Album · 35 years old this year
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge is Van Halen's ninth studio album, released on 17 June 1991 on Warner Bros. Records. It was the third record to feature Sammy Hagar on vocals, and it brought Ted Templeman back as producer for the first time since 1984, when David Lee Roth was still fronting the band. Templeman had only helped with the track sequencing on 5150 in 1986.
The record went straight to number 1 on the Billboard 200 and stayed there for three weeks. It is a hard rock album that rounds off the first stretch of the Hagar years before Balance arrived in 1995. It has been reissued more than once: a remaster appeared in The Collection II in 2023, and a 2024 expanded edition added an unreleased instrumental of "The Dream Is Over", guitar and organ versions of "Right Now", and concert footage from Dallas in December 1991.
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge: tracklist, credits and charts
11 tracks · 52:04Tracklist
- 1PoundcakeAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen5:21
- 2Judgement DayAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen4:39
- 3SpankedAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen4:53
- 4RunaroundAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen4:21
- 5Pleasure DomeAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen6:58
- 6In ’n’ OutAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen6:05
- 7Man on a MissionAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen5:04
- 8The Dream Is OverAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen3:59
- 9Right NowAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen5:22
- 10316Anthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen1:30
- 11Top of the WorldAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen3:53
- Produced by
- Andy Johns, Ted Templeman, Van Halen
- Recorded at
- 5150 (Studio City, California)
- Recorded
- March 1990 – April 1991
- Mixed by
- Andy Johns, Michael Scott, Ted Templeman
- Engineered by
- Lee Herschberg, Andy Johns, Michael Scott
- Artwork
- Jeri Heiden
- Photography
- David Seltzer, Glen Wexler
- Labels
- Warner Bros. Records, Warner Bros.
- Length
- 52:04
Line-up
- Michael Anthony · bass guitar, background vocals
- Alex Van Halen · percussion, drums (drum set), background vocals
- Edward Van Halen · guitar, keyboard, background vocals
- Sammy Hagar · lead vocals, acoustic guitar, guitar, vocals
Singles
- “Poundcake” · 10 June 1991
- “Top of the World” · September 1991
- “Right Now” · February 1992
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 1991–1992 | 1 |
| UK Albums Chart · 1991–1992 | 12 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1991–1992 | 4 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1991–1992 | 5 |
| German Albums · 1991–1992 | 6 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1991–1992 | 7 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1991–1992 | 11 |
| Swiss Albums · 1991–1992 | 11 |
| Swedish Albums · 1991–1992 | 17 |
| Hungarian Physical Albums (MAHASZ) · 2024 | 18 |
All 13 charts
| Austrian Albums · 1991–1992 | 21 |
| Dutch Albums · 1991–1992 | 24 |
| New Zealand Albums · 1991–1992 | 25 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Canada | Platinum |
| Japan · 1991 | Gold |
| United Kingdom · 2010 | Silver |
| United States | 3× Platinum |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
72.5
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
2.9k
ListenBrainz listeners
133k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
3.2k
Deezer fans (all editions)
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Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 17 June 1991 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 17 June 1991 | |
| Wikidata | 1991 | |
| US release | 18 June 1991 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 17 June 1991 | earliest UK or European date |
14 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 075992659420 | other |
| 1991 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 075992659420 | other |
| 1991 | US | BMG Direct Marketing, Inc. | other | |
| 1991 | CA | Warner Bros. Records | 075992659420 | other |
| 17 June 1991 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 075992659413 | original |
| 18 June 1991 | US | Columbia House | other | |
| 18 June 1991 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 075992659420 | other |
| 10 July 1991 | JP | Warner–Pioneer Corporation | 4988014744010 | other |
| 24 August 2005 | JP | Warner Bros. Records | 4943674057832 | other |
| 23 June 2009 | XW | Warner Bros. Records | 603497968299 | other |
| 12 July 2016 | XW | Warner Bros. Records | 075992659468 | other |
| 6 October 2023 | XW | Rhino | 603497830695 | remaster |
| 12 July 2024 | XW | Rhino | 603497822058 | deluxe |
| 12 July 2024 | XW | Warner Records | 603497825080 | remaster |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · native: native 4000x4000, downscaled to 3000
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 4000×4000 | native: native 4000x4000, downscaled to 3000 |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |