Rock legend Eddie Van Halen passed away Tuesday (October 6) at the age of 65 following a long battle with cancer, with fans around the world reacting in shocked disbelief. Unsurprisingly, some of those fans happen to be country stars, who have posted touching remembrances of their own.
With his hall of fame band, Van Halen, the virtuosic guitarist arguably changed the course of music history in the late ’70s and ’80s, pioneering new, lightning-fast techniques of playing that inspired generations of pickers after him. Many of those fleet fingered techniques evolved and found their way into country as time went on, and guitar slingers like Keith Urban opened up about his extraordinary contributions.
Others like Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney and more helped explain what the rock icon meant to country musicians, and the legacy he’ll leave behind.
