Van Halen - 1984

1984

1984 finds Van Halen changing their direction in music again though not as radical a change as Fair Warning. 1984 is synthesizer laden though it's not the first time that one had appeared in their recordings. This was their sixth studio album & the final one with David Lee Roth (not counting his guest appearance on a couple of newly recorded songs). 1984 peaked at #2 on the album charts. There were four singles released from it that made the charts: "Hot for Teacher" (#34 Mainstream Rock, #56 Hot 100), "I'll Wait" (#13 Hot 100), "Jump" (#13 Dance/Club, #1 Hot 100) & "Panama (#13 Hot 100). I know a few people that became totally turned off to the group because Eddie did so much synthesizer work on the album. After all, Eddie is a guitar god, what's he doing playing a synthesizer? Well, it was the eighties & a lot of bands were incorporating synthesizers into their music & drum machines (gasp!) and/or electronic drums. Z Z Top did the same thing in the eighties & sold more records than they had ever sold. It was just a sign of the times. I didn't particularly desire it but it happened. I thought it was good to have an occasional change & an album full of it didn't turn me off. 1984 isn't Van Halen' best album (many will disagree) but it's WAY better than Diver Down! Every band grows & matures, they can't remain stagnant. Look how much the Beatles changed from 1963 to 1970. Van Halen was no different in that regard, sometimes we like the changes, sometimes we don't.

The album opens with "1984", a short synthesizer instrumental that's the intro for the next song, "Jump". "Jump" was written & recorded with MTV in mind. It also gave Diamond Dave a great reason to perform certain stunts on stage while touring. "Jump" is a classic piece of pop blended with Van Halen's rock abilities. "Panama" is a return to form, Eddie playing a driving rhythm on guitar with licks & riffs all over the place. Who doesn't like a song about a fast car? "Top Jimmy" has Eddie playing around with harmonics on guitar but in a league all by himself. It's a fast tempo song that they would do at least one of on most albums. "Drop Dead Legs" has Diamond Dave doing his best male fantasy routine. I love Eddie's lead that closes out the song. "Hot for Teacher" was another song that was written with MTV in mind. Wasn't Waldo a gas in the video? What male couldn't resist the male fantasy of a teacher that hot? "I got my pencil! Give me something to write on!" Diamond Dave's personality is the overwhelming presence in the song. This song, more than almost any other Van Halen song, exudes the party-hearty atmosphere that they were so famous for. It shouldn't have come as a surprise when Diamond Dave departed that he'd be singing about California girls & gigolos. "I don't feel tardy." "I'll Wait" was co-written with Michael McDonald (Doobie Bros., mach II). It was one of the more unique songs in their catalog & one of their best. Eddie proved to be more than adequate on keyboards with this song; his guitar solo is one of his most restrained on any song. "Girl Gone Bad" is the closest thing to filler on the album. Most bands would love to be able to say a song of this quality is the weakest song on the album. But Eddie has a way of elevating the listener's interest when he bursts out with a solo like he does on this one. The final song is "House of Pain" which reminds of some of the songs from Fair Warning. It's a dark, dangerous song that would have fit well on Fair Warning.

1984 was a great closing of the David Lee Roth era of Van Halen. I hated to see him go & never have thought that Sammy Hagar was an adequate replacement. Hagar never had the personality of Diamond Dave &, maybe, that was the whole idea, anyway. How do you replace a Diamond Dave? You can't. I did, kind of, anticipate the new Van Halen with Hagar. I thought it would give Eddie more time with keyboards or fleshing out his leads more (like he really needed to do that, huh?). But the new Van Halen didn't quite take the direction that I thought they would take. September 27, 2008

one of the best 80s albums around

In the 80s there wasnt that much good music besides Heavy Metal/Hard Rock and in 1983-1984 everyone was into Michael Jackson Thriller crap, but Van Halen's 1984 is one of the few good albums from that era. Its a really good rock album that anyone should own like the debut 1984 is probaly Van Halen's best album and when Van Halen was huge. Containing the AM/FM radio staple too this day that still gets constant airplay, Jump. But there is many other good songs on here like, Panama, Hot For Teacher, House of Pain, and really every song on the album. Hot for Teacher probaly has the best drumming on any Van Halen song around. 1984 also marked the end of an era the last album recorded with orignal lead singer, David Lee Roth. After 1984 came out Van Halen kind of sold out and there genre changed completly when Sammy Hagar came in. When they recorded 5150 Van Halen were stlll good but they lost that sound they had with David Lee Roth. And then in 1988 OU812 came out and it sucked and still sucks to this day. By the 90s Van Halen or the orignal Van Halen was dead albums like Unawful Carnal Of Knowledge and Balance dont compare too the debut album and 1984. gReat album buy today September 14, 2008

Van Halen's classic, not full of "Jump"s.

Van Halen's classic album, filled up with plenty of risky and innovative guitar riffs (signed of course by, what else?, guitar virtuoso and experimental Eddie Van Halen) which defined the essence of hard rock sound during the 80's.

The subtle blend between hard rock and keyboards worked really well, just for this record and its era, keeping in mind the New Wave movement invaded almost everything then. Much more of it would become tedious...

Excellent vocals, amazing guitar riffs and a few hooking songs made this one of the decade's music exponent, still good enough to enjoy almost after thirty years. However, not all of the songs are as catchy as Jump or Panama, so listener may not expect much more beyond that, but not a bad album anyway with more than a half of good songs.

Some drum sounds on a couple cuts eventually reminds Bonzo's on Led Zeppelin IV.

A must in any 80's collection. August 7, 2008

One of Van Halen's Best

Giving you the rundown of where I stand, I really enjoyed "Van Halen I" and "Van Halen II." "Women and Children First" was a good record. I did enjoy parts of "Fair Warning." I know a lot of people knocked "Diver Down," but actually, I kind of liked that record. That brings us to the subject at hand. While I don't feel "1984" is quite the record "Van Halen I" is, one could easily argue that "1984" is the closest they came to repeating the magic of "Van Halen I." '1984' is a brief but interesting keyboard piece. 'Jump' is a energetic song that starts the record on a high note. 'Panama' really rocks. 'Top Jimmy' was not my favorite, but I understand it was really popular. 'Drop Dead Legs' had its style. 'Hot For the Teacher' kind of goes against my nature, but I understand it was a major hit. 'I'll Wait' is different with a more relaxed tone, but it is still good. 'Girl Gone Bad' is alright. 'House of Pain' ends the record on a pretty good note. While "Van Halen I" will always be my favorite, "1984" is a really good record and should be in the collection of any Van Halen fan. It is also great to know that Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth are FINALLY back together. May 7, 2008

Roth's swan song, perhaps mercifully

Doing far more damage than their mega-selling debut, "1984" helped launch the mainstream explosion of the West Coast hair metal assault by proving that smooth pop hooks and synthesizers could be applied for plenty of crossover appeal without losing the so-called "edge" (though most of these bands were about as sharp as a dulled butter knife). By giving license to this sort of exercise in neon-washed mummer acting, this album can take a greater share of the blame than nearly any other.

There's no denying the guilty pleasure appeal of a hit like "Panama," but "Hot For Teacher" is medicore even for a dunderheaded slab of energetic sleaze rock and "Jump" is sabotaged by their new found adoration for the synthesizer (the energetic performance is in stark contrast to the mechanical musical makeup). "I'll Wait" falls somewhere in between, sounding like a cross between "Jump" and their 1991 megahit, "Right Now." The filler between the radio wonders, though, are pretty tame. "Top Jimmy" has a pretty bad vocal performance (and a rather dull punk-ish melody), "Drop Dead Legs" drags where it tries to strut, and the mediocre leftover from their early days, "House of Pain," simply stumbles. Only "Girl Gone Bad" is worth hearing, but by then, you'll probably be too sick of this album to care anymore.

Best cuts: "Panama," "Girl Gone Bad," "I'll Wait" February 13, 2008

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