Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of substance use and addiction.

At a gig in 1974, the band’s PA system blew up. Michael Anthony Sobolewski, who was the bassist and lead singer for the opening act, offered to let them use his. This led to a jam session, where they discovered that Sobolewski (who later went only by the name Michael Anthony) could really sing: “though we didn’t know it then, his falsetto enabled something that became important to the Van Halen sound: harmonies” (68). With the addition of Anthony, “the original Van Halen lineup was ready to take on the world” (69).

To sharpen their arrangement skills and “convince our mother we were doing something legit” (69), Alex and Eddie both started taking music courses at Pasadena City College, where Anthony and Roth were also enrolled. The band began playing clubs around Pasadena, where they were forced to cater to the audience by playing Top 40 songs rather than their own, but they developed a following thanks to their “high standards for stagecraft” (71). The band knew from the beginning that they were not there to just perform songs, but rather to “provide the energy to celebrate” (74).