THE DAVID LEE ROTH ERA
The Club Years (1974-1977)
Because they changed it night by night, it's next to impossible to devise a common set list for all of Van Halen's earlier years. It's obvious because while the band was trying to hone their stage show, they played a wide variety of cover tunes and constantly penned and tested out their own budding classics. The group supposedly had a repertoire of over 200 songs.
| Original Songs |
Below are the pieces known to have been written and/or performed before the first Van Halen release in 1978. Although most have been played live, a few of these may exist only in a studio demo version.
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Original Songs Known to Exist in 1973-1975 : Angel Eyes * Believe Me * Fools * Outta Love Again * Simple Rhyme * Take It Back * Take Your Whiskey Home
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Original Songs Known to Exist in 1976 :
Ain't No Stoppin' * Babe Don't Leave Me Alone * D.O.A. * Eyes of the Night * Get the Show on the Road * Honolulu Baby * House of Pain * Last Night
1
* Let's Get Rockin' * Oceanside * On Fire * Outta Love Again * Runnin' With the Devil * She's the Woman
2
* Show Your Love
3
* Somebody Get Me a Doctor * We Die Bold * Wild Fire
4
* Woman in Love
5
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Original Songs Known to Exist in 1977 :
Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Atomic Punk * Bad Women (Peace of Mind) * Big Trouble * Bring On the Girls
6
* Bottoms Up! * Bullethead * Down in Flames * Feel Your Love Tonight * Here's Just What She Wanted * I Wanna Be Your Lover * Light in the Sky * Little Dreamer * Loss of Control * No More Waiting (Show No Mercy)
7
* Put Out the Lights * One More Time * Shape You're In * Voodoo Queen
8
1
The lyrics were later completely rewritten and became
Hang 'Em High
from
Diver Down.
2
The solo riff from this was later used in
Mean Street
from
Fair Warning.
3
Retitled
I'm the One
on
Van Halen.
4
It is uncertain whether this was a cover or an original, probably the latter.
5
Not to be confused with
Women in Love
from
Van Halen II.
6
This later became
Beautiful Girls
off of
Van Halen II after a few lyrical modifications.
7
The intro riff to this was later used in
Take Me Back (Deja Vu)
from
Balance.
8
The riffs from this tune were rearranged and lyrics changed, and eventually became the bulk of Mean Street , except for the solo section.
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| Cover Songs |
| Here are the known cover tunes done by Van Halen prior to their first album. They are listed by The songs in bold indicate that they exist on tape (not including official studio albums): |
30 Days in the Hole - Humble Pie
Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers - ZZ Top
Brown Sugar - Rolling Stones
Can't Get Enough - Bad Company
Catch Your Train - Scorpions
Don't Call Us, We'll Call You - Sugarloaf
Drive My Car - Beatles
Eighteen - Alice Cooper
Firehouse - KISS
The Fool In Me - Robin Trower
Francine - ZZ Top
Funk #49 - James Gang
Get Down Tonight - KC & the Sunshine band
Goin' Home - Ten Years After
The Grind - Tommy Bolin
Gudbuy T' Jane - Slade
Hallelujah - Deep Purple
Hideaway - Cream
Houses of the Holy - Led Zeppelin
Ice Cream Man - John Brim
If You Can't Rock Me - Rolling Stones
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In For the Kill - Budgie
It's Your Thing - Isley Brothers
Jean Genie - David Bowie
Keep Playing That Rock and Roll - Johnny Winter
La Grange - ZZ Top
Last Child - Aerosmith
Live For the Music - Bad Company
Make It Last -Montrose
Man on the Silver Mountain - Rainbow
Maybe I'm a Leo - Deep Purple
Might Just Take Your Life - Deep Purple
Nobody's Fault But Mine - Edgar Winter
The Overture - The Who
Rock and Roll All Nite - KISS
Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo - Rick Derringer
The Rover - Led Zeppelin
Slow Ride - Foghat
Sitting on Top of the World - Cream
Speedy's Coming - Scorpions
Spoonful - Cream
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Still Alive and Well - Rick Derringer
Stone Cold Sober Again - Queen
Summertime Blues - Eddie Cochran
Superstition - Stevie Wonder
Suzy Q - Creedence Clearwater Revival
Sweet Emotion - Aerosmith
Toad - Cream
Trampled Under Foot - Led Zeppelin
Tush - ZZ Top
Twist and Shout - Isley Brothers
Waitin' For the Bus - ZZ Top
Walk Away - James Gang
Walk This Way - Aerosmith
War Pigs - Black Sabbath
We All Had A Real Good Time -Edgar Winter
Where Have All The Good Times Gone!! - The Kinks
You Really Got Me - The Kinks
Young and Wild - Venus and the Razorblades
You're No Good - Linda Ronstadt
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Nearing the end of 1977, the set lists mostly consisted of a majority of what was to appear on
Van Halen, Somebody Get Me a Doctor, D.O.A., Bottoms Up!, and a smattering of a few other original or cover songs.
Van Halen "World Vacation" Tour (1978)
Similar to the late '77 set lists, the one for this tour was condensed a bit (to fit in the time contraints of VH's opening slot for the headliners); plus member's solos were becoming common.
The show usually ran like this:
- On Fire * I'm the One * Mike's Solo * Runnin' With the Devil * Feel Your Love Tonight * Atomic Punk * Alex's Solo * Little Dreamer * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Ice Cream Man * Edward's Solo * You Really Got Me * D.O.A. * Bottoms Up!
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Van Halen II Tour (1979)
The guys switched from being an opening act at times to a headliner on this tour. They changed the song order around frequently, and added or deleted the ocassional tune, but this was a typical set list:
- Light Up the Sky * Somebody Get Me a Doctor * Runnin' With the Devil * Beautiful Girls * On Fire * Mike's Solo * Feel Your Love Tonight * Alex's Solo * Outta Love Again * Ice Cream Man * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Ed's Solo * D.O.A. * You Really Got Me * Bottoms Up!
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Woman and Children First "World Invasion" Tour (1980)
The first full headlining jaunt for VH, and they were able to able to stretch out their song selection a bit.
An average set list:
- Romeo Delight * Bottoms Up! * Alex's Solo * Runnin' With the Devil * Loss of Control * Take Your Whiskey Home * Dance the Night Away * Women in Love * Jamie's Cryin' * Bright Lights, Big City * Everybody Wants Some!! * ...And the Cradle Will Rock * Ed's Solo * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Ice Cream Man * You Really Got Me
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Fair Warning Tour (1981)
By now just about every concert featured individual drum, bass, and guitar solos. Song-wise, the set lists stayed pretty much the same most nights. The order in which they were played, though, varied:
- On Fire * Sinners Swing! * Alex's Solo * Hear About it Later * So This is Love? * Jamie's Cryin' * Mike's Solo * Runnin' With the Devil * Dance the Night Away * Sunday Afternoon in the Park * Romeo Delight * Everybody Wants Some!! * Ice Cream Man * Mean Street * Ed's Solo * Feel Your Love Tonight * You Really Got Me * Unchained
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Diver Down "Hide Your Sheep" Tour (1982-83)
By now the individual solos had become a permanent mainstay in a Van Halen concert. The band, having more albums to draw from, had their most diverse set lists since their club days. When VH traveled through South America on the last leg of the tour, several changes were made, including the addition of covers like Heartbreak Hotel, Summertime Blues, and Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers. A common North American concert followed as:
- Romeo Delight * Unchained * Alex's Solo * The Full Bug * Runnin' With the Devil * Jamie's Cryin' * Little Guitars * Where Have All the Good Times Gone! * Mike's Solo * Hang 'Em High * Cathedral * Secrets * Everybody Wants Some!! * Dance the Night Away * Somebody Get Me a Doctor/I'm So Glad/Girl Gone Bad * Dave's acoustic intro/Ice Cream Man * Intruder/(Oh) Pretty Woman * Ed's Solo * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Bottoms Up! * You Really Got Me/Happy Trails
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1984 Tour (1984)
This tour marked the first where keyboards were used every night. Not only did Eddie play them for Jump, I'll Wait, and 1984, but also for a bizarre musical "backdrop" for Dave's Tai Chi dance routine. The songs changed vary little from show to show, and a typical set list was:
- Unchained * Hot For Teacher * Alex's Solo * On Fire * Runnin' With the Devil * Little Guitars * Cathedral * House of Pain * Mike's Solo * Jamie's Cryin' * I'll Wait * Dave's Tai Chi Solo * Everybody Wants Some!! * Girl Gone Bad * 1984 * Jump * Ed's Solo * (Oh) Pretty Woman * Panama * You Really Got Me * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Happy Trails
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BACK TO TOP
THE SAMMY HAGAR ERA
5150 Tour (1986)
The band's first outing with Sammy offered a departure from the usual set lists of old. All but four songs from the Dave years were dropped (only two from
Van Halen, Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love and You Really Got Me; and two from
1984, Panama and Jump were kept). In their place were virtually every tune from
5150, two or more solo Sammy cuts, sometimes a Montrose song or two, ocassionally a brief jam on Robert Palmer's hit Addicted to Love or the Troggs' Wild Thing, a brief guitar "duel" between Sammy and Eddie, and Led Zeppelin's Rock and Roll (which they closed with every night).
The typical song order:
- You Really Got Me * There's Only One Way to Rock * Summer Nights * Get Up * Alex's Solo * Why Can't This Be Love * "5150" * Mike's Solo * Panama * Best of Both Worlds * Love Walks In * Good Enough * Ed's Solo * I Can't Drive 55 * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Jump * Rock and Roll
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Monsters of Rock Tour (1988)
For over two months, Van Halen headlined a "festival"-style stadium tour with four other heavy metal acts (Kingdom Come, Metallica, Dokken, and the Scorpions). The band added several songs from their new album,
OU812, to their set, which was still heavy on the Sammy-era songs. Runnin' With the Devil was added to replace Jump as one of the few Dave-era selections they performed live. This tour also gave birth to Sammy's acoustic "solo" (Eagles Fly was played on just about every date). At the beginning of the tour, VH kicked in with Source of Infection right after Ed's solo, but this was dropped early on.
The usual running order:
- Summer Nights * A.F.U. (Naturally Wired) * Black and Blue * Panama * Mike's Solo * Runnin' With the Devil * Why Can't This Be Love * Mine All Mine * Alex's Solo * You Really Got Me * Sucker in a 3-Piece * When It's Love * Eagles Fly * I Can't Drive 55 * Best of Both Worlds * Ed's Solo * There's Only One Way To Rock * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Cabo Wabo * Rock and Roll
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OU812 Tour (1988-89)
After taking a few months off, the group reconvened their tour in support of
OU812. The song order was the only difference between this and the Monsters of Rock tour, save for the addition of Finish What Ya Started:
- A.F.U. (Naturally Wired) * There's Only One Way To Rock * Summer Nights * Panama * Mike's Solo * Runnin' With the Devil * Why Can't This Be Love * Mine All Mine * Alex's Solo * Cabo Wabo * Finish What Ya Started * "5150" * When It's Love * Eagles Fly * I Can't Drive 55 * Best of Both Worlds * Ed's Solo * Black and Blue * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * You Really Got Me * Rock and Roll
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For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge Tour (1991-92)
Jump made it's way back into the show, as did several songs off
F.U.C.K.. Sammy switched back and forth between Eagles Fly and Give to Live during his solo spot. Michael and Alex played part of their solos together (usually doing part of Sunday Afternoon in the Park), and Eddie quite often joined them for an short instrumental-only version of Pleasure Dome. After a while, Spanked was dropped due to the relatively poor signal quality of Edward's wireless while he used his doubleneck guitar/bass. The Dream is Over and Right Now were added on the second leg of the tour, and In 'n' Out was dropped.
A typical set list was:
- Poundcake * Judgement Day * Spanked * Runaround * When It's Love * There's Only One Way to Rock * Mike's Solo/Alex's Solo * A.F.U. (Naturally Wired) * Panama * Why Can't This Be Love * Finish What Ya Started * Eagles Fly * Ed's Solo * Best of Both Worlds * I Can't Drive 55 * In 'n' Out * Jump * You Really Got Me * Top of the World
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Right Here, Right Now Tour (1993)
This was a Sammy-era "best of" tour of sorts, so a variety of "hits" from the last 4 tours were chosen. A big surprise this year, though, was the addition of Unchained, which hadn't been played since '84. Neil Young's Rockin' in the Free World closed every concert on this tour.
The typical tunes picked were:
- Mine All Mine * Poundcake * Judgement Day * Runaround * When It's Love * There's Only One Way to Rock * Mike's Solo * Pleasure Dome * Alex's Solo * Panama * Right Now * Why Can't This Be Love * Finish What Ya Started * Eagles Fly * Ed's Solo * Unchained * "5150" * Best of Both Worlds * Top of the World * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Jump * You Really Got Me * Rockin' in the Free World
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Balance "Ambulance" Tour (1995)
Regarded as probably the fans' least favorite set list in VH's history, the band added approximately 5 tracks from
Balance to every concert. The number of overall Dave-era tunes dwendled down to three most nights, sometimes featuring a fourth with Jump and other times with Panama. "5150" was even brought out from time to time. Concerts were opened with varying songs, including Big Fat Money and The Seventh Seal. Perhaps a positive note about the tour was that the song order was consistantly mixed up night after night:
- The Seventh Seal * Runaround * Top of the World * Amsterdam * When It's Love * You Really Got Me * Mike's Solo * Aftershock * Alex's Solo * Can't Stop Lovin' You * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Feelin' * Eagles Fly * Ed's Solo * Why Can't This Be Love * Finish What Ya Started * Right Now * Panama * Dreams
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BACK TO TOP
THE GARY CHERONE ERA
Van Halen III Tour (1998)
With this tour, the band showcased undoubtedly the most diverse bunch of songs played in twenty years. Several old Dave classics were brought back, including Romeo Delight, I'm the One, Mean Street, a medley of Dance the Night Away and Feel Your Love Tonight, Unchained, and Somebody Get Me a Doctor (with Michael on lead vocals). It was the first time in years that Mike didn't have an unaccompanied solo. Humans Being, never performed live before, was in the set every night. Included in every set were around 4 Sammy-era keyboard staples, plus 4 - 5 new cuts from
III. A few instances during the tour's first American leg, Edward sung lead vocals and played piano on How Many Say I. Dirty Water Dog was played on several Australian dates. The band also performed Dreams and/or Jamie's Cryin' on ocassion.
A typical set list:
- Unchained * Without You * One I Want * Mean Street * When It's Love * Fire in the Hole * Why Can't This Be Love * Romeo Delight (or I'm the One) * Alex's Solo * Dance the Night Away/Feel Your Love Tonight * Humans Being * Somebody Get Me a Doctor * Year to the day * Ed's Solo * Right Now * Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love * Josephina * Panama * Jump
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BACK TO TOP
STUDIO TRACKS NEVER PLAYED LIVE
The following is a short list of album tracks that have never been performed live during their "touring years" (1978-present). All other songs have been played in concert in one form or another.
- Could This Be Magic? (
Women and Children First, 1980)
- "Dirty Movies" (
Fair Warning, 1981)
- Push Comes To Shove (
Fair Warning, 1981) *
- One Foot Out the Door (
Fair Warning, 1981)
-
Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now) (
Diver Down, 1982)
- Top Jimmy (
1984, 1984) * *
- Drop Dead Legs (
1984, 1984) * *
- Inside (
5150, 1986)
- Feels So Good (
OU812, 1988)
- Strung Out (
Balance, 1995)
- Doin' Time (
Balance, 1995) * * *
- Baluchitherium (
Balance, 1995)
- Crossing Over (
Balance [Japanese version], 1995)
- Can't Get This Stuff No More (
Best Of Volume 1 )
- Me Wise Magic (
Best Of Volume 1 )
- Neworld (
III, 1998)
- From Afar (
III, 1998)
- Once (
III, 1998)
- Primary (
III, 1998)
- Ballot or the Bullet (
III, 1998)
* Rumored to have been played on the '81 tour, but never confirmed.
* * Rumored to have been played early in the '84 tour, but never confirmed.
* * * It can be argued that Doin' Time is a variation on Alex's Latin-flavored drum solos played during the last three 1990's tours.
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