Album
Van Halen
Van Halen's self-titled debut arrived on Warner Bros. Records on 10 February 1978, and it is where the band's story begins. It is the first of twelve studio albums, a run that stretches from this record to A Different Kind of Truth in 2012. Its mix of hard rock and heavy metal, with an arena-sized swagger, found a large audience: it reached number 19 on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart and has since passed 10 million copies sold in the United States, earning a Diamond certification.
The songs are the reason to return. "Runnin' with the Devil", "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love" and "Jamie's Cryin'" sit alongside a cover of the Kinks' 1964 hit "You Really Got Me". Then there is "Eruption", Eddie Van Halen's solo instrumental, which helped bring two-handed tapping to a wide audience and is often named among the finest guitar solos ever recorded. Rolling Stone placed the album at number 292 in its 2020 list of the 500 greatest albums.
Van Halen: tracklist, credits and charts
11 tracks · 35:32Tracklist
- 1Runnin’ With the DevilAnthony, Roth, Halen, Halen3:37
- 2EruptionAnthony, Roth, Halen, Halen1:43
- 3You Really Got MeRay Davies2:38
- 4Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout LoveAnthony, Roth, Halen, Halen3:49
- 5I’m the OneAnthony, Roth, Halen, Halen3:47
- 6On FireAnthony, Roth, Halen, Halen3:01
- 7Jamie’s Cryin’Anthony, Roth, Halen, Halen3:31
- 8Atomic PunkAnthony, Roth, Halen, Halen3:01
- 9Feel Your Love TonightAnthony, Roth, Halen, Halen3:43
- 10Little DreamerAnthony, Roth, Halen, Halen3:23
- 11Ice Cream ManJohn Brim3:20
- Produced by
- Ted Templeman
- Recorded at
- Sunset Sound (Hollywood)
- Recorded
- 29 August – 4 October 1977
- Engineered by
- Donn Landee
- Labels
- Warner Bros. Records, Warner Bros.
- Length
- 35:32
Line-up
- Michael Anthony · electric bass guitar, background vocals
- Alex Van Halen · drums (drum set)
- Edward Van Halen · electric guitar, background vocals, electric sitar
- David Lee Roth · lead vocals, acoustic guitar
Singles
- “You Really Got Me” · January 1978
- “Runnin' with the Devil” · April 1978
- “Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love” · June 1978 (Japan)
- “Jamie's Cryin'” · July 1978
- “On Fire” · September 1978 (Japan)
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 1978 | 19 |
| UK Albums Chart · 1978 | 34 |
| US Top Rock Albums · 2020 | 4 |
| Dutch Albums · 1980 | 10 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1978 | 17 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1978 | 18 |
| New Zealand Albums · 1978 | 22 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1978 | 44 |
| Italian Albums · 2011 | 89 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Australia · 1978 | Gold |
| Canada · 1984 | 4× Platinum |
| Finland · 1994 | Gold |
| France · 1979 | Gold |
| Germany · 1989 | Gold |
| Japan · 1978 | Gold |
| Netherlands · 1989 | Gold |
| United Kingdom · 1984 | Gold |
| United States · 1996 | Diamond |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
89.0
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
10k
ListenBrainz listeners
231k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
34k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 10 February
Every year →
More from Van Halen
Full discography →
Van Halen II
1979
Women and Children First
1980
Fair Warning
1981
Diver Down
1982
Jump!
1983
1984
1984
5150
1986
OU812
1988
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge
1991
Live: Right Here, Right Now
1993
Balance
1995
Best Of, Volume I
1996
Van Halen III
1998
The Best of Both Worlds
2004
A Different Kind of Truth
2012
Tokyo Dome Live in Concert
2015
The best of 1978
All of 1978 →The Rolling Stones Time Is on My Side 1978
Time Is on My Side
The Rolling Stones · 1978
Dire Straits
Dire Straits · 1978
Some Girls
The Rolling Stones · 1978
Powerage
AC/DC · 1978
Jazz
Queen · 1978
Road to Ruin
Ramones · 1978
Hemispheres
Rush · 1978
Give ’Em Enough Rope
The Clash · 1978
Stained Class
Judas Priest · 1978
Killing Machine
Judas Priest · 1978
Long Live Rock ’n’ Roll
Rainbow · 1978
Who Are You
The Who · 1978
More on Warner Bros. Records
The label →
Hybrid Theory
Linkin Park · 2000
Meteora
Linkin Park · 2003
Californication
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 1999
Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 1991
Minutes to Midnight
Linkin Park · 2007
By the Way
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 2002
One More Light
Linkin Park · 2017
Stadium Arcadium
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 2006
Rumours
Fleetwood Mac · 1977
A Thousand Suns
Linkin Park · 2010
The Hunting Party
Linkin Park · 2014
One Hot Minute
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 1995
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 10 February 1978 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 10 February 1978 | |
| Wikidata | 10 February 1978 | |
| US release | 10 February 1978 | earliest US date |
37 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | AU | Warner Bros. Records | 075992732024 | other |
| — | CA | Warner Bros. Records | 081227955243 | other |
| — | US | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 1978 | US | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 1978 | PT | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 1978 | JP | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 10 February 1978 | US | Warner Bros. Records | original | |
| 10 February 1978 | DE | Warner Bros. Records | original | |
| 1984 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 1984 | JP | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 1984 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 075992732024 | other |
| 25 October 1985 | JP | Warner–Pioneer Corporation | other | |
| 10 March 1989 | JP | Warner Bros. Records | 4988014726177 | other |
| 1990 | US | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 1990 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 075992732024 | other |
| 1993 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 075992732024 | deluxe |
| 1995 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 075992732024 | other |
| 1995 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 075992732024 | other |
| 1995 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 075992732024 | other |
| 1998 | US | DCC Recording | 010963206616 | other |
| 29 September 1998 | US | DCC Compact Classics | 010963112924 | remaster |
| 2000 | AU | Warner Bros. Records | 9325583009549 | remaster |
| July 2000 | CA | Warner Bros. Records | 093624773726 | remaster |
| 19 September 2000 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 093624773726 | remaster |
| 6 November 2000 | DE | Warner Bros. Records | 093624773726 | remaster |
| 27 July 2005 | JP | Warner Bros. Records | 4943674057306 | other |
| 27 January 2009 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 081227991487 | other |
| 23 April 2013 | CA | Rhino | 603497923274 | other |
| 2015 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 081227955250 | remaster |
| 2015 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 081227955243 | other |
| 31 March 2015 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 081227955243 | remaster |
| 31 March 2015 | — | Rhino | 603497892471 | remaster |
| 31 March 2015 | XW | Rhino | 603497892693 | remaster |
| 31 March 2015 | — | Rhino | 603497892624 | remaster |
| 31 March 2015 | XW | Rhino | 603497894130 | other |
| 23 March 2019 | JP | Rhino | 603497923274 | other |
| 15 December 2023 | US | Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | 821797224369 | remaster |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · native: native 10000x10000, downscaled to 3000
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 10000×10000 | native: native 10000x10000, downscaled to 3000 |
| deezer | 1800×1800 | native |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |