Van Halen has led an extraordinary life. This audio was a pleasure to listen too. Thank you Netgalley, and author Brannigan for this insightful novel

Thank you Netgalley and Tantor Audio for this advance listener copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a fantastic book. I love a good celebrity bio and this was definitely that. I grew up during the hey day of Van Halen and I was extremely excited to be approved for this book. And this book was everything I expected. I loved hearing about the various squabbles with Sammy Hagar and David Lee Roth. I hadn't realized exactly how contentious the relationships were as I was a kid when all of it went down. Eddie Van Halen's music shaped my childhood and I was devastated to learn of his passing in 2020. I actually teared up while listening to the end of this book and the reading of the beautiful post Wolfgang Van Halen put out right after the death of his father.

All in all this was just a great book. The audio was fantastic. 4 solid stars!

Eddie Van Halen lead a unique life. He was a Dutch immigrant from a musical family. He and his brother created a unique sound from influences like the Beatles and Cream. Eddie also created some amazing guitar rifts and music. He was one of rock’s greatest musical talents.

Being an 80’s girl, I absolutely loved this! This brought back my past and many memories! The songs, the rockers and the history compiled in this biography is wonderful. There is so much I did not know about Eddie Van Halen. This book encompasses so much! He was such a huge talent and he lived a life full of addiction, success and strife.

The narrator, Mike Lenz did a superb job. He definitely hit the right tone!

Need a good biography about one talented individual…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

I received this audiobook from the publisher for a honest review.

Very interesting and in-depth look at the "Mozart of rock", Eddie Van Halen. Definitely reminded me of what made this man and his band so special.

Mike Lenz did a wonderful job narrating Unchained. His lively interpretation of everyone's voice and inflection kept the book interesting, and not just a reading of a book.

Van Halen was one of my favorites back in the 70's and 80's; we saw them perform in Rapid City in 1979, and they were on fire. I was sure David Lee Roth was going to break his neck with all the jumping around. I knew nothing of the band, except I enjoyed their music. So going back to the beginning, and learning of Eddie's background was an eye opener. His family boarded a ship and sailed from Holland to the US when Eddie was in grade school. Eddie and Alex spoke no English and were bullied. Also, their mother was Indonesian, so they were mixed race immigrants. Their father was a musician and by the time Eddie was 12, he was playing with his father's band, and smoking cigarettes. Fast forward, the brothers put together a band and started playing in high schools, then small bars, and worked their way up to larger venues. Reading about David Lee Roth was especially interesting, I didn't realize how he'd started taking singing lessons because the brothers wanted more than just a front showman. Plus they went to college together, studying music.

Reading how many talented guitarists started taking notice of Eddie's talent was an eye opener, and I really enjoyed hearing how other famous musicians described Eddie. From the photos, he had always looked like a sweet, happy kid. It was nice to know that he really was a sweetheart. I came away with a greater appreciation of the man and his music.

I received an copy of the audiobook from NetGalley and this is my honest review.

I'm not a Rock & Roll aficionado and know little about bands and the music business. But I recently read a memoir by actress Valerie Bertinelli, who was married to Eddie Van Halen for twenty years. Despite the fact that Eddie and Valerie had a tempestuous marriage that ended in divorce, Valerie speaks of Eddie so lovingly that I became curious to read this book about the guitarist.

*****

Eddie Van Halen's parents Jan and Eugenia, met in the late 1940s when Jan - a Dutch musician - was working in Jakarta, Indonesia. Jan married Indonesian native Eugenia and the couple moved to the Netherlands, where their sons Alex and Edward were born in 1953 and 1955 respectively. The boys were seven and eight when the family relocated to Pasadena, California and began a new life in America.

Like their father, both Alex and Eddie exhibited a talent for music, and the boys started their own band while still in elementary school. Alex played drums, Eddie played the guitar, and by the time the youths were in high school, it was clear they would become famous. Alex and Eddie's group - called Genesis, then renamed Mammoth - was adept at playing covers of bands they liked, such as Cream, The Who, Deep Purple, and Ten Years After.

In 1973 Alex and Eddie formed the band Van Halen, with lead singer David Lee Roth and bassist Michael Anthony. Van Halen started out in small clubs but was soon on it's way to stardom, and Brannigan writes about the band's songs, albums, and tours; booze, drugs, and groupies; and habit of destroying hotel rooms and property (which seems to be de riguer for hard rock bands). Van Halen remained popular for decades and Eddie is widely considered the best guitarist of his generation.

The Van Halen band members - and their producers and managers - didn't always get along, and Brannigan details the various changes that occurred over the years. Especially important was the replacement of flamboyant lead singer David Lee Roth with Sammy Hagar in 1985, and then a brief stint with lead singer Gary Cherone. Eddie attributes the shuffling of lead singers to LSD (lead singer disease), which (in short) means the front men got too big for their britches.

On a personal note, when Valerie Bertinelli's brothers took her to a Van Halen concert, there were immediate sparks between Eddie and the actress. They married soon afterwards, had a son named Wolfgang, and tried to make a go of it. However Eddie abused alcohol and drugs - which he deemed necessary for his creativity; partied with girls on the road; and was difficult to live with. Valerie admits she was no angel either, but it was Eddie's alcoholism and drug use that finally ended the marriage. Nevertheless, Valerie thought of Eddie as a gentle soul with a good heart and the couple remained close until Eddie lost his long battle with cancer in 2020.

The author did prodigious research for this book, and includes numerous details about Eddie's life, family, guitar construction, guitar virtuosity, song-writing, bandmates, studio work, stage work, etc.

It's sad that substance abuse marred so much of Eddie's life, and that chain-smoking (probably) led to tongue cancer and lung cancer. One wonders what would have happened if Eddie had conquered these demons sooner.

I enjoyed the audiobook, narrated by Mike Lenz, and highly recommend it - especially to Rock & Roll and Van Halen fans.

Thanks to Netgalley, Paul Brannigan, and Tantor Audio for a copy of the book.

Unchained: The Eddie Van Halen Story (Audio)
by Paul Brannigan
Narrated by Mike Lenz

My husband was caught in the narrative of the book, as he heard me listen to it. Mike Lenz voice calling out in the room distracted him as he heard of the notorious arguments, and moments of drama associated with the Van Halen group. I learned so much history from the group that had songs that were notes of association as think of my childhood. The arguments finally explained in a calm voice the listener would learn Eddie's voice. His history, his dreams, his struggles. Its remarkable that audiences listening to the music may never know. It is a poignant remembrance of one of the greatest musicians that colored the 1980's.

WOW! I really loved this book, and very much like the feelings I had for the various incarnations of Van Halen, I didn't want it to end. Van Halen has always been one of my favorite bands and I would avoid the age old argument of VanHalen vs. VanHagar because I loved ALL the music and my all time favorite songs can be found on every one of those albums. The author does an excellent job at sharing a detailed view of Eddie's entire life and I was delighted with how much of the band's history was shared in the book. It is very well written and hard to put down! Having been too young to see them perform live in the 70s and 80s but devouring all of their music, I was so excited as an adult to have purchased tickets only to have the tour be cancelled, one of many cancellations noted in the book. The book discusses at length the tumultuous relationships within the band, but is never skewed as to it being one sided or due to one individual. Many of the greatest most prolific musicians of our time are sensitive, demanding, troubled, and beloved geniuses and this book covers in depth all of those dimensions of Eddie Van Halen. Like many Van Halen fans, I was deeply saddened at Eddie's passing last year and reading this book was a great trip back down memory lane for me of all the reasons this band is still one of my all time favorites. Get ready to break out your vinyl, you're going to want to listen to it all again after reading this excellent book..

Thank you to Tantor Media for providing an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

Five Stars

Months ago I read a great new Eddie Van Halen biography, and also just read his ex-wife Valerie Bertinelli's upcoming release. I even read producer Ted Templeman's terrific biography which touched on his years of work with Van Halen. So I came to this audiobook with some grounding in the subject matter.

This is my second go at listening to an audiobook, and found that I enjoyed it a bit more. I love listening to talk radio and podcasts while I'm doing other things, but with the Christmas season some of my faves are on holiday...lending the perfect moment to try another audiobook. This was a really excellent overview on not just Eddie Van Halen, but the entire story of the band start to finish- ending with Eddie's passing. It even touched on aspects of Eddie's marriage to Valerie Bertinelli that I didn't know about, drawing from some of her earlier memoirs. It also covers in depth Van Halen's three different lead singers from over the years, David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar and Gary Cherone, with their quotes and perceptions. It says that the hardcopy of this book is just under 300 pages, but listening to it seemed like it could have been 500 pages-but in a good way-because there was just so much information. It was also nice to hear it narrated when there were comments from each party involved, because it made the story come alive. If anyone wants to learn about not just Eddie Van Halen but the whole history of the band, this is a great book.

Thank you to Tantor Audio for providing an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

This audio was so good. I have been on a rock bio kick for the past couple of weeks and this one did not disappoint. Honestly if you loved Eddie in Van Halen you will love this book. It gives you glimpses onto his personal and professional life. Some I already knew and others I didn’t, I did like how the author included s I;ets from other stars as well, it really balanced out the book.

Unchained was well written and I would recommend it to any ‘rock and roll’ fan!

A terrific biography about one of the best guitarist ever, Eddie Van Halen. I just finished a autobiography about Valerie Bertinelli and she talked about her relationship with Eddie and it made me wonder what happen to him. So I was thrilled when I saw this book coming out about Eddie Van Halen and it is worth every moment I spent listening to the audiobook.
The author has put out a very objective book about Eddie Van Halen from the moment he was born to the day he died and it made me happy at times and very sad at times because it seem that something made Eddie Van Halen very sad.
I love that the author explained what went on with both David Lee Roth and Sammy Hager and Van Halen because I always wondered what exactly happen and now I know. It also explains Eddie's musical background, the start of the band and what fame did to them. I remember that when I was in high school people use to rave about Van Halen but I didn't know until this biography that he came from Pasadena which is the next town over from where I grew up.
It makes me happy that at the end of his life that Eddie Van Halen found love and peace I wish he was granted with more of it.
If your are big Van Halen fan, Eddie and Valerie fan you will love this biography it is insightful and done in a respectful way. I really liked the narrator of the audiobook.

I want to thank Tantor Audio and NetGalley for an advance copy of this biography about this extraordinary human being.

This is a unique book on Eddie Van Halen. Told through the lens of history, Paul Brannigan tells us how Eddie & his family immigrated to the country, how they survived the first years after moving here, and how Eddie & Alex began to learn & play music. If you are looking for more information about Eddie, then this is definitely a book to read and enjoy!

Brannigan did a great job of covering Eddie Van Halen's life in a light and entertaining way. Focusing more on his musical genius and work ethical rather than the party life style made this a more light and refreshing read.

Mike Lenz does a great job of narrating and has a wonderfully soothing voice.

I am not a Van Halen fan but I still found it very entertaining.

My thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for allowing me to review this audio version.

Loved it! Straightforward story for any fan of the band back in the day. Engaging narrator. Highly recommend.

Damn i miss him. Good bio. Lots of known info as well as new material. Lots of personal tidbits. Thznks to Netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook