Van Halen Ranking

I rank every Van Halen album from worst to best
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#vanhalen

[@collinmadden]

I would definitely recommend a deeper listen to Fair Warning. That's a back to front masterpiece. As you say you hadn't listened to it a bunch previously-- I would definitely revisit. Its some of the strongest songwriting VH ever did.

[@SeanBlumenshine]

That is a totally fair point

[@time2see192]

One of my very favorite albums of all time, and definitive my favorite VH album. The guitar on that album was so innovative, still even today. Masterfully arranged... Eddie was so ahead of his time. NOBODY was even coming close to p pop pj)o Olli 6i9()7doing what he was doing then! RIP EVH 💕

[@bry-i-am]

Collin- this guy doesn't get| understand VH or Eddie

[@dmarkgreg]

Fair Warning is like beer. First time tastes horrible, but the more you listen the better it gets.

[@apersonok8426]

Wow! Didn’t expect you to talk about Van Halen, awesome dude.

[@grego7345]

"Fair Warning" is #1 on my list.

[@Starman2112ofKings]

Love Roth era! Hagar didn’t age well 12. VH 3 11. OU812 (where’s the bass) 10. Balance 9. 5150 8. Diver Down 7. F.U.C.K. 6. 1984 5. A Different Kind of Truth 4. Women And Children First 3. Fair Warning 2. VH II 1. Van Halen (Best Debut ever IMO)

[@eugenekrabs618]

no way you put 5150 at 9th

[@GeeVanderplas]

Fair Warning, hands down the greatest Van Halen album. It's an album that requires a bit more of a focused listen, definitely not as immediate as the first two albums or 1984 , but man is it good when you give it the time!

[@christianvenzais6709]

Awesome stuff I low-key was looking forward to u covering van halen at some point

[@mikebasterd9645]

Man , your high AF , fair warning #7 ? That's one of the greatest albums. Song Main Street is one of the best songs in the world and you didn't even mention it blows away on chained.

[@nickabowd8488]

It’s always fun to look back at the great VH. Good video!

[@merickbrother2122]

I really enjoyed your ranking. I think a lot of people have such loyalty to either Roth or Hagar that most lists are biased, but yours seems very fair! I always thought the hits with Sammy were on the whole better than with Dave, but the albums with Dave were much better overall. Great stuff!

[@Pamplemousse82322]

Van Halen 1, Women and children first, Van Halen 2, Fair Warning, 1984, Diver Down, A different kind of Truth. What are those other releases?

[@michaelmichaels138]

I loved all the DLR era stuff with 1984 being my least favorite. Never got into the Sammy crap because I had entered my King Diamond phase. *\/ A N |-| A L E |\|*

[@mikep.9912]

1.VH 1 2. Fair Warning 3. 1984 4. Women and Children 5. Van Halen 2 The rest are one large pile of = 6. or lesser.

[@altonjohnson5223]

Never thought I'd see anyone put Diver Down above Fair Warning, which should be no lower than number 2.

[@miked9000]

Fair Warning is simply a masterpiece, on every level. It is the pinnacle of technical musicianship, with the usual pop hooks. Every song, and i mean every song is flawless. You cant even mention one song, as a standout, because they all standout. The rest of VH? Never bought an album after 1984, and although a good album, might be my least favorite. I was 13, ran around the neighborhood yelling JUMP, but meh.

[@curly_wyn]

Nope, not even close.

[@jonstreng7850]

It's a crime that Dave left. If he would have stayed we may not have heard all of the keyboard work. I don't remember Van Halen ever doing any ballads with David Lee Roth.

[@frankcona6607]

You need to listen to Fair Warning again! Mean Street is an absolute JAM!

[@jonstreng7850]

I agree with a majority of your list. I would put OU812 and For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge a bit higher. The regret I have is I only owned two of the albums by this mega band. I did fall into the trap of Greatest Hits - Volume 1. Can't Stop Lovin You, on that LP, is amazing. The huge question ❓⁉️ Will there be a Volume II? Your narration is terrific and your knowledge is awesome 👍😎. You really are a great host of this group, and KISS, is marvelous.

[@CVGuitar]

Although "THE BEST" album in terms of the culture at large is probably Van Halen (the debut) FWIW my fave list is: 1 - Fair Warning 2 - Women and Children First 3 - Van Halen 4 - Van Halen II 5 - Diver Down 6 - 1984 7 - 5150 (it's got its moments...) 8/9/10/11/12 the other ones ... argh I can't stand'em IMHO the best Van Halen to listen to is on the old club days bootlegs that are plentiful -- Van Halen playing Sabbath ZZ Top Zeppelin Bad Company etc is the best shit of all

[@uuu098]

I used to think 5150 was a drastic change for the band because of Sammy obviously, but now when I listen to it, it just seems musically like an even more pop version of 1984. Sorry Sean, I cannot stand the sappy love songs like Love Walks In and Dreams is just terrible, IMO. LOL. I would rank Fair Warning #1. Anything with Sammy is garbage. I just watched your rankings of Motley Crue and Ratt. I've always enjoyed your videos, especially the Kiss ranking. Keep up the good work!

[@GeneralYee123]

Annoys me that a different kind of truth isn't on Spotify anymore. Also the idea to do a tribute with Joe Satriani on guitar would be amazing. Change my mind.

[@Ivan_Mcdouble18]

Ngl you look like layne Staley idk if you get that a lot lmao keep up the great work

[@dimebagdave77]

🔥Great list brother🔥

[@ms.lisamurphy269]

I agree with your ranking except for 5150...but yoyr explaination about childhood nostalgia kinda made sense. I was 14 when VH debut came out ...this record was like an avalanche out of no where. Me and my friends actually were listening to stuff like led Zeppelin...stuff that was 10 years old and our older siblings listened to. But suddenly..it was like we had our own music. 1978 was quite a year ...i also bought that first Cars record. Id say the best first 2 records from any bands, were VH 1 & 2, and The Cars (self titled) and the Cars "Candy O". Id be quite happy with those 4 records only! Peace ✌️🕊️

[@parallaxview2143]

Wow. Unexpected but very welcome. Btw we started growing our hair out at more or less the same time and your hair grows quickly like mine 👍

[@petemohaine117]

I can't help but notice your opinions are different from mine. Have you considered changing them?

[@coinraker6497]

🤣IKR? It's fun to debate this stuff but some people actually get mad when others don't have the same opinion as them. Especially when it comes to music. Always cracks me up.

[@Jamiescottsmith]

Great job,. 🙏 Thanks

[@iancocks9408]

Pretty good ranking here. I would swap diver down with fair warning. And move 1984 to number 1, top 3 are very close though. Great ranking video.

[@SeanBlumenshine]

Thank you!

[@Atomykpimp]

I know Best of’s should not be included? But Me Wise Magic is a Kick Ass Song! To have the original line up back for the first time in 12 years and to put out a punch in the mouth song like that? Should be an exception!

[@agedefyingfitness]

Nailed it Sean! In my opinion anyway. The 3 songs on 5150 you mentioned are by far the best things with Sammy Hagar in regards to Van Halen. In my opinion anyway. Roth RULZZZ

[@frankcona6607]

Good list!

[@docvader82]

As much as I've disagreed with you, i like the thought you seem to put into these. Onto the next.....Ratt? Beatles?

[@michaelleahy5942]

Such a good ranking wow

[@docvader82]

Ok, so some of this is baffling to me. But hey, ya feel how you feel. Rather than gripe, I'll just post my list. 12). VH3 11). OU812 10). FUCK 9). Balance 8). 5150 7). Diver Down 6). A Different Kind of Truth 5). 1984 4). VHII 3). Women & Children 1b). Fair Warning 1a). VHI

[@billygoth]

I agree with your rankings 💯

[@everythingbobbywolfe]

All I can say is ... Well done

[@fleshwounds]

Far Warning should be higher.

[@LigmaPaitent0]

THIS IS EPIC!!!!

[@rafaelgarcia9501]

My favorite album is Diver Dawn

[@leonardgarcia5320]

Totally disagree bout Fair Warning...

[@jjojo2004]

I say your ranking is spot on with my opinion. 🤘😎🤘🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

[@AceofSpades-zi6zx]

Here would be my ranking 12. Vh3 11. Balance 10. For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge 9. OU812 8. 5150 7. Diver Down 6. Fair Warning 5. A different kind of truth 4. 1984 3. Women and Children First 2. Van Halen 2 1. Van Halen 1 Not a fan of Hagar

[@cornstar1253]

VH1 is the only album that I can listen to all the way through.

[@danieljohnston1798]

You can't really rank two different bands, well I guess you can, but you are talking about two different bands. Van Halen and Van Hagar. Yeah, yeah, they kept the band name, and yeah we know it's Al and Ed's last name. But Roth named the band Van Halen, not the brothers. That was Roth's idea. When Dave left Warner Brothers and Ted Templeman wanted them to change the name of the band as it was no longer the same. Songs, singer and sound changed too much for them to carry on as the classic Van Halen. Both are great groups in their own way. Both have great things about them, but a side by side comparison is not really a thing as they became two different bands. Neither playing the others songs. Yeah, I know they would do a jump, maybe panama at the end of a V Hagar show, but, it was just kind of a throw away thing. And when Van Halen got back together they never played Hagar material.

[@themindseyecmh]

Love van halen! One of my favorite bands! 12. Van Halen III (whose least favorite isn't vh3? Lol) 11. 5150 10. OU812 9. A Different Kind of Truth 8. For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge 7. Balance 6. 1984 5. Van Halen 4. Van Halen II 3. Women and Children First 2. Fair Warning 1. Diver Down (seriously lol)

[@luisrodriguezaliaga]

Fair Warning is their best IMO

[@tattoogypsy1970]

Wow. Van Halen

[@arthurhall8238]

Great ranking..mostly....Tattoo sucks though.... and Fair Warning is a top 4 or 5 VH record...why? because it's an Eddie VH album...not a DLR VH album!

[@KingReyhanShippey]

Van Halen I 1984 5150 OU812 F.U.C.K my top Van Halen 5.

[@fleshwounds]

Been Van Halen fan since Van Halen 1. Van Hagar was good also.

[@Ratcity69]

I was hoping this was based on factual numbers. However I'm going to watch out of curiosity. I'd like to make my guesses before I watch this video just for fun. I hated David Lee Roth as a person. As a singer for Van Halen I believe he was the best man. It pains me to say that because I love Sammy Hagar,he's an all around good front man as a solo artist. Heavy Metal Noise proves he's a solid writer, guitar player, and singer. Van Halen 1 is my personal favorite Van Halen album. If I had to guess 5150 was the biggest commercial success. I believe every Van Halen album with Roth as front man blows away all the Van Hagar Albums. Van Halen was Rock. Van Hagar was pop. Two completely different genres as far as I'm concerned. I'm a fan of rock end of story.

[@raypratt-bw9ib]

As popular as 1984 was/is I just never cared for it much,Panama rocks pretty hard, I'll Wait is decent but Jump is just a ehh song for me

[@davidburns6284]

The Roth era of Van Halen is all I care about. The Sammy Hagar albums sucked ass. Every album with David Lee Roth was great, except Diver Down. I don't know what they were thinking on that album. Fair Warning is my #1. Incredible guitar work, great songs and a darker, heavy vibe. 1. Fair Warning 2. Van Halen 3. Van Halen II 4. 1984 5. Women and Children First 6. A Different Kind of Truth 7. Diver Down

[@chadfleming2199]

1. VH1 - A seismic shift in music, ushered in "party rock" of the 80's 2. 5150 - Blueprint of how AOR album should be. Great songs, instrumentation , production (except for the drum sound) 3. 1984 - the biggest gamble (synth driven single?) that paid off and allowed the band to venture off into new directions 4. VH2 - fun!!! Such a great album from start to finish ... not groundbreaking compared to the first, but they were at the top of their game 5. OU812 - Uneven and a little preachy (80's songs with "messages" ... I'm looking at you "Mine All Mine"). The "hit" was good + "Finish What Ya Started" was fun and "Black&Blue" was sludgy, dirty, thick rock soup! 6. Fair Warning - "Unchained" & "Mean Streets"!!! The rest is a little uneven 7. Women & Children 1st - Besides "Cradle" the rest seems a little uninspired. Too much time on the road and enjoying the rock star life, not enough time writing quality new material 8. F.U.C.K. - Pepsi commercial "Right Now" was ok. "Poundcake" was awesome .... the rest was meh.... 9.) "A Different Kind of Truth" - some good material ("Tattoo" is one of my favorite Roth songs") but it's old stuff (70's - 80's leftovers). 10. Diver Down - a cover album saved by "Cathedral" and "Little Guitars" 11. Balance - "Don't Tell Me What Love Can Do" is great! The rest is forgettable 12. VH3 - shit sandwich

[@user-xp7fb3md9x]

Have you seen & heard Ace Frehley's 1976 Version of 'Eruption'? 😂😮 Better than Eddie's ... 😊

[@chadhickes8563]

VH lists are totally subjective. Outside of VH III being the worst the other 11 spots can change daily for me. VH is the greatest band of all time but after 96 the bands last 2 plus decades were wasted. VH III is 12, ADKOT is 11, Fair Warning is 10, OU812 is 9 ( terribly produced album), WACF is 8, Diver Down is 7 (Intruder,Pretty Woman is phenomenal), Balance is 6 (this album has to include the extra song Crossing Over on the Japanese version), VH II is 5, 5150 is 4 (songs Love Walks In, 5150 and Dreams are masterpieces), 1984 is 3 (House of Pain, Girl Gone Bad, Drop Dead Legs, HF Teacher and Panama are absolutely incredible), For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge is 2 ( Dream is Over is the best song on this album. Heavy and dark!), VH Debut album is number one and it saved rock n roll and started the 80’s rock hair band era. Great times!!! Great list. Once again my list can change daily outside of 3 being the absolute worst

[@Kissfan96dr]

I only have 5 studio albums from Van Halen, my list for those are: 5. VH III (stinker) 4. Diver Down 3. For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge 2. 1984 1. Balance Balance is most likely my favorite due to the high quality Fairbairn recording and clarity. Every song is full and awesome. It's the only VH album I can listen to top to bottom, be entertained, and not feel like a chore to finish. My one and only concert for VH was also their Balance tour in 95. That probably helps too.

[@stephenkodrich8763]

As always the Roth era dominates VH album rankings. This is where those that prefer Sammy never participate because no sane person can put more than one Van Hagar album in the top 6.

[@iancocks9408]

Yeah about right, I got into van halen with 1984 then 5150 I liked also, they sounds like a weaker 5150 album for the next 3 hagars. Some Roth albums are better than others but they are all good.

[@raffyvalky4527]

OK so everyone criticizes the hagar years for the occasional ballad they did, but then says that those were the best hagar era songs!? Huh!? Also 7 minutes is nothing for musikc standards. Pink floyd and Led Zeppelin have songs that easily go longer than 9 minutes, and they're more loved. Ok, also you say that F.U.C.K is good for going back to more guitar, but then say the album doesn't do much for you, and RIGHT NOW of all songs is the song that picks up the slack?

[@leswadley6792]

My second fav band behind kiss! You nailed the VH3 album lol! I agree with most of your picks! I’d have balance higher! I can tell your not much of a Sammy fan lol! Fair warning has to be higher! Dig your review! Band request; Ratt and Motley Crue!

[@SeanBlumenshine]

I love his voice but that era of the band doesn’t play as well for me

[@leswadley6792]

@@SeanBlumenshine I agree totally! Some great moments, but just isn’t what the original lineup was!

[@coinraker6497]

Proves that it's not who's necessarily a better singer (of course this is totally subjective) but who's a better singer for the band. I mean I love Sammy in Montrose but don't think he was right at all for Van Halen.

[@tiborosz1825]

5150 better than Fair Warning😅😅😅😅 ..ok.

[@luismoraiz]

Esse sujeito não gosta do Sammy. O melhor álbum do VH é o F.U.C.K. Diver Down, 6°??? Esse álbum é uma bosta!!!

[@skiman6810]

Completely different bands. Like comparing TOTO and KISS. Both great, but different. Van Hagar had to deal with Eddie falling apart, and Al's sober playing sucked. And say what you will VH didnt make a dime until Hagar starting writing and and arranging for them. Prefer Eddie's sound in the original band.

[@jojo-anthony5265]

LOL...Diver Down and VH2 are absolute trash! My top three VH albums are: 1. Van Halen 2. For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge 3. Fair Warning

[@reubensane5539]

Dude I know this is your opinion and I respect that but the way you talk about the fair warning that only one song really stands out for you just perplexing me how you are a Van Halen fan ,songs like mean street and basically the whole album is Ranked one of the best albums for Halen. Diver down over fair warning? Wow And on diver down what about hang ‘em high?

[@TonysMusic1974]

You know his name is HAGAR, right? Not HAGER. Also FairBAIRN not FairBEN. Not sure I can give much weight to the opinion of a guy who can't pronounce the singer's name correctly.

[@kendetulio4009]

Fair Warning is way too low.

[@curly_wyn]

1. Van Halen (1978) 2. 1984 (1984) 3. 5150 (1986) 4. Women and Children First (1980) 5. Van Halen II (1979) 6. Fair Warning (1981) 7. Diver Down (1982) 8. For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991) 9. Balance (1995) 10. OU812 (1988) 11. A Different Kind of Truth (2012) 12. Van Halen III (1998) *anyone who doesn’t have this garbage at the bottom is a moron lol

[@fearsomename4517]

No band can beat those first six albums. In '86 Van Halen lost the word mighty that went before it.

[@CharlesBronson1977]

Dude, I'm going to reiterate what everybody else on here is saying.. Fair Warning is awesome. Mean Street is a fucking atom bomb right out of the gate. In closing, I just want to say that Sammy sucks. Van Halen ended the day Roth left.

[@user-xp7fb3md9x]

Hagar & Cherone did never Ever fit so this is the Real top 8: 8.) Live at Tokyo Dome 7.) Diver down 6.) Woman and children first 5.) II 4.) Fair Warning 3.) 1984 2.) A different kind of Truth 1.) I

[@raypratt-bw9ib]

Ok man, ridiculous!A different kind of Truth better then FUCK,not ever!!There are some serious tracks on there,Judgement Day alone is better then ANYTHING on that Roth return record,I get u obviously are an OG HALEN fan first,but cmon man,thats a bad record they did in his return

[@alexgermain961]

obviously not a musician lol

[@alessandrozannettino918]

my van halen album ranked: 1 - van halen 2 - 1984 3 - 5150 4 - ou812 5 - balance 6 - for unlawful carnal knowledge 7 - diver down 8 - van halen 2 9 - women and children first 10 - fair warning

[@KISSFAN1970]

Terrible rankings.

[@rixmean9448]

Wtf that's how HE likes,not everyone will like what you like, dude

[@KISSFAN1970]

@@rixmean9448 I was buying these albums when they were released and have heard them all thousands of times. I know what's best way better than most. The ranking of Fair Warning was enough for me to give my thoughts.

[@raywaco]

Whiny

[@coinraker6497]

Easy, all of Van Halen ahead of Van Hagar.