Van Halen "Fair Warning" 1981***

This is my second consecutive King's Day without celebrations, and after living in The Netherlands for more than a decade it feels like missing something vital - you see, contrary to other popular Dutch holidays like St. Nicholas' Day, Christmas and New Year, which are mostly celebrated in a cycle of family and close friends, this is the country's biggest public feast: a national holiday marked by lots of outdoor concerts, loud street partying, and massive public drinking. People wear clothing and accessories in orange (the color of the royal house of Oranje), flags are hung from the masts, and everything is decorated in either orange or red, white & blue (the colors of the Dutch flag). On the day itself (April 27) all the streets turn into a huge flea market where everyone sells their own old stuff; fantastic for bargain hunters. It was on such a day, maybe 5 years ago, that I acquired 6 Van Halen CD's -their entire discography featuring original singer David Lee Roth- from their previous owner for something like €10. Unfortunately, today is more than just an un-festive Kings' Day; it's also the first spring without Eddie Van Halen, the celebrated guitar virtuoso who died a few months ago at the age of 65. 

Eddie and his (drummer) brother Alex Van Halen were born in The Netherlands, and relocated to California as kids. Their musician father enrolled them to classical piano classes, which they aced but left to pursue their passion for rock music. Their 1978 debut Van Halen was an immediate smash, thanks mainly to Eddie's guitar pyrotechnics. Fair Warning is their 4th LP in four years, and usually considered as exhibiting the first signs of fatigue. Compared to their other albums, it is darker, with less of a party feel; possibly the mood was soured because the personal relation between Eddie and singer David Lee Roth was not at its best. Musically they also went to opposite directions, with the guitarist wanting to experiment more while the singer wasn't willing to sacrifice their commercial potential, and producer Ted Templeman wanted to keep it as simple and as close to the band's live sound as possible. According to the guitarist, when his proposed changes were outvoted, he would later sneak in the studio at night and record overdubs which went unnoticed at playback. The dark mood extends to the album cover, derived from a painting by Canadian artist William Kurelek, and depicting violent scenes featuring children. It's further mirrored in the lyrics of opener -and album highlight- "Mean Street", introduced with an outlandish guitar solo before turning into a gritty rocker reminiscent of Thin Lizzy - I hadn't previously realized how similar Roth's vocals can be to Phil Lynott's, probably because they are about as different as two frontmen can be. It took a song with a similar lyrical sensibility to bring the similarities out. The content of next two songs is lewd and sexual, but again with a darker flavor from their previous "good times with girls" tunes. The music reminds me of Aerosmith (the bluesier "Dirty Movies") and Guns 'N' Roses (the heavier "Sinner's Swing!") respectively - though of course never derivative. "Hear About It Later" features a melodic intro, unconventional instrumental bridge, and catchy chorus. Somehow, though, they don't all gel together enough to create a truly memorable song. "Unchained" doesn't have any such problem, being one of the band's live favorites with its ultra-memorable riff, call-and-response vocal and amusing in-song banter. Eddie's use of the MXR M-117 flanger pedal here did wonders to boost its sales. It's followed by "Push Comes to Shove" an uncharacteristically funky tune with a reggae beat. Next up is swinging R&B-metal hybrid "So This Is Love?", which was also their lead single from Fair Warning. The album closes with two short (just under 2 minutes) pieces, a synth-based instrumental ("Sunday Afternoon in the Park") and sub-Zeppelin rocker ("One Foot Out the Door"). Both subtract rather than add to the LP's overall rating, but at least the closer sports a brief but fiery guitar solo. Needless to mention, of course: Fiery guitar solos is what this record is all about. 

***** for Mean Street

**** for Dirty Movies, Unchained, So This Is Love?

*** for Sinner's Swing!, Hear About It Later, Push Comes to Shove, One Foot Out the Door

** for Sunday Afternoon in the Park