Rock fans were none too pleased after seeing the limited tribute that guitar god Eddie Van Halen received at the award ceremony this weekend. A lot of people weighed in last night, and now Eddie's son, Wolfgang, released a statement.
He revealed that GRAMMYs did ask him to perform the "Eruption" solo to honor his father, but he didn't think he would have lived up to the expectation. Ultimately, though, he expected that the GRAMMYs would do more than they ended up doing.
Here's Wolfgang's full statement:
The GRAMMYS asked me to play Eruption for the ‘In Memoriam’ section and I declined. I don’t think anyone could have lived up to what my father did for music but himself.
It was my understanding that there would be an ‘In Memoriam’ section where bits of songs were performed for legendary artists that had passed. I didn’t realize that they would only show Pop for 15 seconds in the middle of 4 full performances for others we had lost.
What hurt the most was that he wasn’t even mentioned when they talked about artists we lost in the beginning of the show. I know rock isn’t the most popular genre right now, (and the academy does seem a bit out of touch) but I think it’s impossible to ignore the legacy my father left on the instrument, the world of rock, and music in general. There will never be another innovator like him.
I’m not looking to start some kind of hate parade here, I just wanted to explain my side. I know Pop would probably just laugh it off and say “Ehh who gives a shit?” He was only about the music anyway. The rest didn’t matter.
I’d love to get the opportunity to speak with The Recording Academy not only about the legacy of my father, but the legacy of the Rock genre moving forward.
Thank you.
Eddie Trunk posted the clip of the GRAMMY induction with the caption "So in a more than 3 hour show this is all the @recordingacademy #grammys could muster for an ICON?! I am beyond outraged and disgusted. New lows even by Grammy standards!! They had 5 months to do something! @wolfvanhalen had a # 1 rock song that he could have played. Could have had a guitarist do Eruption. Could have said his name in the open when you did mention artists who died. This is pathetic! But sadly expected with this organization who are nothing but a popularity contest. Lost for rock since they gave Tull the Grammy over Metallica. But truly a new low in disrespect tonight. Astonishing."
