#6: "1984" by Van Halen

#6—Whaddaya think the teacher's
gonna look like this year?

Favorite Song: Hot for Teacher
Notable tracks: Jump,  Panama, Top Jimmy, Drop Dead Legs, I'll Wait
Released: 1984 (duh!)
Chart peak: #2 (U.S. Billboard 200)
Popularity: 12 million copies sold

There is just so much to like about this album, the last for many years with David Lee Roth as their lead singer, the very last (so far) with their original lineup, and probably their most popular album as well. I didn't follow Van Halen much at all before this album came out, but it really is the pinnacle of this band's success, and as we might expect at this point, their swan song as well.

I chose this over my other two Van Halen albums, 5150 and OU812, both great albums with Sammy Hagar as lead singer, and although I preferred Sammy as the band's lead singer, nothing they did really comes close to the pure rock & roll joy of 1984. That's nothing against Sammy—his was the version I saw live, and it was a terrific show. But this album best captures the essence of what made Van Halen not just popular but really great.

What this album also captures so well is the original lineup before the slow decline that eventually made the band more of a curiosity than a powerhouse (are they still together, in any form?). What I mean by that is that on this album, David Lee Roth's ego is still (somewhat) in check, Alex and Eddie's addictions haven't yet consumed them, and Michael Anthony is still on speaking terms with his bandmates. All that would change, but not until later.

Like so many of my albums on this list, these songs were a constant background soundtrack for life in the early- to mid-eighties. All the singles were in heavy rotation on MTV, and there was hardly a young man with a car that had a tape deck who didn't own the cassette, or in my case, hadn't transferred the album from LP to blank cassette (that's how we rolled, kids!).

This album also marks the era in which Eddie Van Halen took control of the band by building his own recording studio and incorporating the keyboard parts that Roth and previous producer Ted Templeman didn't want to let him record. Eddie was already a guitar god, but he wanted to expand his virtuosity, and 1984 showcases his skill on keys as well as on that classic Stratocaster.

True story: I was late for my sophomore social studies class one day; I walked into the class while our teacher, Mr. Doss, was still taking roll. He said, "Mr. Sanders, you are tardy." My reply: "I don't feel tardy." That's why "Hot for Teacher" is at the top of my list. Well, that and Alex's totally kick-ass drum work. (Okay, I liked the video then for the obvious reasons, too. I was 15—sue me!)

Also, when I'm watching Cardinals baseball and an opponent strikes out,

 I always shout, "Sit down, Waldo!"