STEPHEN PEARCY On VAN HALEN: 'They Changed The Whole Face Of Rock'

RATT founder and frontman Stephen Pearcy recently joined Tommy London and Tor of The Mighty VH podcast for a VAN HALEN-focused conversation built around his personal encounters with the band over the years. Stephen shared stories of crossing paths with Edward Van Halen and David Lee Roth, offering a firsthand look at his experiences with two of rock's most iconic personalities, both before and after RATT became one of the biggest bands of the 1980s. From unexpected knocks on his front door to sharing a bill with VAN HALEN, Stephen takes the viewers inside his own unique history with the band. Stephen, Tommy and Tor also discuss VAN HALEN's enormous influence on the 1980s rock scene at large and the impact the band had on the bands and musicians who followed in VAN HALEN's wake.

Asked if VAN HALEN changed the direction of the whole Sunset Strip rock scene once the David Lee Roth-fronted outfit broke through, Pearcy said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah. They changed the whole face of rock. Seriously. I mean, what an impact, this guitar guy and this entertainment and the most solid rhythm section from two guys, and then brother Michael [Anthony], his voice. I mean, holy shit. You see them at the Whisky A Go Go and hear that, it's, like, 'Fuck, you don't need a PA, Michael.' … And then every John, Pete and Harry started to tap, tap, tap, tap, tap [on the guitar]. I mean, come on — [Eddie] changed the face of guitars… It was insane. You're just looking at it, going, 'How in the fuck is this guy doing that?' I wasn't into that technical shit… Robbin [Crosby, then-RATT guitarist] was into that shit. I wasn't. I was direct drive, and then started playing guitar less and less, and becoming a 'singer singer', once Robbin pulled in — the Jake E. [Lee] period."

Pearcy also talked about Roth's impact as a frontman and lead vocalist, saying: "Well, when you find out years and years later Jim 'Dandy' [Mangrum, lead singer for the 1970s rock group BLACK OAK ARKANSAS] had a lot to do with it, [Roth's] image and his stuff. But us singer guys, I totally went, 'I have to be the lead singer in my [pre-RATT] band MICKEY RATT.' And that was around when Jake E. was in the band. But he had his own cool thing too.

"What Dave did for everybody, all the lead singers on the Strip, or most of them, especially if you had blonde hair or something, trying to emulate Dave — I mean, he had the image, he had the rap, he had the voice — and a lot of us out there that were seeing this were going, 'Holy shit,' to all of it," Stephen added. "You had to just up your game. They set the bar for what was to happen in the '80s."

Back in February 2022, Pearcy reflected on the first time he met VAN HALEN. He told Metal Edge magazine: "It was at the Whisky [A Go Go in West Hollywood]. I lived in San Diego, but a friend of mine kept saying, 'You gotta see this band — they're playing Gazzarri's and they're amazing.' I kept missing them at Gazzarri's, but then one time he said, 'Okay, now they're playing the Whisky. You've gotta go.' So I figured, 'Okay, well, I've seen enough of how shows work in San Diego to know that the bands go to the club early and they go in backstage…' So I drove myself up to the Whisky and I just parked around the corner, on Clark Street, and waited. And soon enough, I fucking saw Dave [Lee Roth] pull up, park and walk up the steps. And I just yelled out, 'You wanna smoke a joint?' He said, 'Yeah,' and I got in. And once I was inside, I said, 'Later! Where's Ed [Van Halen]?' [Laughs]"

He continued: "I'd go up to L.A. and see them all the time after that, and I became good friends with Ed. I'd go to the house where Ed lived with his mom, and he had a little cot and a little workspace with all his guitars. It was fucking amazing. And I'd go back to San Diego and tell people, 'There's this fucking band that's gonna blow minds!' 'Yeah, yeah, sure…' And then a year or whatever later, you know, boom!"

Eddie died in October 2020 at the age of 65. The legendary VAN HALEN guitarist passed away at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California.

Eddie was diagnosed with mouth cancer in 2000 and had tongue surgery. He later battled lung cancer and had been receiving radiation treatment in Germany. Things took a turn for the worse in early 2019 when Eddie got in a motorcycle accident. He was subsequently diagnosed with a brain tumor, and received gamma knife radiosurgery to treat the illness.

As the founder, lead singer, and songwriter of the metal rock band RATT, Pearcy led his creation to mega multi-platinum success year after year from 1984 to 1991. RATT climbed up the charts with "Out Of The Cellar", which generated Top 10 singles followed by sold-out tours throughout the world. Throughout RATT's nearly four decades of success with Pearcy at its helm, they released eight albums and played thousands of shows worldwide all the while selling over 20 million records.

Pearcy has released five solo albums so far: "Social Intercourse" (2002),"Fueler" (2004),"Under My Skin" (2008),"Smash" (2017) and "View To A Thrill" (2018).