My favorite part about Diver Down is the absolutely stellar vocals throughout, both lead and background. Anyone whose mantra was “David Lee Roth can’t sing” obviously didn’t listen to “Secrets” or “Little Guitars”, two of Roth’s finest career vocals.
DD is different than the 4 previous albums but you have to remember VH was a party band first and foremost, and in that context, DD embodies what VH is about.
Summer 1982 me and my friends on our own took the bus to Santa Monica pier. And this album always reminds me of that summer. We had a wild time for 13 years old, and VH was the soundtrack. Ahhh.. the memories! Dancing in the streets was a big deal because Eddie was playing a synthesized keyboard, and he was king of 6-strings! But then you hear Hang 'em high, where have all the good times gone and pretty woman, Cathedral... well, the entire album and it was just what us 13 yr olds needed to have one of the best summers!
Cool man. Haven't listened to this one in years. Gona put on tonight while working on guitars, my night job is guitar service, my dayjob is motorcycle technician. Will put it on in the shop asap, should be interesting to see the young techs reactions.
I first listened to Diver Down in the summer of ‘85 (arrived late to the party). I spent an entire month in a little beach shack with my parents. I listened to the album each day - by the end of our stay, my folks knew the lyrics 😂. DiverDown brings back lovely childhood memories
DIVER DOWN is really good. I knew there was mostly covers on it, but didnt care. ITS VAN HALEN!! Im only 58, and they were my life for a 15 yr old kid. Im so glad VAN HALEN was our Era Band. Definetly a Summer Party Album. Most of their albums were.
“Graduating from Kiss”! 😂 Well put! I am only a couple years older than you and can totally relate to and remember that ‘moving on’ to that better band discovery era you are referring to. I graduated from Kiss Univ. around the time between ‘Alive II’ & ‘Dynasty’….and, Van Halen was one of those new directions and ‘Van Halen II’ was fresh off the presses. 👍🏻
I'm 58, and I had the same reaction when I bought the album! I had no clue that the cover songs were covers, until many years later. And even after that, I still didn't care! I remember just looking at those pictures over and over, while listening to Eddie's wonderful fuzz tone. Ahhh, those were the days. My Technics turntable, 25 watt receiver, and cheap speakers! And the headphones from Radio Shack!
When Diver Down came out, I to got it through Columbia House. I LOVED this album as well. I had it on repeat for months!!! I also transitioned from being a KISS fan into a VH fan!
I LOVE the 'as we graduated from being KISS fans' - That's so me. Though I loved other bands, like Rush, Led Zep, ted Nugent, Aerosmith, etc, I'll never forget the first time I heard Van Halen (Runnin' with the Devil) in 1980. But THIS record (Diver Down) was my first anything I owned by VH and always brings me back to the beach that summer (1983). VH probably at their 'poppiest' but still VH being themselves. I could never get enough of these original 6 albums. And what a stepping stone to 1984
Wow Bob how freaking ironic.Diver Down and Signals are the two albums that got me through that summer I moved from my hometown. Being someplace new and not knowing anybody, I got to know this album very well. So this album also has a very special spot in my heart. I love Alex's drumming on Little guitars and intruder. One of my favorite albums.(Graduating from KISS I like the way you put that)🙂
That's awesome! It's amazing how some of this music played such a big role in our lives during those moments when we needed it. Likewise, this album was really important to me. Thanks for sharing your story.
I rank Van Halen's albums in descending order; so I consider Diver Down their fifth best album, and the last one I ever bought. VH was a great live band in the early days, too. I was fortunate to see them in 78, 79, 80, 81 and twice in 1982.
I was introduced to "Diver Down" on Christmas day 1984. I asked for "1984" and my parents got me "Diver Down". I spent the day listening to this cassette tape over and over. "Secrets" became a personal favorite from the album. While I would never rank this album as high as say "1984", "Fair Warning", "Women and Children First", "Van Halen II" or "Van Halen", I still have a special place in my heart for it. The original songs are fantastic!! The cover tracks? They feel kind of hit or miss with me. I would say I go back for the originals far more than the cover songs. Thanks for these two reviews! I enjoyed the video a lot.
To me, "Diver Down" was an almost perfect album. The originals on this album are among Van Halen's best tunes ever. Roth's cleverness lyrically shines brightest on "Little Guitars" ("catch as catch can - anybody in their right mind could see, it's you and me"). The only song I've ever tired of is "Happy Trails" because I've heard people from my generation singing that "bom-ba-dea" part for 40 years. The over-playedness of "Pretty Woman" is saved on the album by the instrumental intro "Intruder" which, to me, is still mind-blowing. The band doesn't overstay their welcome, for sure, as it's a rather short set but it just makes me want to start it over and listen again.
I remember buying this album when it first came out. I recall that much was made of the fact that it comprised of a large amount of covers but I think that accounted for much of the record’s charm. I mean, who else could possibly get away with Big Bad Bill? Little Guitars is my personal favorite on this collection and the album still holds up to this day. All over, it’s one of VH’s most fun and enjoyable recordings.
First off, I love your channel. I wish I would have thought of doing it first! I am a huge VH fan of both eras, and I have always been one of those who has sort of shuffled this record off to the side. It is like the "ugly child" sandwiched between Fair Warning and 1984, two of their best in my opinion. But, watching your clip made me realize there are some really great tracks on this record, and a lot of great memories associated with it (I too am in my mid 50's). Your track analysis is spot on. Intruder was just an amazing 2 minutes of bad-assness. The guitar noise was a beer can going across Eds strings. The synth/guitar groove behind Dancing in the streets was so cool. Secrets, The Full Bug... all the originals are great. I read a lot about rock history, and from what I have learned, at this time Dave and Ted Templeman had sort of taken a direction toward more danceable poppy stuff, where Ed was just learning synth and wanted to take it to a new place. Ed was extremely frustrated recording Diver Down because he lost multiple battles about the direction in sound. For example, he wanted Intruder to be its own song, and not an opening to Pretty Woman. He also wanted the Dancing in the Streets guitar groove to be its own song. But ultimately Ted and Dave won those arguments (and maybe for the betterment of the record). Its amazing how the second reviewer nailed it about what was to come, putting together the raw energy, sense of humor, and overall ensemble approach in the future to make a masterpiece. As you said, we all know that became 1984. I never really thought about it that way before, but its true. Without Diver Down, and the departures they took to make it, 1984 and even later stuff like 5150 may not have been the same. Keep up what you are doing, I absolutely love watching your videos!!! 👍👍👍
Like many late 70's born Gen-Xer's, my introduction to Van Halen was 1984 (thanks MTV!). So I held every other LP up against their "masterstroke". In my teens, disillusioned by the Hagar albums afterwards, I asked my older friends which VH records to listen to. Almost everyone said the same thing: "Listen to the first record and WACF. Avoid Diver Down." So I did that. Not until college, on a whim, did I listen to Fair Warning. THAT record, completely changed everything. I couldn't believe how experimental and daring it was (even down to the cover art). Looking back on all this now, if I was in my 20's when Diver Down was released, I probably would have been hugely disappointed. Off the heels of Fair Warning, Diver Down, at first glance, does seem phoned in. But, I totally agree that people took the OG lineup's once-in-a-generation's energy for granted.
What a great video! So much of what you said resonates with me. I'd like to add to what you said. My Absolute favorite Van Halen album is Fair Warning. We've all heard the stories about Eddie attempting to take control on FW. DD seemed to be Dave saying Nope. Which if you know the history, seemed to be the catalyst for building 5150. DD was a fun, raucous album. I think if it followed =VH=II it may have been better received. Compared to following FW. Thank You for the deep dive into Diver Down (pun intended). My list of favorites goes like this. Fair Warning, Van Halen I, W&CF, 1984, Diver Down, Van Halen II. Love your channel, subscriber, always👍🏻. What you said about going from KISS to Van Halen, Wow! So True!! Thank You!!😁😎
Damn! I hate when I'm the old grumpy guy 🤣 For me, the best VH is their first two albums. I did think Dancin In The Streets was cool. The three things that got me in this episode, was when you said graduated from KISS! That was perfect. Then the first guy said America's Led Zeppelin. I just wanna say, we didn't have a Zeppelin. Thanks to Aerosmith, we had our version of The Stones, but no Zepp. Then the second guy said Diver Down was a good metal album? I never once have thought of VH as a metal band. They were our larger than life, ultimate party band. Another good one Robert 👍
Diver down is one of my favorite albums of all time. It’s the soundtrack to the summer of 82 for me. Every time the needle hits the wax, I can smell the beach. That’s the summer I met my wife of 41 years. I don’t blame Van Halen for that though. 😂😂😂
It wasn't the best album but it does have kickass tracks and kickass covers. No band at that time did covers that well. And they toured with this album also. Alex introduced me to his 4 kick drumset on this tour.
In 1982 I was 14. Living in rural MN, with no information on bands, outside of the albums they put out & when they would play in the twin cities. We had NO idea about tension welling within the band or pressure to make hits. I had all the previous VH albums under my belt & could recite any lyric from any song on command. My friends & I’s take on the album was, “They took a little break & had some fun in the studio, doing some cool covers they love” & we loved it too. We thought the album was just plain fun & we enjoyed the hell out of it !
Diver Down was thrown together fast in order to get Oh Pretty Woman out ASAP. (Sorry if you already said that, I can’t listen to your full video yet because of where I’m at). Ed wanted to wait and record another full VH album, but gave in to Ted and Dave. The arguments even distracted them into forgetting the bridge part (or middle eight if you’re on the European side😁) on Oh Pretty Woman. Diver Down is an incredible album on its own, but knowing it was slapped together with the quickness makes it a legend. Even Jan VH wasn’t ready to record for Big Bad Bill and was super nervous because he was out of practice with short notice for his Clarinet track. Hang em high and The Full Bug are nasty ass songs! The solo on Hang em high is one of Ed’s best ever in my opinion. Little guitars?? Secrets?? Even the other covers were killer. The Kinks tune, Intruder and Cathedral???? I’ll take albums like that any day of the week. Thanks for the video brother!!
Im 3 years younger than you but I was absolutely ENTHRALLED by this record as a 10 year old kid. I like you, thought they were all originals as well except for Pretty Woman and You’re No Good. But I was fascinated by how they did the Orbison tune. I know Eddie himself didn’t care much for the record and never took it real serious but I just loved it.
Good one Rob, yeah, i love this record, cover versions , and all. It still sounded like VH. A lot of descriptions have been thrown at VH over the years, but for the Dave years especially, "predictability' was not one of them. For the folks that followed them from the first album on, it must have been more of a shock since this one came right on the back of Fair Warning. I got into VH around '83- '84 , so working back and catching up with the earlier material was just a learning experience of their different styles and sounds ,so i didnt feel betrayed or let down at all. Every VH album has a different guitar tone in one way or another, i love the bighty, lively , springy , single coil sound Ed got on this one, and still sounded full, and they sounded like they were having a lot of fun . I read an Interview with Ed years ago and he said something about the challenges he faced making the record , he said it was the chord chart he had to follow for Big Bad Bill , haha!. righto, onto the next one mate!..
Did you notice that the song listing on the back of the album cover is out of order for the last two songs? Happy Trails is the final song, which is appropriate, of course.
This one is probably ranked 6th in the DLR era 6 pack behind 1984, it was rushed from the label after being on tour for 18 months they mention this a lot in interviews originally they were just going to release a single Pretty Woman the label wanted full album, while the covers are good my favorites are Full Bug , Hang’em High, Secrets , Cathedral, I even like Big Bad Billy
❤❤❤❤❤❤ love this album . Absolutely unique . So different but it flows perfectly . I still remember hearing the cymbals at the start . It's in my top 5 . Don't care if the songs are covered. It's a Roth album while Fair warning IS EVH. GREAT ALBUM!
Van Halen at thier worst is better than anyone else in the genre at their peak. I cherish Diver Down, there's no other album like it. The two bands that always make me feel good are Van Halen and The Beatles! It's a joyful infectious spirit.
Diver Down was awesome. Some of Ed's best guitar work, IMO. Cathedral, Little guitars, Secrets. I mean come on man, every guitar player LOVES cathedral.
great vid... for me Diver Down kind of sums up everything the band was at that time... Fair Warning had a darker crispy shape with a big inhale and this was like the exhale... fun, loose and vibrant... I did not care for Pretty Woman, but the rest of the album was killing it... Hang em high and The Full bug rip,...little guitars screams of summer awesome fun... I am a big fan of it... when they played these tracks live in 82-83 they were so tight live it was a cosmic time....cheers
If the sound is great, and the talent is there, what's the diff? I mean... I'm A huge KISS fan, and some of their albums tanked... But most of the music really works well.
This was a bona fide hit album when it came out. I think when people finally realized Fair Warning and Women and Children First were "total bangers", the revisionists turned this into the "one of the worst albums in the catalog". If you read Alex's book, he might not "like" Dave but is eternally grateful for getting their dad in the studio even though their pop had dentures and missing a finger where he was frustrated playing. But it went back to when Al and Jan played the smoky clubs years prior. Hang em High, Secrets, Full Bug, and Little Guitars are all great. It is a pretty quirky album but VH were quirky guys.
Diver Down had some of their best (their originals, which still stand up), and some of their worst (the covers, which were fun at the time, but don't stand up as well)
I think this was the first VH album I got and it's not great. The only songs I ever play are Where Have All The Good Times Gone (didn't realise it was a cover until today) and Big Bad Bill and Happy Trails.
Totally agree with that review... gimmick record. I feel like VH had contempt for their audience with this release... putting minimum effort into songwriting and choosing a bunch of uninspired covers... "Happy Trails"? What a joke! An exhausted band out of ideas at the time... but EVH's budding interest in synth would ignite a fresh wave of creativity for "1984".
Critics are failed human beings. Critics seethe with hate because they have no real talent. They shoot down successful people because they will never be successful at anything but hatred.
Got to say, I was never a fan of Van Halen. I got Van Halen self titled and it a a couple ok songs, got 1984 And liked most of that, then got VH 2 and pretty much, listened to it once then threw it away... Had 3 brothers that were big fans and had all their albums, I only listened if they happen to play them... and honestly never liked most of their output other than Dreams and the song from the movie Better Off Dead... my opinion is OVER RATED...i think over their entire career they have 10 or 12 ok songs and Only one I regularly listen to... Dreams from 5150....
definitely the worst DLR era album. the rift between dave and Eddie started with all of those cover songs, which Eddie didn't like. I'm a bit older than you and knew all of the cover songs from when they were originals. some are good, not in love with them all. as an album I agree with most of the critics at the time, it was a rush job, a few new songs and some covers from their beginning days. BTW I was also too old for KISS at any time in my life, I didn't care for "hair bands" in girls pants, that wasn't rock n roll to me, it was stage acts. Poison anyone?
This album does not deserve the harsh criticism it often receives. One of my favorites.😊
My favorite part about Diver Down is the absolutely stellar vocals throughout, both lead and background. Anyone whose mantra was
“David Lee Roth can’t sing” obviously didn’t listen to “Secrets” or “Little Guitars”, two of Roth’s finest career vocals.
They covered those songs great, and the one they wrote are fantastic. Secrets was awesome.
DD is different than the 4 previous albums but you have to remember VH was a party band first and foremost, and in that context, DD embodies what VH is about.
Summer 1982 me and my friends on our own took the bus to Santa Monica pier. And this album always reminds me of that summer. We had a wild time for 13 years old, and VH was the soundtrack. Ahhh.. the memories!
Dancing in the streets was a big deal because Eddie was playing a synthesized keyboard, and he was king of 6-strings! But then you hear Hang 'em high, where have all the good times gone and pretty woman, Cathedral... well, the entire album and it was just what us 13 yr olds needed to have one of the best summers!
Yep! Me too👍🏻
Yes! It was the perfect summer music, especially for a young teenager!
Cool man. Haven't listened to this one in years. Gona put on tonight while working on guitars, my night job is guitar service, my dayjob is motorcycle technician. Will put it on in the shop asap, should be interesting to see the young techs reactions.
Nice!
True: Diver Down wasn't "a serious album". But -- it didn't have to be -- and that's why it was so awesome.
I first listened to Diver Down in the summer of ‘85 (arrived late to the party). I spent an entire month in a little beach shack with my parents. I listened to the album each day - by the end of our stay, my folks knew the lyrics 😂. DiverDown brings back lovely childhood memories
DIVER DOWN is really good. I knew there was mostly covers on it, but didnt care. ITS VAN HALEN!! Im only 58, and they were my life for a 15 yr old kid. Im so glad VAN HALEN was our Era Band.
Definetly a Summer Party Album. Most of their albums were.
“Graduating from Kiss”! 😂 Well put! I am only a couple years older than you and can totally relate to and remember that ‘moving on’ to that better band discovery era you are referring to. I graduated from Kiss Univ. around the time between ‘Alive II’ & ‘Dynasty’….and, Van Halen was one of those new directions and ‘Van Halen II’ was fresh off the presses. 👍🏻
I'm 58, and I had the same reaction when I bought the album! I had no clue that the cover songs were covers, until many years later. And even after that, I still didn't care! I remember just looking at those pictures over and over, while listening to Eddie's wonderful fuzz tone. Ahhh, those were the days. My Technics turntable, 25 watt receiver, and cheap speakers! And the headphones from Radio Shack!
When Diver Down came out, I to got it through Columbia House. I LOVED this album as well. I had it on repeat for months!!! I also transitioned from being a KISS fan into a VH fan!
I LOVE the 'as we graduated from being KISS fans' - That's so me. Though I loved other bands, like Rush, Led Zep, ted Nugent, Aerosmith, etc, I'll never forget the first time I heard Van Halen (Runnin' with the Devil) in 1980. But THIS record (Diver Down) was my first anything I owned by VH and always brings me back to the beach that summer (1983). VH probably at their 'poppiest' but still VH being themselves. I could never get enough of these original 6 albums.
And what a stepping stone to 1984
Wow Bob how freaking ironic.Diver Down and Signals are the two albums that got me through that summer I moved from my hometown. Being someplace new and not knowing anybody, I got to know this album very well. So this album also has a very special spot in my heart. I love Alex's drumming on Little guitars and intruder. One of my favorite albums.(Graduating from KISS I like the way you put that)🙂
That's awesome! It's amazing how some of this music played such a big role in our lives during those moments when we needed it. Likewise, this album was really important to me. Thanks for sharing your story.
@audiomover it's always my pleasure Bob
when people say diver down sucks, tell them to go make a better one
It is a fact that Diver Down is considered to be one of Van Halens worst albums ever.
I rank Van Halen's albums in descending order; so I consider Diver Down their fifth best album, and the last one I ever bought. VH was a great live band in the early days, too. I was fortunate to see them in 78, 79, 80, 81 and twice in 1982.
@@acorn-yy1gi1984 > DD
Each VH album was different And this was no different. Great tunes 🎶
I was introduced to "Diver Down" on Christmas day 1984. I asked for "1984" and my parents got me "Diver Down". I spent the day listening to this cassette tape over and over. "Secrets" became a personal favorite from the album. While I would never rank this album as high as say "1984", "Fair Warning", "Women and Children First", "Van Halen II" or "Van Halen", I still have a special place in my heart for it. The original songs are fantastic!! The cover tracks? They feel kind of hit or miss with me. I would say I go back for the originals far more than the cover songs. Thanks for these two reviews! I enjoyed the video a lot.
This album is great.
To me, "Diver Down" was an almost perfect album. The originals on this album are among Van Halen's best tunes ever. Roth's cleverness lyrically shines brightest on "Little Guitars" ("catch as catch can - anybody in their right mind could see, it's you and me"). The only song I've ever tired of is "Happy Trails" because I've heard people from my generation singing that "bom-ba-dea" part for 40 years. The over-playedness of "Pretty Woman" is saved on the album by the instrumental intro "Intruder" which, to me, is still mind-blowing. The band doesn't overstay their welcome, for sure, as it's a rather short set but it just makes me want to start it over and listen again.
#5150 percent diver down
DD was my introduction to Van Halen. Love the album. It led to a life long fan of all things VH. Basically anything Eddie did.
I remember buying this album when it first came out. I recall that much was made of the fact that it comprised of a large amount of covers but I think that accounted for much of the record’s charm. I mean, who else could possibly get away with Big Bad Bill? Little Guitars is my personal favorite on this collection and the album still holds up to this day. All over, it’s one of VH’s most fun and enjoyable recordings.
I love Diver Down!
First off, I love your channel. I wish I would have thought of doing it first! I am a huge VH fan of both eras, and I have always been one of those who has sort of shuffled this record off to the side. It is like the "ugly child" sandwiched between Fair Warning and 1984, two of their best in my opinion. But, watching your clip made me realize there are some really great tracks on this record, and a lot of great memories associated with it (I too am in my mid 50's). Your track analysis is spot on. Intruder was just an amazing 2 minutes of bad-assness. The guitar noise was a beer can going across Eds strings. The synth/guitar groove behind Dancing in the streets was so cool. Secrets, The Full Bug... all the originals are great. I read a lot about rock history, and from what I have learned, at this time Dave and Ted Templeman had sort of taken a direction toward more danceable poppy stuff, where Ed was just learning synth and wanted to take it to a new place. Ed was extremely frustrated recording Diver Down because he lost multiple battles about the direction in sound. For example, he wanted Intruder to be its own song, and not an opening to Pretty Woman. He also wanted the Dancing in the Streets guitar groove to be its own song. But ultimately Ted and Dave won those arguments (and maybe for the betterment of the record). Its amazing how the second reviewer nailed it about what was to come, putting together the raw energy, sense of humor, and overall ensemble approach in the future to make a masterpiece. As you said, we all know that became 1984. I never really thought about it that way before, but its true. Without Diver Down, and the departures they took to make it, 1984 and even later stuff like 5150 may not have been the same. Keep up what you are doing, I absolutely love watching your videos!!! 👍👍👍
Like many late 70's born Gen-Xer's, my introduction to Van Halen was 1984 (thanks MTV!). So I held every other LP up against their "masterstroke". In my teens, disillusioned by the Hagar albums afterwards, I asked my older friends which VH records to listen to. Almost everyone said the same thing: "Listen to the first record and WACF. Avoid Diver Down." So I did that. Not until college, on a whim, did I listen to Fair Warning. THAT record, completely changed everything. I couldn't believe how experimental and daring it was (even down to the cover art). Looking back on all this now, if I was in my 20's when Diver Down was released, I probably would have been hugely disappointed. Off the heels of Fair Warning, Diver Down, at first glance, does seem phoned in. But, I totally agree that people took the OG lineup's once-in-a-generation's energy for granted.
What a great video! So much of what you said resonates with me. I'd like to add to what you said. My Absolute favorite Van Halen album is Fair Warning. We've all heard the stories about Eddie attempting to take control on FW. DD seemed to be Dave saying Nope. Which if you know the history, seemed to be the catalyst for building 5150. DD was a fun, raucous album. I think if it followed =VH=II it may have been better received. Compared to following FW. Thank You for the deep dive into Diver Down (pun intended). My list of favorites goes like this.
Fair Warning,
Van Halen I,
W&CF,
1984,
Diver Down,
Van Halen II. Love your channel, subscriber, always👍🏻. What you said about going from KISS to Van Halen, Wow! So True!! Thank You!!😁😎
Also loved the Little Guitars intro (not the flamenco part but the electric part).
Damn! I hate when I'm the old grumpy guy 🤣
For me, the best VH is their first two albums.
I did think Dancin In The Streets was cool.
The three things that got me in this episode, was when you said graduated from KISS! That was perfect.
Then the first guy said America's Led Zeppelin. I just wanna say, we didn't have a Zeppelin. Thanks to Aerosmith, we had our version of The Stones, but no Zepp.
Then the second guy said Diver Down was a good metal album? I never once have thought of VH as a metal band. They were our larger than life, ultimate party band.
Another good one Robert 👍
Diver down is one of my favorite albums of all time. It’s the soundtrack to the summer of 82 for me. Every time the needle hits the wax, I can smell the beach. That’s the summer I met my wife of 41 years. I don’t blame Van Halen for that though. 😂😂😂
It wasn't the best album but it does have kickass tracks and kickass covers. No band at that time did covers that well. And they toured with this album also. Alex introduced me to his 4 kick drumset on this tour.
In 1982 I was 14. Living in rural MN, with no information on bands, outside of the albums they put out & when they would play in the twin cities.
We had NO idea about tension welling within the band or pressure to make hits.
I had all the previous VH albums under my belt & could recite any lyric from any song on command.
My friends & I’s take on the album was,
“They took a little break & had some fun in the studio, doing some cool covers they love” & we loved it too.
We thought the album was just plain fun & we enjoyed the hell out of it !
DIVER DOWN RULES ALL KIDS!!!!!
Diver Down was thrown together fast in order to get Oh Pretty Woman out ASAP. (Sorry if you already said that, I can’t listen to your full video yet because of where I’m at). Ed wanted to wait and record another full VH album, but gave in to Ted and Dave. The arguments even distracted them into forgetting the bridge part (or middle eight if you’re on the European side😁) on Oh Pretty Woman. Diver Down is an incredible album on its own, but knowing it was slapped together with the quickness makes it a legend. Even Jan VH wasn’t ready to record for Big Bad Bill and was super nervous because he was out of practice with short notice for his Clarinet track.
Hang em high and The Full Bug are nasty ass songs! The solo on Hang em high is one of Ed’s best ever in my opinion.
Little guitars?? Secrets?? Even the other covers were killer. The Kinks tune, Intruder and Cathedral???? I’ll take albums like that any day of the week.
Thanks for the video brother!!
Im 3 years younger than you but I was absolutely ENTHRALLED by this record as a 10 year old kid. I like you, thought they were all originals as well except for Pretty Woman and You’re No Good. But I was fascinated by how they did the Orbison tune. I know Eddie himself didn’t care much for the record and never took it real serious but I just loved it.
Good one Rob, yeah, i love this record, cover versions , and all. It still sounded like VH.
A lot of descriptions have been thrown at VH over the years, but for the Dave years especially, "predictability' was not one of them. For the folks that followed them from the first album on, it must have been more of a shock since this one came right on the back of Fair Warning.
I got into VH around '83- '84 , so working back and catching up with the earlier material was just a learning experience of their different styles and sounds ,so i didnt feel betrayed or let down at all.
Every VH album has a different guitar tone in one way or another, i love the bighty, lively , springy , single coil sound Ed got on this one, and still sounded full, and they sounded like they were having a lot of fun . I read an Interview with Ed years ago and he said something about the challenges he faced making the record , he said it was the chord chart he had to follow for Big Bad Bill , haha!. righto, onto the next one mate!..
Did you notice that the song listing on the back of the album cover is out of order for the last two songs? Happy Trails is the final song, which is appropriate, of course.
It’s feel good music.
The fact that DD is VH-DLR's worst album shows how great that version of the band was.
This one is probably ranked 6th in the DLR era 6 pack behind 1984, it was rushed from the label after being on tour for 18 months they mention this a lot in interviews originally they were just going to release a single Pretty Woman the label wanted full album, while the covers are good my favorites are Full Bug , Hang’em High, Secrets , Cathedral, I even like Big Bad Billy
❤❤❤❤❤❤ love this album . Absolutely unique . So different but it flows perfectly . I still remember hearing the cymbals at the start . It's in my top 5 . Don't care if the songs are covered. It's a Roth album while Fair warning IS EVH. GREAT ALBUM!
I love old Motown but Van Halen's
Dancing in the Streets is my favorite version.
Van Halen at thier worst is better than anyone else in the genre at their peak. I cherish Diver Down, there's no other album like it. The two bands that always make me feel good are Van Halen and The Beatles! It's a joyful infectious spirit.
Diver Down was awesome. Some of Ed's best guitar work, IMO.
Cathedral, Little guitars, Secrets.
I mean come on man, every guitar player LOVES cathedral.
great vid... for me Diver Down kind of sums up everything the band was at that time... Fair Warning had a darker crispy shape with a big inhale and this was like the exhale... fun, loose and vibrant... I did not care for Pretty Woman, but the rest of the album was killing it... Hang em high and The Full bug rip,...little guitars screams of summer awesome fun... I am a big fan of it... when they played these tracks live in 82-83 they were so tight live it was a cosmic time....cheers
If the sound is great, and the talent is there, what's the diff? I mean... I'm A huge KISS fan, and some of their albums tanked... But most of the music really works well.
It's way better than 1984 in my humble opinion
Yeah right. According to you maybe. 99,99% of Van Halen fans disagrees.
I agree. 1984 was where I departed.
@Thomas-vs8ff go get ‘em
"Way better." I love this album, but nah.
1984. The only VH I've ever had since 1984.
"Diver Down" should evaluated as what really is, not an LP but an EP. It's like grading Metallic's "Garage Days" as LP rather than an EP
Nope. It's approximately the same length as all the other DLR albums.
This was a bona fide hit album when it came out. I think when people finally realized Fair Warning and Women and Children First were "total bangers", the revisionists turned this into the "one of the worst albums in the catalog". If you read Alex's book, he might not "like" Dave but is eternally grateful for getting their dad in the studio even though their pop had dentures and missing a finger where he was frustrated playing. But it went back to when Al and Jan played the smoky clubs years prior. Hang em High, Secrets, Full Bug, and Little Guitars are all great. It is a pretty quirky album but VH were quirky guys.
I liked Diver Down but at the time I was like what's with all the cover tunes?
Diver Down effected you like Fair Warning did for me. Still love Fair Warning. DD is okay.
Diver Down had some of their best (their originals, which still stand up), and some of their worst (the covers, which were fun at the time, but don't stand up as well)
I think this was the first VH album I got and it's not great. The only songs I ever play are Where Have All The Good Times Gone (didn't realise it was a cover until today) and Big Bad Bill and Happy Trails.
Weren't they all gimmicks...?And for the record, I love these gimmicks. Great band, great album.
Totally agree with that review... gimmick record. I feel like VH had contempt for their audience with this release... putting minimum effort into songwriting and choosing a bunch of uninspired covers... "Happy Trails"? What a joke! An exhausted band out of ideas at the time... but EVH's budding interest in synth would ignite a fresh wave of creativity for "1984".
Eddie hated the album because he didn't like playing covers.
Bowie did " where have all the good times gone", way better. 1973 pinups album. Last one he did with spiders from mars
Critics are failed human beings. Critics seethe with hate because they have no real talent. They shoot down successful people because they will never be successful at anything but hatred.
Van Halen was never about substance. "Substance Abuse", on the other hand....
Got to say, I was never a fan of Van Halen. I got Van Halen self titled and it a a couple ok songs, got 1984 And liked most of that, then got VH 2 and pretty much, listened to it once then threw it away...
Had 3 brothers that were big fans and had all their albums, I only listened if they happen to play them... and honestly never liked most of their output other than Dreams and the song from the movie Better Off Dead... my opinion is OVER RATED...i think over their entire career they have 10 or 12 ok songs and Only one I regularly listen to... Dreams from 5150....
America's Led Zeppelin was Aerosmith.
definitely the worst DLR era album. the rift between dave and Eddie started with all of those cover songs, which Eddie didn't like. I'm a bit older than you and knew all of the cover songs from when they were originals. some are good, not in love with them all. as an album I agree with most of the critics at the time, it was a rush job, a few new songs and some covers from their beginning days. BTW I was also too old for KISS at any time in my life, I didn't care for "hair bands" in girls pants, that wasn't rock n roll to me, it was stage acts. Poison anyone?
*rift, but yeah
@ thanks.
Worst Van Halen album ever 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮
No it's not
First six albums rule. That's it period . Hagar ruined that band. Cmon, the full bug, little guitars....that's it.. period