Review: Van Halen ‘5150 Expanded Edition’ – Celebrating The Debut LP Of ‘The Sammy Hagar Era’ As It Turns 40!

“Only time will tell if we stand the test of time…” – Van Halen, “Why Can’t This Be Love”

Van Halen has released a 3-disc edition of their debut album with Sammy Hagar, 5150, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of its initial release which was the beginning of the “Van Hagar” Era. The “box” includes the original album (disc 1), some outtakes/stray live cuts (disc 2) and excerpts from the New Haven, Connecticut show that was filmed for the video Live Without A Net. Strangely, I’ve never seen that video and will only be commenting on the audio piece of this.

And speaking of 1986, for those keeping score, we did include “Best Of Both Worlds” from this LP on our Playlist: Rock Songs of 1986, just published. I won’t lie, the song has some…”sentimental value” to me.

This box celebrating 5150 comes on the heels of the VH camp releasing Expanded Editions of both Balance (1995) and For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991). It seems now we only have OU812 left from Sammy’s initial run to get the expanded treatment.

Oh what a fraught time it was for us Van Halen fans back in 85/86. On the heels of Van Halen’s triumphant 1984 album, where they seemingly conquered the world (10x platinum!), Roth left the band – on April Fool’s Day, no less (although, I’m not sure we all knew about it until that summer). The long rumored friction between guitarist Eddie Van Halen and singer David Lee Roth had finally boiled over. Who amongst us weren’t flying the VH flag at half mast?

We had all grown up on Van Halen’s hedonistic rock n roll set to wicked guitar. Eddie literally changed the way lead guitar was played. Roth was the ambassador of good times and fun. Little did we realize Eddie wanted to be taken seriously but his front man wanted to be Barnum & Bailey rolled into one. The only time Eddie seemed to get his way was Fair Warning, that we all loved, but the critics thought was grim.

I had purchased VH”s debut album when it came out in ’78, making them really the first band who I’d “gotten in on” on the ground floor, so to speak. Most of the classic rock I bought in those days was from older bands (Stones, Zeppelin). Now that they were down to Eddie Van Halen (guitar), Alex Van Halen (drums), and Micheal Anthony (bass/backing vocals extraordinaire) what would they do? Roth’s departure had been unthinkable. OUR band wasn’t going to break up… already?

Rumors were flying. There was one rumor that Pete Townshend had been asked to join or at least to write songs for the band. That one doesn’t make sense and I don’t know if that was ever true. Eddie actually asked Patty Smyth, lead singer of Scandal, to join the band. She was 8 months pregnant at the time and as she said, “Those guys were always drunk and fighting all the time.” Doesn’t sound like a great fit, but how intriguing it might have been! And who wasn’t drunk and fighting all the time in ’86.

Finally the news broke that Sammy Hagar, the Red Rocker, had joined VH. We were all a little surprised. Sammy was still at the zenith of his solo career with LPs like Standing Hampton and Three Lock Box in high rotation on our stereos, radio and MTV. Most of us had no idea Sammy had gotten his start in Montrose, a very VH style, 4-piece band so it actually made some sense.

Eddie was quoted at the time as saying that in the very early days of Van Halen they wanted the band to ditch Roth, who let’s face it could barely carry a tune (in his defense, he was a vibe guy), and replace him with Hagar. It smacked of bullshit, but then later producer Ted Templeman actually lended some credence to that story in his autobiography.

Everybody was anxious to hear what this new combo would come up with. Even casual music fans were interested because VH was so big at the time after 1984. Only maybe Sabbath when Ozzy left and Dio joined had pulled off the high wire act of changing lead singers at the zenith of their career (well, Sabs were on a bit of a decline, come to think of it). I know Deep Purple rotated lead singers but with certainly less success.

I remember being in the cafeteria where I lived and I heard this guy I’ll call, Congo (name changed to protect the innocent), talking about the “new VH” track, “Why Can’t This Be Love.” I remember he tried to describe it to me but my mind was already racing. Apparently there as no video – something Roth would never have stood for, videos were his “thing” – so I wouldn’t hear it until the shitty radio station in my college town put it on, which surprisingly didn’t take as long as I thought it would.

I heard the track and I agreed what Templeman said at the time, “Those guys made a pop album! That surprised me.” Well, I at least agreed that it was kind of a pop single. But I liked it. You put an Eddie Van Halen solo on anything and it worked. Sammy seemed to gel with the band, although the lyric, quoted above, “Only time will tell if we stand the test of time,” will always rank amongst the stupidest lyrics I’ve ever heard. We were mostly, after hearing the song, on the bandwagon.

Listening to the remaster of the original album now (which is the first disc of the set) still brings me great joy. It wasn’t perfect. There were two tracks that were at breakneck speed that just felt like they were trying too hard to “rawk.” The opening track, “Good Enough,” which has actually grown on me despite Hagar yelling “Rack of what?” The other one was “Get Up” which sounds like someone sprained something they’re playing so fast.

There were two keyboard tracks. After “Jump” and the even better “I’ll Wait” keyboards were now a thing in VH. “Dreams” is the better track and I loved the video with the Blue Angels flying around. “Love Walks In” was a bit sappy to me. I know it was a hit but it missed the mark to me and I’m on record as loving ballads.

The core tracks on the album were all killer. We liked the aforementioned first single “Why Can’t This Be Love,” of course. One of the first tracks I immediately got into was “Summer Nights.” It’s one of the few Van Hagar songs the Rock Chick digs – she’s a diehard Roth fan. They came up with that song during their first jam together. Impressive. It’s on my Summer/Sun Playlist. What a great riff. It’s just a classic VH rock song meant to be heard with the car windows down and the wind in your hair.

The previously mentioned “Best Of Both Worlds” is, in my ear, one of Van Halen’s best songs – not just of the Van Hagar era but one of their best ever. The hidden gem nobody talks about is the title track, “5150,” which has everything I want in a VH song, a fabulous riff, great solo and insistent drums. It’s a classic and nobody on VH Mountain ever puts it on the greatest hits stuff.

Of course, the album ends with the story of Sammy’s joining the band, “Inside.” It was a weird diversion for VH but I’ve always loved it. Sammy sing screams like a man possessed. I love the chanted gang vocal on the chorus, “That’s what’s going on, on the inside…” I liked its weirdness.

On disc 2, where we encounter the “bonus” material is where I struggle with this box. The first half of the disc are “extended” version of five songs from the album. While it’s interesting to listen once to “Why Can’t This Be Love” with an extra trip through the verse and chorus, it’s likely not something I’m going to return to. If there’d been some unheard solo’ing at the end I might have been more drawn to those tracks.

The last three tracks on disc 2 are stray live songs and they are infinitely more interesting. I love the live take of “Best Of Both Worlds” and at the slow, almost bluesy, lead-in they do. I also love the Zeppelin cover of “Rock N Roll” – a track Eddie jumped on stage to play with Hagar at FarmAid after we learned Sammy was joining. Hell, even “Love Walks In” fairs well live. It’s a weird disc 2.

Disc 3 is where we get audio from the Blu-Ray (which I’m not commenting on) from the New Haven show from ’86. I saw Van Halen on this tour from the front of the GA floor, pressed against the barricade, in Wichita, Kansas on May 28th, 1986 at the old Kansas Coliseum. Oh what a night. I remember how happy they seemed on stage. Gone was the tension on stage. It seemed like Eddie was playing his ass off in an effort to tell fans Roth’s loss wasn’t important, but maybe that was just me thinking that. Although listening to this live stuff makes me feel I’m right.

I love the live show, I’ll take all the live VH I can get, but I would have preferred the whole show. They cut completely “You Really Got Me” which was what they opened with on that tour and it was a signal that despite Hagar’s joining, this was still Van Halen after all. It’s nit but I liked that version of the song. They cut Anthony’s bass solo which I don’t miss. His backing/harmony vocals are a wonderful secret weapon in VH.

Sammy’s solo stuff blends in well during the set. We get “Only One Way To Rock” and “I Can’t Drive 55” which both sound great with a new lead guitarist playing them… well, what song wouldn’t improve with Eddie Van Halen playing lead.

I have a vague memory, I think during “Summer Nights,” of Hagar putting on his guitar and saying something about dueling with Eddie on guitar… I’m sure that schtick when away very quickly as Hagar was just embarrassing himself on guitar out there, heh heh.

Those nits aside, I love the live stuff. I hear this disc 3 and I’m right back there fighting for my life at the barricade while Eddie and Sammy jump around in front of me. The guitar solo on “Summer Nights” is ferocious. “5150” is even better live! I love that they include the cover of “Wild Thing,” which is shambolic and messy, just the way it should be. Garage rock, baby!

“Panama” is still a great rock song but on that one I did miss Roth. When they get to the “I reached down between my legs… eased the seat back,” Hagar does his own weird riff. I don’t think he ever got comfortable with that song. This “Best of Both Worlds” has the same great intro but Sammy slows it in the middle to do some crowd work… which is probably why we have the disc 2 version.

Eddie’s guitar solo is always worth the price of admission. It was usually a combination of “Eruption,” “Spanish Fly” and whatever else he felt like exploring. I can close my eyes and see him in front of me, both hands working up the neck of the guitar… oh, my. I’ll take every version of that solo I can get. And it’s always a treat to hear VH do Led Zeppelin on “Rock N Roll” to end the night.

The band is playing with a whole lot of renewed energy and enthusiasm on this stuff. If there was one reason to buy this set – or at least stream it, if you already own the original album – it’s for the live stuff. I’m not sure Van Halen ever really captured their live performances the way say, the Allman’s did on Fillmore East. As these expanded editions show, there was a lot of great performances recorded from these guys.

I really enjoyed (outside of the first 1/2 of disc 2) this box and reconnecting with this great album again. But then… I lived through its release and the ensuing tour. I suggest turning this one up very loud and be ready to hold your lighter over your head, old school style.

Cheers!