Actually I listened to a great interview Eddie did with the Smithsonian of all places and he actually mentions he started out playing bass with his Father (and brother) on a cruise ship, so the legendary EVH actually was a bass player before anything else. Check out the interview it is worth listening to : th-cam.com/video/yb26D8bBZB8/w-d-xo.html
With Roth...Van Halen just seemed like they were having fun and they were hungry to make great music. With Hagar...it turned into a lot of love songs. I cannot listen to "Can't Stop Loving You." ugh...I was like, "No! NO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" The Roth era was just bad ass..."Somebody Get Me A Doctor," "Ain't Talking About Love," "Mean Streets," and I could go on and on. Roth era is PURE GOLD!!!
DLR's capabilities as a singer and writer were very limiting to VH's sound and range. I love the albums but I am certain VH were capable of much more. They proved it later. I loved DLR back then. Now I just see we all ate the charisma and bravado and thought it was talent. He is entertaining, but a one trick pony. He was what every dude back then wished they were.
What I like about DLR era VH is how funny a lot of the songs are. Little lines like "look I'll pay you for it" or "I don't feel tardy" or "one break coming up" etc.
Was talking about this album yesterday, knew about what Van Halen was yesterday and he died that day. I feel like I killed him with spiritual garbage! I knew about "Jump" since I was six but never knew who made it. And no I won't say VH3 killed Eddy. Also this is a better review than Todds
@@BusinessZeus probably because Todd only really reviewed one song instead of the whole album. But at least he actually knew where the album cover came from.
@@BusinessZeus interesting comment that VH3 killed Eddie through, metaphorically it's failure probably killed Eddie's hopes of staying relevant as a (popular) musician. The "best of both worlds" tunes and "a different kind of truth" don't have the fire an artist burns with to top their previous acclaimed works.
1998 was the year that taught me the true nature of disappointment - Star Wars: The Phantom Menace and Van Halen III. The whole year was really an artistic punch in the balls.
I actually saw Van Halen live when they were touring to support this album, and although the album was a hot squirt of goat poo, the tour was pretty fun. They played a lot of old, classic VH tunes, sort of like they knew that the album sucked. hehe.
I saw 4 dates on the tour and loved it. The most diverse set list celebrating all era of VH. Gary was great singing 9 Roth tracks, 4 of Sammy's and 4 off of VH3. Highlight of the tour was Mikey singing Somebody Get Me A Doctor. Oh on a side note Josephina is an ode to his mother. Like he's looking through a photo album of her growing up and he's asking questions about her past when he did not know her. But ya worst VH album ever.
Extreme is one of the most underrated bands ever. They get pigeon holded due to More Than Words. They serious rock. III Sides to Every Story is one of the greatest albums of all time.
@@mattiwigstrom1668 - III Sides came out when alternative, country, and gangsta rap had chased hair metal off the charts, so it was at least under-heard.... (It was also more than 10 minutes longer than VH III, so your mileage may vary. I liked it enough at the time; it was one of the last cassettes I ever bought, but I never had the impulse to buy the CD, download the MP3s, or stream the album.)
It was Roth that wanted to do all the covers on Diver Down. From a guitarist perspective, which I am, Fair Warning is their best album with DLR. It’s the heaviest guitar sound and Eddie’s riffs and solos were just furiously sick!
I think Diver Down gets a lot of hate, but I love it. Little Guitars alone is worth a listen. Fair Warning is incredible!!! It was definitely the most different album they did with Roth. The opening to Mean Streets is still one of the best riff and intros I've ever heard in a song.
A different kind of truth is harder. Some very unique riffs (Honeybabysweetiedoll and As is are insane tracks) Fair Warning has a lot of funk if you ask me. Great album though.
diver down to me sounds like a bunch of mini albums (or EPs) that's supposed to make up an entire album. still a good listen. where have all the good times gone, full bug, little guitars, dancing in the street, and pretty woman make the album worth it for me.
Diver Down and Fair Warning are the real root causes of the split with Roth. Ed hated Diver Down. Label wanted a record ASAP and Dave and Templeman pushed for all the covers pissing Ed off and prompting him to build his own studio, 5150. 1984 was recorded there. This was Ed wanting more control. For the Fair Warning sessions, he was laying down the guitar parts Dave and Ted wanted during the day... then sneaking back into the studio and rerecording all of the guitar parts the way he wanted at night with Don Landee, the engineer. Fair Warning and Diver Down opened the fissures that then split wide open after 1984.
Was not the problem for YOU. As always in Music, it's more a matter of taste for the listener than a evidence for everyone. For you it worked, for me it was a big meh
Agree with this comment 100%. But his vocals were mixed differently on VHIII-they’re dry. At least Pornograffitti has some reverb to make the production sound full an bombastic, and not like a band from the 80’s sound relevant in the 90’s with a new clean sound.
I remember going to Tower records the day it was released and buying this. Putting it in my CD player in my bronco in the parking lot. Listened to first couple tracks. Pulled it out went back in to return it. The employee walked up to me. I said I want to return it. He asked was something wrong. I said yeah this is the worst SH*T I ever heard!!! Apparently I wasn’t the first customer that did the same thing that night
No love for “Women and Children First”? They were on that tour when I saw them, and the album rocks! Their opening act BTW was Talas, with bassist Billy Sheehan, who played later with DLR and then Mr. Big.
@@TheDrumlineguy actually In my opinion, I never listen to the MC with Corabi, but over the years I kept hearing from MC fans and some not so fans, that the MC/Corabi wasnt a bad album, Me being a MC/Neil fan, I did not want to hear anything from MC without Neil, Well I got older and more open minded and I decided to give it listen, and too my surprise it was'nt a bad album. Another bad that came out with a great album without the original singer, was Skid Row without Bach. The Skid Row album with Johnny Solinger, was a great album, Most fans didnt want to hear Skid Row without Bach and didnt give Johnny Solinger a chance, Skid Row, should of maybe changed their name and maybe they would of gotten better reception, But if you havent listened to this album, and not listen to it expecting old school Skid Row, you will be pleasantly surprised.
personally I loved vh3. and I'm 58. and I've seen vh, van hagar, Sam & Dave's contour. and took my kids to van halen 17 yrs ago. I LOVE "a year to the day" on vh3. it was just a chance for the guys to try something completely different.
For any engineer/producer types out there, I don't wanna use any names, but someone who worked on this record told me that they had accidentally erased the drum overhead tracks on some of the tunes, which explains the lack of punch/clarity/whatever on the drums. They wind up having to fake an overhead track by using the bleed from the tom mics, and I'd guess probably whatever other mics happened to be nearby the drumkit while they were recording.
1984 had a ton of good metal records come out...Defenders of the Faith by Judas Priest, Don't Break The Oath by Mercyful Fate, March of the Saint by Armored Saint, Out of the Cellar by Ratt, Ride The Lightning by Metallica, Tooth and Nail by Dokken, The Warning by Queensryche, WASP's self titled debut...the list goes on and on
@@britgilbert8736 They should check out their live shows with Gary I thought he handled both the Roth and Hagar material well. Honestly I'd take Cherone over Hagar any day, way better fit for VH. VanHalen III suffered from lack luster song writing although Josephina and Year to the Day were decent.
Cherone just sounds like a KMart Hagar. If he had done his own thing maybe it could have worked but the songs aren't very good and the production is awful. It just sounds weak. And Cherone looks like a fucking waiter in that all black metrosexual getup.
I like Cherone's vocals on From Afar. It creates a theatrical feel to it. I think Year to the Day is the best track on the album by far though. Overall, this album could have been much better and I agree with most of this analysis.
Cherone has said himself they should've toured first before making the record ..... But even, I've been a van halen fan most of my life. And I don't care who was lead singer as long as ed and Alex were there I got my money's worth. Rest in peace Ed
I agree. If they had toured before the album, I feel like they would have been able to gel a lot better, know each other's strengths and weaknesses before rushing into the studio, and the end product could have been a lot stronger.
Eddie having died - and the perspective that he'll never release new music again - very likely allows this album to shine in a different light. Nobody claims it's perfect, plenty of weaknesses to point out, but it has some great moments.
That's totally fine, yeah. I will agree that it has good points, and at the end of the day, music taste is subjective and people are totally free to like any album that I dislike.
I was a huge Extreme fan, even and in many ways especially their most-panned Waiting for the Punchline album. So, I was excited when they announced that Gary was stepping in. I thought he’d breathe new life into the band. Well, I’ve tried... and tried... and tried to listen to VHIII over the years and just have to endure it each time. You did a great job telling their musical story. There was no trying and enduring with a Van Halen album. Even their lesser albums to date grabbed hold and didn’t let go. The last time I tried to listen to this one again with fresh ears, I thought: I’m older now. Maybe being in a different place in my life will bring newfound apprecia - no, nope, nothing. You pointed out the best bits, but the sum of the parts is nearly unplayable. I always thought it must’ve been sad for Gary, too. You get this great gig and get trapped in what must’ve been a surreal production experience. Then you’re forever known as the worst lead for VH. That had to have been heartbreaking. Ah, well. I really appreciated this insightful breakdown. Awesome work.
Yes, bad fit. He was great in Extreme, not in VH. But, I've seen live video with Gary and he actually gave a great concert because he could sing both of the Roth and Hagar stuff well. I'm not sure that Gary's trying to do Roth and/or Sammy impersonations on VHIII as Happy Spaceman thinks. To me, "Without You" vocal and groove sounds very similar to Extreme.
It is a struggle to get through this record. I was embarrassed for the band. Cherone is a good singer but, the vocals did not mesh with the instruments. This was the first album I wanted to return
"Trapped in the surreal production experience" i.e. Ed's ego and substance issues - Gary likely did what he was told. It's a creative effort on Eddie's part but would have benefited from a true producer giving advice to van halen (the band) on how to to continue to "be van halen".
Sammy Hagar laid out what was wrong with VHIII. Eddie has ZERO songwriting arrangements skills. Sammy would have to tell him how to arrange a song - verse here, chorus there, put the solo there etc. Michael Anthony concurred that Ted Templeman and Roth had to do the same for the first 4 albums. VHIII is a prime example of how clueless EVH was in arranging songs. Brilliant riff and songwriter but had no idea how songs are put together.
Ed also pretty much produced this album himself...mixing and mastering records is an artform, and Ed didn't have an golden ear for mixing. I love Ed, and I'm gonna miss him terribly, but there was a reason he never tried mixing and producing a VH record again after the VHIII disaster. It's distorted, flat..the vocals are screeching and the levels are a disaster. I know the liner notes say "Mike Post"...but let's face it...Post never produced a rock album in his life, so why hire him?...easy...Ed will be doing what he wants, and Post will try to help him a bit.
Ive been listening to this album the last couple days. It isnt that bad. Its actually pretty interesting musically. The major issue i think is that the songs run long and the production isnt great. But i think 'Year to the Day' is an amazing song.
"Once" was actually Eddie's version of Peter Gabriel's "Red Rain." He has said so, because "So" is is favorite album, and I believe him. EVH has also said that "So" is the only music he has listened to since it came out. In 1986. I do not believe him.
Interesting! Also, TBH I do believe that he's only ever listened to his own stuff since 1986. A lot of songwriters who get really big do that in order to avoid lawsuits. There are a number of smaller artists who get sue-happy and figure that songwriters like Eddie are a quick way of making money.
Its funny you should mention Extreme's funk-rock roots. I always think what Roth brought to the band was his R&B and dance influences, which he has always preferred to the Van Halen's Deep Purple and Led Zep influences. Early VH bootlegs have them playing the likes of Ohio Players. That's what makes the band interesting for me, and why I think I'm not keen on Sammy era. So, with that, if they would have gone back to the earlier sound with Cherone, it might have worked out a bit better. Ironically, Roth's album from the same year sounds more like a Van Halen album than this Van Halen album!
Doubt it would have worked out any better than it did. Not with everything going on at the time. Eddie was sober for the first time with a new song writer. They had never played together. That's almost impossible to do. I don't care how good the musicians are, if they haven't played together, certainly rare to write great songs together. Gary said it himself, "If I was to do the whole experience over again, I wish I would have gone out and toured with the guys before we made the record," he said. "Because when I came in at the beginning, you had to get acquainted. You know, I was the new kid in there. That in and of itself was a little uncomfortable.." They went right into the studio after a few jam sessions. There was a lot of things that shouldn't have been done making failure almost certain.
HappySpaceman- A very informative and entertaining video. You not only know your music, but you know how to deliver info in a way that engages the listener. You also saved me the trouble of having to listen to this album! Look forward to watching your other stuff.
Thanks for watching and commenting! Yeah, I feel as though video essays and more serious review channels are lacking an engaging way of delivering the info, so I've always wanted to entertain people _as_ I educate them. I hope to make more like this (well, with better production value, being four years later and all) in the future!
There was also Power Slave, Defenders of the Faith, Last in Line, Tooth and Nail, Out of the Cellar, Pyromania, Perfect Strangers, Hell Awaits, and Stay Hungry. Let's just say 1984 had some pretty good albums
Hey, I never noticed the album titles were actually back and forth jabs at the other band/person. That's interesting. I'm giving a thumbs up for pointing that out. haha
I can't really tell if the lyrics are bad since I can't understand most of the words. It's not just an impression of Sammy, it's an impression of Sammy mumbling.
24:11 Gary sounds like one of the voice filters that Roger Waters used on The Wall! (I think the one he used for the teacher) So that's 2 Pink Floyd inspirations on this album, along with Once
As I am apparently one of the three people on the planet who actually like this album I found your video to be equally 1) offensive, 2) entertaining, and 3) informational! Bravo! Great job! LOL I very much enjoyed your perspective and humor - my response being to subscribe to your channel even before checking out what else you have to offer.
@@tristanreagann I fully agree. I thought I would react like 99.9% of other people, but funnily i just love it!!! yes the last song reminds me of Roger Waters and... I like it!
This album's major problem was being 65½ minutes long. I did some audio work, along with swapping out the pointless solos, One I Want, Ballot Or The Ballot and How Many Say I for That's Why I Love You (how that was left off I don't know) and trimming down the remaining tracks (except for Dirty Water Dog and Fire In The Hole, which are both belters) before they ran out of steam. My 41 minute version is pretty solid.
About 10 years ago I was living in Boston and saw Gary Cherone singing in a Who cover band called Slip Kid. He did an excellent job replicating Roger Daltry.
The instrumentals in "From Afar" were alright, even if they were produced horribly. (I still can't stand the drum and guitar sound on this album.) This album definitely had a lot of potential, that's for sure.
"What made Eddie think it was a good idea to sing lead!?" Turns out, it was Gary's idea. Here's an excerpt from a Songfacts interview: _"I was the one who encouraged him to do it on the record. He was a little reluctant. It's gotten criticism over the years because Eddie sang it, but I thought the initial demo was so inspiring. For me, it was just like, "You should sing it." I twisted his arm a little bit, but then he embraced it because I was comparing him to Floyd. His demo was so emotional - I thought it was great."_
I imagine that between the recording of the album and the live performances, they were able to brush up on the songs from this album and improve how they sounded.
Album would’ve been great if it didn’t sound like it was recorded in a tin can. If the production was better, perhaps a remaster to make it warmer and less like a tin can would bring it some justice.
I did some audio work, along with swapping out the pointless solos and How Many Say I for That's Why I Love You (how this was left off I don't know) and trimming down the remaining tracks (except for Dirty Water Dog and Fire In The Hole, which are the best two on this) before they ran out of steam. My 48 minute version is pretty solid.
It's not that it's a bad record, it's just not a Van Halen record that fans would come to expect (in so much that it's an Eddie Van Halen solo record in my opinion).
100% it was an Ed solo album, but Ed wanted to prove VH was him, not his lead singers. Unfortunately Ed took for granted Dave and Sam as song writers and collaborators and the guidance of legit producers to VH's success. This is result of Ed having no one tell him no.
I agree with the final assessment. There was potential in the project, but it never really came into focus or materialized as it should've. Once is a glorious moment though, a piece of experimentation that actually worked.
Maybe if it had had better production and lyrics, and hadn't been released under the Van Halen name, it could have been better. There are some shining moments on the album, too, "Once" being one of them. Thanks for watching!
From a musician point of view, Gary Cherone was the absolute best singer VH ever had. Using "More Than Words" as his intro is ignorant fanboy stuff. Extreme is a serious badass band.
From only your point of view. It is a matter of taste and you can't speak for everyone lol. For me, this guy was really nothing special compared to Sammy or DLR. Just a poor copy. Your said he was the best, I say he was the worst. Our tastes are differents... and finally, who cares ?
The fact is, hair metal only really counted from the end of the seventies to the end of the eighties. After that it was sort of a matter of enticing people with music the audience knew was going to be suburban, slick and professional, and just sort of outdated in a macho, 80's, douch-ey kind of way. Not so for Tom Waits though !! But he never seemed to think the 80's existed, even in 1985. The reason this album "III" exists is because Alex the drummer from Han Valen was married, and his brother in law was a music manager (who managed Gary Cherone), and when Sammy the singer left/was fired, his management (and the management of Han Valen) left - SO they got Alex's brother in law to manage, who thought much money $$$$$$$$$ would come to their smiling, Los Angeles faces if they just put two commercial 80's rock acts together. It didn't work, but mostly because the music is so bland - its like Van Hagar but even blander, he had bluster but "III" sounds blander than a demo by a Christian Rock artist. Which is another thing, Alex the drummer is an ordained Catholic priest and Gary the singer is a Christian Rocker, so maybe total blandness is the key to their collective hearts and capitalist irrelevance. In the 90's piles of loud rocker bands like Pantera, Alice in Chains and even NIN had a past with commercial 80's pop - it's just no-one knew of them then. In that decade, you needed edgier music or disturbing videos or a new image or anything, anything to avoid being a bland hair metal artist. G&R were actually perceived as a hair metal backlash with their authentic guitar tones, retro clothes and the fact that there's NO synthpop elements on any of their four albums. God, the 80s sucked really. th-cam.com/video/ksBE53CIT8E/w-d-xo.html
@@DrZuluGaming Ironic, back when I was a fan of the NC (this was 2015 or so), I made my review of Roger Waters' _The Wall: Live in Berlin_ and had my own parody of "The Trial" that was similar to how I would have imagined Doug making it. Years later, Doug _did_ make one... but at what cost? Completely lost my respect for Doug. And I'm not sure what Corey Taylor or Rob Scallon were doing there either.
I remember when this album came out - VH had been so quiet and I was excited when I heard about its release. I purchased the CD at the closest place I could think of after leaving work - Barnes & Noble. Back in the car, I rip the cellophane off and push it into the CD player. First track comes on... what the?... hit the track advance... ???... then another... ???... and another. By the time I get to the intersection to get out of the mall - all the tracks we "sampled." I pushed the eject button and threw it out the window. I littered and I'm not proud of that for that but man what a let down. Perhaps they could rerelease the album without any vocals and make it an instrumental.
This may be a slightly unpopular opinion and I know you're not reviewing the album, but _Van Halen II_ is my favorite album from this band. My favorite aspect of Van Halen is Michael Anthony's backing vocals and bass work, and _VHII_ has more of a focus on them. I mean, you've got "Dance The Night Away", "Somebody Get Me A Doctor", "Women In Love..." and "Beautiful Girls". All of these songs have some of Mike's best background vocals in the band's discography in my opinion.
Balance is highly underrated Its only mistake was 3 instrumentals 2 that were dumb. My Favorite sound and vibe of Hagar years. Much darker less pop 7th Seal, Don't Tell Me What Love Can Do, and Feeling are great and IMO the best of Sammy years.
Eddie did previously play bass on Sammy's last solo album before "officially" joining VH....he had a contractual obligation to give his record company one more album before getting released from his contract. So...he asked Ed to play bass on it.
I don't think I've ever heard of Van Halen described as "hair metal." Most rock fans from the olden days would take offense at that. Ah, well, does such a thing really matter four decades later? Probably not. Anyway, I've got to give a thumbs up to the Van Halen the 3rd album. Nobody liked it at the time, and that reputation has probably worsened since '98, but whose fault is that? I loved the '90s for the music diversity and anything-goes attitude. Mind you, I was never a fan of most '80s hard rock and heavy metal--heck, I loved Seattle precisely because they kicked all the LA rocker-dude bands to the curb. So I end up enjoying the '90s Van Halen albums more than most. Again, ah, well.
Thanks for the comment! As I said, there are some things I appreciate about the album, even if I wasn't a fan of the overall product. As for their status as a hair metal band, I think they basically _created_ the scene with their influence, as every hair metal band started off trying to be Van Halen. So in my books, they have earned the honorary title of being the first hair band--YMMV, though.
So many things wrong with this video. Firstly, Van Halen was never a “hair band.” They were way above the trendy bands of the 80s. Secondly, Fair Warning had no covers and it was the best album they ever released. They went in a completely different direction with this album and it gave us songs like Unchained and Mean Street. Third, there were successful hard rock acts when Van Halen l came out: Aerosmith and AC/DC, anyone? What made Van Halen revolutionary was Roth’s personality and Eddie’s playing. Fourth, Roth never claimed he was fired. He admitted to quitting the band.
Lots of errors on this critique, if you can call it that. Maybe the reviewer should actually have been alive during the era he's describing poorly. I'm not a big fan if this album either, but if you can't tell that it's EVH playing on those songs, your credibility is out the window.
There is a huge difference between reading about the history of this band and living through each record release. Completely different perspectives. To each their own I guess. RIP Eddie.
I was at a show in '91 with David Lee Roth, Extreme, and Cinderella at Great Woods in Mansfield, MA where Extreme got issued a platinum record in the middle of the show. I think it was a step back for Cherone at around that time to join Van Halen.
Extreme's 1992 album bombed, their 1995 album was purchased by about 18 people and by 1996 they were essentially broken up. Not entirely sure, then, how this would have been a step back for Cherone when his previous band hadn't been culturally relevant in at least half a decade and was not active at the time.
Dude, you have this Weird Al Yankovic vibe, partly from looks and part from your mannerisms...although I don't know which of his albums killed his career.
Weird Al's career? Last I checked, it was still alive and kicking. But thanks! I've gotten a lot of those Weird Al comparisons (perhaps not helped by the fact that I've grown out my hair twice as long since I filmed this video, haha). Hey, at least you aren't comparing me to Tommy Wiseau like some people do...
Interesting take on controversial album. Admittedly, I was so hard up for new Van Halen music, I liked it when it came out. 20 plus years later I view it as an abomination of Van Halen catalogue and in light of Ed's passing, I don't think I'll ever listen to it again because it taints how good he was as musician. RIP Ed.
Thanks for the comment. It's admittedly a lot harder to talk about this album now that Eddie is no longer with us, but that's why we remember Eddie for his legacy, the great albums and songs and the lasting influence he had over rock.
If you thought this was good when it came out ... Or now, you're demented. This is an objective comment, not just some opinion coming. Doesn't mean you're a bad person, or anything like that
Hey mate once again a great video! 1978 for Queen wasn't too flash (HAHAHA) as 'Jazz' didn't go down as well in the united states, and Pink Floyd almost broke up during the Animals tour :(
LOL, puns! I remember a few people telling me that _Jazz_ might have been their second worst received album behind _Hot Space_, despite the boosting of the singles "Bicycle Race," "Don't Stop Me Now," and "Fat Bottomed Girls." As for Pink Floyd, I was aware of that, and, well, we all know how that ended. th-cam.com/video/ObNH28Q_vaI/w-d-xo.html
I know I'm going to get roasted here. But to this day, I still believe that "VAN HALEN III" is one of the band's BEST records. My only "issue" with it is that the production being handed over to Mike Post. Ted Templeman has always been one of my favorite Music Producers since the 70s. And I felt that with a new singer in Cherone, Templeman's history with VH would have helped a bit more. I still love the album. And accepted Eddie's wanting to "go somewhere else" for a bit. Since his death, it's one of the VH CDs I've gone back to playing often.
FYI Gary's last name is actually pronounced Sherone. There was a lot of good songs on this album. "Year to the Day" is my favorite but there are some other good ones too.
Thanks for letting me know about that. I'd heard it pronounced with a hard ch- sound by many fans, so I went in assuming that was how it was pronounced. Not the only time I've made that mistake, but hopefully the last!
That's my biggest criticism of the record. Anyone who knew Gary from Extreme knows that the guy can sing, but the vocals on that album are muffled garbage. I don't know if it was Mike Post (stick to TV theme songs, dude), Eddie's mixing, but that thing never stood a chance at being a decent record.
I'm not a musician, so take my opinion for what it's worth, but while I liked Gary in Extreme and both previous versions of VH, I disliked VHIII, because Gary and Eddie don't fit together. Sammy and Dave both understood how to craft lyrics and their singing around Eddie's rhythms and embellishments, but Gary's style of signing doesn't let you get comfortable with the rhythm of the guitar, but instead draws your attention to the vocals. It sounded less like Van Halen and more like Eddie playing guest guitar on a Gary Cherone solo album.
From what I've been told by people who know Gary personally, most of his vocals and lyrics were just demos, for instance Without You was done only 3 days of him joining the band...Gary is a great singer and equally inventive lyricist, and he suffered what Michael Anthony suffered on this album, and unfortunately takes all the blame as if HE was in charge....funny video though! Btw, Cherone is pronounced like 'Sherone'
Wouldn't surprise me if they were demos, honestly. The entire album has that demo sort of quality. And maybe Gary should have toured with the band before they immediately recorded an album, so he could gel better with the other members. Whoops! Thanks for letting me know. I'll fix my pronunciation of his name in future videos.
18:23 Well... Eddie actually HAS some bass credits from before. He played bass on Sammy Hagar's solo album "I Never Said Goodbye", and on Steve Lukather's self-titled solo debut from 1989.
See, the thing is, LOTS of other people have told me the same thing, to the point where I actually added an annotation on the video saying, "Yeah, okay, I know this now." Not that this helps much, since TH-cam removed annotations a bit back. Oh well, everyone makes mistakes once in a while. This just happened to be a particularly egregious one on my part.
@@THSReviews No problem. Overall it's a great video, on an album that includes a few great highlights (Fire In The Hole is amazing, despite the lyrics) but still stands as the worst Van Halen-album.
This came up in my recommended viewing options. I actually shared some content last week on my channel reviewing my collection of Van Halen items. I love your review of this, as I personally think this is a good album, I wouldn't say great.... but good. Honestly, I like this album with Gary more than the most recent album Van Halen released in 2012 with Lee Roth back on vocals. I just joined your channel and hope you get more viewers as I can really tell you enjoy doing videos for non commercial reasons.... Keep up the great work and I am going to check out some more of your content.
This album was originally called Ed's Ego Trip. He not only payed guitar, but played bass, produced the album, mixed the album, and even sang lead on a song. Next album Ed planned to sing everything and the next one even take over drums from his brother. Sammy meanwhile went on to make multiple very good solo albums that were both coherent and not cringing. Sammy's solo albums were the best VH albums in the last 20 years lol
I could see it. If he really did produce the album instead of Mike Post, who is credited, then he did a poor job on it and really needed to get a second opinion with some of those choices.
@@THSReviews Mike Post did whatever Ed wanted, so Ed produced it. It's like if a movie has a Director but the leading man is actually directing the whole thing. Who's film is it then?
@@cheapseats12 Yikes. And Mike Post didn't have any experience producing rock albums before that--he just did work on country stuff and TV themes. Did Eddie Van Halen produce anything before _VHIII?_ I know now that he had played bass before it--I got that wrong in my review.
@@THSReviews I don't think he produced anything prior to this. VH albums always had a legit producer and Dave and Sam were the ones that ran the band, not Ed. So this is result of Ed in control of the band and album. Not surprising he would have issues after this and only 1 disastrous tour until 2007. He made a bed, took ball and fumbled. Was a sad end to VH outside of slight revival with DLR in 2000s.
Yeah, I'm aware. FYI, this video was nearly seven years old, so other people pointed that out to me since then, as with Eddie's bass playing. Unfortunately, I cannot go back and edit old videos, and TH-cam removed the ability to add annotations, so I can't make any amendments on the video.
Great job. My first time seeing one of your videos. I like that you start with song one. Albums used to be put together with a cohesive “story”. Reading Sammy’s book, EVH became very messed up from drinking. Probably did some permanent damage (good name for an album). Ted Templeman’s book explains a lot in the early days. I believe I read Eddie played bass on Jump.
I already addressed the bass thing in the pinned comment--I received many other comments letting me know about that when I first uploaded this, to the point where I made an annotation in the video about it (but then TH-cam removed annotations, so... yeah). Apart from that, thanks for watching! I figure albums should be a cohesive thing, and _good_ albums still are these days. Poor Eddie. R.I.P.
I had read that the first batch of songs that were written were originally for a solo album from Eddie. That's one of the reasons why the band went right into the studio with Gary. It may be the reason why Eddie sang lead vocals on How Many Say I.
Great video Happy Spaceman! I am not a huge Van Halen fan, but I do like some of their songs(“Why Can’t This Be Love” from 5150 is my personal favorite). But upon watching your review on Van Halen III, I listened to the entire album myself, and I do agree with you that while the album missed the mark, it wasn’t a completely terrible album. Some things that would have made it better in my opinion included: 1) Cutting down the longer tracks to 4-5 minutes. 2) Making some of the instruments and vocals sound more clearly in some of the tracks(Ex: Fire In The Hole and Without You) 3) Gary Cherone singing in his own voice in From Afar and Year To The Day(And having him sing vocals in How Many Say I instead of Eddie) 4) Move Newworld to the middle of the album and make Without You the first track instead. 5) Make the lyrics to some of the songs more creative, and in some songs, less creepy(Like Josephina).
Eddie (RIP) admitted in an interview that anyone who didn’t like the way Gary sounded on this album should put the blame on him (Eddie, that is), because Gary sang the whole album pretty much the way Eddie asked him to. I think Gary deserved a lot better than what he got, because he was asked to step into pretty much an impossible situation, and then restrained in his ability to make the best of it. I don’t despise the album by any means...it has its share of shining moments. Year to the Day is an amazing song...Ed’s solo on that gives me full body chills. His playing on this album was not the issue, and it wasn’t entirely Gary’s fault either. Gary did as well as he could, and he is a very talented vocalist. I think the songs just weren’t as developed as they could have been.
@@chuckmoore5186 I certainly hear some similarities between Gary and Sammy at times. I think Gary was pigeonholed because of Extreme, who were quite underrated themselves.
Thanks! This video has surprisingly been increasing in views. I think I'll probably make more "Was It Really That Bad?" videos in the future; they seem to be the most popular ones on this channel.
Lol I didn’t even notice that Van Halen and David Lee Roth were dissing each other with album titles. That makes the Sammy Hagar era even better now lol.
Thanks for this analysis, sometimes funny I admit. It has taught me to keep my expectations low though... but an open mind too. See I had been a fan of Van Halen, no matter what era it was... however, in 1998 I had started having my kids and I had backed away from buying music and had ignored the band by then. Now today, with the passing away of Eddie, I'm kind of discovering this album. As you put it, it was not played much on radio so I did not know of it's existence. Today, my musical taste has evolved into more progressive rock (Porcupine Tree, Riverside, Radiohead, etc) HOWEVER I did listen to the "III" album and I find it refreshing to see Eddie go in those musical directions. Yes very different but still having it's own musical colors and more melodic riffs. And yes, the signer is trying to keep the "tone" of its predecessors, but hey that's the Van Halen tone. People hating a band because it's going in directions they themselves don't like is a selfish pretense, in my opinion. I liked discovering this album whatever people will say, and I will play it often to appreciate Eddie's new tones (Ballot Or The Bullet sounds nice, irrelevant of lyrics). Eddie's gone and like so many people, it saddened me quite a lot. So discovering this album is a way for me to listen to him with a fresh musical shade. He did compose the music of the sensual movie "Sacred Sin" and the song Josephine is in line with it. Interesting stuff... Thanks Eddie... I liked rediscovering you again in this album! RIP man!
Yes, I know Eddie has played bass on other songs.
I gotta say bro, I did like "A Year To The Day", probably the ONLY track I liked.
(Sorry if anyone has said this below) I thought he played bass on Hagar's "I Never Said Goodbye" CD
@@sykora4417 Literally what I just said above, bruh...
@@THSReviews Sorry, I thought you were referencing other VH albums - Great review, sir!
Actually I listened to a great interview Eddie did with the Smithsonian of all places and he actually mentions he started out playing bass with his Father (and brother) on a cruise ship, so the legendary EVH actually was a bass player before anything else. Check out the interview it is worth listening to : th-cam.com/video/yb26D8bBZB8/w-d-xo.html
David Lee Roth's lyricism is criminally underrated. Dude knows how to spin a yarn in verse.
A lot of times he does, but sometimes, you get "40 below"
A peroxided Mark Twain.
With Roth...Van Halen just seemed like they were having fun and they were hungry to make great music. With Hagar...it turned into a lot of love songs. I cannot listen to "Can't Stop Loving You." ugh...I was like, "No! NO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" The Roth era was just bad ass..."Somebody Get Me A Doctor," "Ain't Talking About Love," "Mean Streets," and I could go on and on. Roth era is PURE GOLD!!!
DLR's capabilities as a singer and writer were very limiting to VH's sound and range. I love the albums but I am certain VH were capable of much more. They proved it later. I loved DLR back then. Now I just see we all ate the charisma and bravado and thought it was talent. He is entertaining, but a one trick pony. He was what every dude back then wished they were.
What I like about DLR era VH is how funny a lot of the songs are. Little lines like "look I'll pay you for it" or "I don't feel tardy" or "one break coming up" etc.
R.I.P. to the legendary Eddie Van Halen, 1955-2020.
Very sad day in the history of music.
Just, heard about it now...
Was talking about this album yesterday, knew about what Van Halen was yesterday and he died that day. I feel like I killed him with spiritual garbage! I knew about "Jump" since I was six but never knew who made it.
And no I won't say VH3 killed Eddy.
Also this is a better review than Todds
@@BusinessZeus probably because Todd only really reviewed one song instead of the whole album. But at least he actually knew where the album cover came from.
@@BusinessZeus interesting comment that VH3 killed Eddie through, metaphorically it's failure probably killed Eddie's hopes of staying relevant as a (popular) musician. The "best of both worlds" tunes and "a different kind of truth" don't have the fire an artist burns with to top their previous acclaimed works.
The answer is "Yes" but the live performances of the classics with Gary are proof enough that he wasn't the problem.
very true
True. Gary really can sing
I love van halen lll
@@davidnissim589 Not on his VH album, though. He did nothing but screech like an owl on most of the songs.
@@asnark7115yeah, thank god they had the sense to play songs like Without You in a different key so they could preserve Gary’s voice.
1998 was the year that taught me the true nature of disappointment - Star Wars: The Phantom Menace and Van Halen III. The whole year was really an artistic punch in the balls.
I actually saw Van Halen live when they were touring to support this album, and although the album was a hot squirt of goat poo, the tour was pretty fun. They played a lot of old, classic VH tunes, sort of like they knew that the album sucked. hehe.
I saw 4 dates on the tour and loved it. The most diverse set list celebrating all era of VH. Gary was great singing 9 Roth tracks, 4 of Sammy's and 4 off of VH3. Highlight of the tour was Mikey singing Somebody Get Me A Doctor. Oh on a side note Josephina is an ode to his mother. Like he's looking through a photo album of her growing up and he's asking questions about her past when he did not know her. But ya worst VH album ever.
Episode 1 came out in 1999
oops, you're right!
I was thinking of it in terms of "the school year that started in 1998".
Extreme is one of the most underrated bands ever. They get pigeon holded due to More Than Words. They serious rock. III Sides to Every Story is one of the greatest albums of all time.
Something that is milquetoast can never be labeled “underrated”.
Just stop.
@@evanoglesby9504you really should listen to III Sides bud, that's a great album
When was Extreme underrated?
@@mattiwigstrom1668 - III Sides came out when alternative, country, and gangsta rap had chased hair metal off the charts, so it was at least under-heard.... (It was also more than 10 minutes longer than VH III, so your mileage may vary. I liked it enough at the time; it was one of the last cassettes I ever bought, but I never had the impulse to buy the CD, download the MP3s, or stream the album.)
III Sides is a great album. Still listen to it often.
It was Roth that wanted to do all the covers on Diver Down. From a guitarist perspective, which I am, Fair Warning is their best album with DLR. It’s the heaviest guitar sound and Eddie’s riffs and solos were just furiously sick!
I think Diver Down gets a lot of hate, but I love it. Little Guitars alone is worth a listen. Fair Warning is incredible!!! It was definitely the most different album they did with Roth. The opening to Mean Streets is still one of the best riff and intros I've ever heard in a song.
A different kind of truth is harder. Some very unique riffs (Honeybabysweetiedoll and As is are insane tracks) Fair Warning has a lot of funk if you ask me. Great album though.
diver down to me sounds like a bunch of mini albums (or EPs) that's supposed to make up an entire album.
still a good listen.
where have all the good times gone, full bug, little guitars, dancing in the street, and pretty woman make the album worth it for me.
Diver Down and Fair Warning are the real root causes of the split with Roth. Ed hated Diver Down. Label wanted a record ASAP and Dave and Templeman pushed for all the covers pissing Ed off and prompting him to build his own studio, 5150. 1984 was recorded there. This was Ed wanting more control. For the Fair Warning sessions, he was laying down the guitar parts Dave and Ted wanted during the day... then sneaking back into the studio and rerecording all of the guitar parts the way he wanted at night with Don Landee, the engineer.
Fair Warning and Diver Down opened the fissures that then split wide open after 1984.
Absolutely agree
"You know you're semi good looking."-Most epic rock-n-roll lyric in rock history. I will always be partial to the Roth era.
Yes! Right up there with "We got no class, and we got no principles - we can't even think of a word that rhymes!"
Eddie played bass on Hagar’s “I Never Said Goodbye” album in the late 80’s.
Thank you. I thought the same thing when he said Eddie had no bass playing credits.
I literally addressed this already in the pinned comment and _two_ of my other videos. You do not need to keep telling me. I already know.
Fair warning is definitely one of the van Halen‘s best albums.
THE Best
Yes! Thank you. Much better than 1984 IMO and their heaviest.
3rd best album imo
I still think VH1 is their best but Fair Warning is a very close second as a guitar players album.
@@Star_Sn1per What are your top two?
Gary Cherone was NOT the problem with this bland album. And he wasn’t trying to sound like VH predecessors, he just sounds like Gary
Totally disagree with Gary's voice not mimicking Dave and Sammy's. It was too obvious! The ultimate problem was and has always been Eddie!
@@vincentsimon4037 he sounds exactly the same as did on any Extreme album
@@vincentsimon4037 Noting Van Halen never would have gotten off the ground if it weren't for Eddie, of course.
Was not the problem for YOU. As always in Music, it's more a matter of taste for the listener than a evidence for everyone. For you it worked, for me it was a big meh
Agree with this comment 100%. But his vocals were mixed differently on VHIII-they’re dry. At least Pornograffitti has some reverb to make the production sound full an bombastic, and not like a band from the 80’s sound relevant in the 90’s with a new clean sound.
I remember going to Tower records the day it was released and buying this. Putting it in my CD player in my bronco in the parking lot. Listened to first couple tracks. Pulled it out went back in to return it. The employee walked up to me. I said I want to return it. He asked was something wrong. I said yeah this is the worst SH*T I ever heard!!! Apparently I wasn’t the first customer that did the same thing that night
No love for “Women and Children First”? They were on that tour when I saw them, and the album rocks! Their opening act BTW was Talas, with bassist Billy Sheehan, who played later with DLR and then Mr. Big.
Everybody Wants Some!! Gotta admit that album has significantly grown on me.
Romeo Delight is so good and unique.
I love love love Gary Cherone. He belongs in Extreme. That's his home, and I am glad of it!
I need to listen to more Extreme. They're legit. :)
TheHappySpaceman Reviews Three Sides is their best imo
Extreme is badass. They were in the Van Halen "mold". Could see Wolf and Alex playing with Nuno under a different name. I would listen to it.
Again: A vocalist in a wrong band despite good potential.
I wonder if there are other good examples for this. I feel like some might argue that Hagar is one of these, though I would disagree.
@@THSReviews Motley Crue during that year with John Corabi.
@@TheDrumlineguy Now _there's_ a possible future review...
@@TheDrumlineguy actually In my opinion, I never listen to the MC with Corabi, but over the years I kept hearing from MC fans and some not so fans, that the MC/Corabi wasnt a bad album, Me being a MC/Neil fan, I did not want to hear anything from MC without Neil, Well I got older and more open minded and I decided to give it listen, and too my surprise it was'nt a bad album. Another bad that came out with a great album without the original singer, was Skid Row without Bach. The Skid Row album with Johnny Solinger, was a great album, Most fans didnt want to hear Skid Row without Bach and didnt give Johnny Solinger a chance, Skid Row, should of maybe changed their name and maybe they would of gotten better reception, But if you havent listened to this album, and not listen to it expecting old school Skid Row, you will be pleasantly surprised.
personally I loved vh3. and I'm 58. and I've seen vh, van hagar, Sam & Dave's contour. and took my kids to van halen 17 yrs ago.
I LOVE "a year to the day" on vh3. it was just a chance for the guys to try something completely different.
I’m a huge VH fan but this album did blow. Fire in the Hole was one of few good tunes on there.
For any engineer/producer types out there, I don't wanna use any names, but someone who worked on this record told me that they had accidentally erased the drum overhead tracks on some of the tunes, which explains the lack of punch/clarity/whatever on the drums. They wind up having to fake an overhead track by using the bleed from the tom mics, and I'd guess probably whatever other mics happened to be nearby the drumkit while they were recording.
Too bad Eddie and Mike had a falling-out. Personally, I love Michael Anthony's bass playing. Just watch him in Chickenfoot for proof.
And the Circle
Michael Anthony's backing vocals were a big part of Van Halen's sound also. The band just wasn't the same without him.
Chicken Foot ?
they didn't have a falling out. Ed just cut him out
wasn't only ed... they were all assholes to him.. especially during 1984
It sounds like it was sang by a drunk person. (Sigh) Mainly because, IT WAS SANG BY A DRUNK PERSON! That made me laugh so hard lol!!! 😂
"SANG"
With all due respect, 1984 saw the release of "Powerslave".
UP THE IRONS!.
1984 had a ton of good metal records come out...Defenders of the Faith by Judas Priest, Don't Break The Oath by Mercyful Fate, March of the Saint by Armored Saint, Out of the Cellar by Ratt, Ride The Lightning by Metallica, Tooth and Nail by Dokken, The Warning by Queensryche, WASP's self titled debut...the list goes on and on
Best Maiden album
I think Cherone did a good job but the mixing was terrible and the guitars are lackluster.
I agree with you but the die hard V.H fans would never accept nothing but Roth or Hagar period
The album sounds flat!! No fire and Ed's behavior was strange at the time. Watch him on Howard Stern. Glad he outlived that sad time in his life!-
@@britgilbert8736 They should check out their live shows with Gary I thought he handled both the Roth and Hagar material well. Honestly I'd take Cherone over Hagar any day, way better fit for VH. VanHalen III suffered from lack luster song writing although Josephina and Year to the Day were decent.
Cherone just sounds like a KMart Hagar. If he had done his own thing maybe it could have worked but the songs aren't very good and the production is awful.
It just sounds weak. And Cherone looks like a fucking waiter in that all black metrosexual getup.
I agree, the production (particularly the vocal mixing) was criminally bad.
I like Cherone's vocals on From Afar. It creates a theatrical feel to it. I think Year to the Day is the best track on the album by far though. Overall, this album could have been much better and I agree with most of this analysis.
I loved the guitar tone in this album 🔥
Balance was a great great album.... Amsterdam and Dejavu are insanely good
Cherone has said himself they should've toured first before making the record .....
But even, I've been a van halen fan most of my life. And I don't care who was lead singer as long as ed and Alex were there I got my money's worth.
Rest in peace Ed
I agree. If they had toured before the album, I feel like they would have been able to gel a lot better, know each other's strengths and weaknesses before rushing into the studio, and the end product could have been a lot stronger.
The album cover was a picture of the punishment for Mike Post for producing this album. "Believe it or Not!"
This was the deepest this band had ever gone and it was shocking at first but now it sounds great.
Why? Cuz now Eddie is dead every piece of work Van Halen put out is good?
Eddie having died - and the perspective that he'll never release new music again - very likely allows this album to shine in a different light.
Nobody claims it's perfect, plenty of weaknesses to point out, but it has some great moments.
I've always been in the minority since a year after III released in that this was my favorite VH album.
That's totally fine, yeah. I will agree that it has good points, and at the end of the day, music taste is subjective and people are totally free to like any album that I dislike.
I was a huge Extreme fan, even and in many ways especially their most-panned Waiting for the Punchline album. So, I was excited when they announced that Gary was stepping in. I thought he’d breathe new life into the band. Well, I’ve tried... and tried... and tried to listen to VHIII over the years and just have to endure it each time. You did a great job telling their musical story. There was no trying and enduring with a Van Halen album. Even their lesser albums to date grabbed hold and didn’t let go.
The last time I tried to listen to this one again with fresh ears, I thought: I’m older now. Maybe being in a different place in my life will bring newfound apprecia - no, nope, nothing. You pointed out the best bits, but the sum of the parts is nearly unplayable.
I always thought it must’ve been sad for Gary, too. You get this great gig and get trapped in what must’ve been a surreal production experience. Then you’re forever known as the worst lead for VH. That had to have been heartbreaking.
Ah, well. I really appreciated this insightful breakdown. Awesome work.
Yes, bad fit. He was great in Extreme, not in VH. But, I've seen live video with Gary and he actually gave a great concert because he could sing both of the Roth and Hagar stuff well. I'm not sure that Gary's trying to do Roth and/or Sammy impersonations on VHIII as Happy Spaceman thinks. To me, "Without You" vocal and groove sounds very similar to Extreme.
It is a struggle to get through this record. I was embarrassed for the band. Cherone is a good singer but, the vocals did not mesh with the instruments. This was the first album I wanted to return
"Trapped in the surreal production experience" i.e. Ed's ego and substance issues - Gary likely did what he was told. It's a creative effort on Eddie's part but would have benefited from a true producer giving advice to van halen (the band) on how to to continue to "be van halen".
Sammy Hagar laid out what was wrong with VHIII. Eddie has ZERO songwriting arrangements skills. Sammy would have to tell him how to arrange a song - verse here, chorus there, put the solo there etc. Michael Anthony concurred that Ted Templeman and Roth had to do the same for the first 4 albums.
VHIII is a prime example of how clueless EVH was in arranging songs. Brilliant riff and songwriter but had no idea how songs are put together.
@@paukenkiger stop talking to yourself.
Ed also pretty much produced this album himself...mixing and mastering records is an artform, and Ed didn't have an golden ear for mixing. I love Ed, and I'm gonna miss him terribly, but there was a reason he never tried mixing and producing a VH record again after the VHIII disaster. It's distorted, flat..the vocals are screeching and the levels are a disaster. I know the liner notes say "Mike Post"...but let's face it...Post never produced a rock album in his life, so why hire him?...easy...Ed will be doing what he wants, and Post will try to help him a bit.
@@paukenkiger oops, somebodies panties got bunched
Ive been listening to this album the last couple days. It isnt that bad. Its actually pretty interesting musically. The major issue i think is that the songs run long and the production isnt great. But i think 'Year to the Day' is an amazing song.
The music wasnt bad. The lyrics (for the most part) COMPLETELY SUCK!!! I cant really understand what Gary is saying because he is yelling his lyrics.
"Once" was actually Eddie's version of Peter Gabriel's "Red Rain." He has said so, because "So" is is favorite album, and I believe him. EVH has also said that "So" is the only music he has listened to since it came out. In 1986. I do not believe him.
Interesting! Also, TBH I do believe that he's only ever listened to his own stuff since 1986. A lot of songwriters who get really big do that in order to avoid lawsuits. There are a number of smaller artists who get sue-happy and figure that songwriters like Eddie are a quick way of making money.
well, at least So is incredible
"is is"
Its funny you should mention Extreme's funk-rock roots. I always think what Roth brought to the band was his R&B and dance influences, which he has always preferred to the Van Halen's Deep Purple and Led Zep influences. Early VH bootlegs have them playing the likes of Ohio Players. That's what makes the band interesting for me, and why I think I'm not keen on Sammy era. So, with that, if they would have gone back to the earlier sound with Cherone, it might have worked out a bit better.
Ironically, Roth's album from the same year sounds more like a Van Halen album than this Van Halen album!
Doubt it would have worked out any better than it did. Not with everything going on at the time. Eddie was sober for the first time with a new song writer. They had never played together. That's almost impossible to do. I don't care how good the musicians are, if they haven't played together, certainly rare to write great songs together. Gary said it himself, "If I was to do the whole experience over again, I wish I would have gone out and toured with the guys before we made the record," he said. "Because when I came in at the beginning, you had to get acquainted. You know, I was the new kid in there. That in and of itself was a little uncomfortable.." They went right into the studio after a few jam sessions. There was a lot of things that shouldn't have been done making failure almost certain.
@@bettyrose959 Eddie was most definitely not sober during VH III
HappySpaceman- A very informative and entertaining video. You not only know your music, but you know how to deliver info in a way that engages the listener. You also saved me the trouble of having to listen to this album! Look forward to watching your other stuff.
Thanks for watching and commenting! Yeah, I feel as though video essays and more serious review channels are lacking an engaging way of delivering the info, so I've always wanted to entertain people _as_ I educate them. I hope to make more like this (well, with better production value, being four years later and all) in the future!
Good review. Anyone ever tell you you sound like McLovin?
I remember when I first listened to this album and when I heard, "How Many Say I", I literally wanted to throw up
😂😂😂
Ride the Lightning came out in 1984...so 1984 is the third best album that year in my humble opinion.
There was also Power Slave, Defenders of the Faith, Last in Line, Tooth and Nail, Out of the Cellar, Pyromania, Perfect Strangers, Hell Awaits, and Stay Hungry.
Let's just say 1984 had some pretty good albums
Born in the USA??
Defenders of the Faith was 1984 wasn’t it?! Well the A side of that record owns just about any year!
Hey, I never noticed the album titles were actually back and forth jabs at the other band/person. That's interesting. I'm giving a thumbs up for pointing that out. haha
Some of them may have been unintentional coincidences, but I've always found this pretty funny.
Which titles o. VH3 or 5150?
McCartney & Lennon's lp titles, &/or lp covers were back & forth jabs at each other too.
Me too on that. I had never picked up on it.
I can't really tell if the lyrics are bad since I can't understand most of the words. It's not just an impression of Sammy, it's an impression of Sammy mumbling.
Yeahhhh... There's a reason I started including subtitles for the song lyrics in my reviews that followed this one.
it's an impression of Sammy mumbling... and with a few marbles in mouth.
24:11 Gary sounds like one of the voice filters that Roger Waters used on The Wall! (I think the one he used for the teacher) So that's 2 Pink Floyd inspirations on this album, along with Once
Not surprised. They seemed to take a lot of influence from Floyd for this album.
As I am apparently one of the three people on the planet who actually like this album I found your video to be equally 1) offensive, 2) entertaining, and 3) informational! Bravo! Great job! LOL I very much enjoyed your perspective and humor - my response being to subscribe to your channel even before checking out what else you have to offer.
The album is great if you enjoy it fir what it is
I loved it when it came out. It sounded super cool in 1998. 💯 more interesting than Balance.
Guess that makes me 4?
Thanks for subscribing, Eric! I'm glad you like my video. And nothing against people who do like _Van Halen III,_ by the way; to each his own, I say.
@@tristanreagann I fully agree. I thought I would react like 99.9% of other people, but funnily i just love it!!! yes the last song reminds me of Roger Waters and... I like it!
This album's major problem was being 65½ minutes long.
I did some audio work, along with swapping out the pointless solos, One I Want, Ballot Or The Ballot and How Many Say I for That's Why I Love You (how that was left off I don't know) and trimming down the remaining tracks (except for Dirty Water Dog and Fire In The Hole, which are both belters) before they ran out of steam.
My 41 minute version is pretty solid.
Is there anywhere I can listen to it?
@@THSReviews I did this for the version on my phone, sorry to say.
About 10 years ago I was living in Boston and saw Gary Cherone singing in a Who cover band called Slip Kid. He did an excellent job replicating Roger Daltry.
He can also do a dead-on Paul Stanley.
I liked this album. EVH's playing on 'From Afar' is the heavy sound I wish he would do more of
The instrumentals in "From Afar" were alright, even if they were produced horribly. (I still can't stand the drum and guitar sound on this album.) This album definitely had a lot of potential, that's for sure.
I think ppl forget, so much of the early VH stuff benifits hugely from Michael Anthony's backup vocals
Mike's backing harmonies added so much to the band's sound.
Nah MA cultists brings it up all the time
"What made Eddie think it was a good idea to sing lead!?"
Turns out, it was Gary's idea. Here's an excerpt from a Songfacts interview:
_"I was the one who encouraged him to do it on the record. He was a little reluctant. It's gotten criticism over the years because Eddie sang it, but I thought the initial demo was so inspiring. For me, it was just like, "You should sing it." I twisted his arm a little bit, but then he embraced it because I was comparing him to Floyd. His demo was so emotional - I thought it was great."_
i seen van halen on this tour and i got too say gary was excellent on stage but the album was not good
I imagine that between the recording of the album and the live performances, they were able to brush up on the songs from this album and improve how they sounded.
album medicore, but the setlist for the tour though, wow
Album would’ve been great if it didn’t sound like it was recorded in a tin can. If the production was better, perhaps a remaster to make it warmer and less like a tin can would bring it some justice.
maybe even beyond just a remaster
I did some audio work, along with swapping out the pointless solos and How Many Say I for That's Why I Love You (how this was left off I don't know) and trimming down the remaining tracks (except for Dirty Water Dog and Fire In The Hole, which are the best two on this) before they ran out of steam.
My 48 minute version is pretty solid.
I'd be down to hear your version some time if you still have it, MRB!
Agreed. Likewise I loved 5150, but production of that album SUCKED as well!
It's not that it's a bad record, it's just not a Van Halen record that fans would come to expect (in so much that it's an Eddie Van Halen solo record in my opinion).
100% it was an Ed solo album, but Ed wanted to prove VH was him, not his lead singers. Unfortunately Ed took for granted Dave and Sam as song writers and collaborators and the guidance of legit producers to VH's success. This is result of Ed having no one tell him no.
I agree with the final assessment. There was potential in the project, but it never really came into focus or materialized as it should've. Once is a glorious moment though, a piece of experimentation that actually worked.
Maybe if it had had better production and lyrics, and hadn't been released under the Van Halen name, it could have been better. There are some shining moments on the album, too, "Once" being one of them.
Thanks for watching!
From a musician point of view, Gary Cherone was the absolute best singer VH ever had. Using "More Than Words" as his intro is ignorant fanboy stuff. Extreme is a serious badass band.
From only your point of view. It is a matter of taste and you can't speak for everyone lol. For me, this guy was really nothing special compared to Sammy or DLR. Just a poor copy. Your said he was the best, I say he was the worst. Our tastes are differents... and finally, who cares ?
Hell, I specifically _used_ "More Than Words" to show the extent and versatility _of_ Gary's vocals.
The fact is, hair metal only really counted from the end of the seventies to the end of the eighties. After that it was sort of a matter of enticing people with music the audience knew was going to be suburban, slick and professional, and just sort of outdated in a macho, 80's, douch-ey kind of way.
Not so for Tom Waits though !! But he never seemed to think the 80's existed, even in 1985.
The reason this album "III" exists is because Alex the drummer from Han Valen was married, and his brother in law was a music manager (who managed Gary Cherone), and when Sammy the singer left/was fired, his management (and the management of Han Valen) left - SO they got Alex's brother in law to manage, who thought much money $$$$$$$$$ would come to their smiling, Los Angeles faces if they just put two commercial 80's rock acts together. It didn't work, but mostly because the music is so bland - its like Van Hagar but even blander, he had bluster but "III" sounds blander than a demo by a Christian Rock artist. Which is another thing, Alex the drummer is an ordained Catholic priest and Gary the singer is a Christian Rocker, so maybe total blandness is the key to their collective hearts and capitalist irrelevance.
In the 90's piles of loud rocker bands like Pantera, Alice in Chains and even NIN had a past with commercial 80's pop - it's just no-one knew of them then. In that decade, you needed edgier music or disturbing videos or a new image or anything, anything to avoid being a bland hair metal artist. G&R were actually perceived as a hair metal backlash with their authentic guitar tones, retro clothes and the fact that there's NO synthpop elements on any of their four albums. God, the 80s sucked really.
th-cam.com/video/ksBE53CIT8E/w-d-xo.html
Balance is fucking good
I’ve heard worst album closers than “how many say I”, for example, the spongebob theme sung by Corey Taylor on “Nostalgia Critic’s The Wall”
I try to ignore that...
This is such a waste of Corey Taylor.
This entire "album/parody/review" was nothing but a waste of time.
@@DrZuluGaming Ironic, back when I was a fan of the NC (this was 2015 or so), I made my review of Roger Waters' _The Wall: Live in Berlin_ and had my own parody of "The Trial" that was similar to how I would have imagined Doug making it. Years later, Doug _did_ make one... but at what cost?
Completely lost my respect for Doug. And I'm not sure what Corey Taylor or Rob Scallon were doing there either.
I remember when this album came out - VH had been so quiet and I was excited when I heard about its release. I purchased the CD at the closest place I could think of after leaving work - Barnes & Noble. Back in the car, I rip the cellophane off and push it into the CD player. First track comes on... what the?... hit the track advance... ???... then another... ???... and another. By the time I get to the intersection to get out of the mall - all the tracks we "sampled." I pushed the eject button and threw it out the window. I littered and I'm not proud of that for that but man what a let down. Perhaps they could rerelease the album without any vocals and make it an instrumental.
I'm glad they did the album with DLR in 2012, so they at least ended on a high note.
It was an absolute Blast seeing Dave back with VH. That's what everybody wanted!!. RIP to the greatest guitar player ever. Long live VH!!
Not everybody
I like Extreme, but yeah this wasn't Van Halen quality material
This may be a slightly unpopular opinion and I know you're not reviewing the album, but _Van Halen II_ is my favorite album from this band. My favorite aspect of Van Halen is Michael Anthony's backing vocals and bass work, and _VHII_ has more of a focus on them. I mean, you've got "Dance The Night Away", "Somebody Get Me A Doctor", "Women In Love..." and "Beautiful Girls". All of these songs have some of Mike's best background vocals in the band's discography in my opinion.
Right on,Thats been my favorite VH album since it came out.
Balance is highly underrated Its only mistake was 3 instrumentals 2 that were dumb. My Favorite sound and vibe of Hagar years. Much darker less pop 7th Seal, Don't Tell Me What Love Can Do, and Feeling are great and IMO the best of Sammy years.
I love balance
@@noelliastarr5853 Me too.
“Without you” and “fire in the hole” are really really strong songs
And now you know why people blank out that there was a third lead singer for VH.
Eddie did previously play bass on Sammy's last solo album before "officially" joining VH....he had a contractual obligation to give his record company one more album before getting released from his contract.
So...he asked Ed to play bass on it.
I've never thought VH III was all that bad. Far from their best, of course, but still quite listenable.
I don't think I've ever heard of Van Halen described as "hair metal." Most rock fans from the olden days would take offense at that. Ah, well, does such a thing really matter four decades later? Probably not.
Anyway, I've got to give a thumbs up to the Van Halen the 3rd album. Nobody liked it at the time, and that reputation has probably worsened since '98, but whose fault is that? I loved the '90s for the music diversity and anything-goes attitude. Mind you, I was never a fan of most '80s hard rock and heavy metal--heck, I loved Seattle precisely because they kicked all the LA rocker-dude bands to the curb. So I end up enjoying the '90s Van Halen albums more than most. Again, ah, well.
Thanks for the comment! As I said, there are some things I appreciate about the album, even if I wasn't a fan of the overall product. As for their status as a hair metal band, I think they basically _created_ the scene with their influence, as every hair metal band started off trying to be Van Halen. So in my books, they have earned the honorary title of being the first hair band--YMMV, though.
Yeah, they were the first hair metal band merely because all the glam metal bands to come tried to be them, with makeup.
So many things wrong with this video. Firstly, Van Halen was never a “hair band.” They were way above the trendy bands of the 80s.
Secondly, Fair Warning had no covers and it was the best album they ever released. They went in a completely different direction with this album and it gave us songs like Unchained and Mean Street.
Third, there were successful hard rock acts when Van Halen l came out: Aerosmith and AC/DC, anyone? What made Van Halen revolutionary was Roth’s personality and Eddie’s playing.
Fourth, Roth never claimed he was fired. He admitted to quitting the band.
You are god damned right agout fair warning
Lots of errors on this critique, if you can call it that. Maybe the reviewer should actually have been alive during the era he's describing poorly. I'm not a big fan if this album either, but if you can't tell that it's EVH playing on those songs, your credibility is out the window.
This guy’s a straight up clueless DORK with an annoying lisp.
@@primeDecomposition Please do not be ableist in the comments. You are free to dislike my video, but I do not condone bigotry.
Your got that spot on right totally
There is a huge difference between reading about the history of this band and living through each record release. Completely different perspectives. To each their own I guess. RIP Eddie.
Fire In The Hole is probably the most Van Halen sounding track on the album.
Only memorable song on the album and it still sucks
My fav is Dirty Water Dog
Yeah it is....a pretty good song!
Im a DLR fanboy, David cant sing now breaks my heart to say. But I rather see Gray than DLR or Sammy its different
You're the second person that I've seen writing "Gray Chorone"
I like gary the bones always wiggling on stage
At this point I'd actually love an EVH solo album with a bunch of different singers like slash.
Great vid man!
Thanks! And yeah, that would be interesting. I enjoyed Slash's solo offerings.
That should have happened
I was at a show in '91 with David Lee Roth, Extreme, and Cinderella at Great Woods in Mansfield, MA where Extreme got issued a platinum record in the middle of the show. I think it was a step back for Cherone at around that time to join Van Halen.
Extreme's 1992 album bombed, their 1995 album was purchased by about 18 people and by 1996 they were essentially broken up. Not entirely sure, then, how this would have been a step back for Cherone when his previous band hadn't been culturally relevant in at least half a decade and was not active at the time.
Dude, you have this Weird Al Yankovic vibe, partly from looks and part from your mannerisms...although I don't know which of his albums killed his career.
Weird Al's career? Last I checked, it was still alive and kicking.
But thanks! I've gotten a lot of those Weird Al comparisons (perhaps not helped by the fact that I've grown out my hair twice as long since I filmed this video, haha).
Hey, at least you aren't comparing me to Tommy Wiseau like some people do...
Weird Al’s last album a few years ago was his highest charting ever, Not quite a “killed career.”
Interesting take on controversial album. Admittedly, I was so hard up for new Van Halen music, I liked it when it came out. 20 plus years later I view it as an abomination of Van Halen catalogue and in light of Ed's passing, I don't think I'll ever listen to it again because it taints how good he was as musician. RIP Ed.
Thanks for the comment. It's admittedly a lot harder to talk about this album now that Eddie is no longer with us, but that's why we remember Eddie for his legacy, the great albums and songs and the lasting influence he had over rock.
If you thought this was good when it came out ... Or now, you're demented. This is an objective comment, not just some opinion coming.
Doesn't mean you're a bad person, or anything like that
Yes it was, it was beyond bad and who the hell gets Mike post to produce???
I think Gary stated he only really clicked with VH when they went on the Van Halen III tour, or something like that. Just thought I'd say that
Perhaps things would have been better if they had toured first to better gel with each other instead of trying to crank out an album immediately.
@@THSReviews Absolutely. You can hear how they gel together during the tour, so I can only agree.
Pudmunky You can see a huge leap in quality between VHIII's live renditions and their album counterparts.
Hey mate once again a great video! 1978 for Queen wasn't too flash (HAHAHA) as 'Jazz' didn't go down as well in the united states, and Pink Floyd almost broke up during the Animals tour :(
LOL, puns! I remember a few people telling me that _Jazz_ might have been their second worst received album behind _Hot Space_, despite the boosting of the singles "Bicycle Race," "Don't Stop Me Now," and "Fat Bottomed Girls." As for Pink Floyd, I was aware of that, and, well, we all know how that ended. th-cam.com/video/ObNH28Q_vaI/w-d-xo.html
I'd love to hear this album stripped of vocals .
I know I'm going to get roasted here.
But to this day, I still believe that "VAN HALEN III" is one of the band's BEST records.
My only "issue" with it is that the production being handed over to Mike Post.
Ted Templeman has always been one of my favorite Music Producers since the 70s.
And I felt that with a new singer in Cherone, Templeman's history with VH would have helped a bit more.
I still love the album. And accepted Eddie's wanting to "go somewhere else" for a bit.
Since his death, it's one of the VH CDs I've gone back to playing often.
FYI Gary's last name is actually pronounced Sherone. There was a lot of good songs on this album. "Year to the Day" is my favorite but there are some other good ones too.
Thanks for letting me know about that. I'd heard it pronounced with a hard ch- sound by many fans, so I went in assuming that was how it was pronounced. Not the only time I've made that mistake, but hopefully the last!
@@THSReviews No problem! It's all good.
Who gives a shit? 😂
Watched the whole thing! Very well edited and produced, good job man!
Thanks! It was a hard album to get through, but I hope I made the best of it. Any particular parts that you enjoyed?
Produced better than Van Halen III lol
LOL, true. At least I wasn't drunk during this. XD
Not only is Gary's voice annoying to listen to on III, but, you can't hear the S'es, like he has a mouth full of cotton.
That's my biggest criticism of the record. Anyone who knew Gary from Extreme knows that the guy can sing, but the vocals on that album are muffled garbage. I don't know if it was Mike Post (stick to TV theme songs, dude), Eddie's mixing, but that thing never stood a chance at being a decent record.
I'm not a musician, so take my opinion for what it's worth, but while I liked Gary in Extreme and both previous versions of VH, I disliked VHIII, because Gary and Eddie don't fit together. Sammy and Dave both understood how to craft lyrics and their singing around Eddie's rhythms and embellishments, but Gary's style of signing doesn't let you get comfortable with the rhythm of the guitar, but instead draws your attention to the vocals. It sounded less like Van Halen and more like Eddie playing guest guitar on a Gary Cherone solo album.
Just read this. You nailed it. Eddie playing on a Gary Cherone solo album.
From what I've been told by people who know Gary personally, most of his vocals and lyrics were just demos, for instance Without You was done only 3 days of him joining the band...Gary is a great singer and equally inventive lyricist, and he suffered what Michael Anthony suffered on this album, and unfortunately takes all the blame as if HE was in charge....funny video though! Btw, Cherone is pronounced like 'Sherone'
Wouldn't surprise me if they were demos, honestly. The entire album has that demo sort of quality. And maybe Gary should have toured with the band before they immediately recorded an album, so he could gel better with the other members.
Whoops! Thanks for letting me know. I'll fix my pronunciation of his name in future videos.
@@THSReviews they actually did start a 2nd album and have 7 songs that Gary said sound light years better...
@@toddclancy4442 I mentioned that in my vid. Wonder if those songs will ever be released.
18:23 Well... Eddie actually HAS some bass credits from before. He played bass on Sammy Hagar's solo album "I Never Said Goodbye", and on Steve Lukather's self-titled solo debut from 1989.
See, the thing is, LOTS of other people have told me the same thing, to the point where I actually added an annotation on the video saying, "Yeah, okay, I know this now." Not that this helps much, since TH-cam removed annotations a bit back.
Oh well, everyone makes mistakes once in a while. This just happened to be a particularly egregious one on my part.
@@THSReviews No problem. Overall it's a great video, on an album that includes a few great highlights (Fire In The Hole is amazing, despite the lyrics) but still stands as the worst Van Halen-album.
'From Afar' is one of my favorite VH songs... 🤙
This came up in my recommended viewing options. I actually shared some content last week on my channel reviewing my collection of Van Halen items. I love your review of this, as I personally think this is a good album, I wouldn't say great.... but good. Honestly, I like this album with Gary more than the most recent album Van Halen released in 2012 with Lee Roth back on vocals. I just joined your channel and hope you get more viewers as I can really tell you enjoy doing videos for non commercial reasons.... Keep up the great work and I am going to check out some more of your content.
This album was originally called Ed's Ego Trip. He not only payed guitar, but played bass, produced the album, mixed the album, and even sang lead on a song. Next album Ed planned to sing everything and the next one even take over drums from his brother. Sammy meanwhile went on to make multiple very good solo albums that were both coherent and not cringing. Sammy's solo albums were the best VH albums in the last 20 years lol
I could see it. If he really did produce the album instead of Mike Post, who is credited, then he did a poor job on it and really needed to get a second opinion with some of those choices.
@@THSReviews Mike Post did whatever Ed wanted, so Ed produced it. It's like if a movie has a Director but the leading man is actually directing the whole thing. Who's film is it then?
@@cheapseats12 Yikes. And Mike Post didn't have any experience producing rock albums before that--he just did work on country stuff and TV themes.
Did Eddie Van Halen produce anything before _VHIII?_ I know now that he had played bass before it--I got that wrong in my review.
@@THSReviews I don't think he produced anything prior to this. VH albums always had a legit producer and Dave and Sam were the ones that ran the band, not Ed. So this is result of Ed in control of the band and album. Not surprising he would have issues after this and only 1 disastrous tour until 2007. He made a bed, took ball and fumbled. Was a sad end to VH outside of slight revival with DLR in 2000s.
Josephina is Gary's mother.
Yeah, I'm aware. FYI, this video was nearly seven years old, so other people pointed that out to me since then, as with Eddie's bass playing. Unfortunately, I cannot go back and edit old videos, and TH-cam removed the ability to add annotations, so I can't make any amendments on the video.
I like the album. Gary's voice and Ed's playing makes it totally different.
Great job. My first time seeing one of your videos. I like that you start with song one. Albums used to be put together with a cohesive “story”. Reading Sammy’s book, EVH became very messed up from drinking. Probably did some permanent damage (good name for an album). Ted Templeman’s book explains a lot in the early days. I believe I read Eddie played bass on Jump.
I already addressed the bass thing in the pinned comment--I received many other comments letting me know about that when I first uploaded this, to the point where I made an annotation in the video about it (but then TH-cam removed annotations, so... yeah). Apart from that, thanks for watching! I figure albums should be a cohesive thing, and _good_ albums still are these days. Poor Eddie. R.I.P.
Eddie wrote most the lyrics to the album. In fact Ed played most all instruments also including drums.
I had read that the first batch of songs that were written were originally for a solo album from Eddie. That's one of the reasons why the band went right into the studio with Gary. It may be the reason why Eddie sang lead vocals on How Many Say I.
Great video Happy Spaceman!
I am not a huge Van Halen fan, but I do like some of their songs(“Why Can’t This Be Love” from 5150 is my personal favorite). But upon watching your review on Van Halen III, I listened to the entire album myself, and I do agree with you that while the album missed the mark, it wasn’t a completely terrible album.
Some things that would have made it better in my opinion included:
1) Cutting down the longer tracks to 4-5 minutes.
2) Making some of the instruments and vocals sound more clearly in some of the tracks(Ex: Fire In The Hole and Without You)
3) Gary Cherone singing in his own voice in From Afar and Year To The Day(And having him sing vocals in How Many Say I instead of Eddie)
4) Move Newworld to the middle of the album and make Without You the first track instead.
5) Make the lyrics to some of the songs more creative, and in some songs, less creepy(Like Josephina).
Eddie (RIP) admitted in an interview that anyone who didn’t like the way Gary sounded on this album should put the blame on him (Eddie, that is), because Gary sang the whole album pretty much the way Eddie asked him to. I think Gary deserved a lot better than what he got, because he was asked to step into pretty much an impossible situation, and then restrained in his ability to make the best of it. I don’t despise the album by any means...it has its share of shining moments. Year to the Day is an amazing song...Ed’s solo on that gives me full body chills. His playing on this album was not the issue, and it wasn’t entirely Gary’s fault either. Gary did as well as he could, and he is a very talented vocalist. I think the songs just weren’t as developed as they could have been.
Yea it sounds like he was being pushed to be a Hagar clone on most of them!
@@chuckmoore5186 I certainly hear some similarities between Gary and Sammy at times. I think Gary was pigeonholed because of Extreme, who were quite underrated themselves.
Still, it brings memories of 1998, like leasing my first new Oldsmobile Aurora!
Great video and rebuttal from an underrated channel. I hope this picks up as you made a solid argument.
Thanks! This video has surprisingly been increasing in views. I think I'll probably make more "Was It Really That Bad?" videos in the future; they seem to be the most popular ones on this channel.
Lol I didn’t even notice that Van Halen and David Lee Roth were dissing each other with album titles. That makes the Sammy Hagar era even better now lol.
When I tried to sell the album at a second hand store, the dealer wouldn't even pay me the regular price for used CDs. That says it all.
Thanks for this analysis, sometimes funny I admit. It has taught me to keep my expectations low though... but an open mind too. See I had been a fan of Van Halen, no matter what era it was... however, in 1998 I had started having my kids and I had backed away from buying music and had ignored the band by then. Now today, with the passing away of Eddie, I'm kind of discovering this album. As you put it, it was not played much on radio so I did not know of it's existence. Today, my musical taste has evolved into more progressive rock (Porcupine Tree, Riverside, Radiohead, etc) HOWEVER I did listen to the "III" album and I find it refreshing to see Eddie go in those musical directions. Yes very different but still having it's own musical colors and more melodic riffs. And yes, the signer is trying to keep the "tone" of its predecessors, but hey that's the Van Halen tone. People hating a band because it's going in directions they themselves don't like is a selfish pretense, in my opinion. I liked discovering this album whatever people will say, and I will play it often to appreciate Eddie's new tones (Ballot Or The Bullet sounds nice, irrelevant of lyrics). Eddie's gone and like so many people, it saddened me quite a lot. So discovering this album is a way for me to listen to him with a fresh musical shade. He did compose the music of the sensual movie "Sacred Sin" and the song Josephine is in line with it. Interesting stuff... Thanks Eddie... I liked rediscovering you again in this album! RIP man!