Fair Warning by Van Halen

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Heavy. This is definitely Van Halen's heaviest album. Not necessarily from a musical standpoint (although that could be argued as well), as a lyrical one. The feel good anthems of former records are abandoned for darker subject matter and darker music. "Mean Streets" chronicles the wanderings of some Drug addicted night crawler, accompanied by Eddie Van Halen's now unforgettable riffs. You can hear where Guns 'N Roses certainly got some inspiration for "welcome to the jungle" on this one. The bass heavy "Dirty Movies", the fast paced "Sinners Swing" and the take no prisoners growl of "Unchained", all follow with similar themes and subject matter. "So this is Love?" attempts to lighten the mood a bit. Which seems necessary by the time we arrive at that point. And really, it's all the relief we get. The album speeds to an end with the almost punkish number "One Foot Out the Door." Many diehards consider this Van Halen's best work. I'd say it is definitely near the top. You won't be hearing "Jump" or "You Really Got Me" type numbers on Fair Warning. It's all metal muscle and rough around the edges. The darker subject matter can be a bit much a times. In the same way that the "party" tracks can get carried away on their other albums. Roth was never one for subtleties. Also, the last two tracks feel a bit rushed. The album is really only 7 full length songs. All in all, this is some of Van Halen's best work. The band is firing on all cylinders. Eddie in particular delivers some of his meatiest guitar work, which says a lot given his track record. Roth was at the height of being Diamond Dave, which displays itself no better than his hilarious ad-libbing in Unchained's break down. This really is the last in your face, no holds bar album the band would put out. Although a bit overly dark at times.

The greatest rock band of all time! Full stop.. I love everything about Van Halen! From their Southern California roots to their laid back party-all-the-time persona to their non-stop passionate hard-driving work ethics pumping out a new album every year supported by a world tour. They embody everything American youth is made up of. A bygone era in music that may never been seen again and a band who’s charisma and sound will never be matched.

The dark Van Halen album. Considered by many to be the dark album released by the original Van Halen lineup, it also has some of Eddie Van Halen's best guitar work ever recorded. "Unchained" is the stand alone hit from the album with amazing tone, groove, and riffage, as well as the songs "Mean Street" and "Hear About It Later". With these songs, it displays more progression in the songwriting abilities of the band.

I LOVE THIS ALBUM. I love this album. It has to be top 3 for me. Sinners swing is my favorite song on this album. Just really good rock n roll.

One of the best albums of all time!. Top 5 in my opinion

The Peak. This is the vintage VH b4 Eddie got into synths and played with Michael Jackson. If you don't have this well you are in for the best DLR EVH AVH and MA have to offer.

Yes. Great

Rok7. If you don’t like this album then you need to switch tastes in music !!!

Arguably Their Best Album. In my younger years I was all about "Panama" and "You Really Got Me". Fair Warning is for the more mature VH palate - a broodier, "browner" delivery throughout, but an album that remains both exciting and interesting from start to finish. I never tire of this one and I hear something new every time. The opening of "Unchained" is arguably the greatest 25 seconds in rock n' roll history.

One of the best. I love all Van Halen albums, but I think this is one of the best Roth era albums. But I still have to say that Sammy was a better singer and lyricist.

What VH COULD have been. My kids are too young to know what Van Halen was all about, so I play this in the car for them. They get it. This album flat-out shreds and is head and shoulders above anything else VH has ever done. You won't find the crappy-sappy covers and BS signles stuff on here. This is raw, rockin' stuff! Strap in, hit play and enjoy!

The pinnacle of the DLR era.. This album represents the best all around album made by Van Halen during the DLR era. The highlight and best of the best? Unchained. Turn it up.

It's all about "Dirty Movies" for me!. I really love this entire album. Some of Eddies best work as well as Dave's vocals. I love love love the guitar on "dirty movies"! Classic must own Van Halen. Go get it!

The mighty Van Halen!!!. This is one of the best rock albums ever. Period. RIP EVH.

The Soul Of VH Lives Here. Many great artists and musicologists have championed the greatness of VH’s classic fourth album. They don’t typically scribe iTunes reviews though, so for the uninitiated, here goes... To understand just how amazing this album is, several factors must be highlighted. Firstly, VH was not a new band at this point. They were seasoned not only by years of playing clubs, but by several years of touring incessantly and recording professionally. This heightened level of experience honed their incredible talent even further. This is how great bands become legends. The result is “Fair Warning”, a batch of songs that showcase a world class band firing on all cylinders. By 1981, VH knows what works for them. When it makes sense, they double down on the “sure thing” ingredients that will dazzle fans and deliver classic songs like “Mean Streets” “So This Is Love” and “Unchained”. It’s all there: the classic EVH riffs, the wordsmith swashbuckling of Roth and the grinding, shake your money maker groove that only Michael and Alex can hold down. So...where do songs like “Hear About It Later”, “Sinners Swing”, “Dirty Movies” and “One Foot Out the Door” fit? They only fit on this album. They are glorious creative and unique soundscapes birthed from of a moment in time. A moment where a band at their peak is confident enough in their art to take chances and truly explore and shatter the limits of their abilities. They surprised even themselves. Bet Dave would agree if he was ever asked. There are very rare moments when the world’s best rock bands create not their best album, but the one that defines them. It’s not the one with all the hits or even the best performances. But, it defines the soul, the essence of the band. For Queen it was “Queen II”. For Zeppelin it was “Physical Graffiti”. For Pink Floyd it was “Animals.” For Van Halen, it’s “Fair Warning.” As the world grapples with the immeasurable loss of Edward Van Halen, do something good for yourself and for the legacy of the Mighty VH. If you’re a fan, Revisit this album and celebrate the genius. If you’re new to VH and curious where to begin the journey, start here. You’re gonna like where the music takes you. Promise. Rock on...

Any album with Unchained and Mean Street would be deserving of 4 stars. I love this album. Not a fan of the one that sounds like disco, but the others range from good to amazing.

VH at their creative best. Fantastic album. Not a weak tune!

Best VH Album. This is Van Halen at their most gritty, filthy, and raw - and through no loss in melody. Only after many years of loving them did this album become my favorite, but it appears I am not alone in that. Every classic Dave era album with the exception of diver down has been my favorite VH album at one time or another. In the end though, this has become firmly rooted in that position. One of the greatest hard rock bands ever, and with a perfect ORIGINAL (lol) lineup. Because of these things, that makes this IMO one of the greatest ever rock albums period. Interestingly, this is the sole album with such a dark undercurrent to every aspect of it. Below, as well as above the surface. Required listening for any rock fan.

THE MIGHTY VAN HALEN. This is Van Halen at their best. EVH is a beast on this record From the opening guitar of Mean Street, to the blistering finish of one foot out the door you will love every second of this Masterpiece A Must Buy at any price Most diehard van halen fans i speak to say this is their favorite, i have to agree ...you see a gun is really easy, in this despearte part of town turn you from hunted into hunter, go and hunt somebody down wait a minute now.. somebody said FAIR WARNING.. LORD STRIKE THAT POOR BOY DOWN!!!!

Great VH. Full speed ahead rock! Sound quality of recording/engineering was especially outstanding on this album.

Van Halen’s greatest offering …. … and that’s saying something! The musical genius, Eddie Van Halen, proves his prowess on this album, if one was tempted to think he hadn’t already. Fair Warning is every bit the juggernaut 40 years later. There are very few rock albums that have the same punch several decades after their initial release. FW is definitely one of them. The VH album that comes the closest to Fair Warning in its unique musical mastery is OU812 with Sammy Hagar. VH’s fourth and eighth albums are their most underrated, by far. The songs are heavy and slow, meaning, they’re not blazing fast, save, arguably, One Foot Out The Door. The space between chords and beats gives the listener space, and time, to absorb the sonic power of the songs. I could play this album a dozen times consecutively and it wouldn’t get old. This fact, along with many other arguments, which would take too much space, places this work in extremely rarified air, in my opinion.

FINE. This is great album, simply put

VH's Best Album. Incredibly heavy. Eddie's guitar playing absolutely shreds on this album.

Flawless and unique.. I wouldn't care if anybody else liked this record, 'cause it is my unequivocally favorite rock album of all time. After 35 years, I'm still absorbing the genius distilled in this record. I bought the tape in '81 after just having discovered their then previous release, "Women and Children First." A couple of decades later, when I bought my first CD player, this was the first CD I bought to build my new digital music library around. Yes, it's that important. Every song on this record is uniquely VH. The imitators never even tried to touch this. Eddie lets everyone know that these songs are above your pay grade.

This is an EVH album 100%. This was Eddies Album. During the making of this album Eddie thought about quitting the band cause he was getting married and Dave was on his last straw. Guitar track on this album was Absolutely Amazing and really showed Eddies creativity and pure shred power to play guitar and SYNTH! "Sunday Afternoon in the Park" part into "One foot out the door" Great Piece and hat song was supposed to represent Eds anger.

By Far & Away THE ULTIMATE VH ALBUM !!!. Sorry, I didn't mean to raise my voice.... OR DID I ? Oh yeah, I did I used to blow away the boom boxers with this album and 8 rechargeable C batteries. What a great string of songs to listen to w/o skipping any. Always was blown away at ho they 'topped' their 3rd album, Women & Children 1st with this gem. So ahead of it's time for '81 ? . Was it that long ago ? I can't remember, gotta go take my pills.

Fair Review. Van Halen's best album.

Best. Period.. 36 years on, still my favorite VH album. So much going on here. Musically these guys stretched into every corner and for me, this was ground-breaking hard-core rock for those of us who were exhausted from living through the 70s. Banged my head enough to make it through some tough times with some sanity. Still can't thank VH enough for this one.

Push comes to shove!. An under appreciated gem!

The best of Van Halen. Beginning of push come to shove = most memorable Van Halen moment ever!

Definitely one of their best albums!. Rest in peace Eddie Van Halen. Thank you for your music and inspiration and your overall contribution to music. Eddie did things no one even thought about doing on the guitar. He blew the door open for what can humanly be possible. There are a million guitar players that try to emulate his style but there was only one Eddie Van Halen. Just check out the opening licks to “Mean Street” and “Unchained”. There’s so many other great tracks on this album. Not one bad song on this album at all! Highly recommended listening!

Mastered for iTunes?!?. This edition of this album sound WAY over compressed! I also have the high definition 192Khz version of this album and it’s totally fine. Apple is supposed to be using this same HD master for the Mastered for iTunes stamp. They must have messed something up during the process. Apple please fix this error!

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Very underrated. This has to be one of, if not van halens greatest album. Its such a shame that it was their most unsuccessful album of the 80s. Also unchained is their only popular song from this album whilst songs like mean street and sinners aren’t

Best Album of All Time. Note for note the best album of all time.... I've listened to this since I was a teenager and it never loses it's edge....

E. Sq3

Eddie rules. Eddie was angry and fierce on this album his best playing in my opinion and there most mature album also no goofy covers.

What f❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️tonE. EVH

Mean Album. Perhaps Eddie’s most thrilling guitar workout album since their debut. Filled with killer riffs and pleasing tunes all around, except maybe “One Foot Out the Door”. There's no party here, but that does not mean it doesn’t rock.

The greatest riff rock album in history. Make no mistake, this is, without doubt, bar none, riff rock at its absolute BEST. There are no better rock albums in all of history. This is the best of the best. From "Unchained" which is more akin to a jet plane taking off than a rock song to the down and dirty "Mean Streets" to the balls to the wall "Sinner's Swing" to the slimy "Dirty Movies" to the feel good fun of "So This Is Love," this album has NO WEAK SPOTS. Ed's playing and tone was never more innovative and pleasing to the ear. Alex's drum playing is epic. David Lee Roth's lyrics feature him at his peak. He and Michael Anthony mesh to make some stellar rock harmonies while Mike holds the bottom end down with flair, the greatest utility player in rock history. Anyone who buys this will not regret it. It would be a bargain at twice the price.