Van Halen (1978)
Sold 10 million copies
Includes: "Runnin' With the Devil", "Ain't Talkin' Bout Love", "Eruption/You Really Got Me", "Jamie's Cryin'"

Van Halen II (1979)
Sold 5 million copies
Includes: "Beautiful Girls" and "Dance the Night Away"

Women and Children First (1980)
Sold 3 million copies
Includes: "Everybody Wants Some" and "And the Cradle Will Rock"

Fair Warning (1981)
Sold 2 million copies
Includes: "Unchained"

Diver Down (1982)
Sold 4 million copies
Includes: "Pretty Woman" and "Dancin' in the Streets"

1984 (1984)
Sold 10 millon copies
Includes: "Jump", "Panama", "Hot for Teacher", "I'll Wait"

Van Halen and 1984.

1984. Most people will pick this album because of 'Jump', but that is one of the album's weaker tunes. I love 'Drop Dead Legs' and 'I'll Wait'. Everytime I hear Drop Dead Legs, I think of this really hot blonde I knew in junior high.

Although I have a lot of great memories of the older boys on the back of the school bus playing the earlier songs, my vote goes to "1984."  It's funny -- "Hot For Teacher" seems to get a lot more radio play now than it did back then.

Just when Dave was finally getting in sync with Eddie as a vocalist on 1984, he ego takes over and he bails for a solo career.

His loss.  Van Halen is much better with Sammy Hagar.

Good topic! 8)

I might be one of the few who likes both Dave and Sammy as rock singers, so I like both eras of VH - in fact I own all 10 albums (I'm not counting Gary Cherone's VH3!).

I picked 1984 as the best overall. It really helped further commercialize the sound of hard rock in the latter half of the 80's with "Jump". It's synth pop, classic rock and metal all in one. They used this same keyboard sound on "I'll Wait" - while they never did any ballads with DLR, this mid-paced, slightly prog-hit is about as close as they got.

I also like "Panama" and "Hot for Teacher" - rockers more like the band's usual stylings. Only thing I didn't like is that 1984 is so short (only 8 full songs, and the last two are kinda filler, so in a way it's like a really strong EP), and no covers - something they did on every album until this.

The 1978 debut is a close second though. Every song is great, ranging from all out metal (the cover of "You Really Got Me"), melodic, grooving rockers ("Runnin' With the Devil", "Ain't Talkin 'bout Love") and semi love songs ("Feel Your Love Tonight", "Janie's Cryin"). There's even some bluesy songs like "Ice Cream Man".

Just as '1984' lead the pathway to pop-metal, I think the debut laid the groundwork for the general hard rock of the 80's. Both are really innovative in their own right. The debut is a better overall album, but because of "Jump" (the first VH song I heard) I have to give the edge to 1984...just barely. ;)

The inbetween 4 albums - while having some great individual songs (And the Cradle Will Rock, Dance the Night Away, Meanstreet, Oh Pretty Woman) really weren't that great as a full listen, IMO. If those four had been whittled down to 2 or 3 with the best songs on each, I think they'd be better overall listens.

I think 1984 is overrated album.I love Jump and Panama and I`ll wait but other songs on it are boring.
My favorite album is Van Halen with with one of best and influental hard rock song: Ain`t talkin` bout love . Other songs are also great like: Eruption and Runnin` with the devil

1984

The Fair Warning Lord strikes you poor boys (and girls) down... Yeah

Just when Dave was finally getting in sync with Eddie as a vocalist on 1984, he ego takes over and he bails for a solo career.

His loss.  Van Halen is much better with Sammy Hagar.
Yep...and the band changed so much I called them Van Hagar....I like both singers but Hagar is a much cooler guy to hang out with :)

BTW, I voted for "Fair Warning" but barely ahead of 1984 and II

LOVE THIS ALBUM!! The boys are back with  Fair Warning which revives some of their sound from their first two albums. Includes the great song and hit "Unchained" as well as some more underground Van Halen songs. Most of the songs on this album (excluding "Unchained") didn't receive much radio time. This album is also less light-hearted and a more darker side of Van Halen. The first song "Mean Street" has one of the coolest openings and is another one of my personal favorite Van Halen songs. "Sinner's Swing" is great "Hear About It Later", "So This is Love?" and the finale "One Foot Out The Door" all are great! This album also contains an Eddie Van Halen dominated sound which also makes it more enjoyable.

1. Mean Street                   6.  Push Comes To Shove
2. Dirty Movies                      7.  So This Is Love?
3. Sinner's Swing!             8. Sunday Afternoon In The Park
4. Hear About It Later           9.  One Foot Out The Door
5. Unchained

http://us.f3.yahoofs.com/shopping/141633/amg1921016845_1617.jpg?rm_____DVmVi0KdZ

Yep...and the band changed so much I called them Van Hagar....I like both singers but Hagar is a much cooler guy to hang out with :)


Totally, that's the impression I always got too. Sammy seems like a partyer and a nice guy at the same time.

Dave is a showman from what I can tell. His solo career has had, what 3 major hits - Just a Gigolo, California Girls and Yankee Rose? After this, I hear he couldn't really "get along" with people, which is why he never stayed with the same group of musicians and probably why his solo career tanked after 1986.

How could you forget David Lee Roth's 'Just Like Paradise'? His only hit from his album Skyscraper. One of his best songs is also on that album. Its called 'Damn Good'. It was a much better album than 'Eat Em and Smile'. This album would have gotten more attention and airplay, but the emergence of Guns N Roses killed alot of  bands back in those days. David Lee Roth was one of those casualties.

Totally, that's the impression I always got too. Sammy seems like a partyer and a nice guy at the same time.

Dave is a showman from what I can tell. His solo career has had, what 3 major hits - Just a Gigolo, California Girls and Yankee Rose? After this, I hear he couldn't really "get along" with people, which is why he never stayed with the same group of musicians and probably why his solo career tanked after 1986.
Actually, he had some good stuff after that. 1988's Skyscraper LP pushed out "Just Like Paradise," Da mn Good" and "Stand Up" while 1990's A Little Ain't Enough yeilded "Sensible Shoes" which were played out here a lot back in the day. They went along with the hugely successful "1986 "Yankee Rose" as well as "Goin' Crazy" (An MTV staple), "Tobacco Road" and "Big Trouble"...all of which I like :) And yet SAMMY is SUCH a more down to earth person while Roth is just full of himself :-\\

^ Good point.

I have the "Best" compilation album he put out several years ago and like most of it. I was wondering if the only good songs were gonna be those 3 hits I knew, but I pleasantly proved myself wrong. Had it been promoted right, I think "A Lil' ain't Enough" could've been a big hit (loved that on first listen - just a nice, middle tempo rocker) but maybe it was seen as a little out of step by 1991?

I do wonder if Sammy has had more success since (he sure doesn't seem 57 years old - he's still more or less a household name too), because he's just a nicer person in general. He has fun like Roth does, but as you said, he's not full of himself

van halens first album is my favorite.


runnin with the devil
eruption
you really got me
aint talkin bout love
ice cream man..

pretty much the whole album is a greatest hits album.

I can't believe anyone would think Van Halen was better with Sammy Hagar!!! In my opimion he ruined the band I saw a lot of Van Halen concerts with David Lee Roth and then after he left.There was no comparison of the two DLR made the band.
Even in concert they had to sing old songs from their older albums and I can't drive 55 to get the audience really going.