OU812

OU812 is Van Halen’s most under-appreciated album. (All of the Sammy era VH albums are killer.) Every song on OU812 is great. Mine All Mine showcases Eddie’s original, melodic song-writing skills, and his ever-present musical genius—AND it has heartfelt, honest, and metaphysically-rich lyrics, thanks to Sammy Hagar. A great choice for the album’s opening song. Cabo Wabo is an original rock song both lyrically and musically; it’s fun, punchy, satisfyingly long and delivers to the imagination the sands of Baja and a taste of the ocean and mezcal. Black and Blue is slow, heavy, and intentional—giving the listener time to absorb and appreciate the sonic assault—and uber-melodic, and Alex’s cowbell work is exquisite. Sammy once again reaches the stratosphere with his vocal performance. When It’s Love proves Sammy writes the best ballads. Feels so good (Alex is playing the high-hat and making it sound like the ride cymbal—so good) hits the sweet-spot. AFU and Source of Infection could only have been lyrically delivered by Sammy (impressively, his third album in as many years). Finish What Ya Started is a catchy, acoustic guitar based tune that comes the closest to what could have been on one of Sammy’s solo albums. Eddie, once again, amazes with his other-worldly guitar wizardry on Sucker in a 3-Piece, and Sammy delivers lyrically with his calls-it-as-he-sees-it personal experience. Sonically, melodically, and lyrically, OU812 is a great rock album. The brothers Van Halen and Micheal Anthony had matured as a band and never sounded tighter or more in sync. Sammy enriched the band, most notably, by giving every song his best effort, vocally. Alex, Michael, Eddie, and Sammy made each other better musicians. It is manifest on this excellent album. Van Halen was THE best rock band on the planet. Note: For all those engaged in which VH era was better debate, remember, the music was written by the same man, one Edward Van Halen. God rest his soul.

VH were an absolute powerhouse with Sammy Hagar on vocals and could play any style of rock they wanted. This album has rockers, power ballads, blue and country rock. The most underrated Van Halen album.

Another lame outing from the emasculated version of Van Halen. The lyrics are sappy and the music sounds safe and complacent.

How do I get a refund? It’s sad that my favorite Sammy era recording is super hard to hear on my car stereo. Great album, but this is a crappy, quiet upload.

This is a great album.....but it needs a remaster for iTunes.

1st 8 tracks are solid, last 3 ... feh Mine all mine ... great song

I’m not a fan of some of the ballads, but this is their most diverse album. Cabo Wabo is Zeppelinesque, and the When It’s Love solo is very Clapton-like, overall a solid effort

we just need a remastered version... all sammy's albums...

The greatest band of all time

This is a melodic keyboard-driven album. My only complaint is that the sound quality is reminiscent of what you might expect from a cassette. With a little polish, I would give it a fourth star.