10 Greatest Eddie Van Halen Guitar Moments

As the music world got a taste of Van Halen's riffage, it was only a matter of time before people came calling for Eddie's services. While many rock bands would have killed to have a guitarist as amazing as Van Halen, most of the hair metal scene was dominated by copycats trying to ape Eddie's signature style. It would be a pretty heavy price to include Eddie Van Halen on a track, but for the King of Pop, it was no trouble at all.

Looking to liven up his rocking track "Beat It," Michael Jackson called in his friend Eddie to lend his guitar talents to the track, where he absolutely wails. Though this song is Michael's track from top to bottom, the solo belongs to Eddie, where he occupies every bit of the spotlight.

From a technical standpoint, this also has everything you need in a Van Halen solo, from the whammy bar action to the tapping sections to the tremolo picked melody lines that lead us back into the original chorus. Eddie already had a well of musical magic to pull from, but it's a testament to the man's artistic integrity that even when he was sitting in on a session, he took over the room whenever he strapped on his guitar.