listening Post: Van Halen - Women and Children First

When I was about 15 or 16 my best friend in the summer vacation town of Bar Harbor was a guy named Pete. I met him while we were both prep cooks at the town's greasy spoon. Pete was a metal guy all the way. Used to listen to Pantera before anyone knew who they were. He took me to see Ozzy at the Blizzard of Oz tour stop at the Bangor State Fair, (Randy Rhodes was 5 feet from me and a little band named Def Leppard was the opener). Pete also had a pair of pants tailor painted with white stripes to emulate Eddie Van Halen's guitar. While I was immersing myself in Queen, Pete was learning to shred. I never even gave the Pasadena boys a chance.
Let's remedy that now, shall we?




Van Halen - Women and Children First - 1980 (Buy it)

This is different. This sounds like the soundtrack to Almost Famous. This is classic rock determined to stand shoulder to shoulder with the giants of the day. There's a broader palette being drawn here. The soundscape is wider and more dense than anything that has come before.
Once again, the party atmosphere is present but, like I said, this is....different. It's a sound best played in a 50,000 seat amphitheater but it works great at a kegger, too.
The roller rink atmosphere is gone, though. Replaced by a prog-rock sensibility. W&C1st is not as easy to sink your teeth into. It's actually a more demanding record. Chunkier, groggier. At the same time it's a quick record and not just by elapsed time. Though that is swift, it's a breeze to get through most of this stuff. It sits nicely in the background and works well on your headphones.
Behind it all, VH has a sound and formula that just works. I'm not sure you need to hear anything but the first record, though.

Grade B+
A Side: And the Cradle Will Rock
Blindside: Everybody Wants Some! & Could this be Magic
Downside: Fools. It's just a little bloated amidst the streamlined stealth.