Van Halen - Best Of Volume 1
Released October 22, 1996

Track listing

"Eruption" – 1:42 (Michael Anthony, David Lee Roth, Eddie Van Halen, Alex Van Halen)
(from Van Halen, 1978)
"Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love" – 3:47 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from Van Halen, 1978)
"Runnin' with the Devil" – 3:32 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from Van Halen, 1978)
"Dance the Night Away" – 3:04 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from Van Halen II, 1979)
"And the Cradle Will Rock..." – 3:31 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from Women and Children First, 1980)
"Unchained" – 3:27 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from Fair Warning, 1981)
"Jump" – 4:04 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from 1984, 1984)
"Panama" – 3:31 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from 1984, 1984)
"Why Can't This Be Love" – 3:45 (Anthony, Sammy Hagar, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from 5150, 1986)
"Dreams" – 4:54 (Anthony, Hagar, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from 5150, 1986)
"When It's Love" – 5:36 (Anthony, Hagar, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from OU812, 1988)
"Poundcake" – 5:22 (Anthony, Hagar, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, 1991)
"Right Now" – 5:21 (Anthony, Hagar, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, 1991)
"Can't Stop Lovin' You" – 4:08 (Anthony, Hagar, Van Halen, Van Halen)
(from Balance, 1995)
"Humans Being" – 5:14 (Anthony, Hagar, Van Halen, Van Halen)†
(from Twister movie soundtrack, 1996)
"Can't Get This Stuff No More" – 5:16 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)†
(new song, 1996)
"Me Wise Magic" – 6:09 (Anthony, Roth, Van Halen, Van Halen)†
(new song, 1996)

After yet another successful Van Halen album and tour, all was not well between Eddie and Sammy. Van Halen recorded two songs for the "Twister" soundtrack and the smurf poo really hit the fan at this point. Sammy recorded his vocals for the song "Human Beings" for the "Twister" sound track and didn't return to complete vocals on another track. That track was called "Respect The Wind" and Eddie and Alex recorded it as an instrumental track and were credited as "Eddie And Alex Van Halen" as opposed to a Van Halen track. Eddie wasn't happy with the track "Human Beings" and this led to the end of Sammy's tenure as the front man of Van Halen. EVH and the recorded company wanted to release a "Greatest Hits" album. Sammy wanted to do a new record. Eddie did have something up his sleeve, mainly a Mr. David Lee Roth who briefly rejoined the band. I am sure Eddie saw how successful the KISS Reunion tour was and saw all of the dollar signs that a Van Halen with DLR tour could bring.

Diamond Dave recorded two new tracks with Glenn Ballard producing - which leaves one wondering, who thought it was a good idea to hire Allanis Morrissette's producer to work with Van Halen? Fortunately, the two tracks 'Can't Get This Stuff No More' and 'Me Wise Magic' are really cool songs! Hearing DLR being the mic again was a huge treat and surprise for VH fans!!!

The album contains songs for every Van Halen album except 'Diver Down'. The album also includes the great track from the 'Twister" soundtrack, Human Beings. I have no idea what Eddie's problem with it is..... The new DLR songs are also awesome! They don't hold up as well to the back catalogue, but so what - they are still good tracks!

They band was going to go on tour with DLR behind the mic, but it didn't happen. At the 1996 MTV VMA's, Van Halen with DLR made an appearance. The crowd went nuts and of course Eddie was pissed at Dave about something and the tour didn't happen until years later. Of course, the whole Sammy/Dave drama would lead to the darkest period in Van Halen history......

To be continued.....

I love the two new DLR Van Halen tracks, it has the classic Van Halen attitude and DLR singing on 'Me Wise Magic' sounded incredible, sadly these ego maniacs despite being offered buckets filled with money to reform did not do so.

I have no idea what the problem was with 'Humans Being' a killer Hagar track but I think the problem with both vocalist as that they both stated in separte interviews is that they both hated Glenn Ballard.

I seem to recall an interview with Eddie saying that the band was asked for a song or 2 to put on the Twister soundtrack, but were told "Don't write a song about a twister". The guys wrote the music and Sammy came in with lyrics that were all about twisters which ticked off Eddie. Maybe that's why the 'Respect the Wind' was instrumental?

Either way, after Sammy was fired, Dave was briefly hired, then fired, the Van Halen brothers really looked bad. No matter whose side you were on back in the day, after that whole debacle, Eddie and Alex came off bad in interviews and looked really douchey.

As for the album itself, eh, it's a greatest hits. I do enjoy the 2 new DLR tracks very much.

Man, this was the era of jokes about VH and they deserved it in a lot of ways. As for the album, the new tracks are good and if you're only interested in the hits it's decent enough.

The 2 new songs on the Best Of are great ! They are worth the price of the cd alone. Too bad they couldn't have gotten something together back then because this showed they still had the goods for writing awesome stuff.

Not a bad compilation, shoulda had a coupla songs from 'Diver Down' but 'Humans Being' is a great song but the two "new" songs with Roth blow goats, the lyrics are bad and Roth's voice sounds so shot.

Van Halen - Van Halen III
Released March 17, 1998

Track listing

All songs credited to Michael Anthony, Gary Cherone, Eddie Van Halen and Alex Van Halen.
"Neworld" – 1:51
"Without You" – 6:37
"One I Want" – 5:35
"From Afar" – 5:29
"Dirty Water Dog" – 5:33
"Once" – 7:51
"Fire in the Hole" – 5:37
"Josephina" – 5:48
"Year to the Day" – 8:47
"Primary" – 1:31
"Ballot or the Bullet" – 5:48
"How Many Say I" – 6:16

After all the drama of Sammy out, Dave in and then Dave out, Van Halen returned with Extreme vocalist Gary Cherone behind the mic. Sounded like a great idea at the time to those of us who knew that Extreme was a great band and that they had much more to offer than "More Than Words". Gary is an excellent singer. With Gary on board, the band headed back to 5150 studio to record their next album, Van Halen III - which was a play on the band's sophmore album and the fact that this was the third version and third singer for Van Halen.

Unfortunately Eddie forgot to write good songs and the album is a disaster. This is with out a doubt the worst Van Halen album ever. As a result, this is the only Van Halen album not to even hit Platinum status. The tour was not as commercially successful as prior Van Halen tours either.

The issue isn't Gary Cherone - he is a great singer. The issue is the songwriting - it is just lacking. The worst collection of songs Eddie ever wrote. To this day, this would be the last Van Halen studio album - another greatest hits albums would be released and I will review that one next. Here's hoping that Eddie and Dave can be together in the studio long enough to finish another album!!!!

After quietly ignoring the entire Hagar era, I briefly returned to Camp Van Halen when Gary Cherone joined the band (since I'd been an Extreme fan) and they released this album... after a spin or two I wished I hadn't bothered.

One word review: Ick.

The implosion was complete and Cherone has never fully recovered. With Extreme it's what might have been.

I remember buying this as a new release and was looking forward to the album, the last three songs they had recorded (Humans Being with Hagar and the other two with Roth were a return to their metal roots) where great and I was excepting more of the same.

I was very disappointed, the songs where not great and sounded unfinished. Gary Cherone is a great vocalist but it makes me wonder why they fired Sammy Hagar in the first place, all they had Cherone do was ape Hagar's style.

Not a great album and the worst in their discography, the band would implode soon after. A friend of mine who is an excellent guitarist claims this is a great album, he hears things on this album I do not, I no longer hate the album as much as I used to but it is still a horrid album, I will give it another spin tonight anyway.

I've always liked III but it is the closest we get to an EVH solo album. Alex is too restrained throughout, Mikey is only ALLOWED to play on three songs while Ed takes the rest. Ed seemed out of ideas at this point and used a lot of licks he does on live shows and sure the six string bass solo on 'From Afar' was kewl in a way but he seemed to be desperately grasping for creativity , hell even the main riff in 'Ballot Or The Bullet' sounds like the I Dream Of Jeanie theme song. This was supposed to be a double album but Warner said no so all we get are rumored album titles and song titles for the next album but no music with the exception of (at least to my knowledge) a song called 'That's Why I Love You' that was left off the American version of III in favor of 'Josephina'. Fortunately, I have the Japanese version with the aforementioned song on it. 'How Many Say I' is one of the worst songs ever.

I wasn't exactly thrilled with Gary being named the new vocalist, but hearing the first single 'Without You', I was willling to give it a chance. I remember getting a few promo copies sent into work. Spun it a few times, thought it was horrible and now 12 years later, haven't heard a note from it again. We still have a copy in the cd rack of our audio room. If we're ever in a situation where I need to psychologically torture someone, I'll know what to reach for.

I'm of the opinion that all copies of this album should be round up, loaded into a rocket, fired directly towards the sun and never be spoken of again.

One of the worst albums ever.

Just a thought: if /when a new VH album with DLR surfaces anytime soon, will they call it "Van Halen IV?"

Gary wrote all the lyrics and vocal parts on '3'...hardly a hired gun.