“Diamond” David Lee Roth returned to the stage for the first time in five years at the M3 Festival. So, with the return of a rock and roll icon, it was only fitting to look back on a Van Halen record for the June edition of the Do You Remember series. Van Halen had massive success with their debut self-titled record. Van Halen shot up the charts to No. 19 on the US Billboard chart and launched them into another stratosphere.
After the great success of their debut record, the band headed back into the studio to record their sophomore album. Now, theirs a reason why there is the saying of “sophomore slump.” It’s because the band, athlete, or whoever’s second time around doesn’t gain as much traction as their first effort. This was not the case for Van Halen II – in fact, it shot to the No. 6 position on the US Billboard chart, further cementing their status as a force to be reckoned with.
The 32-minute record kicks off with “You’re No Good.” The track’s intro features a mini nod to “Runnin’ With the Devil” before it slowly chugs into the rest of the song. What Van Halen did great throughout their careers was create harmonies on choruses despite not being great singers, except for the lead vocalist. Michael Anthony and Alex Van Halen’s monster beats trudge the track forward, which creates a true “heavy metal” opening. Van Halen elects to have a heavy, slowly moving song that builds anticipation rather than a loud and in-your-face track.
Song two, “Dance the Night Away,” is phenomenal. It slightly shows the band’s pop side while keeping their rougher-edged rock and roll side. It’s amazing how confident they were with this song, as it’s the second song listeners hear. There wasn’t a song similar to this on Van Halen. I liked how Eddie Van Halen didn’t feel the need to add a crazy solo to this song. He took more of a rhythm approach and let the entire band bask in the sunlight.
By song three, true rock fans get exactly what they were looking for. “Somebody Get Me a Doctor” is one of the band’s heavy songs on the record, yet it’s one of their best. I love how Roth is borderline screeching on this song. It matches Van Halen’s guitar tone and creates a hungry and nasty beast throughout. This is one of the tracks on the album that deserves to be played over and over again and louder each time.
On “Bottoms Up!” there’s a great jumpy beat to the tune, which brings out a lighter feel to the song. When it comes to this song, both of Van Halen’s solos are his most underrated. The first solo is very quick; he gets in and just as quickly, he’s done and fades into the back. He backs off to allow Roth and Anthony to harmonize with minimal other instruments around. As soon as they’re done, he blasts back into another monstrous solo that carries the song to its natural finish.
“Outta Love Again” picks up where “Bottoms Up!” left off. It’s got another jumpy yet faster vibe to it. The band chiming in creates a faster pace to the song, which makes it seem like they’re on a runaway train. Even though the song is almost three minutes long, it feels quicker than that and helps the record move forward to a powerful second half.
The hard rock and roll continues with song six, “Light Up the Sky.” I love the intro of the band playing down the note scales in order to create an uncomfortable feeling. The entire band is in top-notch form on this song. From how tight they are playing at a fast tempo, to chiming in on vocals when needed, they’re on fire (no pun intended on another song title of theirs). “Light Up the Sky” could have worked as the very first song on the record – it’s gutsy, ballsy and sums up Van Halen in just over three minutes.
On song seven, “Spanish Fly,’ it features just Van Halen noodling away on an acoustic guitar. It’s Van Halen II’s “Eruption.” It’s just over a minute in length, but it showcases just how brilliant Van Halen was as a guitarist. To hear every note so clearly on an acoustic guitar sends shivers down the spines of listeners.
The band returns for “D.O.A.” The acronym truly stands for “Dead or Alive,” but the band decided to shorten it for some reason. Lee’s sing/talks in a monotone voice which creates a more serious snarl to the tune. But when it comes to the chorus, he shows off his chops by harmonizing again with the band. I wish this song were higher up on the track list, it’s almost unfair that this song is towards the bottom of the record. It’s an amazing showcase of how great the band is together.
“Women In Love…” starts with Van Halen strumming and tapping away on his guitar, almost creating a dreamlike lullaby feeling – it’s nothing short of spectacular. “Women In Love…” is a pop-infused rock tune that dances the fine line between both of them. Even if Van Halen decided to go full-on pop, they would excel in that area, too. There’s a great call and response with Roth and the rest of the band on this track, which makes it the perfect song to sing along to.
The album closes with “Beautiful Girls,” which sums up the rock and roll life to a tee. With lyrics like “all I need is a beautiful girl… I love ‘em, I need ‘em!” is the rock and roll life. It’s a fun song that doesn’t dive into complexity; the songwriting is pretty straightforward and makes for a fun song.
Lightning struck twice for Van Halen. Once for their debut record and the second time on Van Halen II. It’s hard to choose which record – the first or the second – is better. I’d even challenge you to think that Van Halen II might be better than Van Halen. For 10 songs that run 32 minutes, there is more magic captured on this record. It’s almost a perfect record and is one of the band’s best… and it was only their second record, ever.
Rating: 9/10
Tracklist:
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
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My love for live music started with my first concert ever, Guns N’ Roses back in 2016. Since then, I’ve been able to capture photos of some amazing artists like Alice Cooper, Judas Priest, Ace Frehley, and Post Malone. I am based in New York/New Jersey and go to school in Connecticut majoring in Journalism and I am always looking for the next concert to attend.
