Kevin Bronson on June 7th, 2021

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Before his three-decade career running a record label, and before his resurgence as a singer-songwriter, David Haerle was lead guitarist in an ’80s rock band around Los Angeles. Like any axe-wielder in those days, he was inspired by the greats, including Eddie Van Halen.

This week, Haerle pays tribute with his new song “Eddie.” Officially releasing on Wednesday, it’s a big-hearted tune, written from the point of view of a kid who worshiped the “gods” and “kings” he heard on the radio. Haerle mourned the guitarist’s passing last fall by clipping Van Halen’s obituary out of the Los Angeles Times and shedding tears over it.

“I love Van Halen,” Haerle says. “I was 11 years old riding in the car with my dad near our home in Los Angeles and ‘Runnin’ With The Devil’ came thundering across the airwaves. That sound spoke to me … It was like a bomb went off in the rock world that February 1978. Especially for guitar players. I started playing myself not long after that on a Fender Stratocaster and amplifier gifted to me by my parents.

“When he died in the fall of 2020, it hit me hard. His and the band’s music had been such a big part of my life, the soundtrack to my formative years. The L.A. Times ran Eddie’s obituary on the front page of the print edition. Eddie deserved that. I cried like a baby reading it. My song ‘Eddie’ is a thank you to the man who performed miracles on six strings. And always with a smile.”

The song is the fourth single Haerle has released since his 2020 sophomore album, “Death Valley.” The songwriter has spent almost three decades as president of L.A.-based CMH Records, returning to writing, playing and recording about 10 years ago. His debut album, “Garden of Edendale,” eventually came out in 2018.

Michael Pottle directed the lyric video.

||| Stream: “Eddie”