So here it is campers, review number 400 is on us and doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun?! I guess you know where this is going before we start, as I have mentioned previously that the first 6 VH albums are all “knock it out of the park 10/10” records – and this one could be the king of them all.
Starting off with the very un-Van Halen keyboard intro of 1984, the album then kicks into the band’s biggest and most well known song, Jump. Just over four minutes of pop perfection. Then BOOM…straight in the brilliance of Panama. A riff to kill for superb chorus and hook, and who says Dave can’t sing?! To show that VH always take chances, Top Jimmy is next up and there is a hint of Jazz in the mix, as well as a short sharp burst of a killer solo. Side 1 closes out with one of VH’s best deep cuts with Drop Dead Legs. A superb riff and a dirty sleazy vocal from Dave – plus great melodies and bv’s from Eddie and Mike, and we get a great ending which I think is superb.
Over to what could be the best Side 2 of any VH record, and Hot For Teacher assaults your aural openings with Alex pounding the hell out of his kit, leading into a fast shuffle with one hell of guitar intro. The riff alone is to die for and the video was hilarious. Dear Van Hagar fans, name me one song that comes close? I thought not! As close as VH get to ballad city is next with I’ll Wait. A mainly synth driven song, and is followed by a killer one two ending of Girl Gone Bad, and House Of Pain. These two tracks are old (or parts of them are old), and they go way back to the backyard party days. The intro to Girls Gone Bad is epic, and the build up to the main song is awesome – the solo should melt your face off. Who would have thought that House Of Pain would have been Dave’s last contribution to the band for some time – well at least he went out with a bang. What a killer way to end a record. Everything about this song is amazing – and I mean everything!
So that’s it – the last great VH album. No Hagar-era album comes close, and we won’t mention VH3 as it’s a bit weird. There are moments on a Different Kind Of Truth that are great, but essentially 1984 was the peak.
I’m sure it’s no surprise that it’s another 10,000/10 from The Grooveman.
