Esquire praises Fair Warning
Thursday, 12 March 2009
Esquire lists The 75 Albums Every Man Should Own, an “unranked, incomplete, yet highly tasteful and informative list of the records your music collection requires.”
Van Halen’s Fair Warning made the list. All they had to say about the album was, “The least commercially successful album from the David Lee Roth years. And the best.”
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March 12th, 2009 at 5:48 pm
Fair Warning is a great party album!!!! We need more beer!!!
March 12th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
Push comes to shove solo is never ranked in top 100.What a crock.
March 12th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
“The least commercially successful album from the David Lee Roth years. And the best.”
Hits the nail right on the head.
March 12th, 2009 at 6:17 pm
The first tour i saw VH on was the fair warning album and could have been their best tour together!!!!
March 12th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
ABSOLUTELY, GREAT ALBUM !!!
March 12th, 2009 at 6:36 pm
My personal favorite since childhood…to this day I can’t get over the lead line in “So this is Love?”
March 12th, 2009 at 6:57 pm
“Alright you sinners swing!”
Great tune, Great ALBUM!
Party time.
March 12th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
I love this album - some very great tunes all around! I heard during the making of this album that things started to go sour between EVH and Mikey. Is that true, ir just another rumor?
March 12th, 2009 at 7:10 pm
You can’t deny VhI. But, for overall listening, not tired, I killed this album,playing/listening, Fair Warning is my choice for early VH albums.
March 12th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
p.s. oh, yeah. . . so this is love
March 12th, 2009 at 7:23 pm
Always my VH favorite, as is the single “Unchained”.
March 12th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
One of three of the best Van Halen albums from the Roth Era. Next to Van Halen’s Debut and 1984
March 12th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
See, a gun is real easy…
In this desperate part of town…
Turns you from hunted into hunter…
Go and hunt somebody down…
Somebody said “Fair Warning!”…
Lord, strike that poor boy down…
March 12th, 2009 at 8:46 pm
Unchained Rules!!!
March 12th, 2009 at 9:28 pm
my 1st concert was the fair warning tour. 6/21/81 at the L.A. forum, 6th row floor in front of eddie. i was 12 years old. i remember they were SO LOUD!!! to this day, my favorite album, hands down. HEAR ABOUT IT LATER. don’t think about it, just put it on and listen………
March 12th, 2009 at 10:35 pm
All they had to say about the album was, “The least commercially successful album from the David Lee Roth years. And the best.”
And there’s really nothing else they needed to say - that’s all you need to know.
March 12th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
Dark and heavy album, a masterpiece.
March 13th, 2009 at 12:11 am
Fair Warning is a fantastic album.
A very good pick for this list.
March 13th, 2009 at 1:43 am
ed’s slide intro on “dirty movies” …
March 13th, 2009 at 2:28 am
I’m searchin for the latest thing a break in this routine I’m talkin some new Kicks ones like you ain’t never seen!
Fuck Yeah!!! One of the Greatest Albums of all time !!! I think you guys know the other 5!!!
Such a great record my first Band in High School was named “Fair Warning” in tribute!
March 13th, 2009 at 2:39 am
“The least commercially successful album from the David Lee Roth years. And the best.”
Wrong. Best VH album of all…
March 13th, 2009 at 2:46 am
To me, it’s the best guitar album of all times. It’s a masterpiece, if you want to learn to play guitar, the only thing you need is this album, all Eddie’s tricks and tastefullness are there
March 13th, 2009 at 5:07 am
great album!! all tracks are excellent!! it really rocks!!
March 13th, 2009 at 5:15 am
Dead on!
March 13th, 2009 at 5:39 am
Fav VH album of them all for me. Dark, heavy and ripping, a true masterpiece!!! As charles5150 said, anyone wants to learn to play guitar, Fair Warning is IT!!!!
March 13th, 2009 at 6:10 am
Even One Foot Out the Door, which they recorded in one take supposedly, is just great stuff.
I have gotten tired of VH1 and 1984, but never Fair Warning.
WACF, Fair Warning, and the four original tunes off of Diver Down. That is their most creative period in my opinion.
March 13th, 2009 at 6:14 am
I read an interwiew with Eddie van halen about the making of fair warning and he bashed mike everychance he got. Eddie said he layed down alot of the tracks at 4 in the morning. Great album unchained is my favorite.
March 13th, 2009 at 6:39 am
I agree with charles5150,
This album scared me when I first heard it,
Wtf was Ed doing on the intro to mean streets!
How the fuck did he come up with it?
Took me years to work it out, and I still struggle to play it,
understatement
March 13th, 2009 at 6:43 am
I was always disappointed in the weak reception of this album which was VH’s masterpiece; When it was followed up by commercial Diver Down which the mainstream loved, I knew the industry was rigged…
Kind of like when they pushed “Shake It Up” by The Cars while their first 2 albums were artistically WAY better…
Or how they loved Sting solo over the Police…
March 13th, 2009 at 7:27 am
dirty Movies….
March 13th, 2009 at 7:46 am
I can’t think of any other album that combines such outrageous self-confidence with technical brilliance - from the first note to the last. I remember DLR saying “This album is so hot it will melt all the other records in your collection.” Can’t help but agree with him. Time for another one I think and a UK tour.
March 13th, 2009 at 8:24 am
We’re all on one line here. That’s good!
See, that’s what VHND is all about; VH 1976-1984 with these 6 great albums and VH 2007 and on
March 13th, 2009 at 8:58 am
FAIR WARNING.ALSO MY FAV OVERALL.THE STAGE THE BAND WAS IN MUSICALLY AT THIS TIME WAS THEIR BEST MOMENT FOR SURE .I MUST AGREE WITH MARK TOO.. THE COUPLE ORIGINAL TUNES FROM DIVER DOWN,W.A.C.F.,ALSO IF YOU WANT A REAL TREAT,JUST PLAY THE SINGLE SONG (GIRL GONE BAD )FROM 1984 FULL VOLUME AND SEE WHAT IT DOES FOR YOU!! IF THE NEW CD IS ANYTHING EVEN CLOSE TO BEING AS GOOD AS WHAT THEY HAVE DONE IN THE PAST,LOOK OUT. START SAVING MONEY FOR TICKETS NOW,YOU WILL WANT TO BE CLOSE FOR THIS NEXT TOUR. 2009, A CD, A LIVE DVD,AND A VIDEO GAME!!!
March 13th, 2009 at 9:08 am
Fair Warning is classic VH at it’s best! The Intro to Hear About It Later and Means Streets are some of Ed’s best work. My personal favorite is “So this is Love”. I went nuts when they played in “81″ and “2008″. It was like I was back in High School all over again.
VH is the greatest band period…
March 13th, 2009 at 9:11 am
It’s pretty fucking cool to see a lot of us put our differences aside and celebrate an album that is filled some kick ass tunes. She looked so fuckin good so sexy and so frail…..
March 13th, 2009 at 11:06 am
FRANK..RIGHT ON BROTHA!!I NEVER GET TIRED OF THIS ALBUM..ED WAS JUST LETTING THE MUSIC FLOW, ON THIS CD..VH 3 WAS JUST THE OPPOSITE,SOUNDED LIKE ED WAS TRYING TO DO TOO MUCH..HOPEFULLY, WITH ROTH BACK IN THE MIX,ED WILL BRING THE THUNDER ON THIS NEXT CD..
March 13th, 2009 at 11:14 am
Definetely an underated albumn. It’s my personal favorite. How can you go wrong with “Mean street, Unchained, So this love, Dirty movies”. “Take it off….take it all off!!!!”
March 13th, 2009 at 11:17 am
And “Hear about later”..AWESOME. “Tell me honey will your lovin’, pay my bills yea…”
March 13th, 2009 at 11:18 am
My all time favorite album…….The beginning of So This Is Love? So great
March 13th, 2009 at 11:26 am
Eddie’s tone and solos are the best on this album. Hear About It Later………fantastic tune.
March 13th, 2009 at 11:40 am
Danooosh, is your Caps Lock broken? Or are you just trying to annoy with every word? Do you seriously believe a new CD will come even close to the magnificent Fair Warning? Dream on…
March 13th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
This is every hard core Van Halen fan’s favorite album. The UNDISPUTABLE heavy-weight champ of the enire VH discography!
March 13th, 2009 at 12:25 pm
You can listen to this album over and over again. Great guitar solos and drum tracks. Might possibly be the peak of Dave era VH in my opinion.
March 13th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
They should open the next tour with UNCHAINED and I really hope that they’ll play HEAR ABOUT IT LATER.
March 13th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
I did see them open up with “Unchained” on the III tour. Actually Gary Cherone did a great job with this song live. Eddie was spot on with the intro to it and it sounded just like the album. Regarding the album, I had this on casetee when I was a teenager. After reading this on the VHND I went out on my lunch break and bought Fair Warning at a store called Magic Mart here in Virginia. It a shame that rock doesn’t sound like this nowadays!
March 13th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
Now now Karl…..That’s just your negativity …Maybe that’s your problem…anyways….Fair Warning….The best
March 13th, 2009 at 3:24 pm
This album sounds like it could have been recorded yesterday. It always sounds fresh and raw to me. It’s my favorite VH album. It never leaves my car — have to be careful about speeding tickets though.
March 13th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
Best album….best tour……best guitar work I’ve ever heard.Will never be matched.
March 13th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
The best album with DLR. I bought the cassette twice. Wore out one (lol) and now have it on CD. I wish music like this was still active.
March 13th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Agreed. This is the best VH album, in my opinion. And I love all of them.
March 13th, 2009 at 9:23 pm
Hear About it Later guitar intro, best flanged guitar sound ever.
And I wish Donn Landee would get his due for his being the 5th part in the early Van Halen record sound.
March 14th, 2009 at 6:03 am
LET’S NOT FORGET MICHAEL ANTHONY! HIS BEST WORK WAS ON THIS ALBUM! FUCKING AWESOME AND UNTOUCHABLE! “HEAR ABOUT IT LATER” IS ONE OF THE BEST ROTH VOCALS EVER!
March 14th, 2009 at 6:30 am
i’m never tired of watchin’ unchained in Okland 1981 on You tube. Best live video i ever see!!!
March 14th, 2009 at 11:54 am
If only Eddie and Dave could do this again for the “supposed” next album. No commercialism, just raw energy. All Eddie has to do is practice practice practice.
March 14th, 2009 at 4:26 pm
IF they tour next year, they should start of with Mean Street then end it with Unchained
March 15th, 2009 at 2:59 am
I was 13 years old when I heard “fair Warning” for the first time…….. it changed my life forever!
I´m very grateful to be a VH fan ever since, but it´s a damn shame that all things went very wrong the last 10 years.
Eddie, make us proud to be a VH fan with youre next album!
Fair Warning II (?).
March 15th, 2009 at 3:02 am
ohhh yessss!
March 15th, 2009 at 8:49 am
and to think ed nearly quit around this time.glad he didnt.always been my favourit album
March 15th, 2009 at 12:36 pm
As mentioned, great tunes with exceptional guitar work. The rythm playing behind the versus etc are masterful. Some of the time changes during the solos etc are brilliant. This should be in every student guitar players must have. Listen to the swinging rythm guitar behind the versus in Unchanined,totally in the pocket and light years ahead of the standard rock chords players of that era were chunking out (not that there is anything wrong with that.) Most songs of that era (and this even) would take you five minutes to work out the rythm tracks and a little longer to work out the solos, this album will keep you working on all aspects, and even then you may get the notes but the feel and groove will??
March 16th, 2009 at 6:53 am
HAPPY 18TH WOLF!!!!!!!!!
March 16th, 2009 at 11:54 am
Fair Warning is the greatest technical guitar playing album of all time. PERIOD. There is simply not an accurate guitar tab for half of this material. Can you play “one foot out the door” - HOLY SMOKE!
March 16th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
‘One Foot out the Door’ has got to rank as one of the best EVH jams ever in my opinion; also, an interesting key / time base this song is played…..the rest of the album is top notch as well.
March 27th, 2009 at 1:40 am
From the riveting opening fade in of MEAN STREETS to the pounding of that song to the decadent DIRTY MOVIES and the killer hard rock of SINNER’S SWING, HEAR ABOUT IT LATER, UNCHAINED and SO THIS IS LOVE?… this is a nearly perfect album… even the ballad PUSH COMES TO SHOVE and the bizarre SUNDAY IN THE PARK and ONE FOOT OUT THE DOOR are good moments… but this entire album is so dark, brooding, and musically note-for-note spot on, it ranks as one of the best albums ever and certainly the best VH album… their absolute peak… got it when I was 14 and nearly 30 years later, it’s still my favorite album… when they played MEAN STREET at the reunion shows last year, I was 14 again. There isn’t a false moment on this whole album. Beat for beat it’s the band’s finest hour… a few moments on W&CF compare plus the DIVER DOWN originals… several songs on VH and VHII are up to these, but the dark tone of this album can’t be matched. I am so glad to see so many classic VH fans agree… 1984 is often listed by “critics” as the best VH record… they obviously didn’t listen to the first four records very much… 1984 is their WORST album and I still love many tracks… but it doesn’t hold a candle to the first four and FAIR WARNING is definitely far better than any other to anyone who’s paying attention. The fact that it’s their worst selling album says a lot about what the general public knows about music made by true musicians for people with the highest musical tastes. Submitted respectfully by a VH fan for 30 years next year!!!