Pasadena Pays Tribute To Van Halen By Naming A Public Stage After Them

Pasadena Pays Tribute To Van Halen By Naming A Public Stage After Them | Society Of Rock Videos

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A new public stage at the new park in Pasadena, California is being constructed to name after Van Halen, 50 years after the band was formed there.

The soon to be open Van Halen Stage is not only a tribute to the late Eddie Van Halen, but also a way to honor the entire band. The new one acre park where the stage is placed will be located at 701 East Union Street, to be named after science-fiction writer Octavia Butler.

Aside from the performance stage, the park is set to have open spaces for relaxation and community gatherings, a playground with shade structures, public restrooms, a dog run, and a 48-space parking plaza. It is expected to be complete this summer, while the city council is expected to approve the new names of the stage and park on Monday, April 11.

In 1962, the Van Halen family moved to Pasadena, where Eddie started studying classical piano. Shortly after, Eddie started playing music with his brother Alex and formed a band. It was in 1973, when their band was named Van Halen. David Lee Roth and Michael Anthony later joined them and they recorded their debut album in 1977.

Since Eddie’s passing in 2020, the city of Pasadena has always been coming up with different ways to honor the legendary musician. In October, a memorial plaque was dedicated to Eddie Van Halen in a ceremony led by Mayor Victor Gordo. The shrine was placed outside the city’s Civic Auditorium, a venue where Van Halen would perform a lot of times between 1975 and 1978.

Eddie Van Halen died at 65 after a long battle with cancer. Following his death, fans would go to his childhood home on the Las Lunas Street in Pasadena and left flowers. There are also candles and fan mementos placed on Allen Avenue, where Eddie and Alex scratched their band’s name into the wet cement of a sidewalk when they were teenagers.

Van Halen disbanded after Eddie’s death. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. The Rolling Stone magazine ranked Eddie Van Halen No. 8 in on their list of the 100 greatest guitarists.

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