life, and a little more

The Music Experiment, Part 2

Mar 05

metalman777music music, van halen No Comments

Now it is time to see how Mr. Sammy Hagar stacks up compared to Diamond Dave. I used the same criteria for judging Sammy’s songs. In case you didn’t read my previous post, here is what I did: I listened to each song and rated them on a scale of 1 star for sucky to 5 stars for totally awesome classic. Certain songs just rock more than others, that’s a given. I was looking for songs that you could throw on a playlist while you and a buddy went on a long road trip and you could just rock out and have fun to.

I was shocked to see that Sammy had a 71.4% awesome song rating! 30 out of 42 songs made a 4 star or higher rating! He totally kicked DLR’s butt! I think I am more shocked than anybody! Let’s break it down!

5150 was released in 1986 and literally rocked my world. I have to say that I am heavily biased for this album as it is the first hard rock album I really, really fell in love with. I was in 8th grade and just finding myself musically. So, Sammy Hagar was actually my first singer with Van Halen. Eight out of nine songs made the 4 star or more rating. All time favorites from this album include Dreams, Summer Nights, Love Walks In and Best of Both Worlds.

OU812 was released in 1988 and never really grabbed me. In doing some research for this post, I became aware that the title (oh, you ate one too!) of this album is a slight poke at David Lee Roth’s solo album Eat ‘Em and Smile, which was released around the same time. Four songs garnered a 4 or 5 star rating. Black and Blue and When It’s Love are my favorites. I still don’t know why I don’t like this album very much. Eh, who cares really?
1991 saw the release of Van Halen’s ninth studio album, entitled For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge. When it was released, I don’t even think I bought it. I was a sophomore in college and was listening to too much Christian rock! However, I was surprised at how many songs received a high rating! Nine songs totally rocked! Right Now, Top of the World, Poundcake, and Judgement Day are favorites.

Balance was released in 1995 and was the last album that Sammy Hagar sung on. Again, nine songs get a 4 or 5 star rating! This is just some good rock ‘n roll! Favorites include Amsterdam, Can’t Stop Loving You, The Seventh Seal, and Feelin’.

The results are clear….Sammy Hagar has a better ratio of classic rock songs! He scored a 71%, with 30 out of 42 songs getting a 4 star or higher rating. Diamond Dave scored a 60%, with 36 out of 60 songs receiving a 4 or 5 star rating.

Both frontmen are incredible and the music is still what’s most important. I had a lot of fun doing this experiment and will probably be conducting some more along these same lines.

The Music Experiment, Part 1

Mar 04

metalman777music hard rock, music, van halen No Comments

Yesterday I introduced my idea for a fun music experiment comparing the music of Van Halen with David Lee Roth versus the music of Van Halen with Sammy Hagar. The first part of my results are in and I’d like to share ‘em with you.

I had six albums featuring David Lee Roth on lead vocals. Of those six albums, 60 songs were included. I listened to each song and rated them on a scale of 1 star for sucky to 5 stars for totally awesome classic.

Certain songs just rock more than others, that’s a given. I was looking for songs that you could throw on a playlist while you and a buddy went on a long road trip and you could just rock out and have fun to. I was a little surprised to see that DLR was hitting a 60% average! That is awesome!! I can’t think of many other bands that would rate that high.

Not surprisingly, Van Halen’s self titled debut album (1978) scored the most hits. Actually , every song scored either a 4 star or 5 star rating. EVERY SONG. Classics like Jamie’s Cryin’, or Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love, or You Really Got Me are just rock ‘n roll at its best. I would have to say that this is my favorite Van Halen album of all time. The sound is gritty and raw, but the production is superb. You can hear every instrument clearly. The Fun Factor is definitely a +10!

Van Halen II (1979) is Van Halen’s sophomore release and it is a very, very awesome album. Seven out of ten songs got the higher rating. Dance The Night Away, Somebody Get Me A Doctor, and Beautiful Girls are probably my utmost favorite songs from this album. Again, the sound is raw and fun and DLR shines like only he can.

Women and Children first was released in 1980 and it marks a slightly different sound for the band. This album scored the lowest number of classics, with only 3 songs making the mark. But what a doozy those three songs are! And The Cradle Will Rock, Everybody Wants Some, and Could This Be Magic are masterfully crafted songs that showcase the awesomeness that is Van Halen. The sound is big, but just a little more toned down. I love Mac Anthony’s bass playing on this album!

Van Halen comes out swinging on their 4th release Fair Warning (1981). Five out of 10 songs make the 4 star mark. This album is a little darker than Van Halen’s previous “party album”, but the boys still know how to rock. Unchained and So This Is Love are the two standouts that I absolutely love.

Diver Down was released in 1982 and is sometimes referred to as Van Halen’s “cover album”, as five of the twelve songs are all covers. All four songs that had a 4 star rating or higher were all cover tunes. I might have to go on record and say that Where Have All The Good Times Gone? might be my favorite Van Halen song ever. I just love everything about it! Call me crazy, I don’t know. Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now) is a funny song and I love the playfulness of it.

Ah, we finally come to 1984, Van Halen’s sixth studio album (released in 1984 of course!) This was when I was alive and actually could appreciate the album! I can remember many, many hours spent listening to this tape. Almost every song made the cut, but I’ll be honest, I just can’t get into I’ll Wait or Girl Gone Bad. Favorites from this album include Panama, Top Jimmy and Hot For Teacher, but my mostest favorite would have to be House of Pain.

After 1984 was released, David Lee Roth left the band and had a pretty good solo career (I’m Just A Gigolo anyone?) How could he not, with Steve Vai playing guitar for him! Tomorrow I’ll look at the albums of Sammy Hagar and see how they match up.

Setting Up the Music Experiment

Mar 03

metalman777music hard rock, music, van halen No Comments

I love music; more to the point, I love hard rock and heavy metal.  Recently I heard a song by one of the kings of hard rock, Van Halen, and I had an idea for a music experiment.

When Van Halen is mentioned in a conversation, the first question out the gate is almost always, “So, you a David Lee Roth or Sammy Hagar fan?”  This debate has been around since 1986 when Sammy put out his first Van Halen album entitled 5150.

 I thought it would be fun to make this arguement personal and perform a nice little musical experiment.

Thankfully technology has come to a place where I can collect every Van Halen album ever recorded and listen to them wherever I go.  If this task fell to a lesser man, I’d be worried about the results, but since I own every Van Halen album and have actually listened to and know almost every song, I’m not worried.

 Here is the experiment:  I pull up every Van Halen album (minus the Live: Right Here Right Now) in iTunes and make three playlists.  One is entitled “Van Halen (DLR)” which has every album with David Lee Roth as the front man.  These records include: Van Halen, Van Halen II, Women and Children First, Fair Warning, Diver Down, and 1984.  Almost 60 songs of utter Van Halen goodness.

The second playlist included all the records with Sammy Hagar as the lead singer.  These albums included 5150, 0u812, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, and Balance.  Again, some awesome classic music!  (and no, I don’t count Gary Cherone’s lead on Van Halen III any good!)

The third playlist was every Van Halen song, with both DLR and Sammy, all mixed up.

My experiment was this.  To listen to each playlist individually and write about the impact of the songs and see if I could put the question of Lead Singer Supremacy to rest, at least for me.  I will use my iPod’s rating system of 5 stars=awesome to 1 star=sucks to rate each song.  I will then look at the ratio of the number of songs that earn a 4 or 5 star rating to the rest of the songs and see which singer comes out with the best rating.

I will listen and report back as soon as possible, so in the mean time, just go listen to some Van Halen and relax!