Eddie Van Halen was born Edward Lodewijk Van Halen in Nijmegen, Netherlands. One of the best-known guitarists of the 80s and 90s, Edward Van Halen was spawned in the ancient, Roman-founded city of Nijmegen in Holland, but was primarily brought up in the rather less-ancient L.A. suburb of Pasadena, where his family chose to emigrate in 1962. Both he and his brother Alex Van Halen received training in classical piano as children, but it was ultimately rock music that won their interest, with Eddie deciding to channel his musical energies through the drums and Alex switching to the guitar.
As it turned out, Alex -- who practiced on his brother's kit while Eddie was out delivering papers to pay for it -- developed faster as a drummer, motivating Eddie to turn his efforts to the guitar instead. Throughout high school and afterwards the brothers worked together in a series of groups, eventually forming Mammoth in the early 1970s. It was during this period that they came in contact with David Lee Roth, the vocalist for a band from which they occasionally rented a P.A.; deciding they would be better off with a full-time singer (Eddie having been filling this role with little enthusiasm), and impressed with Roth's skills, they lured him into their ranks.
Not long afterward, bassist Michael Anthony was culled from another local band, cementing a line-up that would endure for the next ten years. Upon discovering that the name "Mammoth" was already taken, the four changed their name to Van Halen (apparently at Roth's suggestion) in 1974. After spending the next year building up an audience on the local club circuit, Van Halen caught the attention of blood-spurting Kiss bassist Gene Simmons; impressed with the talent of Eddie and bandmates, he offered his services to produce a demo tape. That same year, a minion of the souless behemoth Warner Brothers also took an interest in the foursome, and within two shakes of a goat's tail a record deal was arranged.