In late 2019, while in the midst of his lung cancer treatments, Eddie Van Halen was approached about composing music for two films.
Composer Hans Zimmer asked him to write the theme song to one of this year’s big films, Top Gun: Maverick, and actor Keanu Reeves wanted him to do something for one of his John Wick films. In addition, Bryan Adams wanted to work with him.
On September 22nd, 2019, he texted his friend, former music journalist Blair Fischer, to say, “For me, this is [bleeping] exciting times. It ain’t the end of anything — it’s a whole new beginning!!”
Eddie was a good choice for the Top Gun theme, as the backdrop for Van Halen‘s “Dreams” video was the Navy’s Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron. Their label, Warner Brothers, decided to produce the video after one of its executives saw Top Gun, which had come out that year.
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