play any Van Halen song. JFRocks, songsterr, Ultimate Guitar, Carl Brown’s guitarlessons365 and many other online lessons and almost every bit of the official TABs will do more harm than good.

I recommend starting with Doug Steele’s videos. He doesn’t get everything 100% note-for-note accurate, but he is generally the most accurate as a starting point.

For the guitar parts on “Panama” (other than the solo), Brett Papa has done the only accurate lesson/transcription of those parts that I’ve ever seen. He doesn’t know how to play the solo, but I can help with that:
https://youtu.be/7A_vYylJC8c

**EVHfan5150** · 03.27.23, 06:41 PM

Here I am trying to play some of You Really Got Me. It’s off a lot, I know, what you hear there is from a tab book I have, what I got so far.

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**Brett** · 03.27.23, 11:20 PM

If I may offer some advice. When you are tapping, you do not want to put the pick in your mouth because it’s too hard to transfer back to your hand quickly. I would suggest doing what most of us do and what Ed did, and tuck the pick underneath your curled second finger if you are tapping with your index finger. And then you can easily transition back to normal picking.

**rvk5150** · 03.28.23, 02:05 AM

Originally Posted by joezlo

It Still have the CD with Italian Spider somewhere at my parent's house!

Man if you could find them I would be over the moon!

**joezlo** · 03.28.23, 10:57 AM

Originally Posted by EVHfan5150

Here I am trying to play some of You Really Got Me. It’s off a lot, I know, what you hear there is from a tab book I have, what I got so far.

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Good job!

Praise - Tone is good! Licks sound clean!

Push - play to a click to make sure your phrasing is in time once you have he song under your fingers. Learn to hold your pick with another finger and not your mouth so you don't accidentally swallow it and shred your vocal chords instead of guitar chords.