A veteran guitarist has claimed that one of Ace Frehley's most iconic Kiss solos laid the foundation for Eddie Van Halen to flip the guitar world upside down with "Eruption."
It’s not the first time that links have been made between Ed's 1977 guitar solo and various other guitar players. For example, Harvey Mandel said he deserves credit for introducing EVH to the two-handed tapping techniques that are a signature element of the song.
But this new assertion of a link between the virtuoso and Kiss — a band he loved so much that he once asked to join them — is something altogether more incendiary.
The claim has been made by former Cro-Mags guitarist Parris Mayhew in the newly published book, Talk to Me: Conversations With Ace Frehley, by Greg Prato.
Despite his deep-rooted associations with the New York hardcore punk scene, Mayhew is a big admirer of the late Space Ace. He says there are clear similarities between Ace's solo on "Shock Me" from Alive II and Eddie's showcase.
“People understand and revere how important Eddie Van Halen is. It's so clear,” Mayhew states. “He is so much better than everybody else. But he also has all that fire and magnetism and magic that Ace had. He just did it better.
“And nobody that I knew who liked [Van Halen's debut] would accept the fact that this guy was influenced by that guy,” he continues. “And if you listen to the ‘Shock Me’ solo and ‘Eruption’ back to back, and if you don't hear that the 'Shock Me' solo is completely a template for the 'Eruption' solo, then you don't have ears.”
Frehley's solo — which, like "Eruption," is performed without accompaniment — comes at the 4:05 mark. While there are similarities in his and Van Halen's approach and style, including plenty of squealing pinch harmonics, there are good reasons to doubt the claim Ed took his lead from Ace.
Consider the recording and release dates: Alive II was issued on October 24, 1977. Van Halen's self-titled debut album, which features "Eruption," wasn't released until the following February, but "Eruption" was recorded September 8, 1977, several weeks before Alive II came out.
For that matter, Ed had been performing "Eruption" well before its September 8 recording date, as can be heard on a live taping from June 10, 1977. The recording of "Shock Me" on Alive II comes from a show at the L.A. Forum in late August of that year. To claim it was a template for a work that was already months in the making seems quite a stretch.
This isn't the first time someone has claimed Eddie took something from Ace. Even Ace thought Eddie began using two-handed tapping after seeing him do it in concert. Eddie said he saw Jimmy Page do it in 1971, well before Kiss existed, making him realize the technique's potential for his electric guitar fireworks.
Mayhew admits his claim has led to debates with fans over the years. But he stands by it.
"When I first heard 'Eruption', I was like, 'Oh my God, he's totally ripping off Ace!' I have never heard anybody else say that. And when I've brought it up, I've had people argue it down. And I'm like, 'Listen to them back to back.'
"Eddie Van Halen, if he was alive, and he claimed that he didn't just nick that whole thing as a template for 'Eruption', he's a liar."
In related news. former Van Halen bass player Michael Anthony has revealed the career-saving advice Eddie got from David Lee Roth in the band's early days, and Carl Verheyen has recalled the time Eddie borrowed one of his Les Pauls, causing him distress in the process
