Reviews (page 11 of 14)
1 star quality, but 2 bonus stars for nostalgic icon status
3 stars. I like the synths.
Classic
I really enjoyed listening to “1984” and “Jump” together, but the rest of the album was meh for me.
Ultimate 80s rock pop
Das Album war okey. Aber nicht so mein Ding.
Jump is clearly the best piece Hot for Teacher very blues-influenced I'll Wait sounds like a faint echo of Jump only 33 min
- Jump is the most 80s song to ever 80s - Some fun jams on it with great guitar - I appreciate its shortness
I know you're not too fond of rock but man did I miss it. Don't want to go to the blues and blues accessories aisle ever again
3/5. They are undoubtedly skilled musicians, but this entire album screams 80s bro in the worst way. Hot for Teacher was my highlight.
Jump has a really iconic riff, but I found the rest of the album rather forgettable. Not a huge fan of the vocals.
Ik ben niet zo van de glam/hair metal en dit zit qua sound vol in die hoek, maar de gitaar en drums zijn wel beter dan wat je normaal hoort bij bij die genres. Het nadeel is dat het regelmatig even fout klinkt als de hoes eruit ziet en dat is voor mij een smetje. Ik kan me daar niet goed overheen zetten. "Jump" is een klassieker en daarna vond ik "Top Jimmy" het beste nummer. Ik hoef hier eigenlijk geen heel album van. Met een totaal van 33 minuten is het ongelofelijk compact. Er wordt geen minuut van m'n tijd verspild en dat vind ik een dik pluspunt, maar alsnog heb ik dit liever af en toe in een playlist-roulatie dan als album. Qua cijfer kan ik zowel een 3, een 4 als een 5 naar mezelf verantwoorden. Een 3 omdat het fout is, een 4 omdat het leuk is, een 5 omdat het goed is.
This just made me think of an Adam Sandler film. I enjoyed Jump but didn’t really get much out of the listen.
En del bra låtar men inte riktigt min favoritgenre
Corny
Great riffs. I can imagine the hair
Oh that song. Yeah I enjoy that song. Very 80s. The rest is just meh. At least it's short.
Epic shredding by EVH but dated
A little face melty but also somewhat generic. I appreciate the energy behind this. That little riff where all the background instruments cut out and the guitar wales for a bit sounds very cliched. But it is also nice to hear some very good old rock. I'd give it a smidge over 3. Not something I'd buy or actively seek out, but there's a couple of songs perfect for a beach or volleyball mix.
I bought all VH albums up too this one. Not my fav
I've never been a Van Halen person, maybe because I never gave their music more than a cursory listen when their songs came on classic rock radio. I will say that hearing "Jump" with headphones instead of my dad's 2001 Ford F150 speakers gives it some shine. (Although, Van Halen definitely makes music for car rides.) It's still a bit too meathead rock for me to really love it, but I appreciate the musical proficiency and the fun this album exudes. I can understand why someone would love Van Halen, and why this album is on this list. Highlights: Jump, Panama, I'll Wait
Good but not great. Favorite song: hot for teacher
Jump and Panama are great and pull the weight for the album. Hot for Teacher I guess has a legacy of sorts. If youve heard the debut album though idk that this is needed to hear before you die, EVH's innovative guitar technique doesn't go through a distinct further evolution or anything as far as I can tell. Solid 3
Loved listening to Van Halen as a kid with my dad. The shredding is ridiculous on some of these songs but the songs themselves aren’t super special. Was torn between a 3 and 4
Not nearly as good as the debut album but still fun. The first half is way stronger. “Panama” has a great guitar part and “hot for teacher” is gross. Would do a 3.5 if possible.
Pretty good overall. The riffs are so great!
The guitar/music was impressive, song content less so. Listens: 2 Fave Track: Jump Rating: 3
I enjoyed the album but have never been over the moon for Van Halen. Obviously, Eddie is revered as a guitarist so I'm likely missing the boat on that portion. Van Halen, for me personally, may also suffer from the fact that they were the standard for their particular sound and therefore almost feels generic to me because I didn't experience it in real time.
A bit of fun! A few stand out songs, and the rest was a bit meh bit still fun.
I’m jumping!
Has some classic songs, but not my fav Van Halen album. Still incredible playing, of course.
Great album with Panama, Jump, Hot For Teacher, but the rest are not as good.
A peppy, positive form of boomer rock
Classic rock
Fun fact: I always thought it was 'Animal' not 'Panama'.
fun songs I recognize and enjoy but I would probably never put on
Angel fumeta
Ti ti ti ti ti ti ti. De pequeño siempre confundía Van Halen con Bon Jovi. La más famosa es Jump y es la mejor, claro está, pero el resto están bien. Música típica de la época y que te clavan en Rock FM entre una de Queen y American Idiot.
Eddie discovered keyboards, filling space and time Goodbye David. Bye.
I'm not sure the first track is needed. They should have just started with jump. The instrumental at the end of drop dead legs is far too long. Was a little disappointed by the album, but its still a good listen
not as bad as i was expecting
Mixed feelings. Tons of talent here but content can be jarring.
Classic 80s sound with some notable hits. Years ago I likely wouldn’t ever listen to this, but this is a fun and engaging record.
Somewhat familiar with VH so this was a fun listen. ‘Jump’ is probably the biggest song they have, but ‘Panama’ is big too. To have these back to back speaks to the albums quality. The song ‘I’ll Wait’ was charting the week I was born (#18). Love the drums on ‘Hot for Teacher’. Guitar solos throughout are incredible.
Knew "Jump" obviously, thats quite a banger. Panama is okay too, the rest is medium.
Muy blanco pero reconocido x mua
1984 was a phenomenal album back in the day. I lost interest in their histrionics and drunken concerts where they could barely play. Amazing talent wasted in self congratulation.
Definitely solid music, but it didn't really connect with me. It also all kind of flowed together -- most of the songs sounded very similar to the other ones.
Alright album
Strong opening with Jump. Otherwise kinda meh. Good guitar work though
1984 was my favourite
Classic as usual, not for me. bobbed my head a bit but nothing i would miss if i'd never hear it again
Couple good songs but meeeeh
Rockiges 80er Werk, dass von den Gitarren Solos der van Halen Brüder lebt. „Jump“ wird einfach unvergesslich bleiben die restlichen Songs auf dem Album leider nicht.
Total dad music
Es bueno tiene canciones muy buenas, pero no es el estilo de música que más me gusta aunque la batería y los solos de guitarra son buenos, no me gusta tanto como cantan, las mejores canciones hot for teacher y Panamá por sus solos y batería
ok
M'agrada molt el principi de l'àlbum. A part d'això, no m'ha semblat res especial. És un altre àlbum que penso que està aquí per una cançó i prou
Did not listen!
Really thought I'd like it more. the hits are good.
It's quite good. There's some good riffs and plenty of energy. Nice and short. Maybe a bit superficial? I don't know if that's a massive criticism as it is what it is, and it's not trying to be anything more than that. Just a bit of good fun that you can nod your head to.
It’s 33 minutes what? Princeesque intro Damn those synths though Jumps kinda a bop though Is it me or does this sound exactly the same as the last one? Was that one about sex?
I find the hair metal era a bit comical, not going to lie. Some good songs on here, particularly the Zeppelin-like ones (Girl Gone Bad for example). Others were pretty naff. Overall a mixed bag, not one I'll be rushing back to. 2.5*
Classic album with good memories
Incredible technical musicianship throughout. I mean, Hot for Teacher, say no more. Jump and Panama are catchy 80's hits. But the rest is pretty cheesy and I don't really care to listen to.
Ridiculous but fun
It's another album that reminds me of high school. There are some good songs but nothing that stands out for me.
Known as a classic 80s rock album but I never understood why. The 80s synth rock sound is perfect, however there is only one truly catchy song (Jump) - the other tracks are at the 2*-3* level.
Excellent guitar work and a few great tracks (Jump of course) but I don't get very excited about this.
Has some classics but can't really ger behind the lyricism
I overrated the first van Halen I got, in retrospect I'd downgrade is from 5 to 4 stars. This one sits close to that - 7/10
just rock
Hot for teacher is an epic ham
Tough album to rate because the singles are pure unfuckwithable gold and the album tracks range from meh to terrible. Like really bad.
Old guys love it
Not my favorite of the rock icons. I’d give it a 3.5 if I could.
Synths?
Not as punchy or memorable as I thought it would be, sure it has a bunch of known songs but are they as memorable as Queen or Zeppilin...hell no.
How is this considered Hard Rock/Metal? I certainly wouldn't classify it as either of those but overall an ok album. I've heard Jump and Panama many times before but the rest of the album is new to me. Overall pretty decent music. I wouldn't immediately try to change the radio station if I heard this but I also wouldn't be seeking it out. Hair metal is certainly was an interesting thing. It was such a huge part of people's identities at the time. I don't think this music would make me grow out my hair and wear rock band shirts but it also isn't something that makes me want to rip my ears off like Slipknot did. 3.5 out of 5 rounded down.
Not bad, wouldn’t listen to any of the songs on their own though.
Classic. A little short but pretty good. Hard to gauge this one. Maybe a 3.75/5.
When I was in middle school I was obsessed with Van Halen. Now that I’m an adult: they’re ok.
Lots of nostalgia with this one.. although I've never properly gave it a listen. I remember the neighborhood kids of my youth blasting the opening track on their driveway in utter amazement. "I got back against the record machine" is a new line to my ears. I've always heard it as "wrecking machine" which sounds much cooler. The synths on Jump always was an interesting choice to me. I've read that Eddie's synth was inspired by Hall & Oates. To me Panama is much more enjoyable. Truth be told... I'm quite fond of the country, but never understood the title of this song. Apparently it was named after a race car Roth seen that was called Panama Express. Hot for Teacher is fun in a silly rock sensibility. I'm sure lots of people are complaining about the subject matter, but a student enamored with a role model is a fairly common occurrence and it seems like Roth was more motivated to study due to it. Oh well... I like the percussion. I'll wait... is an odd song title... I was familiar with the tune, but didn't know it was that song until it started playing. Another heavy synth tune in which Roth fawns over a picture from a magazine. Thinking about the subject matter I realized there are several similar songs, such as... Centerfold by J. Geils Band, Photograph by Def Leppard, and Funny Little Frog by Belle & Sebastian. Despite the hits the album is a bit uneven. Girl Gone Bad is pleasant in its own way, but I can skip on the rest of the album.
Meh, cock rock. Hot for Teacher is decent.
fun! idk if i’d run to delisted but i’ll give it a thumbs up
Some good tunes
Good album
Decent synthy-guitar pop from the 80s. Not really my thing.
First full Van Halen album I've listened to, and it's more poppy than I was expecting (not a bad thing). Never been massively keen on Jump, but Hot for Teacher is a banger. The rest is a bit 'classic rock' for my taste. Favourite tracks: Panama, I'll Wait.
Ändå gött ös
B-side saves the album.
imagine explaining to george orwell that when 1984 does eventually roll around in its essence this is what it will feel like its stupid and fun and unpretentious and ends just when its beginning to overstay its welcome
Can see why it's influential, not my thing
Überraschend gut, dachte ich nicht
3.33 average mainly because Panama and Jump are pretty good. The rest is bad.
Jump is such a classic song of movies/shows/ads never knew it was by Van Halen. Didn't like it much, not my style.
Not great, not terrible. Back to the Future soundtrack vibes, very 80s
Up through Hot for Teacher this is pretty solid, I still marvel at Panama for some stupid reason. Its kinda like every good VH song rolled into one. The later half is just forgettable clunckers that drop without any impact or richness.
enjoyed the more instrumental sections
It’s an alright album. If I hadn’t heard Jump and Panama a million times, I don’t think anything about this album would really stand out.
I don’t really care about Van Halen but this was fine
Never realized they were saying “Panama”. Always thought they said “animal”. Huh 🤔
This album peaked with its first three songs (not counting 1984), then it just kinda dropped off. Jump is an awesome song, but everything else kind of paled in comparison. 6/10 Top 3: 1. Jump 2. Panama 3. Top Jimmy
The worst VH album….
B 1984 (instrumental) 3 Jump 3 Panama 3 Top Jimmy 3 Drop Dead Legs 3 Hot for Teacher 4 I'll Wait 4 Girl Gone Bad 4 House of Pain 3 This was better than I expected. I thought it was going to be an average 80s album, and instead, it was an above average 80s album.
Quiete generic 80s rock, but I liked it 3.5/10
Solid album from a solid band, I still don’t agree that it’s considered “metal” though
Enjoyed this more than I expected I would. Not bad.
Know: Jump, Panama, Hot For Teacher Favorites: Panama, Top Jimmy
Good fun rock/metal album. Nothing really moves me on here but still a fun listen. Last two tracks are pretty epic
Some impressive guitars, interesting drums, and really, really inane vocals. Pretty fun to listen to for a while, and then it starts to wear on you…
It was decent - old school rock which was cool. Love the power slide guitar sounds. Just very classic rock.
- Heard some of the songs before - Some songs I really liked and some I really didn't - Great guitar playing - Fav songs: Panama, Jump, House of Pain
Niets mee mis maar stiekem toch wel behoorlijk gedateerd en zal ik niet snel zelf opnieuw draaien.
Nie wiem m, jakoś może robiło szał kiedyś dla mnie takie sobie ale gitara ladnie
The songs I already knew were good. The rest were ok, but did not really do much for me.
Some iconic songs
Decent stuff
OK, first things first: Van Halen are not, and have never been, a Metal band. Even if you compare their music to that of contemporary metal bands - e.g. Maiden, Priest, Sabbath - the difference is striking. So: Hard Rock yes, but Metal no. With that out of the way, this is a good hard rock album. Jump, while especially overplayed, is one of the most iconic tracks ever. I, for one, tend to like Panama better, and Hot For Teacher is nice musically, while cringe inducing lyrically. The rest of the tracks are OK but nothing memorable. 3/5
Classic rock. 3/5
Fun fact: My mother's favorite Van Halen song is "Jump". Album #5. I found it almost a relief to find an unserious album in the queue for the first time--probably part of what contributed to my overall enjoyment of it--but 1984 was also just fun to discover. I went in with low expectations, and while "Panama" may not have been dethroned as my favorite VH song, I found a new level of appreciation for this band experiencing its formula through a new lens. Perfect to drive to early in the morning, even if the back half does fall off, and a surprisingly effective turn into the new wave era that many other bands couldn't manage. Shrieks and punchy drum rounds abound, if that happens to not be your thing. If you aim for unseriousness in daily life like me, however, you just might get something out of it.
funnnn
Meh
Better than I thought.
Such a good start to this album - slightly overindulgent intro, then Jump and Panama are great. Guitar work on Top Jimmy is super (the song itself isn't really, but the man can play guitar). It's a shame that it loses its way after this and goes very much teenage boy masturbatory fantasy, the lyrics to Hot for Teacher and I'll Wait in particular are so cringe-inducing... House of Pain is, however, a decent closer. Front half of the album is a 4, back is a 2, so it's a 3/5 from me.
Bisschen old school amerikanischer Rock? Ganz lustig, aber vielleicht für mich auch nichts für jeden Tag :)
classic 80's rock and roll 3 stars
Didn’t listen all the way through but 3 stars for Eddie by default
3.5
Easy to listen to, I'd call this album pure fluff, like eating marshmallow fluff with the Michelin man on a white cloud, nothing to think about or get deep into. I don't find anything philosophical about "Jump" or "Hot for Teacher", but take it for what it is, easy listening rock music.
Listenable but unspectacular. Feels very polished, and maybe lacks an edge as a result. Production and instrumentation good.
Pretty good actually! I did not think I would enjoy it, but Hot For Teacher and Girl Gone Bad are pretty good. However, I would not typically seek out and listen to VH.
First half is pretty strong. Some real bangers. Second half is meh. Overall liked it a better than I thought I would.
Not for me. Too heavy rock.
Tá bien, trae unos clasicazos pero al chile ya quería que se terminara
Introen på Top Jimmy va jævlig feit. Og bra med masse synth
panamaaaaaa oh ough oh ah ohhhh panamaaaqaaaaa
Ough!!!!😁🎸🎸🎸🎸🤟😋🤟
I want to give it a 4 but there's just something off-putting about Dave's voice to me
3,5
It's ok... It was probably mind-blowing in 1984. It has 3 of their 4 biggest songs on it which is a plus but overall the songwriting on the other tracks is somewhat lacking (IMO). I feel like Aerosmith was doing something similar at the time but better or more intricately (but I also tend to lean toward more bluesy rock so it's probaly just a preference thing). Wasn't bad but outside of Jump, Panama and Hot For Teacher there's not much to blow your hair back.
lol it’s not very good but when it hits it hits.
I might regret it, but when it is fun, it’s so much fun. Once you leave the singles it gets pretty bad. I also lost interest in Roth after I turned 13. It’s also nice to see a song about banging milfs over banging teens from a rock band
Highlights: "Panama," "Girl Gone Bad," "Hot for Teacher," "Top Jimmy" Unfortunately, it's very good. Even on this last album, Eddie never phones it in. What sells each song more than his solos is his sharp and ornate rhythm work, and there are always some surprising changes thrown away in there. The non-singles are just as good. "Girl Gone Bad" was a surprise, building to a chill-inducing frenzy with the jazzier prelude, dissonant touches, relentless bass beat, and the backup vocals slamming the front of the chorus. But the studio magic like the mic'd up car in "Panama" and the bewildering quadruple bass drum of "Hot for Teacher" does take the already high energy of the album somewhere larger than life.
ok
J'ai l'impression qu'ils étaient dans leurs années paillasson
mes rêves ferroviaires teintés de giga solos de guitare électrique
This was far far better than the other van halen album I've gotten so far. It's still the same blandish 80s glam/yacht rock with cringe song subjects (hot for teacher) but jump and Panama are rightfully classics and mostly save the album.
Fun. Can’t say much else.
Very good, much better than I thought it was going to be. Avoided this kind of music from the late 70s onwards
Straight forward 1980s soft rock, then out of nowhere you're hit by these weird incongruous guitar solos. I know EVH was a hero to many, but I don't get it.
El álbum no está mal, pero tampoco es genial, simplemente esta bien. Entiendo porque en su momento fue bueno, pero no me engancho del todo. Siento como si todas las canciones son iguales. Canciones favoritas: jump, panamá 7/10
"Hot For Teacher" is one the most trilling songs I've ever heard. The band sounds like they're tumbling off the rails the whole time, and every time I hear it I swear that this time they're going to crash and burn. Astounding. As for the rest of the album: Panama is still pretty fun. Jump is all right. It's catchy, there's no denying that. I'll Wait is cool. The rest of it, though? Meh. I do like that it clocks in at 33 minutes, though. I wish more albums were in that sub-40-minute range.
Jump -3.5 Panama - 3.75 Top Jimmy - 3.5 Drop dead legs - 3.75 Hot for teacher - 4.25 I'll wait - 3.25 Girl gone bad - 4 • basse & outro ❤️ House of pain - 3.5
ok banco 7/10
Good album, classic rock tunes Not fully my style but I could get into it. 6.5/10
More like 1969. 1984 and Jump are dumb. Next 4 tracks are alfa. Next are average 80’s songs.
Disappointing compared to their debut
De hits zijn cool, het jaartal fantastisch, maar als geheel toch niet geweldig.
A pretty standard 80s sound, but a fun listen
Some great tracks... some filler too
It’s Van Halen. Classic guitar riffs and synth. I want to love them and this album but it’s enjoyable but not essential. 7/10
It was good. I already knew some of the songs, I guess they were hits at the time. I liked it.
Pretty good. I loved Jump since I was young, and the rest is simple 80s hair band rock. Nothing special, but still enjoyable.
Punchy and shredding
This album is pretty hard to rate, because I'm not a fan of Van Halen, or anything similar to glam rock, but I'm a big fan of Eddie Van Halen and his amazing virtuosity on guitar. And maybe unsurprisingly, I actually dislike every single from this album, as I think those didn't age well, being very dull and boring, but other songs on this album, with less prominent vocal work by Roth are actually pretty good. An example of that is an amazing "Girl Gone Bad". Basically, anytime Van Halen is not trying to put out a top 20 hit on MTV, the song is very good. With those ambivalent feelings about "1984" I causally give 3/5 as total. 1 for singles, 5 for Eddie Van Halen and his craftsmanship.
DLR and Eddie Van Halen are icons. Fun album but the 80s synthesizer and hype for excessive grandiose blasting make it cheap.
The more you listen to this cheesy brand of '80s metal, the less impressive it becomes. Save for a few signature moves by each of the bands, they're all pretty indistinguishable. A guitar solo, a bright, happy (and horny) rock and roll vibe, soaring vocals. It's a good album, let's not get that wrong - but it's less notable simply by virtue of this style being so prevalent during the '80s.
didn't like the teacher song but i feel like it'll probably grow on me. i already knew a few so i expected the album to be good, which it was. did actually surprise me how much i enjoyed it. 4/5
ChatGPT prompt: "Generate a hard rock album that sounds like the early Reagan Years." Production: 5/5 (2015 Remaster) Performances: 5/5 Songs: 1/5 The songs are so corny. I was hoping maybe the deep cuts would have been interesting but they're just like the single without good hooks. Album art: 10/5
3/5 Best: Top Jimmy Worst: Jump
As expected 80s cock synth rock
I must have skipped a few chapters of Orwell's 1984, don't recall Winston being 'Hot For Teacher' in Room 101.
Van Halen is great but also terrible at the same time
Yeah, this is a good jam.
Corny as chuff but fun at a pinch
Hair metal, hard rock, Jump (!)
Not really my thing, feels a bit like a novelty act
3.5/5
Solid offering but rarely strays from just being ‘alright’
Not for me but I get it.
Helppo ja varma 3/5
It’s decent, definitely not bad, a bit worse than the other van halen album because this has the insanely cringey hot for teacher, but the rest of the album is okay, the main bangers are the main hits jump and panama but with time the rest might stand out more. But for now 3/5
Boomer's anthem. "Look how fast he plays, it must be good!". Yeah, it's alright, but will probably fade with time.
Some of it aged very bad, some of it are obvious powerful hits, some of it is nice, some of it is cringe. Van Halen are a monument of the 80s for sure.
Wake up with a hangover. What's today's album. Ah, Van Halen, check your brain in at the door. For the best part of my life the only song I thought I knew was Jump so thought of them as a synth pop band, confusing hearing Van Halen in the list of greatest guitarists. Then Apollo 440 happened and I realised they had another song. I probably also heard Panama in some American college films or something as I know that. It's alright, it's dumb, it does what it does. So, the rest. Drop Dead Legs is actually musically very good, enjoyed that. Hot For Teacher. Oh! Daft Punk! Yes! I am absolutely here for this. Oh Jesus what are you saying lads, this had such a promising beginning. Googles Aerodynamic, realise it's not actually Van Halen. Plays Aerodynamic. Ah, that's better. Goes back to Hot For Teacher 0:30. How is this not credited to Van Halen? It's really close. And fantastic, they should have built the song around it instead of rambling off in no direction. Oh well. Moving on. I'll Wait was arse. Girl Gone Bad was ok, if not particularly anything. House of Pain similar. A vehicle for some solos where they forgot to write an actual song first. Ok I'm bored now, good job this is the last song. Obviously I'll never return to this intentionally but it was more enjoyable than I thought it would be, plus the paracetamol have kicked in.
Rockin' 80s
Didn’t like it as much as their first
I was optimistic about this album, because my partner seemed to really like it, but this is kinda generic at best, save for one or two instrumentation parts. A couple of the last songs certainly picked it up, and Hot for Teacher has an awesome intro plus I quote "I brought my pencil! Give me something to write on," all the time, so I'll give it a really light three, but disappointing for sure.
Short but sweet
Solid album!! Cannot go wrong with this one! Jump, Panama and Hot for Teacher on one album, can’t beat it! After a full listen this album still kicks so much ass!
The two Val Halen tracks I already knew (Jump & Hot For Teacher) are on here, and they’re both good fun. The rest is a mixed bag; I found a lot of it quite forgettable, but at just 33 minutes I can't say I ever got bored.
I love jump
The biggest surprise of this whole 1001 albums journey so far is that I like hair metal, I like 80s rock anthem pop. I like this. It scratches an itch for me. I think that Def Leppard is what did it for me... it was so ridiculous, so over the top, so cheesy that it had this kind of flip for me, where I started just having fun with what I was hearing. This album is PARTLY that. The first few songs are addicting. Sticky. "Jump" feels like we're in a whole new world, it feels like the synth is finally here to stay. It's triumphant. "Panama" too. It's a great sound they've got going. I was so ready to give this album a 4, but then... the back half was kind of boring. Kind of what everyone assumes these guys do when they get in a room and jam. Less meticulous, fewer really compelling compositions. So close to hitting the mark for me. Could have been a moment for a tone shift! But even at 35 minutes it got a little old by the last 15. Had a good time regardless. 3/5
6/10
Eddie carries this for me, but I don't like it enough for anything higher than a 3.
Well, it doesn't get much more 1984 than this (I mean actual 1984, not George Orwell's 1984). This is a bit of a guilty pleasure for me I guess, although I try not to use that phrase anymore! Definitely the best of the testosterone fueled "Hair Metal" of the 80s. Since I got this the day after getting Pump by Aerosmith, it started me thinking about this 80s hair rock scene in general. It was a very strange time compared to 70s glam wasn't it? As I see it 70s glam's "gender bending" and cross dressing was somewhat more inclusive and boundary pushing, whereas these 80s bands were hypermasculine to the point that their cross dressing seems to have been more of a shock value thing exclusively. It's a bit off-putting really, considering the modern backlash against Trans rights. I can't help but wonder if this scene contributed somehow to that. Anyway that's the end of my Ted talk for today. 3 great singles on the album, the rest I can take or leave.
Some great hits. Very enjoyeable
With an album and title track called, 1984, predictably the album opens with a cheezy "futuristic" instrumental which is an indication the synths have invaded the Van Halen sound. Jump was a song the Winnipeg Jets used back in the 80's when the team took the ice. To bring back the nostalgia of the "old days", they have started to play the song again to remind fans how shitty the team was. Panama and Hot For Teacher rocks out like the "old days", but the rest of the record brings out the worst of the supposed "hair metal" genre which in reality is a watered down version of synth/glam rock gone wrong and mugging to the camera on MTV. The last VH record that mattered if you're a fan and for the rest of us, please go away!
Niet mijn ding, maar erken wel de culturele waarde van dit album. Priem
Jump lekker klassiekertje
Wat herkenbare nummers, maar vind hun synthesiser achtige shit niet heel hard. Al is jump wel echt een iconische plaat
So many hits.
Started out really strong.
Hitting their potential/destiny with this pop crossover 6 years post-debut. It can’t touch Aerosmith’s 20 year post-debut smash sellout ‘Get a Grip’.
'Jump' is quite good. Synth-metal, less so.
An energizing album with some great riffs.
gítarónanismi. blessunarlega stutt.
1984 cool intro track fav songs: hot for teacher, I’ll wait notes: I liked Panama more than I remember liking it. Hearing it in context of the album is a lot different from hearing it in the background as a helicopter of marines flies over the rice paddies and rainforests of vietnam
Yes & No
Some good tracks, American stadium rock.
It's generally OK - run of the mill pop metal. Jump and Panama are standout tracks, the rest is just filler. Not my sort of guitar style. EVH's tapping technique was revolutionary and almost invented the 'shredding' movement - but I hate shredding. It might be technically brilliant, but it's musically dead in my view. I want to hear soul and feeling and a melodic quality - I'll take Angus Young over EVH every time.
albumi tehty 80 luvulla ja nimessä vuosiluku joka kuuluu 80 lukuun... aika huonolla aloituspaikalla mennään... biiseistä olen suurimman osan kuullut ennenkin...kivaa rallatusta... muutama hyvä muutama huono joo selevä saundi, van haileni tekee siitä kuuntelemanvan...löysin juuri termin.. hair metal hot for teacher paras.. vaikka lyriikat on mitä on... miellekästä musiikkia kuitenkin
After a couple of British electronic/dance albums, this was a bit of a palette cleanser, even if I've never been the biggest VH fan. And yeah, this album is ok but it's certainly not the best example of rock in the early/mid 80s whether or not you think Van Halen are rock gods.
Hot for teacher drum solo carries this bad boy
Wasn’t a fan back in the day, still not a fan now:
3/5. Some classics but overall too short and even the other songs somehow still feel like filler.
Ja, probleemloos kunnen luisteren. 1x is wel voldoende
De 'Nederlandse' Van Halen Marshall-sound klotst hier nog tegen de muren uren nadat het laatste nummer heeft geklonken. Nooit eerder een hele plaat van Eddy uitgezeten, maar dit beviel best!
I get why I've never heard the non singles from the album. Kinda weak, well and Panama has never been my favorite. Nothing to write home about honestly
Really torn between 3 and 4 stars. Love the album, but is it really a 4-star?? solid 3.5, 3.75 even.
Jump is brilliant, the rest of the album was just alright. 3*
Not as good as I was hoping it was going to be. But passable.
This album is good. It's kinda generic rock, but in a good way that makes it pretty easy to listen to. I wouldn't say it's the best rock album ever, but it's definitely a fun listen. Favorite song: Panama Worst song: Hot for teacher
This was.. fine? Don't really get the excitement about this one. Jump is nice.
Good solid 80's rock. The singles are great, but the rest doesn't thrill me.
Oof. The 80s vibes are off the charts here and those synths need to chill TF out. There are some real duds here if we're being honest. The hits are fun, though. Hard to argue with "Jump" and "Panama" being hits for a reason. But, man... "Top Jimmy" and "Girl Gone Bad" are every bit as bad as the hits are good. It all evens out in the stonewash, I guess.
Some of Van Halen's greatest tracks are in this album, absolute relistenable bangers. But the other tracks are just kinda there. Fun listen the whole way through, but ypu really only perk up when the bangers are on.
mediocre
Iconic song, great guitar.
A few good singles and a fair bit of disposable guff - but the singles are really fun.
Kuinka monta Van Halen-levyä tällä listalla oikein on :D onhan tääkin hittikimara. 3/5.
Another album that brought me back to the pop-up video mornings. If I ignore the eyeroll-inducing lyrics on a lot of these songs, the music is quite fun. Jump and Hot for Teacher are classics, and Drop Dead Legs was cool.
This is one of my favourite album covers ever. The VH tunes aren't really up to that standard
Some pretty generic mid-80s hair rock. Apart from Jump it's largely pretty listless.
The debut of the synthesizer for VH. Last David album. Good stuff mostly
“Jump” makes me feel like I’m in Stranger Things on my way to school trying to hype myself up for the day. I guess it makes sense since the album is from the 80s. “I’ll wait” was a good one. I enjoyed the cadence of the song and how the singing I’m not a big rock fan but it’s pretty good.
Mad guitar skillz. Lyrics felt trite on first impression
Alright. Like some of the songs.
The synth instrumentals are so 80s. Album is very American and it’s great, very different than what I am used to listening to.
Undeniably talented, but it feels like many of these songs were written simply as vehicles for shredding guitar lines and not much more.
Found this a little cheesy, I always think of Van Halen as proper heavy rock but this felt a bit of cheese
Not my thing, but hard to hate when they're having so much fun.
Eddie’s pyrotechnics are awesome. But they’re paired with lyrics like, “Throw my rope, loop de loop / Nice white teeth Betty Boop”.
Sin más. Tenía Jump en mis me gusta.
The epitomy of 80's rock I kind of like it for nostalgia and because it's so safe. It reminds me of corny 80s 'coming-of-age' movies. Musically very accomplished, well produced and slick you can't fault it other than it's cliched and not your thing. Looking at the list of albums released at the same time it's sad to say they are ALL cheese......so sit back and clench.
Not me speed but some bangers
3.4⭐️
Introen på Top Jimmy va jævlig feit. Og bra med masse synth
synths! (and guitar solos) Loved Jump
"Van Halen, not Van Hagar" - Joe Dirt Eddie is a great guitarist, and Van Halen is a decent 80s rock band. This is probably their best album and they definitely have a distinct sounds - so, therefore, worthy of the list. But - still - it kinda sounds like the opening scene from Back to the Future where Marty cranks up all those amps and, upon striking the first chord, blows them all up in a blaze of feedback and smoke - except it lasts for 30 minutes.
Jump sounded kind of insane with headphones on. Needed more keyboard
Definitely one from my childhood and though it did bring back happy memories it's not really a classic. Good fun but no depth.
Good fun, with enjoyable guitar acrobatics and not as 1 dimensional as I was expecting.
It ain't the worst that I've seen.
a WORMHOLE to the FUTURE
Solid
Chose to listen to this as a tribute the weekend that Eddie died in Oct 2020 and enjoyed it. This time I'm being critical. The hits are very good (Jump, Panama, Hot for teacher) the others are not particularly memorable. So just a medium album. I think their first album is probably stronger.
Pinnacle of 80's dad rock. If youre into that probably one of the best albums of all time. I'm not so 3/10
The singles are great
Saw Van Halen twice live in the late seventies. They were awesome live. Never really considered them a hair metal band in the same vein as Rat or Nazareth or Poison. When this album came out I felt like it was a commercial sell out. On re-listen I think that was a bit harsh. A nice party rock album. Good but not great.
yeah good music but didnt really catch my attention
Another solid Van Halen album. This one isn’t as good but still entertaining and impressive. Jump and Panama are pretty classic rock party songs. Hot for teacher is a solid rock song. There’s a couple lulls but overall this is a good album. 7.5/10
Ocjena više jer sam davno slušo na repeatu hot for teacher i jump
I have mixed feelings about Van Halen. First of all, their music is very dated and firmly rooted in the 80s synth and hair metal aesthetic. Second, their lyrics are at worst crude, and at best, unimaginative. However, their musicianship is tight, acrobatic, and expressive although it doesn’t show much variation. As a guitarist, I understand why they are important, but I find their melodies lacking. EVH is incredibly technically gifted, but his style doesn’t resonant with me as much as the style of other less technical more melodic guitarists. To me, Van Halen is less about solid song writing and more about showmanship.
Might as well Jump.
Can’t lie, definitely enjoyed listening to Hot For Teacher.
3.5
Among the seminal texts of the 20th century, "1984" is a rare work that grows more haunting as its futuristic purgatory becomes more real. It offers a nightmarish vision of a totalitarian, bureaucratic world and one poor stiff's attempt to find individuality. The brilliance is in the prescience of modern life—the ubiquity of television, the distortion of the language—and his ability to construct such a thorough version of hell. Required reading for students since it was published, it ranks among the most terrifying novels ever written. Hold on, wrong "1984"... I loved the first Wonder Woman movie. So how did the same people create such unwatchable trash in "1984?" Hold on, that's not right either... 1984 was a year of disappointments. I stopped being an only child. Reagan was overwhelmingly re-elected. The Olympic Games were held without the US getting a chance to beat communists. The Tigers and the Raiders and Italian soccer were world champs. I give the year one star. Wait, I'm gonna get this right... Ah, I'm supposed to be reviewing "Panama." Great country. With a plethora of deserted islands, chilled Caribbean vibes on one side and monster Pacific swells on the other, Panama sits poised to deliver the best of beach life. And a whole other world begins at the water's edge. Seize it by scuba diving with whale sharks in the Pacific, snorkeling the rainbow reefs of Bocas del Toro or setting sail in the indigenous territory of Guna Yala, where virgin isles sport nary a footprint. Meanwhile, surfers will be psyched to have world-class breaks all to themselves. Hello, paradise. And finally... Listening to Van Halen's "1984," I recalled my Bon Jovi review from a while back. "I feel like rock got progressively heavier through the 60s and 70s until it gave birth to heavy metal and thrash metal. Then the 80s took that heavy sound and dialed it back for pop radio and consumerism, and thus came hair bands." Yep, that fits Van Halen, even if they aren't quite in the hair band grouping. There are some classics on here, but I can't help hearing their guitar riffs and thinking about how they took heavy metal riffs and made them a bit too palatable and frankly kind of boring. And as a somewhat attractive educator, I can't get down with the whole vibe of "Hot For Teacher." That song, by the way, starts with one of those aforementioned diluted metal riffs before trying to save it by segueing into a nice little blues bit, but then ruins it with weird horniness. Also, I am not in agreement on the synths. Particularly the weird fake organ stuff on "I'll Wait." I think that song would be so much better if they stuck to guitars. Anyway... tldr... lousy year, great book, middling album.
Lekker onvervalste 80s rock muziek. Klinkt wel lekker, maar ook niet weer super bijzonder. ***
Best Song: Hot for Teacher. Often times, songs are either funny or musically interesting. This is the rare case in which it's both. This song is positively sweaty. Worst Song: I'll Wait. Sometimes, David Lee Roth just sounds like a poor man's Phil Collins. Overall: Van Halen elicits a very specific feeling. You're near a body of water. The sun is setting. Your entire body is slick with lotion. You've lost track of how many beers you've had, but you have the vague notion that you're halfway to wherever it is you're going. A feeling of existential dread begins to push on you from the periphery. Is this it? Is this what life is? You belch and crush your beer can, grabbing a cold one from the bucket. Too Hot For Teacher comes on. As quick as it came on, the feeling of dread is gone, replaced by the need to Air Drum.
Bad boy glam rock packed full of bluesy riffs, furious drumming, and synth fills. I can practically hear the sweat rolling off their chest hair and onto their skin tight vinyl pants! I honestly never fully appreciated just how great a track 'Hot For Teacher' is. Each part played and sung is remarkable on it's own, and they fold and flow together so perfectly. 'Girl Gone Bad' is another impressive showing by the band, showing just how tight the band is with or without David Lee Roth.
Not bad...
I did enjoy hearing this, particularly as it made me feel nostalgic for eighties American movies.
The synth-heavy tracks and pop tracks on this album such as Jump, Panama and I'll Wait are pretty obnoxious and are 2-star songs in my book. The best of the rock tracks are very decent or even pretty good, going up to 3.5-4 stars for me. All in all, too much annoying pop for me.
Exactly as expected
Probably good for its genre but not to my liking, lyrically or musically.
3/5 started well, but didn't make the cut
Young and strong.... You can still feel the energy
Ow, isso me lembra meu ex...
Fun rock album with energy and pop the whole way through
"Hot shoe, burnin' down the avenue Model citizen, zero discipline" (Panama) "Dig those moves, vampire Set me loose, get it higher Throw my rope, loop-de-loop Nice white teeth, Betty Boop Set it cool real heavy I ain't fooled, gettin' ready" (Drop dead legs)
Cheesy 80s rock. Has the three singles you've heard a million times (Jump, Panama, Hot for Teacher) as well as some lesser tracks.
I sort of wanted to hate this, preferring the earlier, more spontaneous (and harder rockin') Van Halen albums. But it is really hard to dislike this record. the songs are really catchy, and the playing is incendiary, almost overworked in the production, but not quite. I like the variety of bringing in the synth (a suitably crunchy oberheim). The four singles are stellar, and even the album tracks are pretty song. Top Jimmy and Drop Dead legs are possibly just filler, but they don't suck. a really good, solid (heavy) pop album, with a lot of fun.
Buen disco
80s hair metal. It may be that Van Halen were the first, they may have been the most proficient, but to my ears the progenitor of 80s hair metal is not distinguishable from so much of the work they inspired. I appreciate the position in history, I even enjoy the genre they were instrumental in creating - from time to time - but I'll not be listening to this again.
My gym teacher in high school would play "Hot for Teacher" every single damn day when we ran laps (Mind you, this was during the 2000's, not the 80's). Yeah, so that's the one memory I have with this band. Naturally, I grew to despise the song, but it's been long enough for me to let that go. 1984 is full of dad-rock cheese, but there's plenty of badass guitar shredding (and drumming) in here to make up for it. While not something I tend to listen to, it's not that bad. It's just average classic rock to me.
This album didn’t excite me. The songs aren’t bad but a bit samey
Solid rock and obviously 80's, one of the records that fundamentally defines the 80's. Not that it's "dated" and cringey to listen to at ~40 years old, it's a perfect encapsulation of the time along with the time of life - being a scruffy, rowdy teenager. I can't judge whether Van Halen was better with Sammy Hagar, but DLR nailed being a flashy front man for this band.
6/10
Good album, knew a few off here. Would give it a 3.5 if I could
Some great songs but def not their best offering.
Great fun. Close to 4 star.
Has some fun songs that I really liked, but felt nearly half the album was well below average. 3/5
3 pretty big hits are great; the rest just okay (all sounds alike). not great, not terrible.
Loved the beginning but as a whole album itt was too much for me.
The problem with 1984 is that it sounds like 1984: stupid masculine hard rock from the 1980s. It aged like milk. "Jump" and "Hot for Teacher" are great songs, the guitar playing of Eddie is fabulous and David sounds like an on stage must see. Too bad the rest of the songs are subpar and uninteresting.
This brings me back to the 80s with the Chicago Cubs commercials on WGN when they would play Jumps. some great songs on here but a lot of this sounds exactly the same. 3/5
6/10
Classic Rock n' Roll. Not particularly my cup of tea this one but would listen to again. Album art is great would wear it on a shirt.