You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
informative
medium-paced
Alex is a humble writer and tells a great story
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
informative
slow-paced
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
As a Van Halen fan, I found Alex’s book good and sad as it recounts the life of him and his brother before moving to the US, going to school as a US citizen, before, during, and after the height of Van Halen’s fame and Eddie’s death. If you’re a classic rock fan, let alone a Van Halen fan, give this a read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, Grief
Minor: Violence
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Great insights into the early days of Van Halen and what it means to be an artist.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
In this heartfelt and unvarnished memoir about the founding members of the rock group Van Halen, the author lets it all hang out. From an immigrant family with an alcoholic father, the brothers cut their musical teeth on pianos and violins, before moving onto guitars and drums. Sex, drugs and rock n roll commenced. The band found international success and rode the wave for about a decade before egos, drugs, and creative infighting broke them up. Alex’s take on groupie sex is laughable and misogynist. But his take on what killed his brother so young is clear-eyed. I read this book in a day.
In just one sentence: proud to be proud
Listen to the audiobook. It's narrated by the man himself and you can see where it hurts and where there's a lot of madness and fun. I especially liked the attitude.
Listen to the audiobook. It's narrated by the man himself and you can see where it hurts and where there's a lot of madness and fun. I especially liked the attitude.
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
fast-paced
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Alex Van Halen's memoir, Brothers, is a love letter to his little brother Edward. It starts at the beginning—their Dutch father and Indonesian mother getting married, starting a family, and then emigrating to Pasadena, CA. The young boys are raised on music (their father Jan was a musician), and early on Edward is clearly a prodigy. By their teens they are putting together their first band. Of course, when singer David Lee Roth is added to the mix, everything changes. Everything explodes.
Alex covers a lot of ground familiar to VH fans, but he does it with an insider's knowledge and a good sense of humor—and many years of retrospect. His love of Edward is always evident, of course, but surprisingly an almost brotherly love of Roth comes across too.
My only complaint is that at 226 pages the book is just too short. I wanted more stories, more elaboration, more everything. But I guess always leave 'em wanting more, right? The book concludes with the end of the (first) Roth era. I hope there is a Volume II that covers the Hagar era and the reunion with Roth. But there may not be one because this memoir is not about Van Halen the band, but Van Halen the brothers, hence the title.
Alex covers a lot of ground familiar to VH fans, but he does it with an insider's knowledge and a good sense of humor—and many years of retrospect. His love of Edward is always evident, of course, but surprisingly an almost brotherly love of Roth comes across too.
My only complaint is that at 226 pages the book is just too short. I wanted more stories, more elaboration, more everything. But I guess always leave 'em wanting more, right? The book concludes with the end of the (first) Roth era. I hope there is a Volume II that covers the Hagar era and the reunion with Roth. But there may not be one because this memoir is not about Van Halen the band, but Van Halen the brothers, hence the title.