Relax people. Alex has not officially retired. He has turned 65 though, and since this is the age many people retire, I thought I would stir the pot a little. Here is a Top 11 (I could not knock it down to 10) Alex Van Halen tribute. Happy birthday dude.
11 -Girl Gone Bad – Too many people knock 1984 for the excessive use of keyboards, but the drums still sounded awesome.
10 – Loss Of Control – It sounds like complete control of the drums to me.
9 – Sinners Swing – This lesser known from Fair Warning has Alex pounding away.
8 – As Is – A Different Kind Of Truth may not have sold well, but I enjoyed the way it rocked. This song showed Alex still had it. It has kind of an 80’s Phil Collins sound, but don’t let that sway you.
7 – Big Bad Bill – He plays a ragtime beat along with his brother and dad. A fun bouncy tune that makes you smile.
6 – The Seventh Seal – Songs like this proved that Van Hagar could rock too.
5 – Drop Dead Legs – The quiet clicks of the cymbal mixed with the pounding drums really get me.
4 – Get Up – More Van Hagar rocking. Alex keeps up a frenetic pace here.
3 I’m The One – Yes Alex, you are.
2 Everybody Wants Some!! – The “jungle” beats used throughout the song are mesmerizing. Alex was so good he gets 2 exclamation points!!
1 Hot For Teacher – Another example of an all out rocker from 1984. The video is amazing and so is the drum intro in this one. It could be a vote for the top 100 drum songs of all time. So, so good.
Also rans: The drum solo in Light Up The Sky and Pleasure Dome are pretty awesome, and so is his versatility in Respect The Wind, and his backgound vocals on songs such as Could This Be Magic.
Nice tribute.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks
LikeLiked by 1 person
Anytime. BTW, it’s Vinnieh here. I set up a second blog for sexy content.
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Sexy time”
(In my best Borat voice)
LikeLiked by 2 people
Haha, I like what you did there. Anyway feel free to stop by any time.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Slick List….
I would also go with AFU and Sucker from OU812…
So many to choose from…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Not according to J.
Go Roth or go home. Hah.
LikeLike
Excellent, Bop… cannae beat some Tuesday night Van Halen. You can beat Tuesday night Van Hagar, though… so I’ll have more Van Halen to make up for it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
How about some Tuesday night Van Cherone???
LikeLiked by 1 person
Y’know, I like the Van Cherone, though I still haven’t heard the album.
LikeLike
Hot for teacher jumped to mind right away for me (I’m pleased to see you also approve of it) – what an intro especially!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think I read it was considered the best drum intro ever.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I wouldn’t disagree with that assessment!
LikeLike
Agreed about Hot for Teacher. Great post, now in the mood for some Van Halen….
LikeLiked by 1 person
Always a good mood
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hey man, I need to learn the drums!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I say use 2 toothpicks and a pill bottle
LikeLiked by 1 person
I could upgrade to matchsticks.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hey man. You’re on fire!!!
No. I mean literally on fire!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great list Bop! All I could think of was ‘damn, he’s 65?’ Whoaaa…
LikeLiked by 1 person
He can watch Matlock all day now.
LikeLike
Maaaaaatloooooock!
LikeLiked by 1 person
If you ever watch Better Call Saul, Matlock plays a key part in episodes.
LikeLike
Where’s Spanked?!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I shall have to re visit that one.
For some reason I thought that one had something missing. Kick drum perhaps?
The album sounds great. The production was ace. The drumming was great of course, I just thought I remembered it being different. Not bad, just different than others.
It’s been quite a while though, so like I say, I need to re visit. Maybe my memory is wrong.
LikeLike
Nah, I was just joking really. Just wanted to throw some more ridiculous Van Hagar into the mix.
Now that I think about it… Where’s Up For Breakfast?!
LikeLike
I always thought the drums on Ill Wait were incredible. Another one of the keyboard songs that people complained about…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I grew up with that early to mid 80’s VH so I never complained.
I have said this before, but I may be the only person ever to count Diver Down as their favourite VH album.
It was my first cassette tape ever so it has a soft spot in my heart.
LikeLike