Eddie Van Halen passes away: Here are few facts that give an insight into his life

On October 6, renowned musician-guitarist Eddie Van Halen died following a long battle with cancer, at the age of 65. Eddie's son Wolf Van Halen announced the same via a post on Twitter and wrote. The news of Van Halen's demise has left a void in the music industry. Meanwhile, many of his fans are celebrating his work to pay tribute. Here are a few lesser-known facts about the late musician that can give you a peek into his life. 

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 Things you need to know about Eddie Van Halen

1. Van Halen has earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records. Eddie's band bagged the label for the highest-paid single appearance of a band in US Festival in 1983 for a 90-minute set. 
2. As per Eddie, his guitar sound style was known as the "Brown Sound". While talking to Billboard in June 2015, Eddie said that with brown sound, he made an attempt to describe the sound of his brother Alex's snare drum.
3. Van Halen owns three patents, which are "musical instrument support", "stringed instrument with adjustable string tension control" and "guitar peghead".
4. During a 2015 interview with Billboard, Van Halen suspected that metal guitar picks were the source of his cancer. Van Halen stated that he usually placed the picks in the exact part of his mouth that developed.
5. The late musician also struggled with drug abuse and his heavy drinking habit. In 2015, he told Billboard that he was an alcoholic and needed it to function. He also revealed that he had been sober since 2008.
6. Eddie's one of the most memorable contributions to music history is his 20-second blazing solo on Michael Jackson's Beat it. However, his contribution was uncredited. 

7. Eddie was officially labelled as one of the greatest guitarists. In 2007, Van Halen, Guitar World placed him 4th in its annual poll of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.

8. Eddie was named after a legendary musician. A line of Edward Van Halen: a Definitive Biography, written by David Dodds, read, "Edward Lodewijk Van Halen followed on January 26, 1995 (his music-obsessed father naming the future prodigy after Ludwig van Beethoven)."

9. Eddie Van Halen had several health issues and underwent hip surgery in 1999. He also had a part of his tongue removed in 2000 after he was diagnosed with cancer. However, Eddie was declared cancer-free in 2002. 

10. Eddie divorced his wife, a TV actor, Valerie Bertinelli after 16 years of marriage in 2007 and later proposed his girlfriend Janie Liszewski in 2008. 

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