Imagine being a teenager and getting to see a young Van Halen bring down the house at your high school.
In April 1975, students at Pasadena High School – which counts Eddie and Alex Van Halen as alumni – were treated to that very spectacle, an absolutely ferocious 30-minute set packed with dynamic covers and a very early original.
Now, we can all get a taste of what that show was like, thanks to a new bootleg recording of the performance that has surfaced on YouTube.
That evening, the quartet tackled some of their favorite hard- and blues-rock tunes – ZZ Top's "Chevrolet," "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo" (in the vein of Johnny Winter's version) and Deep Purple’s "Maybe I’m a Leo" among them – and an original – a very early version of "Fools" – with their trademark gusto.
Though it would be another three years before their music-changing, self-titled debut album, all the ingredients the world would come to know and love are there – David Lee Roth's flamboyant vocals and stage persona, Michael Anthony's rock-solid bass lines and terrific harmonies, Alex Van Halen's inventive, powerful drumming, and Eddie Van Halen's jaw-dropping virtuosity.
You can give the recording a listen above.
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