Eddie Van Halen was saluted by his music peers in a special tribute during the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame virtual induction ceremony on Saturday.
The Van Halen co-founder, who lost his battle with cancer last month, was remembered for his legacy in a special In Memoriam segment by his fellow guitar greats - Slash, Kirk Hammett, and Tom Morello.
As old footage of Eddie played onscreen, Slash told viewers: "Eddie Van Halen was a tremendously gifted musician. His style and his sound were completely unique to him. He had a massive impact on guitar playing."
He went on: "I don't think there's anybody that's picked up the guitar since 1978 that hasn't been touched in some way by Eddie Van Halen's influence."
Slash added: "I'm going to miss his playing and I'm going to miss him as a friend."
Meanwhile, Rage Against the Machine's Morello declared Eddie the "Mozart of our generation", stating: "He had the kind of talent that maybe comes around once a century. Eddie Van Halen inspired me to play 20,000 hours, to try to get within 100 miles of his inspired mastery of the electric guitar."
Metallica star Hammett added: "Not since Jimi Hendrix had there been a guitar player that had so much impact, and was so inspiring to me. He just explored the most simplest thing - a harmonic on his string - and brought it into this realm of technique that no one even thought was possible. He was just, like, from a different planet."
Van Halen were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.
Saturday's ceremony honoured 2020 inductees Nine Inch Nails, The Notorious B.I.G., Whitney Houston, Depeche Mode, T-Rex, and The Doobie Brothers.
