RIFFOLOGY
OU812 by Van Halen, album cover
Album

OU812

by Van Halen
Released24 May 1988
LabelWarner Bros. Records
Popularity74.2
hard rockrockheavy metalpop rockaor
Wikipedia ↗MusicBrainz ↗Deezer ↗Podcast cover

OU812 is Van Halen's eighth studio album and the second to feature Sammy Hagar on vocals, following 5150. Released on 24 May 1988, it was recorded between September 1987 and April 1988, finishing just a month before it reached shops. The title is read aloud as "Oh You Ate One Too", a playful nudge that sets the tone for a record happy to have some fun.

It went straight to number 1 on the Billboard 200, repeating the feat of its predecessor and becoming the second of four consecutive chart-topping studio albums for the band. Four singles reached the US top 40: "Black and Blue", "Finish What Ya Started", "When It's Love" and "Feels So Good". "When It's Love" went highest, reaching number 5, while "Finish What Ya Started" climbed to number 13. Sales passed four million copies. It was remastered by Donn Landee in 2023 for The Collection II, which gathers the four Hagar-era studio albums.

OU812: tracklist, credits and charts

9 tracks · 46:33

Tracklist

  1. 1Mine All MineAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen5:12
  2. 2When It’s LoveAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen5:39
  3. 3A.F.U. (Naturally Wired)Anthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen4:28
  4. 4Cabo WaboAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen7:03
  5. 5Source of InfectionAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen3:59
  6. 6Feels So GoodAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen4:31
  7. 7Finish What Ya StartedAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen4:23
  8. 8Black and BlueAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen5:26
  9. 9Sucker in a 3 PieceAnthony, Hagar, Halen, Halen5:52
Produced by
Donn Landee, Van Halen
Recorded at
5150 (Studio City, California)
Recorded
September 1987 – April 1988
Engineered by
Donn Landee
Labels
Warner Bros. Records, Warner Bros.
Length
46:33

Line-up

  • Michael Anthony · electric bass guitar, background vocals
  • Sammy Hagar · electric guitar, lead vocals, acoustic guitar, guitar, vocals
  • Alex Van Halen · percussion, drums (drum set)
  • Edward Van Halen · electric guitar, keyboard, background vocals

Singles

  • “Black and Blue” · May 1988
  • “When It's Love” · June 1988
  • “Finish What Ya Started” · September 1988
  • “Feels So Good” · January 1989

Peak chart positions

ChartPeak
US Billboard 200 · 1988–19891
UK Albums Chart · 1988–198916
Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1988–19891
Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1988–19891
Norwegian Albums · 1988–19895
Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1988–19897
Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1988–19899
Swedish Albums · 1988–19899
Swiss Albums · 1988–19899
German Albums · 1988–198912
All 12 charts
Austrian Albums · 1988–198921
Dutch Albums · 1988–198922

Certifications

RegionCertification
United KingdomSilver
United States4× Platinum

From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.

74.2
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
2.2k
ListenBrainz listeners
141k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
7.5k
Deezer fans (all editions)
← 5150 (1986)For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991) →

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Releases and pressings

How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz + wikidata
SourceDateNote
MusicBrainz24 May 1988
Wikipedia infobox24 May 1988
Wikidata24 May 1988
US release24 May 1988earliest US date
UK / Europe release24 May 1988earliest UK or European date
28 editions
DateCountryLabelBarcodeKind
—XEWarner Bros. Records075992573221other
1988USWarner Bros. Recordsother
1988XEWarner Bros. Records075992573221other
1988CAWarner Bros. Records075992573245other
1988USWarner Bros. Recordsother
1988USWarner Bros. Recordsother
1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573214other
1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573214deluxe
1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573221other
1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573214other
1988PTWarner Bros. Records075992573214other
1988CAWarner Bros. Records075992573221other
1988CAWarner Bros. Records075992573221other
1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573245other
1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573245other
1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573214other
May 1988GBWarner Bros. Records075992573221other
24 May 1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573221original
24 May 1988XEWarner Bros. Records075992573214original
24 May 1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573221original
24 May 1988CAWarner Bros. Records075992573214original
24 May 1988USWarner Bros. Records075992573221original
25 June 1988JPWarner Bros. Records4988014375733other
15 October 1998JPWarner Bros. Records4943674227129other
24 August 2005JPWarner Bros. Records4943674057818other
23 June 2009XWWarner Bros. Records603497968312other
12 July 2016XWRhino075992573269other
6 October 2023XWRhino603497830688remaster
Cover art sources

coverartarchive · upscaled: major: best source 1205x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)

SourceSizeVerdict
coverartarchive ✓1205×1200upscaled: major: best source 1205x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
deezer1200×1200upscaled
fanarttv1000×1000upscaled