The manager who shepherded Van Halen from obscurity to rock stardom goes behind the scenes to tell the complete, unadulterated story of David Lee Roth, Eddie Van Halen, and the legendary band that changed rock music.Van Halen’s rise in the 1980s was one of the most thrilling the music world had ever seen—their mythos an epic party, a sweaty, sexy, never-ending rock extravaganza. During this … extravaganza. During this unparalleled run of success, debauchery, and drama, no one was closer to the band than Noel Monk. A man who’d worked with some of rock’s biggest and most notorious names, Monk spent seven years with Van Halen, serving first as their tour manger then as their personal manager until 1985, when both he and David Lee Roth exited as controversy, backstabbing, and disappointment consumed the band.
Throughout Van Halen’s meteoric rise and abrupt halt, this confidant, fixer, friend, and promoter saw it all and lived to tell. Now, for the first time, he shares the most outrageous escapades—from their coming of age to their most shocking behavior on the road; from Eddie’s courtship and high profile wedding to Valerie Bertinelli to the incredible drug use which would ultimately lead to everyone’s demise. Sharing never-before-told stories, Monk paints a compelling portrait of Eddie Van Halen, bringing into focus the unique combination of talent, vision, hardship, and naiveté that shaped one of the greatest rock guitarists of all time—and made him and his brother vulnerable to the trappings and failings of fame.
Illustrated with dozens of rare photographs from Monk’s vaults, Runnin’ with the Devil is manna from rock heaven no Van Halen fan can miss.
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Noel Monk was Van Halen’s manager until 1984, and this book tells all, from his perspective, that happened in the band, during that time frame that he managed them.
I found it very intriguing to learn about what happens behind the scenes, not only with the band, but with the inner workings of management, marketing, politics; all of it is very enlightening. From reading Noel’s story, one can learn to appreciate all that is or isn’t within the band’s control.
Reading about the outrageous pranks and hanky-panky that went on was at times funny, disturbing and sad. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be on the road that often and for the stretches of time that they were away from their families and friends, and so young, too.
Noel gives a personal glimpse of what it was like to encounter the band and their ups and downs, and I paid special attention to the dynamics between him and Eddie. Noel’s experience with the Van Halen brothers was very special, and at times intense. He oftentimes played referee with the boys, and his role didn’t always focus on the brothers, either.
Watching them rise and fall must have been difficult, and the reader picks up on the anger and tension that is still evident from Noel’s abrupt departure from the band. Learning that, like many fish in the sea, Noel was just another number, must have been a bitter pill to swallow. You can feel it in some of his words. He cuts to the quick, as I’m sure the brothers did to him, too.
It was a fun read, definitely, but with an eye-opening edge. If you think that band members have superhuman powers, read this book. They are just as human as the next guy. They went into stardom blindly, and almost overnight, and when you throw in manipulation, money, substance abuse, adultery, politics, and family, you get a mess of both highs and lows…you get Van Halen.
Overall, a great read. I would read it again and recommend it to anyone who has a love for biographies, with a small caveat: if you love Eddie, like I do, you might want to keep in mind that he’s gone now, so appreciate Noel’s story for what it is and for what it was. And remember that we never will get Eddie’s point of view on many of the matters discussed in this book. So, take it with a grain of salt.
Noel Monk was Van Halen’s manager until 1984, and this book tells all, from his perspective, that happened in the band, during that time frame that he managed them.
I found it very intriguing to learn about what happens behind the scenes, not only with the band, but with the inner workings of management, marketing, politics; all of it is very enlightening. From reading Noel’s story, one can learn to appreciate all that is or isn’t within the band’s control.
Reading about the outrageous pranks and hanky-panky that went on was at times funny, disturbing and sad. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be on the road that often and for the stretches of time that they were away from their families and friends, and so young, too.
Noel gives a personal glimpse of what it was like to encounter the band and their ups and downs, and I paid special attention to the dynamics between him and Eddie. Noel’s experience with the Van Halen brothers was very special, and at times intense. He oftentimes played referee with the boys, and his role didn’t always focus on the brothers, either.
Watching them rise and fall must have been difficult, and the reader picks up on the anger and tension that is still evident from Noel’s abrupt departure from the band. Learning that, like many fish in the sea, Noel was just another number, must have been a bitter pill to swallow. You can feel it in some of his words. He cuts to the quick, as I’m sure the brothers did to him, too.
It was a fun read, definitely, but with an eye-opening edge. If you think that band members have superhuman powers, read this book. They are just as human as the next guy. They went into stardom blindly, and almost overnight, and when you throw in manipulation, money, substance abuse, adultery, politics, and family, you get a mess of both highs and lows…you get Van Halen.
Overall, a great read. I would read it again and recommend it to anyone who has a love for biographies, with a small caveat: if you love Eddie, like I do, you might want to keep in mind that he’s gone now, so appreciate Noel’s story for what it is and for what it was. And remember that we never will get Eddie’s point of view on many of the matters discussed in this book. So, take it with a grain of salt.
If you like rock-and-roll this could be for you. It’s a “tell-all” that probably doesn’t, because “tell all’s” never do. But it’s written from a generally neutral POV with a hook at the end. I’ve found that most ”tell all’s” have an objective. This one does a good job from the beginnings of the group through the departure of David Lee Roth and the band’s manager (who wrote the book). I listened to the band on the airwaves and even owned a couple of CD’s but I was never a follower or even saw them in concert. So, when Edward Van Halen died and all the music was getting replayed, I listened. They were quite good, better than I remembered. So I thought to take a look at this book. It’s sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll, just fill in the names. But the fascinating part, to me, was how quickly the band became enormously successful and how massively dysfunctional they were. Rock music is mostly drugs, decadence, desperation, and dysfunction. If any of that interests you, it’s a good read.