‘He Knew You’re Not Going to Compete With Him’: Steve Stevens Recalls What Eddie Van Halen Was Really Like

Guitarist Steve Stevens recalled touring with Van Halen, revealing that Eddie Van Halen was never too competitive with other guitar players.

Stevens is far from the first person to talk about how kind and friendly Eddie was. Despite being one of the most influential guitar players in history, he was never really cocky about it. And that says a lot about a guy who practically reinvented rock ‘n’ roll and most likely made all of his influences jealous.

Speaking to Jeremy White in a recent interview, Steve Stevens reflected on playing for Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neil, who supported Van Halen back in the early 1990s. The discussion about Eddie came up when he was asked whether he ever used a “dry/wet” rig setup. Answering that he did, Stevens then revealed that it was none other than Eddie Van Halen who gave him one.

“When I was with Vince Neil, we supported Van Halen,” he recalled (transcribed by Ultimate Guitar). “And I was bringing out vintage Marshalls. And every soundcheck, I’d bring out, like, nine of them because, invariably, some would go down.”

“Ed came over, and just when he had introduced the Peavey 5150. And [he said] ‘What are you bringing that shit out for? Play through my rig.’ And, the next day, during soundcheck, I played through his stuff.”

“And, lo and behold, about three days later, truck arrives — bunch of cabinets, heads, and all this stuff. And that was the wet/dry system that I had.”

The whole “wet/dry” rig thing is about having one amp or cabinet that’s completely dry without any effects going through it. But along with the dry output, the same signal goes through amplifiers or cabs that also include effects. The result is a very present tone with its original punch, without the effects making it feel too distant.

Going more into it, Stevens also revealed that Eddie even gifted him one of his Music Man Ernie Ball Axis guitars. He added:

“I said, ‘Oh, that’s a nice guitar.’ One of his early Axis [models]. Gave it to me right off his guitar stand. ‘Yeah, take this one.'”

But, above all, Stevens highlights Eddie’s personality, which goes beyond gifting stuff. At the end of the day, he wanted to support his fellow guitar players and help them sound the best they could.

“He knew you’re not going to compete with him,” the guitarist said. “He’s not worried. He wants you to be happy. And it’s great to have other people play your gear. I want other guitar players to play my signature guitars and amps, and I want them to get the best sound possible.”