5/22/15 Van Halen

[Niveous]

What is your favorite Van Halen song?

[johndisk0]

"Right Now" is my pick. I loved the music video to this one and would sit captivated by it every time I saw it on MTV. It is full of factoids, and I pride myself on useless trivia. I think my favorite is the one where words on the screen say "Right now, scientists are trying to make a better TOMATO" or something like that, and the screen is showing a picture of a breast implant.



-jd0

[glennny]

Funny to have Genesis and Van Halen back to back. As I feel with Peter Gabriel and Genesis I feel with David Lee Roth.

My pick is Little Guitars from Diver Down.

That out of the way, those 1st six albums with DLR are flawless. The covers are great, but if I ever skip any tracks it's the covers.
I am a guitarist and my brother is a drummer, so my brother and I feel a kinship with the VH brothers. Eddie sure gets his accolades as one of the best, and he deserves it. However no one gives Alex as much respect as I think he deserves. Also the live band in the studio sound that those six albums have is unparalleled.

There has never been a better frontman than Dave. Eddie is a huge influence on me too, not so much in the way he solos, but his rhythm guitar work is the most exceptional. I also love his ethos " if it sounds good, it is good".

When they split, I saw both DLR and Van Hagar. The winner was DLR in my book. Those were some amazing shows, and to have Billy Sheehan and Steve Vai as your band , it better be better.

We used to cover " Big Bad Bill " which is an old 20s standard, but we were really covering the Van Halen cover.

I like the deep cuts more than the hits : Dirty Movies, House of Pain, Take Your Whiskey Home

Note: I'm waiting for May 24th to jump on the DRC for a particular band. We're almost there, but getting dangerously close with Genesis and Van Halen.

[user]

Somebody said something about GNR being just another hair band; I can't help but feel even more so about Van Halen. This opinion is based more on sound than appearance. But coming from me, this is not a put down. I do love "Right Now", but my current VH favorite is "Atomic Punk".

[irwin]

Hot for Teacher

[Albatross]

I love DLR-era Van Halen. All six of those albums are golden, including the underrated Fair Warning.

The only Van Hagar tune I ever really liked was "Pound Cake."

[Niveous]

Growing up my best friend was a huge Van Halen fan. I ended up stealing all this Van Halen cassettes.

Honorable mentions to Panama, Humans Being, and When It's Love. (I'm definitely more Hagar than Roth)

My favorite is Right Now.

[fluffy]

That song always makes me think of Crystal Pepsi.

[glennny]

for the Hagar stuff I really love the music for the song 5150.
I think Hagar has a killer voice, but I submit that he is the absolute worst lyricist in all of rock music. No one makes me cringe as often as that guy. He has my attention because the band is so good and his voice is awesome but I wish he sang in Dutch or something, so I would know what he was saying. It's like my favorite Prague band : Uz Jsme Doma, they sing in Czech, and its wonderful. Then you translate the lyrics and you get lines like " Rubber Tree, what are you doing here? You're not a ruralist"

[josh]

DLR all the way! Compare "Panama" ("i reach down, between my legs") to "I can't Drive 55"... please...

[Albatross]

I think Hagar has a killer voice, but I submit that he is the absolute worst lyricist in all of rock music.

Yeah, he's right up there. Lyrics aren't usually a big sticking point with me, but his are often awful to the point of distraction.

Still trying to decide who is worse, Hagar or Jon Bon Jovi.