Controversial Van Halen opionions

[I Coulda Hada VH]

I have always liked Jump, although it's probably not in my top 30 VH songs.

I think a lot of us hardcore fans resent that Jump is the band's most popular song. It's a great pop song, but VH was more of a rock band than a pop band.

[DiveBomb]

I think a lot of us hardcore fans resent that Jump is the band's most popular song. It's a great pop song, but VH was more of a rock band than a pop band.

Yeah I like Jump, but I would like it more if listening to it in company didn't come with a strong urge to play Mean Street next while explaining, "actually THIS is what they really sound like."

[Number 47]

Fact of the matter is Wolfgang is a jack of all trades but master at none. In an alternative life, Eddie likely could have been similar by playing keys, guitar, bass and drums. That said he concentrated on one that spoke to him in his youth and invested X amount of time into that one instrument. Spent Y with playing gigs with guitar in a band with hopes to make it. Then spent Z building the band. All that time practicing and noodling came out into what we all know today.

Any one of us could have followed the same path. Many people in the world do and they will never be Eddie Van Halen because he was special. Wolfgang simply is talented. He doesn't have that je ne sais quo that a guy like his dad or even uncle. He spends too much of his time being a jack of all trades instead of maybe finding his true calling.

Sometimes you need those people to pull you in different directions. Take one of his favorite bands Tool. You have an incredible drummer mixed with a guitarist who writes off kilter riffs. Add a singer who does the same. You get Tool. He wants to do something similar but its just him. Same with Foo Fighters. Its not just Dave Grohl solo. Even the bands mentioned by DD with Blink 182 and Jimmy Eat World its collaborative. He is trying to be Paul McCartney and in reality there is only one Sir Paul.

You just can't hope to be proficient enough in the studio to play everything and expect to be Mr MrCartney.

je ne sais quoi

[I Coulda Hada VH]

Still one of my all-time favorite mash ups ...

[Van Squalen]

What is this Jump?

[Little Dreamer]

Ed and Al were classically trained musicians from a very early age. Ed couldn’t read music and yet won huge classical piano competitions at the age of 10. He is 1000x the musician that Wolfgang will ever be. I don’t think it has anything to do with him not concentrating on one particular instrument. He’s just not his father.

I think Ed could read music. Maybe he meant that compared to the best studio cat in Los Angeles, he wasn't as good reading music. But I'm pretty sure he could read pretty well. There's no Big Bad Bill without Ed reading music, see my next post.

[Heisenberg]

Am I crazy I seem to remember that Hot For Teacher was initially intended to be the first song on the 1984 album with Alex’s drums starting it off.

[CatchAsCatch]

Yeah I like Jump, but I would like it more if listening to it in company didn't come with a strong urge to play Mean Street next while explaining, "actually THIS is what they really sound like."

lol. Ok that I understand.

[Brett]

Am I crazy I seem to remember that Hot For Teacher was initially intended to be the first song on the 1984 album with Alex’s drums starting it off.

Never heard that, but it makes sense.

It does kick off the next side of the record.

[I Coulda Hada VH]

What is this Jump?

Some deep cut from an obscure album from 40 years ago.

[Van Squalen]

Some deep cut from an obscure album from 40 years ago.

Oh, that's those Van Halen guys, right? Hair metal kings!

[I Coulda Hada VH]

Oh, that's those Van Halen guys, right? Hair metal kings!

Sort of a poor man's Bullet Boys!

[Van Squalen]

Sort of a poor man's Bullet Boys!

KISS is better. Obviously. Bon Jovi, too.

[I Coulda Hada VH]

KISS is better. Obviously. Bon Jovi, too.

Our wives seemed to bond when we met up at the BOAW show last month. Good thing they didn't discuss their drastically different opinions on Bon Jovi.

[Naked Wake]

Am I crazy I seem to remember that Hot For Teacher was initially intended to be the first song on the 1984 album with Alex’s drums starting it off.

it definitely should have been the opener. Whoever was responsible, they were usually horrible about picking out the order of songs on most VH albums.