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David Lee Roth dedicates new song to Eddie Van Halen, Somewhere Over The Rainbow Bar And Grill

The track comes from an unreleased album written by the Van Halen frontman and John 5.

David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen onstage

Photo: Daniel Knighton / Getty Images

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David Lee Roth has dedicated a new song, Somewhere Over The Rainbow Bar And Grill, to his late bandmate Eddie Van Halen.

The track was released last Friday (30 October) on the Van Halen frontman’s official YouTube channel. Its cover art featured a brief passage which read: “Hey Ed / I’m gonna miss ya / See you on the other side..”

Take a listen below:

The track’s title is a nod to the iconic Rainbow Bar And Grill in West Hollywood, a regular post-show hangout spot for LA rockers the likes of Van Halen to Guns N’ Roses.

The song comes from an unpublished album Roth wrote and recorded several years ago with John 5. On 1 October 2019, Roth spoke to Detroit radio station WRIF about whether the album would ever see the light of day.

“It will,” he said. “There’s been a revision of things, and I can start making real plans and start marching into the future. And, of course, you’ll start hearing that material.”

He added: “This is material that we wrote variously for me solo and for Van Halen, and it’s quite a bank of stuff.”

Eddie Van Halen passed away 6 October at the age of 65 from throat cancer. Roth, along with many others from the music world, paid tribute to the guitar icon online.

“What a long great trip it’s been,” Roth tweeted, sharing a photo himself and Eddie.

In the wake of the guitarist’s death, the guitar and amplifier brand EVH Gear announced that it would be helmed by Eddie’s son, Wolfgang Van Halen, and longtime technician Matt Bruck.

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