Wolfgang Van Halen: Eddie Van Halen's surprise

Wolfgang Van Halen shared his experience of his father's reaction when he heard the song that would become the first single. According to Wolfgang, Eddie Van Halen had positive comments about his son's solo work, the track Distance.

Speaking to HardDrive Radio, Wolfgang was asked about his family's reaction to hearing the song for the first time. The track was written while Eddie Van Halen was battling cancer. He replied: "It moved everyone I showed it to. I remember when I first showed it to dad, he teared up. Maybe out of pride, or maybe because the song was good. And I don't think he knew how much the song meant to me. He took it as a song about loss."

I remember when I first showed it to dad, he teared up

He also revealed his great surprise at the overwhelmingly positive response to the track upon its official release in November 2020. The video for the song, which consists of archival footage of Eddie and Wolfgang, now has around four million views. We should note that the song struck a positive chord with Eddie Van Halen's fanbase. Wolfgang said: "I think it allowed a sense of closure for a lot of people, in a way, which I didn't expect."

"It was something I wanted to put out as a tribute to my father. But it also served as closure regarding my father's life for a lot of people. This year, of course, there were so many who connected some loss of their own to the track."

It was something I wanted to put out as a tribute to my father

"I tend to write my lyrics from a perspective where I try to draw inspiration from a personal experience. But I like to write it in a way that someone can draw their own meaning from it," he added. "And it was nice to see that happening to some degree, because I think anyone can relate to a monumental loss in their own life."

You can listen to Wolfgang discussing the track on HardDrive Radio below.