Did You Know? Alex and Eddie Van Halen’s Father Played Clarinet on This Van Halen Track in 1982

Eddie Van Halen is often considered the greatest guitar player of all time. He’s certainly one of the most innovative of the 1970s and 1980s. Alex Van Halen is often underappreciated in comparison, especially with how dominant a force he was behind the kit. Both brothers seemed to have inherited their talents from their father, Jan Van Halen. Jan was a professional jazz musician who played clarinet, saxophone, and piano. He worked for the Dutch Air Force, performed in local bands, and at one point, worked as a janitor.

By 1982, Van Halen was arguably the biggest rock band in the US. Their 1981 release, Fair Warning, saw the band explore dark themes and expand their hard rock capabilities. Their 1982 album, Diver Down, explored the band’s capabilities of turning cover songs into their own. They had a history of doing so, with songs such as The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me” and Linda Ronstadt’s “You’re No Good.” Diver Down featured yet another Kinks cover with “Where Have All The Good Times Gone.” Other covers included on the album were Roy Orbison’s “(Oh) Pretty Woman,” the iconic 1960s song “Dancing In The Street,” and a cover of the jazz song “Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now).”

Jan Van Halen Is Featured on “Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now)”

At 60 years old, Jan Van Halen was featured on his biggest release ever. He performed an impromptu jazz solo on the band’s cover of the jazz classic, “Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now).” The song was written in 1924 and has been covered by countless artists throughout the years. It’s certainly a standout and different track for Van Halen, but one easily pulled off by charismatic lead singer David Lee Roth. The storytelling lyrics of the song sync up with Roth’s soft-spoken swagger in a way that pilots this track into a standout relic for Van Halen. Not many hard rock bands of the 1980s could pull this track off with as much class as Van Halen.

In a very classy move, the Van Halen brothers feature their father on this one. His solo shows exactly where Eddie and Alex got their talents. The improvised clarinet solo glues this track together brilliantly and is a highlight on the Diver Down album. It takes you back to Jan’s heyday as a professional jazz musician; you can almost see it as you listen. Jan Van Halen passed away in 1986, making his contributions to this track just four years earlier much more endearing.