Oh man, this hurts.

Whoa. Rest easily, Eddie.
Cancer sucks.

Oh, man. I am so sad to hear this. Van Halen was one of the first bands I loved as a kid when I first got into music that was not my parents’ records. I always held out a faint glimmer of hope that he would take Sammy up on the one last ride with the two main eras, and I hope Ed and Michael Anthony were able to make peace.

Terrible news. I was around 13/14 when Women & Children First was released and that was my introduction to VH. I quickly got the first two and for a few years they were among my 4 or 5 favorite bands. RIP Eddie.

Holy fucking shit! I was just listening to the hits of VH at the gym not knowing this news. Last song I played was Poundcake before I went food shopping after the gym.

Now this is a big one for me.

RIP

A great talent , very sad. I remember seeing VH open for Black Sabbath at MSG on the Never Say Die tour. I never heard of them before that night. I walked out of there that night being a fan and buying their debut album shortly after. RIP Eddie.

Holy shit!

R.I.P. Eddie. May your memory be a blessing to family, friends and fans.

RIP.

RIP...bummer!

Man, this sucks big time. It's a combo of what we've lost, and also what could have been. So much revolutionary playing, and so much lost to years of substance abuse. Like Jay, I'd hoped that there'd be a Sammy reunion one day - I never saw that version of the band. I saw them at least four times back in the original incarnation, and Eddie always impressed despite all the chaos around the band. I still remember some radio interviews promoting shows before they got too big for that, and man, when they were that fun-loving group of guys trying to conquer the world, they seemed like the happiest guys in the world.

RIP, Eddie. And thank you.

From TMZ:

Eddie Van Halen, the legendary guitarist and co-founder of Van Halen -- has died after a long battle with throat cancer ... TMZ has learned.

Sources directly connected to the rock star tell us ... he died at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica Tuesday. His wife, Janie, was by his side, along with his son, Wolfgang, and Alex, Eddie's brother and drummer.

We're told in the last 72 hours, Eddie's ongoing health battle went massively downhill -- doctors discovered his throat cancer had moved to his brain as well as other organs.

As you know, Eddie has been battling cancer for well over a decade. Our sources say he's been in and out of the hospital over the past year -- including last November for intestinal issues -- and recently underwent a round of chemo.

Last year we reported ... Eddie was flying between the US and Germany for 5 years to get radiation treatment. Though he was a heavy smoker for years, he believes he developed throat cancer from a metal guitar pick he used to frequently hold in his mouth more than 20 years ago.

Nevertheless, he continued to attend concerts and rehearse music with his son, Wolfgang, who -- if ya don't know -- became Van Halen's bassist in 2006.

Wolfgang mourned his father online, writing ... "He was the best father I could ever ask for. Every moment I’ve shared with him on and off stage was a gift. My heart is broken and I don’t think I’ll ever fully recover from this loss." He added, "I love you so much, Pop."

Of course, Eddie himself was considered one of the best and most influential guitarists of all time ... who first made a name for himself with his solo on Van Halen's "Eruption."

Eddie formed the classic rock group in Pasadena in 1972 with his brother, Alex, on drums, Michael Anthony on bass and David Lee Roth singing. Eddie served as the main songwriter on their self-titled debut album in 1978 ... which launched the group into rock superstardom in the '80s.

They went on to pump out hit after hit, including "Runnin' with the Devil," "Unchained," "Hot for Teacher," "Panama" and "Jump" ... and continued their success with Sammy Hagar on lead vocals after the departure of Roth in 1985.

While the band had already achieved hard rock superstardom, Eddie became a pop culture icon with the 1983 release of Michael Jackson's "Beat It" ... which featured Eddie's iconic guitar solo.

Though some members of Van Halen have changed, Eddie and Alex were the constants in the band ... with Eddie's acclaimed guitar work being the focal point of their legacy.

Van Halen was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007, and Eddie is widely considered one of the greatest guitar players of all time.

He is survived by his wife, Janie, and his son.

Eddie was 65.

RIP

I was shocked to read the headline when it popped up on my phone.

R.I.P. Eddie.

A decade long battle - and those metastasizing bastards got him with an end run. 65. Too soon.

It seems weird he was a lifelong smoker and yet blamed getting cancer on holding brass or copper guitar picks in his mouth. Oh well.

R.I.P., Eddie.

Just heard the news walking into the house. The first four albums for me (particularly the first 2) were such a bedrock of my yute. RIP.
And by the way:
Fuck cancer.

Damn. I knew there were rumors about his health, but hoped he'd be alright.

Hard to imagine a world without Eddie Van Halen.

Damn

Saw VH twice with Diamond Dave and once with Sammy.
Wrecked a car on the way to the show one time and still made the concert

A true giant who’s influence is immeasurable.

Very sad

RIP

RIP

RIP

RIP.

As I've stated a few times on here, I saw VH in 1980 (Women/Children tour) and again in 1988 (Monsters tour with Sam). The '88 show was far superior by leaps and bounds. I wasn't much of a Sammy fan until that show.

Too much lost time under the bridge. It's the what could've been scenario. Now...... nothing.

I wasn't a fan of the reunion album with DLR at all, but I'm glad it happened so that it gave many one more time of seeing Eddie do his magic on guitar when they did the tour.

Eddie and Tony were great friends. Van Halen once toured as the opening act for Black Sabbath during the Never Say Die tour. Apparently back then VH blew Sabbath of the stage every night.

Thanks for changing the entire musical world just a little bit, and for a little while, Mr. Van Halen.

RIP.

P.S. Fuck Cancer.