This Day in CVH/DLR History
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04-29-2011 to 04-29-2024 (This event occurs every April 29) 12:00 AM to 12:00 AM
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This Day in CVH/DLR History
1979
Van Halen plays Market Square Arena in Indianapolis, IN.
1980
Van Halen plays the Richfield Coliseum in Cleveland, OH. Rail is the opening act.
1981
Fair Warning is released. Fair Warning "only" went 2x platinum, which ended up being the least commercially successful album of the David Lee Roth years. However, for guitar enthusiasts, it is regarded as Edward Van Halen's best work. This album took a mere 12 days to record at a cost of approximately $40,000. It was released on 4/29/81 and reached #6 on the U.S. charts (entering the charts on 5/30/81) and #49 on the U.K. charts (entering on 5/31/81). 3.4 million copies of this album have been sold in the U.S. It was certified gold on 7/07/81, platinum on 11/18/81, and double platinum on 8/04/94. The album was remastered and rereleased on 9/19/00. The cover art was Alex's idea after he saw a painting in a book called The Brain from the Time-Life series (published in 1964). The cover was taken from a piece by self-taught artist William Kurelek (1927-1972), a mentally unstable painter whose family immigrated to Canada from the Ukraine. Initially, Alex planned to use only the scene featuring a man ramming his head into a brick wall, but later expanded the idea to include several different images from the scene. The original painting hangs in the hospital where The Elephant Man (Brooksfilms, 1980) was filmed. Most of Kurelek's work (a lifelong Christian) revolved around a single theme - Jewish immigrants carving a life for themselves on the prairie. This
painting was no exception; bathed in symbolism, it is made up of more than a dozen scenes depicting violence, death, war, and religion. In addition to scores of paintings, Kurelek also created lithographs and tapestries and illustrated children's books. In 1991 four of his pieces were depicted on Canadian postage stamps. Much of this album was written in the early morning hours when Ed and Donn Landee would retreat to the studio after the rest of the band had gone home. This practice signaled a turning point in Van Halen's career, Edward was becoming increasingly frustrated about not being able to express himself the way he wanted to; he felt he was growing musically but was being suppressed by Ted Templeman and Roth. Tensions between the guitarist and the vocalist increased, and Edward briefly considered quitting the band. Alex convinced him to stick it out, and Fair Warning was the result. However, the anger and unhappiness comes through in the music, giving the album its dark undertones. The Fair Warning sessions were also the seed for Edward's desire to have his own studio, and in fewer than three years, 5150 Studio became a reality in his own backyard. Live videos for "Unchained," "So This Is Love?," and "Hear about It Later" were filmed at the Oakland Coliseum during a three-night stint in Oakland, CA (6/11/81-6/13/81). The videos later debuted on an episode of the Don Kirshner Rock Concert Series television program. A fourth video is rumored to exist, but no known broadcasts of it are in existence. Photos from the shooting of this unknown video appeared in the first issue of The Inside magazine.
1988
David Lee Roth plays the Kemper Arena in Kansas City, MO.
2012
Van Halen plays the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO. Kool & The Gang is the opening act.