Doug Messenger, Van Morrison’s band leader guitarist, knowing that

Doug Messenger, Van Morrison’s band leader guitarist, knowing that Ted Templeman was looking for a “guitar hero” act, had seen Van Halen at the Starwood in Hollywood and placed a number of calls to Warner Records for Ted to check them out. “I don’t know if it was 4 calls or 10, but I knew this was exactly the act Ted wanted. So on a horrendously rainy night in mid-1977”, Warner Bros. executive Mo Ostin and producer Ted Templeman saw Van Halen perform at the Starwood in Hollywood. It was Van Halen’s first booking at the Starwood and the first time they hired their own roadies. “We wanted to come on with a little class and we couldn’t be seen setting up our own stuff in Hollywood,” explained Roth. Although the audience was negligible – Messenger claims only a barmaid and himself were there until Ostin and Templeman arrived – the Warner Bros. reps were so impressed that they wrote a letter of intent on a napkin, and within a week met at a local diner with the band, their future manager Marshall Berle (nephew of comedian Milton Berle ) and Warner touring manager Noel Monk, who had just guided the Sex Pistols across the United States. According to Noel Monk’s book, the band’s car had broken down en route to the meeting at the diner, and rather than leave the Warner Bros. reps waiting and appear to be an irresponsible band, the members of Van Halen actually ran the remaining distance of several miles to arrive only slightly late. Warner offered the band a two album recording contract, one that heavily favored Warner, paying the band $0.70 per unit (album) sold, a deal that would leave the band over $1 million in debt at the conclusion of their first supporting tour as the opening act for Journey and Ronnie Montrose . The group recorded their debut album at Sunset Sound Recorders studio from mid-September to early October 1977, recording guitar parts for one week and then vocals for two additional. All of the tracks were laid down with little overdubbing or multi-tracking. Minor mistakes were purposely left on the record and a very rudimentary instrument set-up was used to give the record a live feel. During this time, they continued to play various venues in Southern California, including concerts at the Pasadena Convention Center produced by their promoter and impresario, Steve Tortomasi.