# Eddie Van Halen Admitted He Was “Bummed” About Van Halen’s First Single in 1978

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/eddie-van-halen-admitted-he-was-bummed-about-van-halens-first-single-in-1978/
- Published: 2026-08-03T23:00:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-08-25T11:10:08+00:00
- Original publisher: American Songwriter
- Original article: https://americansongwriter.com/eddie-van-halen-admitted-he-was-bummed-about-van-halens-first-single-in-1978/
- Topics: Americas, Entertainment, Music, World

## Key points

- Eddie Van Halen disliked that their 1978 debut single was a Kinks cover
- Producer Ted Templeman chose "You Really Got Me" over an original track
- Kinks' Ray Davies has mixed but good-humoured views on the cover

## Summary

Eddie Van Halen later admitted he was disappointed that Van Halen's 1978 debut single was a cover of The Kinks' "You Really Got Me" rather than an original composition, revealing a rare moment of tension over the band's breakthrough hit. The decision to release the cover was made by producer Ted Templeman, and although the track became a Top 40 hit and launched the band's decades-long career, Eddie would have preferred to lead with an original song such as "Jamie's Cryin'".

"You Really Got Me" was originally released by The Kinks in 1964 and written solely by frontman Ray Davies, making it one of only two tracks on Van Halen's debut not written by band members. Davies has expressed mixed feelings about the cover over the years, offering wry, backhanded praise of Eddie Van Halen's guitar playing and calling the rock version "very Middle America", though he has also seen the funny side after a fan once complimented him on his "cover" of Van Halen's song.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.