Van Halen II
Van Halen II is the second studio album by American hard rock band Van Halen, released in 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
The actual 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 have been known to exist prior to the release of the first album, and are present (in various forms) on the demos recorded in 1976 by KISS' Gene Simmons and '77 by Ted Templeman, including an early version of "Beautiful Girls" (then known as "Bring on the Girls") and "Somebody Get Me a Doctor". (The album version is only slightly different from the demo versions.)
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.[6] 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.[7]
Track listing
All songs written by Eddie Van Halen, Alex Van Halen, Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth, except where noted.
Personnel
Production
- Producer: Ted Templeman
- Engineers: Corey Bailey, Jim Fitzpatrick, Donn Landee
- Assistant engineers: Corey Bailey, Jim Fitzpatrick
- Remastering: Gregg Geller
- Project coordinator: Jo Motta
- Art direction: Dave Bhang
- Design: Dave Bhang
- Artwork: Dave Bhang
- Photography: Elliot Gilbert, Neil Zlozower
Certifications
Charts
Album
Billboard (North America)
Singles
Billboard (North America)
References
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Book:Van Halen
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Category:Van Halen
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