Official top 50 Van Halen songs thread!! (Countdown has begun!!)

[Stadler]

Everybody Wants Some! is a little more special for me because the first time I heard it was when watching the movie Better Off Dead with that epic scene in the fry kitchen  .

Good call.

Oh, and you're beautiful, Dream Team.   

[Stadler]

27. Everybody Wants Some - I had it at #52.   Good tune, love the use in "Better Off Dead!", but when ranking it, it struck me as a little too much novelty for me.  I DO love the "improv feel" of when Eddie plays over Dave's vamp in the "I like.. .duh!duh!... I like the way the line runs up the back of the stocking...".   Plus it has Dave's "best" vocal line in the entire catalogue:  "I took a mooboo like a lookin' for a moonbeam" (Officially, "I've seen a lot of people looking for a moonbeam.") 

In hindsight, this should have been much higher on my list.  I missed this one.

26. Summer Nights - I had it at #23.   Just a good solid tune all around, and I love the guitars.  I always thought this was a call-and-answer with Dave with "Goin' Crazy".   Similar riffs, similar lyrical concepts, similar spot on the records... Summer Nights came first (March of '86 vs. July of '86) but I always thought there was more to this than just "a song". 

[FreezingPoint]

As shown by my rankings, I love Summer Nights. Something about it just makes it seem like the Van Halen song to me. I wasn't alive in the 80s, but Summer Nights (and the entire 5150 album honestly) makes me somehow nostalgic for an era I didn't even experience. So many great memories of throwing this song on and going for a bike ride in the summer.

Didn't have Everybody Wants Some ranked, but I only had one song from WACF in my Top 50. For some reason that album has never stuck with me.

[DragonAttack]

just doing five at a time to semi catch up.....

35 Top of the World (#16)....a feel good song, almost...'almost' a 'We Are The Champions' sentiment in this. 

34 D.O.A. (#48)

33 The Dream Is Over (#22)

32 Top Jimmy (NR)

30 (t) I’ll Wait (NR)... on my ‘best of’ Van Roth disc, but for some reason I didn’t have it on my list    Certainly a top ‘60’ tune.

[pg1067]

Somebody Get Me a Doctor: the main riff of this song is so engaging...

Kicks you right in the nads. 

Hence the need for a doctor.   

[wolfking]

Here are today's songs!

27 Everybody Wants Some!!
Appeared on 12 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 8  (Dream Team)

I had this at 43, and that extended intro is a big reason why.  The meat of the song is good, pretty standard every VH fare, but that intro elevates it.  I also love the urgency when the guitar solo kicks in.


26 Summer Nights
Appeared on 8 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 3
Highest Ranking: 2  (FreezingPoint)

This one placed at 37 for me. It's another one of those great summer night songs, which of course is quite fitting for obvious reasons.  Kind of reminds me of Priest's Night Comes Down with those "great to listen to when the sun is setting" opening chords.

Had EWS at number 40 and Summer Nights didn't rank.

[TAC]

27 Everybody Wants Some!!
Appeared on 12 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 8  (Dream Team)

26 Summer Nights
Appeared on 8 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 3
Highest Ranking: 2  (FreezingPoint)

I had Everybody Wants Some at #26, so about right. I kind of feel this song scored a bit higher than I actually regard it though.

I had Summer Nights as Not Ranked which also feels a bit high.

[The Realm]

27 Everybody Wants Some!!
Appeared on 12 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 8  (Dream Team)

26 Summer Nights
Appeared on 8 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 3
Highest Ranking: 2  (FreezingPoint)

Everybody Wants Some - 17 for me. Just a great song.

Summer Nights - 14 for me. I am a little surprised at the lack of love (only 8 lists) for this one. As I said with Best of Both Worlds, there is about half of us that love the 5150 album and half who don't. Just not sure what isn't to love about this one. Just an awesome riff and some great guitar work by Eddie. Just an all round great song.

[Dream Team]

Everybody Wants Some! is a little more special for me because the first time I heard it was when watching the movie Better Off Dead with that epic scene in the fry kitchen  .

Good call.

Oh, and you're beautiful, Dream Team.   

That girl is a smoke show.

[King Puppies and the Acid Guppies]

I had Summer Nights as Not Ranked which also feels a bit high.

I believe you need to refer to the 3rd quote in your signature. 

[DragonAttack]

30 (t) Jump (#49)  it was a big hit, thus it's ranked.  TAC, your story reminded me of various times not having cable, and making a visit specifically for some type of viewing.  And I can remember friends visiting because I (we) had cable and they didn't. 

29 Beautiful Girls (#35) one of the few standouts on VH II.

28 Somebody Get Me a Doctor (#37) one of the few standouts on VH II.  Wait, did I repeat myself. 

27 Everybody Wants Some!! (#17)  and I want some more to listen to.  Great track.  And, love the claymation in 'Better Off Dead' ('I want my two dollars! )

26 Summer Nights (NR)  this was one of my borderline misses. 

[TAC]

I had Summer Nights as Not Ranked which also feels a bit high.

I believe you need to refer to the 3rd quote in your signature. 

 



Never seen Better Off Dead.

[KevShmev]

Happy Friday!  Here are today's two:

25 Hear About It Later
Appeared on 11 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 2  (Trav86)

I had this at 26, so pretty close to its final spot!  Side 1 of Fair Warning is pretty much flawless, and this is a great way to end it.


24 The Seventh Seal
Appeared on 12 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 9  (devieira73)

Not all of Balance has held up well for me, but this song has for sure.  I had this at 33.  This is the highest ranked song from Balance in the countdown.

[HOF]

Hear About It Later is a nice song, but wasn’t in my top 50.

I had The Seventh Seal at 19. It’s a great song, kind of unusual lyrics for VH which I dig. It sounds a lot like Poundcake but that’s ok. It’s a great opener. Not enough Balance in the final ranking IMO.

[devieira73]

Hear About It Later (#31) - Great rocking tune with really tasty chorus/backing vocals;
Seventh Seal (#9) - It's an amazing song that benefits a lot of a robust arrangement, with a lot of guitars, even percussion and even a bit of shamanic chant in the middle. It's really very guitar driven, but it really rellies on making a great atmosphere in the entire song than focus on guitar riffs - which wasn't much common for VH.

[Stadler]

Everybody Wants Some! is a little more special for me because the first time I heard it was when watching the movie Better Off Dead with that epic scene in the fry kitchen  .

Good call.

Oh, and you're beautiful, Dream Team.   

That girl is a smoke show.

Who is it?  (I don't disagree, by the way).

[Stadler]

25. Hear About It Later - I had it at #13.  Love this song.  The intro is actually my ring tone for my ex-wife.
24. The Seventh Seal - I had it at #99.  Just a victim of numbers, frankly.  Good not great, and there are better songs on that album let alone in the catalogue.

[pg1067]

Everybody Wants Some! is a little more special for me because the first time I heard it was when watching the movie Better Off Dead with that epic scene in the fry kitchen  .

Good call.

Oh, and you're beautiful, Dream Team.   

That girl is a smoke show.

Who is it?  (I don't disagree, by the way).

Google Lens told me it's Elizabeth Olsen, who apparently is the younger sister of the Olsen twins and also an actress.  I have no clue who she is in her own right or what she's been in.

[HOF]

Everybody Wants Some! is a little more special for me because the first time I heard it was when watching the movie Better Off Dead with that epic scene in the fry kitchen  .

Good call.

Oh, and you're beautiful, Dream Team.   

That girl is a smoke show.

Who is it?  (I don't disagree, by the way).

Google Lens told me it's Elizabeth Olsen, who apparently is the younger sister of the Olsen twins and also an actress.  I have no clue who she is in her own right or what she's been in.

She was in the Avenger’s movies and had her own spin off show Wanda-Vision. That must be an old pic. It doesn’t really look like her to me.

[Stadler]

WOW.  The woman in that picture is all kinds of attractive; in watching the Avenger's movies, she never struck me as THAT drop dead gorgeous.

[pg1067]

This is the pic from her Wikipedia article (2019).  Pretty damn amazing if you ask me.

[wolfking]

Hear About it Later didn't rank for me.  Seventh Seal came in at 17.  Excellent song.

[The Realm]

25 Hear About It Later
Appeared on 11 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 2  (Trav86)

24 The Seventh Seal
Appeared on 12 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 9  (devieira73)

Hear About It Later - this was 33 for me. Just another one of those great, catchy rocking VH tracks.

The Seventh Seal - good song but unranked by me

[TAC]

25 Hear About It Later
Appeared on 11 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 2  (Trav86)

24 The Seventh Seal
Appeared on 12 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 2
Highest Ranking: 9  (devieira73)

I had Hear About It Later at #41. Hear About It Later is more than enjoyable. I love the middle section. So cool.

I had The Seventh Seal at #44. A lot of songs like this and Feelin' were so different that a typical Van Halen song, or even a Van Hagar song. Really cool addition to their catalog.

[Dream Team]

WOW.  The woman in that picture is all kinds of attractive; in watching the Avenger's movies, she never struck me as THAT drop dead gorgeous.

I’ve got several more lined up  .

[bl5150]

I had The Seventh Seal at #50 (probably should've been a bit higher) and Hear About It Later #23. 

The Seventh Seal was a nice opener for Balance and Hear About It Later just sits really nicely on Fair Warning leading into Unchained.  Both cool songs.

[KevShmev]

Today's update is a great one if you love the early Roth years!

Amazingly, I did not rank of these songs in my top 50.

23 And the Cradle Will Rock…
Appeared on 11 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 1
Highest Ranking: 8  (Trav86)

Fun little tune, but Women and Children First has never been one of my favorites, and I probably like half of the album more than this song.


22 On Fire
Appeared on 9 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 5
Highest Ranking: 1  (Trav86)

This one got crazy support from its fan, appearing in five top 10s.  I like it a lot, and, hey, it is from the debut, so you know it is worthy, but it's probably my 10th favorite from that record.


21 Eruption
Appeared on 9 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 4
Highest Ranking: 2  (The Realm)

I probably should have ranked this, but I had it on the brain to not have any covers or guitar solos in my top 50, so there ya go.  This is still possibly the most ground-breaking electric guitar song ever.  No, EVH did not invent tapping, but he took it to a level previously unheard.  There are stories everywhere of heads exploding all over the world when this song first landed in 1978.

[HOF]

Of these, only Eruption made my list at 46. It’s iconic and one of the most influential guitar solos in rock I imagine, so it had to go on the list somewhere.

[TAC]

23 And the Cradle Will Rock…
Appeared on 11 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 1
Highest Ranking: 8  (Trav86)


22 On Fire
Appeared on 9 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 5
Highest Ranking: 1  (Trav86)


21 Eruption
Appeared on 9 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 4
Highest Ranking: 2  (The Realm)

I had And The Cradle Will Rock at #46. It's never been a fave of that era, even though it got a ton of airplay. I've never been a mid tempo guy either.

I had On Fire at #10. This song 
Seriously, I remember seeing them play it on the 1984 tour, and I was kind of surprised, but it ripped. Killer track.

I had Eruption as Not Rated. I made an exception for You Really Got me. I should've done the same for Eruption. Iconic track.

[devieira73]

And The Cradle Will Rock... (#45) - I like this song a lot, I think the way Eddie uses the keyboards as the "rhythm guitar" was really creative.
The other 2 songs I didn't rank. Eruption, although amazing, iconic, and innovative as a guitar solo, to me, is more like a... guitar solo (!?), not really a song. And, as in "Best of Vol.1", I think VH1 would be even more impacfull (as if it would be possible...) if it opened with Eruption/Ain't Talking About Love.

[wolfking]

Didn't rate Eruption.  It's a guitar solo, not a song in my book.  It probably should have been ranked but I just couldn't, it felt weird.

I had Cradle at 19, that's a great song.  On Fire was 29, another good one.

[bl5150]

My rankings:

And The Cradle Will Rock #26........in hindsight possibly a bit high but certainly Top 50 material

Eruption #7 - I didn't know what to do with this to be honest but as an almost lifelong VH nuffie it felt wrong to leave this out of the Top 10.  It gets there for it's massive influence and legendary status

On Fire......I had at #3.   Any of my Top 3 could've been #1 on any given day.  This is the sort of song that makes VH great in my eyes - a great combination of attitude, aggression and humour.  Usually the guitar solo is a factor but it's not even one of my favourite solos of Ed's......just a great time from start to finish.  It always surprised me that it was the album closer .  I would've had it opening up Side 2.

[TAC]

On Fire......I had at #3.   Any of my Top 3 could've been #1 on any given day.  This is the sort of song that makes VH great in my eyes - a great combination of attitude, aggression and humour.  Usually the guitar solo is a factor but it's not even one of my favourite solos of Ed's......just a great time from start ton finish.  It always surprised me that it was the album closer .  I would've had it opening up Side 2.

 

[The Realm]

23 And the Cradle Will Rock…
Appeared on 11 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 1
Highest Ranking: 8  (Trav86)

22 On Fire
Appeared on 9 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 5
Highest Ranking: 1  (Trav86)

21 Eruption
Appeared on 9 of 17  entrees
Top 10 finishes: 4
Highest Ranking: 2  (The Realm)

And the Cradle will Rock - 15 for me. Love this song.

On Fire - 31 for me. Also love this one.

Eruption - not surprised I am the highest ranker. I was actually unsure whether Eruption would even make it to the Top 50 because I get that it isn't really a 'song'. However, while not a song it is actually so much more. If you have never heard VH1 and you put it on today, well there is a good chance you think Eruption is a cool little solo you have heard a million times but the reality is that before this album came along most of the world had never heard anything like this before. It is an iconic statement in the history and development of the guitar and the shredders we all listen to today. And in reality the whole VH1 album is iconic for the same reason but Eruption put Eddie on the map and for the next 10 years or more his face was all over guitar magazines etc etc or at least until Yngwie came along...

[jammindude]

When I think about how iconic Eruption is, and the incredible indelible mark it made on the entire music industry, it’s sometimes hard for me to fathom that Van Halen was largely not that well known on a worldwide scale. Their “stamp” in culture was largely US-centric.