Great Rock Albums of 1985: David Lee Roth- Crazy From the Heat

 

Here's a thought, I wonder if David Lee Roth had some sort of deal with MTV back in 1984 and 85. The first video shown on the channel in 1984 was  the debut video for Van Halen's "Jump." One year later, the first video shown in the new year for 1985 was from the video from David's solo album, "Crazy From the Heat," the Beach Boys' classic, "California Girls." This seems too much of a coincidence for me and I wonder if David did have some sort of deal with MTV.

The first noticeable thing about "California Girls" is that it sounds nothing like the Beach Boys nor Van Halen. David puts his own spin on the song and I think he does a very good job on it. That is if you cast aside the predictable girls in bikinis video for the song. He sings very well on not just this but all songs even if sometimes one can't take him seriously. On the other three songs on this four song EP, he departs even further from what he did with Van Halen and heavy metal in general.

With two of the remaining three songs, David tries to be a 1940s era type big band singer. Always being more the showman as opposed to the singer, his personality does burst through more than his vocal ability but he does sing very well on it. Full credit, he's a more versatile singer than what he was often given credit for back then or even today. As for the final song, "Coconut Grove" I have always had trouble getting into that one but the reason is not down to David. Three of the four songs are good for me and it doesn't matter that the entire EP is less than fourteen minutes.

Track Listing:

1. Easy Street
2. Medley: Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody
3. California Girls
4. Coconut Grove

[caption id="attachment_4646" align="aligncenter" width="328"] David Lee Roth[/caption]

David Lee Roth- vocals

Dean Parks- guitar on "Coconut Grove"

Eddie Martinez, Sid McGinnis- guitars

Willie Weeks- bass

John Robinson- drums

Sammy Figueroa- percussion

James Newton Howard- keyboards on "Coconut Grove"

Edgar Winter- keyboards, saxophone, backing vocals on tracks 1&2

Brian Mann- keyboards

Carl Wilson, Christopher Cross- backing vocals on "California Girls"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GMoLENWsSk

David Lee Roth's debut solo album sparked a lot of rumours in regards to his relationship with Van Halen. It has been said that the success of "Crazy From the Heat" inspired him to go solo. Maybe it did. All I know that this is a cool little album.

Next post: The Firm

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Great Metal Albums of 1984: Autograph- Sign in Please

 

According to a radio interview with this band, the story behind how Autograph got to record their debut album "Sign in Please," is rather amusing. Apparently, it resulted from a bet the band made with Van Halen lead singer David Lee Roth. The bet was that if Autograph could stick going on tour as a support band with Van Halen, Roth would get them a recording contract. I know for a fact that they did tour with the mighty VH in 1984 because my sister saw them in Philadelphia. She also said that they got booed off stage when one of the band members accidentally knocked over a microphone. Gee, I knew Philadelphia sports fans were tough but didn't think music fans were like it. Anyway, despite this setback in the City of Brotherly Love, Autograph survived the tour and were rewarded with a record contract and this is where we get the debut album, "Sign in Please."

Autograph's best known song, "Turn Up the Radio" appears on the album. The video for it seemed to be on every time I switched on MTV in the late part of the year. Saying that, it is a good catchy song that has remained with me ever since. Not metal, definitely more melodic rock, which was the direction Van Halen seemed to be heading in at the time anyway. Most of the songs also are in the vein of "Turn Up the Radio" but because there is some heavy guitar and the association with Van Halen, Autograph have always been called heavy metal. You be the judge on that one.

The first four tracks on the album are near clones of each other. Obviously, "Turn Up the Radio" is the standout but the other three are quite good. "Send Her To Me" was the second, although less successful, single from the album and there is a cool guitar solo on "Cloud Ten" and "Night Teen and Non Stop" has a catchy vibe to it as well. Then things get a little harder with "Deep End" as the keyboards take a back seat and lead singer, Steve Plunkett, tries to be more of a metal singer. A decent effort, I have to say. However, following that is my vote for the hidden gem of the album, "My Girlfriend's Boyfriend Isn't Me." It too is a bit of a rocker but done better than the preceding track. A good hard rock song with just the right amount of melody. The keys are there but don't dominate and then there's the twist in the title that is a source of amusement. I don't even mind the fact that it lacks a guitar solo.

Steve Pluckett proves himself to be a good singer on "Sign In Please," when it keeps within his range. It is lead guitarist Steve Lynch whose talents seemed to not have gotten the recognition they so deserve. He shines best on the big single, "Cloud Ten" and "Feel the Thrill." As much as keyboards are often looked down on by some for daring to appear on a metal album, one can't deny that Steven Isham does play them very well. Keyboard and lead guitar team up very nicely on "Friday." That, with a tidy rhythm section, one can see why this album got so much notice in 1984.

Track Listing:

1. Send Her To Me
2. Turn Up the Radio
3. Night Teen and Non Stop
4. Cloud Ten
5. Deep End
6. My Girlfriend's Boyfriend Isn't Me
7. Feel the Thrill
8. Friday
9. In the Night
10. All I'm Gonna Take

[caption id="attachment_4466" align="aligncenter" width="296"] Autograph[/caption]

Steve Plunkett- lead vocals, guitar

Steve Lynch- lead guitar, backing vocals

Randy Rand- bass, backing vocals

Steven Isham- keyboards, backing vocals

Keni Richards- drums

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8CcTYsMHYU

Autograph won a wager and as a result, we have their debut album, "Sign In Please." Reflecting back on the time, it was a good melodic rock album in a world that was being divided into heavy metal and commercial synth pop.

Next post: Queensryche- The Warning

To get Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com 

Triumphs and Other Happenings in 1984

 

Evidence that heavy metal had truly established itself in 1984 can be sited with the 1984 Monsters of Rock Festival at Donington Park, in England. This was the first and probably only Donington to feature seven artists and you can only look at the poster here, see which bands played on draw your own conclusions as to whether or not it was a kick ass day. I wasn't there but I know people who were and they can confirm it. The only negative comment I heard about the day was that Motley Crue had bottles thrown at them for making too many comments about sex, drugs and rock and roll. Something an opening band should probably not do. Anyway, to see Ozzy, Van Halen and AD/DC all on one stage must have been mind blowing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRMl9OgSOak

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8Q3lSvhr3M

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwWagee-BNM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3dZesrQS6E

I must apologize for Youtube not having any individual songs recorded from this memorable day.

[caption id="attachment_4130" align="aligncenter" width="259"] Cyndi Lauper[/caption]

You are probably asking yourself, "What is she doing here on an 80smetalman's post?" Well, some misguided individuals thought that Cyndi Lauper had replaced Joan Jett or Pat Benatar as the Queen of Rock in 1984. Nonsense, I say. I will never recognize Cyndi Lauper as such and will go to my grave stating that fact. Yes, I liked "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" the very first time I heard it but afterwards, I wanted to take an Uzi to the television every time the video came on MTV. The only song from of hers I nearly liked since was "Money Changes Everything" and a few years later, grew to like "I Drove All Night" a little.

So, why is she here you ask. Back when I posted about my weekend at Download, where I went to see wrestling, I mentioned that the Rock and Wrestling Connection began in 1984 and it began with Cyndi. At the time, wrestling manager, Captain Lou Albano, claimed she managed Cyndi Lauper on wrestling shows. Cyndi refuted that claim and without going into great details, she made a challenge to Captain Lou that she could manage a wrestler better than him. So, while Lou took Women's World Champion The Fabulous Moolah under his wing, Cyndi managed challenger Wendi Richter. I'll leave  you to watch the video to see who won but the Rock and Wrestling Connection started here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePHS6dHfjT0

There was a tragedy too in 1984 but that happened at the very end of the year, so I'm saving it for the end of the 1984 tour. So here, let us reflect on the happy times with all the great heavy metal and some wrestling too.

Next post: My Underrated Band

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Great Metal Albums of 1984: Van Halen- 1984

 

History is the reason why I am beginning the journey through 1984 with Van Halen's sixth album, which is also named after this same year. Going back to in time, minutes after the bells rang in 1984 as the new year, MTV started the year by playing the first single from the album, "Jump." Like many a metalhead at the time, I wasn't too sure about the large amount of keyboards used in the song. However, I didn't think the song was bad and Eddie proved he knew his way around a keyboards almost as well as he does his guitar. That's how the year started for me. I then proceeded to get rather sloppy drunk as you do on the new year.

After "Jump," things go back to more traditional Van Halen territory, with one exception, which I'll get to. "Panama" was also released as a single and I definitely like it more than "Jump." Eddie works his magic with the guitar and David Lee Roth uses his mouth in the only way he knows. I'm not just talking about his singing either. I've always liked his talking bit in the middle of "Panama." "I reached down and put the seat back." It doesn't translate well here in print but if you listen to the song, you'll see what I mean.

"Top Jimmy" and "Drop Dead Legs" are both good songs and I like the little guitar bits done on both songs. However, whenever I hear "Drop Dead Legs," my mind immediately goes to when I heard the song used in an episode of "Family Guy." For those who don't know, it's the episode where Brian and Stewie travel to a parallel universe and find a world where Meg is hot.

[caption id="attachment_3772" align="aligncenter" width="191"] Drop Dead Legs played to this scene[/caption]

Another good thing about both of those songs is that they lead beautifully to my favourite song on the album, "Hot for Teacher." Every thing you loved about Van Halen is found on this song. Roth's little quips between the verses and don't forget, he can sing some too. Eddie plays the longest solo of all the songs on the album and very well too and of course we can never forget the rhythm section of Michael Anthony and Alex Van Halen. While these two remain tight on the whole album, they seem especially so on "Hot forTeacher."

After my favourite song comes the other exception. "I'll Wait" is another keyboard dominated song but I never disliked it. If Van Halen had been making albums in the 1970s, many people would have used this song to label them a progressive rock band. Still, Eddie plays a decent solo on it. "I'll Wait" leads the way for the album to go out on the good foot. I do like the intro on "Girl Gone Bad" and "House of Pain" is a suitable closer. For me, though I hadn't listened to "Diver Down" at the time, I still drew the conclusion that "1984" was three steps up from it. Now that I have listened to that album, I will stay say that this one is the better album.

Track Listing:

1. 1984
2. Jump
3. Panama
4. Top Jimmy
5. Drop Dead Legs
6. Hot for Teacher
7. I'll Wait
8. Girl Gone Bad
9. House of Pain

[caption id="attachment_1143" align="aligncenter" width="267"] Van Halen[/caption]

David Lee Roth- lead vocals

Eddie Van Halen- guitar, keyboards, backing vocals

Michael Anthony- bass, backing vocals

Alex Van Halen- drums, backing vocals

This was how my 1984 began. There aren't too many better ways to ring in a new year but what I do know now is that Van Halen's "1984" opened the port hole to all the great music that would come our way in this year.

Next post: U2- Under a Blood Red Sky

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1983 Triumphs and Tragedies

 [caption id="attachment_3349" align="aligncenter" width="539"] The Alamo[/caption]

The only tragedy I remember from 1983 actually happened the year before. Due to my military service, I didn't find out about it until 83 when I read about all the fallout from it. I'm talking about when Ozzy Osbourne pissed on the Alamo. He claims he was drunk as a skunk, (I've never seen a drunk skunk so I have nothing to compare it to.) Ozzy also said he didn't know it was such a national shrine, well it is in Texas. The result of his action got him banned from the city of San Antonio for ten years, although that was lifted a few years later when he made a large donation to the Alamo charity.

[caption id="attachment_2343" align="aligncenter" width="199"] Ozzy Osbourne[/caption]

Ozzy was already getting himself a reputation outside the heavy metal world for the wrong reasons. His infamous biting the head off a bat was making its rounds. Of course, the religious element in America embellished things further. There were rumours he blew up goats on stage and at one show, he supposedly threw a puppy into the crowd and said he wouldn't sing anymore until the audience killed the puppy. While this was all untrue hype, it didn't help Ozzy when he actually did something for real. So for Ozzy and somewhat in the metal world, this was a bit of a tragedy because it overshadowed the two albums he released in the year. I'll be covering those soon enough.

Now for the triumphs. It seems that 1983 was a cool year for festivals. I got to go to two of them. The first one, I mentioned when I posted about the Nantucket and Doc Holliday albums a few months ago. Those two bands topped the bill at the Mayfair Festival at Jacksonville, North Carolina. The other five bands remain pretty much unheard of with the bottom three being cover bands. So, I thought I'd include them in this little piece of history. They were Skeet Kelly, Roxy, Avalanche- who did a great cover of Sammy Hagar's "Heavy Metal," Peer Pressure- who did a reasonably decent cover of John Cougar's "Hurt So Good" and Eraxle- who closed their set with a fantastic cover of Van Halen's "Ice Cream Man." I consumed loads of alcohol and there were some interesting events between the bands like a wet t-shirt and a men's ugly legs competition. A fine day from what I remember.

[caption id="attachment_1322" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Nantucket[/caption]

Military commitments kept me from attending this festival but my sister went. I tried to pick her brains but she didn't remember much. In the June, Journey headlined in Philadelphia and with them were John Cougar, Sammy Hagar, The Tubes and Bryan Adams. From what she can remember, my sister says that Journey sounded great and had a fantastic light show. John Cougar and Bryan Adams were both very good as was Sammy Hagar despite his red spandex. Unfortunately, The Tubes weren't up to the rest of those who played that day. If this line up played in more cities than Philly, I would love to hear your account of the day.

[caption id="attachment_3350" align="aligncenter" width="387"] Journey Live[/caption]

It didn't matter that I was in the military for this one, I couldn't have gone to the US Festival because it was 3000 miles away in California. The US Festival was a three day festival where the first day consisted of new wave bands, the second day's line up was heavy metal and the third day's was a rock line up. From what I heard, all three days were fantastic although I do recall an interview with a local sheriff saying that he was going to try to ban such events following the festival. I didn't think about it then, but that was the first salvo fired at music in the 1980s. I think the best thing to do is just to let you look at the line up for the three days and I'm sure you will be just as awestruck as I was.

[caption id="attachment_3351" align="aligncenter" width="478"] Us Festival Showbill[/caption]

I did get to the final festival in 1983. This was my first Donington Festival as I happened to be in England at the time. From my memory, I can recall that Diamond Head were all right and Dio were very good. I didn't twig on who the lead singer was until they played "Heaven and Hell" but that was okay. They were brilliant. Then came Twisted Sister. I can still remember Dee Snider's quip: "We're not Culture Club or any of those gay boys or Duran Duran nor any of those other wimps. We're Twisted Sister and we play heavy metal rock and roll!" Of course I knew there must of been something about them when they were introduced as Twisted Fuckin' Sister. Their music was great too.

For me, ZZ Top took the concert. They played a magnificent combination of old and new material during their time on stage. Of course it helped that they played my two favourite ZZ Top tunes, "Jesus Just Left Chicago" and "La Grange." They also played quite a few songs off their new "Eliminator" album so they basically rocked. The big let down after ZZ Top was Meatloaf. I was not impressed, he just sounded terrible that day. Worse, my friend's English girlfriend didn't realize that they ran a special train after the concert so out of fear of getting stuck, we left early and missed headliners, Whitesnake. I remain gutted but overall, Donington 1983 was a kick ass day and proved that Great Britain could rock.

 

That was 1983 in a nutshell. The only real tragedy was Ozzy pissing on a national shrine but all the great concert festivals more than compensated for it. Just posting about it has me psyched for Bloodstock in two weeks. It was no wonder I was super excited when I got out of the marines that year.

Next post: Great Soundtracks

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Great Metal Albums of 1982: Van Halen- Diver Down

 

It was while on liberty in Toulon, France that I saw Van Halen's fifth album in a record store there. I made a mental note about buying it then one of my marine buddies actually did. After giving "Diver Down" a listen, he proclaimed that the album sucked and had another person corroborate his feelings on it. That was enough to put me off buying it. Furthermore, when returning to the US two months later, hearing the first single, "Pretty Woman" didn't inspire me with confidence and neither did the follow up single, "Dancing in the Street." In fact, those songs gave me the impression that Van Halen had given up song writing and were simply getting by covering other's songs. Then about a year later, I heard "Happy Trails" on a bar's juke box and thought, "Now I'm definitely not going to buy this." So, last Sunday night was the first time ever, that I listened to the full album.

Let me say that "Diver Down" doesn't suck. However, it's not as good as their previous four albums either. One thing I noticed and I wished I knew back then not to trust a song played on commercial radio, is that the radio version "Dancing in the Street" had much of Eddie's guitar solo removed and that's a shame. I think that song has his best solo on the album. While it may not be as good as it's predecessor's, there are some glimpses of what made Van Halen great in the early 80s. The first two tracks had me thinking that maybe this album wasn't going to be as bad as I first imagined. There are three instrumentals on the album, nothing like "Eruption" but "Cathedral" is quite good. "The Full Bug" is a good one towards the end and it could have been the closer but now that I see that "Happy Trails" is at the end, I think that maybe they were trying to go out with a sense of humour so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt on that one.

As for the band, David Lee Roth's vocals are just as good and he stamps his personality on the album. Then again, his ego couldn't be ignored and his limited vocal ability fits in well with the songs. As usual, Eddie has spots where his guitar work shines, it's just unfortunate that there isn't a cool solo with every song. Needless to say but the rhythm section of Alex and Michael is as solid as the other albums no faulting that. So, my verdict is that "Diver Down" is not bad. It would be even better if they had not included "Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now.)" A totally unnecessary song in my view.

Track Listing:

1. Where Have all the Good Times Gone
2. Hang' em High
3.  Cathedral
4. Secrets
5. Intruder
6. Pretty Woman
7. Dancing in the Street
8. Little Guitars (instrumental)
9. Little Guitars
10. Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now)
11. The Full Bug
12. Happy Trails

[caption id="attachment_1143" align="aligncenter" width="204"] Van Halen[/caption]

David Lee Roth- vocals, synthesizer, harmonica, acoustic guitar on The Full Bug

Eddie Van Halen- guitars, backing vocals

Michael Anthony- bass, backing vocals

Alex Van Halen- drums

If I had ignored my buddy thirty three years ago and had bought "Diver Down," it would have gone into my rotation. I listen to albums in a strict order, don't ask. I wouldn't have listened to it once and then forgotten it. However, when I did listen to it, it wouldn't have been with the same enthusiasm as the first four Van Halen albums.

Next post: Loudness- Devil Soldier

To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at tobychainsaw@hotmail.com

1982: The Floodgates Are Truly Open

To be honest, I was a little nervous about the year 1982 and expected a bit a turbulence during the ride through it. The reason for this was that I spent eight months out of the year overseas with the marines. From the middle of January to the very end of June, I made my second deployment to the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean. Then in the October, I went to Okinawa for the remainder of the year and the first three months of the following one. In fact, October 9, 1982 never existed for me as I was flying across the International Date Line. Because I was overseas so much, the year was fairly barren for me musically and I worried that I might not have enough albums to visit during the year. But, I will persevere and thanks to Youtube, I can listen to albums from that year that I never got the chance to listen to back then.

[caption id="attachment_1085" align="aligncenter" width="127" class=" "] Iron Maiden[/caption]

With the benefit of hindsight, I can say that in 1982, the new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) had its claws firmly gripped on the industry. I saw this to be true when I was in Toulon, France in the May. Previously, I had heard of Iron Maiden but it wasn't until I heard a song, I can't remember which one, on a juke box in a bar there that I finally got my ears blown away by them. Of course, there were great metal delights served up by the likes of Judas Priest and Motorhead as well as many other rock and metal acts. It seems my journey through what turns out to be an important year that almost passed me by and I am going to put right something I got wrong in the said year. See, I never listened to Van Halen's "Diver Down" album because a couple of marine buddies bought it while we were in France and said that the album sucked. Again, curse me for simply taking their word. I will listen to this album during the course of my trip through 1982 and give you my own thoughts on it.

[caption id="attachment_1143" align="aligncenter" width="128" class=" "] Van Halen[/caption]

As I go down the road of metal history, I realise that while I may have missed out on quite a bit of music history on account of military service, the year itself was a phenomenal one for metal. Thanks to NWOBHM and others, the floodgates opened and metal began to flood the world.

Next post: The Police- Ghost in the Machine

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Great Metal Albums of 1981: Van Halen- Fair Warning

New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) may have reigned supreme in 1981 but it didn't mean that American metal was muted in that year and that was largely due to Van Halen's fourth album, "Fair Warning." For some people at the time, this album was supposed to be a redemption for Van Halen after their supposedly disappointing "Women and Children First" album. (I wasn't disappointed with that album.) I will also agree with the critic who said that "Fair Warning" was a little better than the previous album but since neither album was as bad as some of these 'critics' made them out to be, I will have to say that they are both great albums. However, I will also state that neither quite makes it to the level of their first two, but come on, Van Halen I and II will always be at a level many albums will never attain so let's give "Fair Warning" credit where it's due.

From the opening notes in "Mean Street," it was crystal clear that Eddie Van Halen shows why he was the ultimate guitar master in the early 80s.  The album takes you down a smooth road of great music, especially during the first five tracks reminding you why Van Halen held the flag for American metal. "Dirty Movies" and "Hear About it Later" stick their heads above the rest here with the former showing there is a sense of humour behind the metal. For years, I thought that song was called "Bitches of the Silver Screen." I saw a video of the latter song played live and that completely blew me away. The acoustic intro quickly followed by the powerful rhythm of guitar, bass and drum, with some interesting guitar riffs thrown in around the vocals before cascading into a well played EVH guitar solo. There is little wonder why it's my favourite song on the album. "Unchained" is more of a traditional Van Halen single but it still rocks while the rest of the album, while maybe not quite as mind blowing as the first five songs is still powerful enough to leave the listener contented once it has finished.

Track Listing:

1. Mean Street

2. Dirty Movies

3. Sinner's Swing

4. Hear About it Later

5. Unchained

6. Push Comes to Shove

7. So This is Love

8. Sunday Afternoon in the Park

9. One Foot Out the Door

[caption id="attachment_1143" align="aligncenter" width="178" class=" "] Van Halen[/caption]

David Lee Roth- vocals

Eddie Van Halen- guitar, backing vocals

Michael Anthony- bass, backing vocals

Alex Van Halen- drums

In a year when Britannia ruled the heavy metal waves, it was good to see that the guns of American metal didn't remain silent. I have always said that both countries have always benefited from exchange of heavy metal. Van Halen showed they were still a major player in the game with "Fair Warning."

Next post: The Plasmatics- Valley of the 1984

To buy Rock And Roll Children, go to www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/RockAndRollChildren.html

Also available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Froogle and on sale at Foyles Book Shop in London

Great Metal Albums of 1980: Van Halen- Women and Children First

Another offering from the American side of heavy metal came in the form of the third album from Van Halen. (Although you could say that this was a Dutch-American collaboration since the Van Halen brothers were originally from the Netherlands.) Still what we got in 1980 was "Women and Children First." Now, my alternate mindset is hearing some collective scoffs and sighs from some of you and I know why. In comparison to Van Halen's first two albums, this one doesn't compare. However, if you can divorce yourself from those iconic first two albums and look at "Women and Children First" on its own, you may find that it's really not that bad of an album.

For me, the two best tracks are the first two songs on the album: "And the Cradle Will Rock" and "Everybody Wants Some," the latter being a concert favourite for several albums after. The former song was the one stuck in my mind for most of my first tour of sea duty and it helped get me through it. The spoken David Lee Roth part of the latter: "I like the way the line runs up the back of your stocking" amuses me to this day. While they may be the two strongest tracks, the album doesn't end there. The next song, "Fools" begins with the traditional guitar work that made Eddie Van Halen the principal guitarist back then. The next track "Romeo's Delight" reminds of some of the classic rockers that we got from the first two albums and continues through the next two tracks. While "Take Your Whiskey Home" seems to be an attempt to re-create my all time favourite Van Halen song, "Ice Cream Man," it's still a good jam. However, and this is where things fall down, in my view. The acoustic track "Could This Be Magic?" where the only female singer ever let on a Van Halen album, Nicolette Larson, provides backing vocals. I love a good acoustic jam but this song had me asking myself: "Are they taking the p*ss here?" Still one questionable track does not make a bad album and it redeems itself with the closing song.

In short, except for that one possible track, there is nothing for me to dislike on "Women and Children First." David Lee Roth sings to his capabilities, Eddie shows the world that he still has a trick or two up his sleeve on the guitar, and Alex Van Halen and Michael Anthony still prove why many people back then considered them to be the best rhythm section around at the time.

Track Listing:

1. And The Cradle Will Rock

2. Everybody Wants Some

3. Fools

4. Romeo's Delight

5. Tora Tora!

6. Loss of Control

7. Take Your Whiskey Home

8. Could This Be Magic?

9. In a Simple Rhyme

10. Growth (Hidden track)

Van Halen

   David Lee Roth- lead vocals

Eddie Van Halen- guitars, backing vocals

Michael Anthony- bass, backing vocals

Alex Van Halen- drums

It is tough for any act to follow up on a great album so imagine how difficult it is two follow up on two. With "Women and Children First," Van Halen make a valiant effort and while it may night reach the dizzy heights of the first two, it is still a good album and should be seen as such.

Next post: Saxon- Wheels of Steel

To buy Rock and Roll Children, go to www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/RockAndRollChildren.html

Also available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Froogle and on sale at Foyles Book Shop in London

1980: A Golden Decade Begins

You may be already or if not you will probably soon will be sick of me constantly broadcasting my belief that the 1980's was the golden age of heavy metal. One of my original motivations for beginning this blog was to trumpet that belief, with the intention of backing it up by portraying all the great albums, bands and other fantastic memories I have from that year. There were some down sides to that golden decade as well, especially with who the US and UK had as president and prime minister during that time, but that's another matter.

Golden decades have to start somewhere and for me it started in 1980. My life back then was totally different. First and most important, I was serving my country and had been in less than six months when it all began. As a new marine, I was longing to be sent to Iran and go and rescue the hostages single handed. Three days before the botched rescue attempt in the April, my battalion was woken up at two in the morning and driven to the air base forty miles away and put on a plane only to be told it was a drill. Three weeks later, President Carter sent us to Key West Florida to deal with the Cuban refugee crisis. I spent the last four months on a ship sailing around the Mediterranean Sea and Indian Ocean where I got within 67 miles of the coast of Iran, but once again, wasn't allowed to go and kill anybody.

Enough of my life for that year, what about the music? In the first months of 1980, I can say I was a total convert to Molly Hatchet, playing the "Flirtin' With Disaster" album constantly.

I also found myself being led down the trail of other great bands that would make their mark that year in the form of AC/DC, Judas Priest and especially Van Halen. The first two mentioned would put out albums that would fully enshrine them as all time greats and although in the case of Van Halen, some would look down on the "Women and Children First" album, (I don't) they would still be one of the biggest names of that year.

Judas Priest

AC/DC

Van Halen

I will of course be visiting all of these albums when I cover the decade opening year as well as those who were up and coming like Iron Maiden and Saxon and visiting other classic albums as well. So, I hope that you will all join me for what looks like to be a glorious ride through rock/metal history.

Next post: Foreigner- Head Games

To buy Rock And Roll Children, go to www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/RockAndRollChildren.html

Also available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Froogle and on sale at Foyles Book Shop in London

Great Rock Albums of 1979: Van Halen II

Since I finished the tour of 1978 with their first album, I thought it was only fitting that I ended my tour of 1979 with their second one. This was definitely one of the albums that converted me to metal and some might say I'm crazy, but VHII is my all time favourite Van Halen album. It could be argued that this is because I listened to this one before I listened to their first one but still, for me, this album is Van Halen at their very best.

This album goes back to a time when they were a tight outfit and the quality of the songs on it show why. Yes, there's the single "Dance the Night Away," which I was told got played in a disco. (Can't say for sure because I never went to those places.) Still, I know many a rocker, like me who really got into this song. Then there's one of my favourite metal drinking songs, "Bottoms Up." Great memories of trying to sing the chorus after sinking a few cold ones, okay many cold ones but you get my point. I still strain my ear when the instrumental "Spanish Fly" is played in order to appreciate the guitar work by one of the masters Eddie Van Halen. Of course, after all the other great tracks, what better way to end the album than "Beautiful Girls," even if David Lee Roth gets shot down at the end of the song.

Track Listing:

1. You're No Good

2. Dance the Night Away

3. Somebody Get Me a Doctor

4. Bottoms Up!

5. Outta Love Again

6. Light Up the Sky

7. Spanish Fly

8. D.O.A.

9. Women in Love

10. Beautiful Girls

Van Halen

David Lee Roth- vocals

Eddie Van Halen- guitars, backing vocals

Michael Anthony- bass, backing vocals

Alex Van Halen- drums

Before they would get entangled with in fighting and other things, Van Halen made some excellent music. Their second album is proof of this and for me, it was a great way to end the 7os. This concludes my tour of 1979 but stay tuned for we will now proceed to what I consider the golden decade of heavy metal and I hope you will come for the ride to see why I feel that way. But first, I thought I would take a little one post break, (see below).

Next post: A Rock/Metal Poll

To buy Rock and Roll Children, go to www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/RockAndRollChildren.html

Also available on Amazon, Froogle, Barnes & Noble and on sale at Foyles Book Shop in London.

Great Metal Albums of 1978: Van Halen I

I thought what better way to end the tour through 1978 than to visit the very first album by Van Halen. Like so many great rock and metal albums that came out in this year, this album didn't come into my fields of vision for another year when I heard a marine buddy blasting it through the barracks. I only heard part of the album, but I was hooked. The weird thing was that I actually bought II before I bought this one.
Some metal officiandos have compared Van Halen to Led Zeppelin and I admit there are some similarities. But Van Halen I gave Van Halen a unique sound of their own. To me this was just as heavy as Ted Nugent and it opened my eyes to a whole new world out there in music. You could say that Van Halen I was the final rock in the stream that caused the rivers of rock to overflow.
What really made this album for me was the fantastic guitar work of Eddie Van Halen. "Eruption" totally blew my mind and the way they metalised a classic Kinks song let me know that heavy metal was the road I wanted to travel down. I can't really think of a track I don't like but if you were to ask my favourite, it has to be "Ice Cream Man." I loved the way it starts with the accoustic and then rips into a full metal frenzy. Yes, I can say that for me and others, Van Halen I was the album that paved the way.

Track Listing:

1. Running With the Devil

2. Eruption

3. You Really Got Me

4. Ain't Talin' About Love

5. I'm the One

6. I'm on Fire

7. Jamie's Crying

8. Atomic Punk

9. Feel Your Love Tonight

10. Little Dreamer

11. Ice Cream Man

Van Halen

David Lee Roth- lead vocals, accoustic guitar

Eddie Van Halen- guitars, backing vocals

Michael Anthony- bass, backing vocals

Alex Van Halen- drums

I hope you have enjoyed my little tour through the rock and metal history of 1978 and will continue on the ride to 1979. There will be plenty of albums to come in that year. So, I will leave you for now with one artist I first discovered in 1978 on the Saturday Night Live show. I admit, I like some of Kate Bush's eccentricities and her early music. It is also probably why I have a thing for British women, after all, I married two of them.

Next post: 1979- The Year the Damn Began to Burst

To buy Rock And Roll Children, go to www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/RockAndRollChildren.html

Also available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Froogle and on sale at Foyles Book Shop in London