Rolling Stone recently posted a wide-ranging interview with Alex Van Halen in conjunction with the impending release of the Van Halen drummer’s autobiography, Brothers, a touching homage to his late brother and bandmate, Eddie.
Among the many topics Alex discussed with Rolling Stone was the backlog of unreleased material he and his brother recorded, and his tentative plans for how some of it may see the light of day.
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The 71-year-old musician explained that very few of the tracks are unfinished, and most don’t feature any vocals. The recordings were made at the brothers’ many, many jam sessions over the years.
“They’re all little pieces,” he noted. “A bunch of licks don’t make a song.”
Alex told Rolling Stone that he contacted OpenAI, the artificial intelligence behind the ChatGPT program, to see whether it possibly could analyze “the patterns of how Edward would have played something” to generate new guitar solos that could be used to complete some of the tracks.
The veteran rocker also revealed that he hoped to enlist a very famous singer to contribute vocals to the tracks.
“Ideally, it’d be Robert Plant,” said Alex, although the last time he spoke with the Led Zeppelin frontman was 1993.
He added, “You’re gonna think I’m out of my f—ing mind. … But when conditions are right, things will manifest.”
One Unreleased Track Is Included in the Brothers Audiobook
As previously reported, one of the unreleased tracks, titled “Unfinished,” will be included in the audiobook version of Brothers. The book will be released on Tuesday, October 22.
Alex has shared several snippets of “Unfinished” on his social media pages and on Van-Halen.com. The track is said to have been the last song the Van Halen brothers ever wrote together.
Alex Also Has Tentative Plans to Make a Van Halen Biopic
Van Halen revealed to Rolling Stone that he’s slowly working on putting together a biopic about his band. He currently is looking for a producer for the project.
“It’s just a long-term plan,” he pointed out. “I mean, to put things in perspective, the Queen movie [2018’s Bohemian Rhapsody] took 30 years to make.”
About Brothers
As previously reported, Brothers is described as “a love letter” from Alex to his late younger brother. It was written while Alex was still mourning Eddie’s 2020 death at age 65 from complications of cancer.
Brothers was co-written with respected New Yorker writer Ariel Levy. According to an official description, the book will offer an “intimate and open account” of Alex’s life, in which he “shares his personal story of family, friendship, music, and brotherly love in a remarkable tribute to his beloved brother and bandmate.”
Brothers will feature Alex’s recollections of his and his brother’s childhood, including their early life in the Netherlands and growing up in Pasadena, California.
The memoir also will include stories of Alex’s many years with Van Halen the band. It will delve into the “musical politics, infighting, and … bad-boy behavior” that came with being a member of the legendary rock group.
Alex’s Upcoming Book Tour
Alex has scheduled a three-city book tour in October to promote his new memoir, Brothers.
The appearances are scheduled for October 21 at Barnes & Noble’s Fifth Ave. location in New York City, October 22 at Books & Greetings in Northvale, New Jersey, and October 24 at Robert Frost Auditorium in Culver City, California.
The New Jersey signing falls on the actual release date of the book.
The California event will feature the drummer chatting about the book with his collaborator on the project, author Ariel Levy.
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