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Early February 1981
"We give you Fair Warning, Van Halen is coming" That's what the record store kept saying... that's all they could say about the new Van Halen record, so I knew VH was getting ready to release a new album but I didn't know when or what it would be called.
Valentine's Day, 1981
San Jose, CA
I was making out with my girlfriend at the drive-in with KOME radio in the background and the speakerphone set to low volume. I think the flick was 'My Bloody Valentine' or something really cheesy like that. We weren't paying attention to the movie at all while a string of commercials played out in the background. After the commercials, there was station identification, then a brief pause and without any introduction, the intro of Meanstreets began.
I knew right the fuck away what I was listening to. Instantly, I jumped off my girl, turned off the drive-in speakerphone... "Oh my God!"
She said "What, what..."
"Oh my God! ...there it is!" I was practically in shock.
By the time the harmonic pings and wailing feedback hit, I was having a full-blown Van Halen epiphany! My girl didn't really understand what was happening, but she was energized by my emotion.
Before the intro riff even started I was going bananas. I had to force myself to calm down so I could actually listen to the song. After only 3 or 4 syllables of Dave's vocal line and I was melting in awe. It was like the song was having a toxic effect on me. At that point my girl was laughing at me. "OK, calm down already!"
It was a moment I'll never forget. I had a similar experience a few years later when I heard the solo to 'Beat It' in the sense that it was totally unexpected, yet I knew instantly what I was listening to.
That's how unmistakably unique, amazing, and powerful Van Halen's sound was. Those days are long gone, but the memories live on.
"We give you Fair Warning, Van Halen is coming" That's what the record store kept saying... that's all they could say about the new Van Halen record, so I knew VH was getting ready to release a new album but I didn't know when or what it would be called.
Valentine's Day, 1981
San Jose, CA
I was making out with my girlfriend at the drive-in with KOME radio in the background and the speakerphone set to low volume. I think the flick was 'My Bloody Valentine' or something really cheesy like that. We weren't paying attention to the movie at all while a string of commercials played out in the background. After the commercials, there was station identification, then a brief pause and without any introduction, the intro of Meanstreets began.
I knew right the fuck away what I was listening to. Instantly, I jumped off my girl, turned off the drive-in speakerphone... "Oh my God!"
She said "What, what..."
"Oh my God! ...there it is!" I was practically in shock.
By the time the harmonic pings and wailing feedback hit, I was having a full-blown Van Halen epiphany! My girl didn't really understand what was happening, but she was energized by my emotion.
Before the intro riff even started I was going bananas. I had to force myself to calm down so I could actually listen to the song. After only 3 or 4 syllables of Dave's vocal line and I was melting in awe. It was like the song was having a toxic effect on me. At that point my girl was laughing at me. "OK, calm down already!"
It was a moment I'll never forget. I had a similar experience a few years later when I heard the solo to 'Beat It' in the sense that it was totally unexpected, yet I knew instantly what I was listening to.
That's how unmistakably unique, amazing, and powerful Van Halen's sound was. Those days are long gone, but the memories live on.
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