“Loss Of Control” is the 6th track on Women and Children First.
The song was used as a b-side on the UK release of “And The Cradle Will Rock…“
Originally written around the same time as “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love,” this song pokes fun at the punk rock scene.
David Lee Roth: “Loss Of Control,” is turning everything up to 78. “You know how late on a Saturday night you feel like turning everything on to 78 and blowing out all your fuses and going, ‘Aaaaaaaah.’ Well, that’s what this song does. It starts out real slow and just goes zip into 78 and you’ll think your tape recorder is all messed up. It’s live in the studio. On the first album we went to the edge and we looked down; on the second album we didn’t discuss the matter; and on the third album Van Halen has jumped over.” – Rock Stars Magazine, 1980
On the album, “Loss Of Control” is introduced by the second part of the instrumental “Tora! Tora!” Likewise, this part was used in the beginning of the “Loss Of Control” video (below) as well as when the band performed the song live.
Author John Scanlan wrote, “‘Loss of Control’ – instrumentally, at least – might be the soundtrack to surfers breaking on the waves and crashing amid the spindrift.” (See Without Surf Music, Would There Be a Van Halen?)
The video for this song (which was never commercially released) features the band in surgical outfits. The video can be viewed in the highest known quality below.
Official Video:
The UK magazine Sounds observed in 1980 that ‘while most bands start off stubbly and eventually become clean-shaven, with Van Halen it seems to have worked the other way around. The difference between their concise, controlled debut LP and their current, erratic, irregular Women and Children First is immense . . . more ragged than the knees of Joey Ramone’s jeans.’ ‘Loss of Control’ sees the band accelerate faster than anyone else on the block before the thrash genre emerged in the mid-80s. Strip away vocals, bass and drums, however, and it is pure surf guitar rock, a kind of amped-up ‘Wipeout’.
Eddie’s Guitar Only:
David Lee Roth’s hand-written lyrics:
