When Eddie Van Halen died last week at the age of 65, the tributes began pouring in. From Jimmy Page and Richie Blackmore to Eddie’s former bandmates Dave Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony, everyone was united in their admiration for the man who revolutionised the electric guitar,
Everyone except David Crosby, that is.
When the former Crosby, Stills & Nash man was asked by fan on Twitter, what he thought about the guitarist, he dismissed the question with a one-word reply: “Meh.”
The backlash was swift, with several fans and musicians calling Crosby out for his apparent lack of respect.
LA Guns guitarist Tracii Guns responded: “Wrong answer as f**k and rude as f**k!!! There are better ways to say you don’t care for someone’s music. That was very disrespectful. And yes straight out f**k you and your smug answer.”
Testament guitarist Alex Skolnick added: “I appreciate @thedavidcrosby too much for this to get in the way, but a much better answer would have been: ‘I know he meant a lot to so many but his sound & style just weren’t my thing.'”
Seemingly aware that he’d prodded a hornets’ nest, Crosby attempted to clarify his positon.
“Hendrix changed the world of guitar,” he wrote. “Nobody else really ...look I get it… many of you loved Van Halen… and the one time I met he was nice… and he was talented… meh to me means I don’t care that much… and I don’t… doesn’t mean he wasn’t good ,he was but not for me.”
Former Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider had the last word, tweeting: “Now David Crosby knows what his eulogy will be from the 100s of millions of fans worldwide (and it's getting close) - "Today David Crosby died....Meh."
Meh .... https://t.co/rncBUS0tnwOctober 10, 2020
Wrong answer as fuck and rude as fuck!!! There are better ways to say you don’t care for someone’s music. That was very disrespectful. And yes straight out fuck you and your smug answer.October 11, 2020
I appreciate @thedavidcrosby too much for this to get in the way, but a much better answer would have been: “I know he meant a lot to so many but his sound & style just weren’t my thing.” Patti Smith doesn’t seem like she’s ever been much of a VH fan either, still she posted this pic.twitter.com/GqKO4S5v4ROctober 11, 2020
Now @thedavidcrosby knows what his eulogy will be from the 100s of millions of @eddievanhalen fans worldwide (and it's getting close) - "Today David Crosby died....Meh."David Crosby Gets Backlash Over Dismissive Eddie Van Halen Tweet https://t.co/h8hUVSiNyb via @consequenceOctober 12, 2020
Now @thedavidcrosby knows what his eulogy will be from the 100s of millions of @eddievanhalen fans worldwide (and it's getting close) - "Today David Crosby died....Meh."David Crosby Gets Backlash Over Dismissive Eddie Van Halen Tweet https://t.co/h8hUVSiNyb via @consequenceOctober 12, 2020