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Track Listings
| 1. Where Have All The Good Times Gone! |
| 2. Hang 'Em High |
| 3. Cathedral |
| 4. Secrets |
| 5. Intruder |
| 6. (Oh) Pretty Woman |
| 7. Dancing In The Street |
| 8. Little Guitars (Intro) |
| 9. Little Guitars |
| 10. Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now) |
| 11. The Full Bug |
| 12. Happy Trails |
Editorial Reviews
Japanese pressing. Reissue of 1982 original release has been remastered and comes in a standard jewel case. Warner. 2005.
--This text refers to an alternate
Audio CD
edition.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
37 of 45 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Did Van Halen follow-up their 1981 masterpiece "Fair Warning" with another classic in the same vein? No. Although "Fair Warning" remains Van Halen's masterpiece and is a fan favorite, upon its release, it was a commercial disappointment, stalling at platinum status (it has sold over two million copies to date).
Van Halen made a far more radio-friendly, commercial album with 1982s "Diver Down." Of the twelve tracks, three are instrumentals, and five are cover songs. That leaves only four Van Halen originals. The reason? As producer Ted Templeman stated, once you record a song that's a hit, you're already halfway there. A lot of fans have complained with the format of this CD. And while it would have been nice to have a full-length album of VH originals as a follow-up to "Fair Warning," "Diver Down" is still a classic Van Halen recording. The original recordings, "Hang `em High," "Secrets," "Little Guitars" and "The Full Bug," are four of Van Halen's all-time best songs. All of the covers on this disc are better than the originals, and the instrumentals are cool and help with the flow of the album. Eddie's playing, which goes with out saying, is spectacular. Dave shines of course, and Alex Van Halen (drums) and Michael Anthony (bass) provide a stellar rhythm section.
"Diver Down opens with the Kinks "Where Have All the Good Times Gone," a mid-tempo, upbeat rocker. "Hang `Em High," an ode to Clint Eastwood, is fast and furious. It features one of Eddie's all-time best solos. "Cathedral" is a haunting, offbeat guitar instrumental, which adds a bit of spice to the album. The highly underrated "Secrets" is, without doubt, one of Van Halen's greatest songs. It simply shows the Van Halen/Roth chemistry at its absolute best. This low-key, tuneful song is wonderfully written. David Lee Roth's finest lyrics can be found right here:
"She ain't waiting 'til she gets older
Her feet are makin' tracks in the winter snows
She got a rainbow that touches her shoulder
She be headed where the thunder rolls"
The pace picks up for the fast-paced instrumental jam "Intruder," which leads perfectly into the Roy Orbison classic "Pretty Woman," one of Van Halen's most popular songs. Van Halen made a dance-pop smash with the mowtown classic "Dancing in the Streets." The melodic instrumental "Little Guitars (intro)" leads perfectly into the gorgeous "Little Guitars," one of Van Halen's greatest love songs. Much like "Secrets," with "Little Guitars," Van Halen manages to create a love song that is both sincere and has power. Unlike the schlock that Van Halen would be releasing a few years later with Sammy Hagar. "Big Bad Bill (is Sweet William Now)" is pure Dave kitsch and adds a great sense of humor to the CD. "The Full Bug" is a great, underrated, fast-paced, classic VH rocker. "Happy Trails" is a light-hearted vocal instrumental and is a great way to close the CD. While some fans might complain at its inclusion, along with "Big Bad Bill (is Sweet William Now), and call it filler, I actually am quite fond of them both. "Diver Down" wouldn't be the same without them.
Some fans might consider "Diver Down" to be one of the bands weaker albums, especially when compared to their first four albums. I would have to disagree with this assessment. Van Halen didn't set out to make a kick-ass hard rock album with "Diver Down." They set out to make a more commercial, light-hearted album, and they succeeded brilliantly. It may not rock as hard as "Van Halen" or "Fair Warning," but "Diver Down" is a gem in it's own right. If you are a fan of classic rock, the first six Van Halen albums are essential to own for any great collection. "Diver Down" is no exception.
Van Halen made a far more radio-friendly, commercial album with 1982s "Diver Down." Of the twelve tracks, three are instrumentals, and five are cover songs. That leaves only four Van Halen originals. The reason? As producer Ted Templeman stated, once you record a song that's a hit, you're already halfway there. A lot of fans have complained with the format of this CD. And while it would have been nice to have a full-length album of VH originals as a follow-up to "Fair Warning," "Diver Down" is still a classic Van Halen recording. The original recordings, "Hang `em High," "Secrets," "Little Guitars" and "The Full Bug," are four of Van Halen's all-time best songs. All of the covers on this disc are better than the originals, and the instrumentals are cool and help with the flow of the album. Eddie's playing, which goes with out saying, is spectacular. Dave shines of course, and Alex Van Halen (drums) and Michael Anthony (bass) provide a stellar rhythm section.
"Diver Down opens with the Kinks "Where Have All the Good Times Gone," a mid-tempo, upbeat rocker. "Hang `Em High," an ode to Clint Eastwood, is fast and furious. It features one of Eddie's all-time best solos. "Cathedral" is a haunting, offbeat guitar instrumental, which adds a bit of spice to the album. The highly underrated "Secrets" is, without doubt, one of Van Halen's greatest songs. It simply shows the Van Halen/Roth chemistry at its absolute best. This low-key, tuneful song is wonderfully written. David Lee Roth's finest lyrics can be found right here:
"She ain't waiting 'til she gets older
Her feet are makin' tracks in the winter snows
She got a rainbow that touches her shoulder
She be headed where the thunder rolls"
The pace picks up for the fast-paced instrumental jam "Intruder," which leads perfectly into the Roy Orbison classic "Pretty Woman," one of Van Halen's most popular songs. Van Halen made a dance-pop smash with the mowtown classic "Dancing in the Streets." The melodic instrumental "Little Guitars (intro)" leads perfectly into the gorgeous "Little Guitars," one of Van Halen's greatest love songs. Much like "Secrets," with "Little Guitars," Van Halen manages to create a love song that is both sincere and has power. Unlike the schlock that Van Halen would be releasing a few years later with Sammy Hagar. "Big Bad Bill (is Sweet William Now)" is pure Dave kitsch and adds a great sense of humor to the CD. "The Full Bug" is a great, underrated, fast-paced, classic VH rocker. "Happy Trails" is a light-hearted vocal instrumental and is a great way to close the CD. While some fans might complain at its inclusion, along with "Big Bad Bill (is Sweet William Now), and call it filler, I actually am quite fond of them both. "Diver Down" wouldn't be the same without them.
Some fans might consider "Diver Down" to be one of the bands weaker albums, especially when compared to their first four albums. I would have to disagree with this assessment. Van Halen didn't set out to make a kick-ass hard rock album with "Diver Down." They set out to make a more commercial, light-hearted album, and they succeeded brilliantly. It may not rock as hard as "Van Halen" or "Fair Warning," but "Diver Down" is a gem in it's own right. If you are a fan of classic rock, the first six Van Halen albums are essential to own for any great collection. "Diver Down" is no exception.
22 of 28 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
The title of the review says it all. Diver Down is the great overlooked Van Halen album. In my opinion it's one of their best albums but for some reason it's just overlooked by everyone. It was a great followup to an even greater album, Fair Warning. Diver Down for the most part is half cover songs and half originals with some instrumentals thrown in. I'll review the cover songs first. The first cover on the album is of the Kinks' classic Where Have All the Good Times Gone?, the Mighty Van Halen's version blows the original away. The only hit from this album was the cover of Roy Orbison's (OH)Pretty Woman, they did a great version of this song also. They also cover the classic song Dancing in the Streets, a lot of people say this is their worst song but I thin they did an excellent job on the song, David Lee Roth sounds great. The last two covers on the album are strange ones indeed, the first one is called Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now)it is a very slow ragtime sounding song, it features Jan Van Halen (Eddie and Aelx's father) on clarinet, then the song that closes the album is Happy Trails, the VH boys do a great song on this song also, the background vocals are great and Dave's voice fits the song. So that's the story on the cover songs, now the first original is called Hang em High. This song is typical early Van Halen and it's amazing. Great guitar riff and eccentric drumming by Alex. Cathedral is a short Eddie instrumental, then it goes into Secrets. It is a good song, very underrated. Little Guitars is without a doubt the best song on the album, and no doubt one of Van Halen's best. The song is very catchy and poppy. The last original on the album is The Full Bug, this is also one of the best Van Halen songs ever. There is a short acoustic intro before kicking into a great rocker. Everything about this album is great, any fan of great music should pick this up, don't listen to what everybody says, and don't overlook this masterpiece
12 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Eddie Van Halen once referred to DIVER DOWN as his "least favorite album." Pointing to the profusion of cover songs and the fact that the mini-Moog riff that opens "Dancing In The Streets" was meant for an original VH tune he was writing, EVH noted, "I'd rather bomb with my own stuff than score with somebody else's." In that vein, I once read a review of this LP that said, "This is the product of an exhausted, bored band at a creative lowpoint."
True, true. Yet DIVER DOWN is not a terrible or even a bad album. It is merely mediocre by the standards of the Old (1979 - 1985) Van Halen. And considering that band gave us ridiculously brilliant albums like VAN HALEN I and 1984, that's a sliding scale.
First of all, the three main cover tunes ("Dancing", "Where Have All The Good Times Gone?" and "Pretty Woman") are well done, although "Pretty Woman" is technically way off, the result of the band playing it in the studio from memory rather than actually doing their homework (just like high school, Dave!). In fact, I like all of these songs better than their originals - VH truly made them their own. In keeping with old VH traditions, there are also two gag-reel songs, "Big Bad Bill" and "Happy Trails", which are as ridiculous as you'd expect them to be.
On the softer, more AOR-radio friendly side, we've got "Secrets" and "Little Guitars", two underrated and understated tunes you will never - ever - hear on contemporary radio. And the good old VH trademark of an instrumental song ("Cathedral") marks the first real foray by Ed into keyboards and is really a beautiful and evocative track. His next outing was the key-solo on "Jump", and we all know how that one ended up.
DIVER DOWN has a vaguely spaghetti-Western type of theme (I guess Dave was watching a lot of Sergio Leone in 1982?), most particularly on the oddly compelling song "Hang `em High", which is arguably the best track on the record. In addition, "The Full Bug" features an exuberant harmonica solo. This song rocks full-bore and will get you a speeding ticket if you listen to it while driving.
All in all, DIVER DOWN is decent three-star album from a great band playing with one hand occupied by beer, or possibly a groupie's bra. It has most of the things you'd associate with DLR-era Van Halen, the main difference being the lighthearted, almost disposable nature of the songs, which lack the hard, gritty resonance of earlier albums or of side 2 of "1984." It' a quirky, very distinctive, upbeat type of Big Rock with just enough edge to prevent it from straying into sugar-pop-rock territory.
True, true. Yet DIVER DOWN is not a terrible or even a bad album. It is merely mediocre by the standards of the Old (1979 - 1985) Van Halen. And considering that band gave us ridiculously brilliant albums like VAN HALEN I and 1984, that's a sliding scale.
First of all, the three main cover tunes ("Dancing", "Where Have All The Good Times Gone?" and "Pretty Woman") are well done, although "Pretty Woman" is technically way off, the result of the band playing it in the studio from memory rather than actually doing their homework (just like high school, Dave!). In fact, I like all of these songs better than their originals - VH truly made them their own. In keeping with old VH traditions, there are also two gag-reel songs, "Big Bad Bill" and "Happy Trails", which are as ridiculous as you'd expect them to be.
On the softer, more AOR-radio friendly side, we've got "Secrets" and "Little Guitars", two underrated and understated tunes you will never - ever - hear on contemporary radio. And the good old VH trademark of an instrumental song ("Cathedral") marks the first real foray by Ed into keyboards and is really a beautiful and evocative track. His next outing was the key-solo on "Jump", and we all know how that one ended up.
DIVER DOWN has a vaguely spaghetti-Western type of theme (I guess Dave was watching a lot of Sergio Leone in 1982?), most particularly on the oddly compelling song "Hang `em High", which is arguably the best track on the record. In addition, "The Full Bug" features an exuberant harmonica solo. This song rocks full-bore and will get you a speeding ticket if you listen to it while driving.
All in all, DIVER DOWN is decent three-star album from a great band playing with one hand occupied by beer, or possibly a groupie's bra. It has most of the things you'd associate with DLR-era Van Halen, the main difference being the lighthearted, almost disposable nature of the songs, which lack the hard, gritty resonance of earlier albums or of side 2 of "1984." It' a quirky, very distinctive, upbeat type of Big Rock with just enough edge to prevent it from straying into sugar-pop-rock territory.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Here for a good time
Van Halen
Diver Down
A very good album from 1982. The album contains several covers as well as a few originals and as such, it is sometimes brilliant and... Read more
Diver Down
A very good album from 1982. The album contains several covers as well as a few originals and as such, it is sometimes brilliant and... Read more
Published 3 days ago by J. Bynum
CLASSIC
Although some people might can this album it hasn't got a bad track on it's certainly better than any of the albums they bought out with sammy hagar.
Published 16 days ago by Daniel J. Cohen
My first Van Halen album still sounds great 30 years on
Van Halen's fifth studio album Diver Down was first released in April of 1982.
By the time Van Halen recorded its fifth album in early 1982, Van Halen had four million sellers... Read more
By the time Van Halen recorded its fifth album in early 1982, Van Halen had four million sellers... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Terrence J. Reardon
DLR+VH=FUN!!!
While I agree with many reviewers that this is not the best of the Roth-era (I would even say the 'least best'), it's still a pretty darn good album. Read more
Published 2 months ago by megatallicadiozzhalen
VH still on a high note
Diver Down was Van Halen's fifth LP in five years, released in April 1982. Not sure as to why it gets negative reviews at all - to me, it's an impossibly addictive album full of... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Paulo Alm
Too Many Covers
Diver Down is really OK. There are just too many covers!!! Ed, take more time and make more originals! The fans want to hear YOU, not Roy Orbison! Read more
Published 3 months ago by D-Note
Another Oddball Masterpiece,From A Van Halen Point Of View Anyway
Along with Fair Warning this album,both from 1981-82 respectively were very much skimped on. But honestly? Read more
Published 3 months ago by Andre S. Grindle
weakest Roth era albums,,excluding the latest
this album contains some of my favorites such as little guitars, and my least favorite, dancing in the streets. Read more
Published 3 months ago by B. Atighechi
Fantastic!!!! but too many covers
Great CD... but a little short with all the covers. Doesn't hold up against their new disk A Different Kind of Truth but still a really good disk.
Published 3 months ago by Sig M.
Best Album!!!
It figures that Van Halen's worst 2 selling albums are their best albums(Fair Warning was worst selling). Read more
Published 3 months ago by K. Watson
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Diver Down is Van Halen's fifth studio release.
David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar, Gary Cherone, Michael Anthony, Eddie Van Halen and two other artists have been a member of Van Halen.
David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar, Gary Cherone, Michael Anthony, Eddie Van Halen and two other artists have been a member of Van Halen.
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