Van Halen II

Van Halen II
Studio album by Van Halen
Released March 23, 1979
Recorded December 11, 1978[1] – January 1979
Studio Sunset Sound Recorders, Hollywood, California
Genre Hard rock, heavy metal
Length 31:36
Label Warner Bros.
Producer Ted Templeman
Van Halen chronology
Van Halen
(1978)		 Van Halen II
(1979)		 Women and Children First
(1980)
Singles from Van Halen II
  1. "Dance the Night Away"/"Outta Love Again"
    Released: April 1979
  2. "Somebody Get Me a Doctor"/"Women in Love..."
    Released: 1979 (Japan)
  3. "Beautiful Girls"/"D.O.A."
    Released: September 1979
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Robert ChristgauC+[3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[4]

Van Halen II is the second studio album by American hard rock band Van Halen, released on March 23, 1979. It peaked at number 6 on the Billboard charts and spawned the singles "Dance the Night Away" and "Beautiful Girls". To date, it has sold over five million copies in the United States. Critical reaction to the album has been positive as well, with the The Rolling Stone Album Guide praising the feel-good, party atmosphere of the songs.

Background and recording

Recording of the album took place less than a year after the release of the band's eponymous debut album; the process was completed in three weeks.[5] Many of the songs on Van Halen II are known to have existed prior to the release of the first album, and are present on the demos recorded in 1976 by Gene Simmons and in 1977 by Ted Templeman, including an early version of "Beautiful Girls" (then known as "Bring On the Girls") and "Somebody Get Me a Doctor".[6] In the band's licensed game, Guitar Hero: Van Halen, four of the ten tracks of this album are available for play: "Dance the Night Away", "Somebody Get Me a Doctor", "Spanish Fly" and "Beautiful Girls".

Artwork

The black-and-yellow guitar on the back of the album is buried with Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell, who was killed on December 8, 2004. Eddie Van Halen placed it in his casket at his funeral because Darrell had said it was his favorite.[7] However, Eddie himself stated in interviews that the guitar itself was not actually used on the Van Halen II album, as it had only been completed just in time for the photo shoots for the album. David Lee Roth is shown in a cast in the inner liner notes, as he allegedly broke his heel making the leap also seen in the picture on the back cover art.[8]

Track listing

All tracks written by Eddie Van Halen, Alex Van Halen, Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth, except where noted. 

Side one
No. Title Length
1. "You're No Good" (writer: Clint Ballard, Jr.) 3:16
2. "Dance the Night Away"   3:06
3. "Somebody Get Me a Doctor"   2:52
4. "Bottoms Up!"   3:05
5. "Outta Love Again"   2:51
Side two
No. Title Length
6. "Light Up the Sky"   3:13
7. "Spanish Fly" (instrumental) 1:00
8. "D.O.A."   4:09
9. "Women in Love..."   4:08
10. "Beautiful Girls"   3:56

Personnel

Production

Chart positions

Album

Billboard (North America)

Year Chart Position
1979 Billboard 200 6[9]

Singles

Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1979 "Dance The Night Away" Billboard Hot 100 15[9]
1979 "Beautiful Girls" Billboard Hot 100 84[9]

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Canada (Music Canada)[10] 2× Platinum 200,000^
France (SNEP)[11] Gold 100,000*
United States (RIAA)[12] 5× Platinum 5,000,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ Rosen, Steven. Record Review Interview. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  2. ↑ Van Halen II at AllMusic
  3. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "Robert Christgau: CG: Van Halen". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  4. ↑ "Van Halen: Album Guide | Rolling Stone Music". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2012-03-20.
  5. ↑ Halen, Van. "Van Halen Interviews 2 on Vimeo". Vimeo.com. Retrieved 2012-03-20.
  6. ↑
  7. ↑ "Pantera". VH1: Behind the Music. 38 minutes in. VH1.
  8. ↑ "Van Halen II". Classicvanhalen.com. Retrieved 2012-03-20.
  9. 1 2 3 "Awards". Allmusic. Archived from the original on 2 July 2012. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
  10. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Van Halen – Van Halen II". Music Canada.
  11. ↑ "French album certifications – Van Halen – Van Halen II" (in French). InfoDisc. Select VAN HALEN and click OK
  12. ↑ "American album certifications – Van Halen – Van Halen II". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
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