Eddie Van Halen Receives National Guitar Museum's Lifetime Achievement Award

Michael Angulia | 12-20-2020

National Guitar Museum social media capture

The National Guitar Museum announced via social media that they have honored late Van Halen guitarist Eddie Van Halen with their 2020 "Lifetime Achievement Award".

This marked the first year that an award has been given posthumously as their guidelines stipulate that the Lifetime Achievement Award be given "to a living guitarist who has contributed to the legacy of the guitar."

The organization had this to say, "It is perhaps fitting that we don't need to explain why Eddie is deserving of such an honor everyone who has ever heard his guitar playing knows. Eddie certainly would have received this award at some point in the future, as it seemed that he still had a lifetime of guitar greatness to give.

"Several of the people we've honored over the past decade have left us in the years since we presented them with the award. In this case, however, the sadness of Eddie Van Halen's passing is somehow harder to accept.

"Thanks, Eddie. We only wish we could deliver this in person."

Previous recipients:
2010: David Honeyboy Edwards. Pioneering blues guitarist.
2011: Roger McGuinn. Founder of The Byrds and early player of the electric 12-string.
2012: B.B. King. Perhaps the most famous blues player of all time.
2013: Vic Flick. Popular session guitarist (including for The Beatles), who played the original James Bond theme.
2014: Buddy Guy. Influential electric bluesman who influenced the course of rock.
2015: Tony Iommi. Founder of Black Sabbath, and the acknowledged architect of heavy metal.
2016: Glen Campbell. Session player and singer who appeared on thousands of popular songs.
2017: Bonnie Raitt. Pioneering blues rock and slide player.
2018: Jose Feliciano. Internationally renowned guitarist across many genres.
2019: Liona Boyd. The first female classical guitarist of note.

See the announcement here.