With the band on the verge of making a comeback with original singer David Lee Roth, VH are in the headlines regularly these days.
Last week, VH released a photo of themselves with the management team from Interscope Records, the band’s new home after 35 years on Warner Brothers.
With all the new attention paid to the band, Rolling Stone “figured it was a good time to poll our readers to learn their ten favorite Van Halen songs. The results aren't shocking. It's 80% David Lee Roth era, 20% Van Hagar and 0% Gary Cherone era.”
Long-time fan favorite “Unchained” from 1981’s “Fair Warning” tops the list; here’s what RS had to say about the track:
"It's not quite as famous as "Jump" or "Hot for Teacher," but "Unchained" has frequently been voted the favorite song of Van Halen fans. During the interlude, producer Ted Templeman breaks in and says "Come on, Dave, gimme a break!" Dave responds with, "One break, coming up!" According to legend, Ted felt that Dave was being too over the top and he scolded him. The band liked the moment and kept it in. Recent evidence suggests that the bit was rehearsed, but it's hard to say for sure. Like most things in the Van Halen world, there are two competing narratives of one event."
Top 10 Van Halen songs
Rolling Stone reader’s poll: November 2011
01 – Unchained
02 – Panama
03 – Hot For Teacher
04 – Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love
05 – Jump
06 – Runnin’ With The Devil
07 – Mean Street
08 – Eruption
09 – Right Now
10 – Dreams
Van Halen Van Halen – Unchained
Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA – June, 1981
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