Van Halen released their classic self-titled debut album Van Halen on February 10, 1978. The album cover showing all four band member in separate photos was shot at the legendary Whisky a Go Go in West Hollywood, California. Check it out…
The album cover stayed the same until 2007 when Van Halen announced a reunion tour with David Lee Roth but without bass player Michael Anthony. Van Halen also unveiled a newly re-designed website that removed all images of Anthony on any of the old album artwork. On the Van Halen album cover Anthony’s photo was replaced by new bassist and Eddie Van Halen’s son Wolfgang, despite the fact that Wolfgang was born 13 years after the albums release. Here’s a grainy image of the album cover…
Anthony was also airbrushed off of the Van Halen “Women And Children First” album. After catching heat from fans and the press, the album covers were reverted to normal a day later without a word. Here’a what Anthony said when he was asked, did you see that they removed your image from Van Halen’s first album on their Web site?
Yes, I did. And that was the one thing that kind of saddened me a bit, when I was pointed to that, to see that my pictures were removed off of the first album. With Women and Children First, they took the picture off completely. I couldn’t figure out what they were trying to do except for brainwash the fans into thinking I was never in the band. That bummed me out quite a bit. I’m proud of all my history with Van Halen, and maybe they feel otherwise.
Nobody has ever said Eddie Van Halen was classy.