RATING: *****
Eruption |
VAN HALEN The Best of, Vol.1 (1996) Warner [47:04] by Gerald Tan Goddamit, finally we get a Best of Van Halen collection. About 10 years too late. And it has to stink. What gives? I mean it's a fact that Eddie Van Halen has been one of the most influential guitar stylists of his time. Everyone who's ever owned a radio must have heard David Lee Roth crowing "... might as well Jump!" at one time or another. Even the post-1984, Sammy Hagar-fronted Van Halen has had huge hits like "Why Can't This Be Love?", "When It's Love", and "Can't Stop Lovin' You" (alright so they've all got the word "love" in it... love's good, what's your hang-up). They're cool by Beavis and Butthead, Wayne and Garth worship them, and heck, even the Twister people like them. So how could the job of collecting the best stuff from 18 years worth of excellent material end up so botched? Okay, let's take this methodically... it can't be a Greatest Hits sort of thing, since it's missing charted singles like "(Oh) Pretty Woman," "I'll Wait," "Love Walks In," "Finish What Ya Started" and "Top of the World," and instead has less well-known tracks like "Unchained," "Poundcake" and "Humans Being". It can't really be a Best Of either, seeing as it doesn't have "Jamie's Cryin'" or anything from the second side of VAN HALEN II. And as retrospectives go, this 17-song collection has a barely decent offering of one song each from 5 of 10 Van Halen albums, while DIVER DOWN isn't represented at all. It's inevitable that all collections be reductionist in nature, but this one is more than a little out of whack. Perhaps it's been released to mark the end of Sammy Hagar's 10-year stint with the band. But then why spend a precious 11 minutes of this already stingy single-disc compilation on the novelty of two new songs recorded with former singer David Lee Roth, a man who's not rejoining the band (Extreme's Gary Cherone is) and whose aged-hedonist buffoonery hasn't seen a good day in the business since 1989? Of the two new tracks, "Can't Get This Stuff No More" is tolerable for its stoned, slow tunefulness, Roth-era harmonies and an uncharacteristic talk-box guitar solo. On the other hand, "Me Wise Magic" has a dumb title, inane lyrics and is musically tedious. It's obvious that a proper retrospective format would have been a box-set, or at least a double-disc. With unfathomable track-selection logic, this collection has attempted to cram an 18-year career (including 2 different lead singers) into 72 minutes, and believe me it falls far short of being anything more than the most second-rate of samplers. And on that note, expect nothing in the way of informative sleeve notes or photographs. All you get is a complete listing of the tracks found on each album the band has released (presumably so you will buy those albums and junk this cruddy one). The set's sole redemption is the wonder of Digital Remastering. With new sonic clarity, early classics like "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", "Dance The Night Away" and Eddie's legendary solo "Eruption" sound incredibly in-your-face. Other than that, and especially if you're already a fan, this collection will do nothing for you. You're better off making a tape of your own favourites. Hey, I've had a thought... "Best Of - Volume I" sometimes just spells 'record company cash-in', doesn't it? Damn, swindled again!
Gerald Tan is a die-hard Van Halen fan who has been known to exclaim "Helloooooo, baby!" and "Ooh yeah, mama" at the most inappropriate moments, and for no good reason at all.
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