VAN HALEN - WOMEN AND CHILDREN FIRST (180g LP)

Van Halen Women and Children First on 180g LP from Rhino Records

The Cradle Will Rock! Remastered from the Original Analog Tapes by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman and Pressed at RTI

Everybody Will Want Some: Hard-Rock Legends' Third Album Filled with More Guitar-Driven Focus and Heavier Arrangements

Van Halen, Van Halen II, and 1984 Also Available on 180g LP  

Van Halen's third record in as many years, Women and Children First doesn't surrender anything to its two famous predecessors. Eddie Van Halen, David Lee Roth, and company go for broke, amping up the energy and escalating the heaviness on a concise, hard-hitting 9-song set that also throws a few surprises into the mix.

Anchored by the one-two punch of  "And the Cradle Will Rock" and "Everybody Wants Some!!," the 1980 release marks the first and only time the group employed a female vocalist, as Nicolette Larson sings on the chorus during "Could This Be Magic?" In addition, the opening track features a phase-shifter-effected Wurlitzer piano being played through a 100-watt Marshall amplifier, the change in instrumentation a hint of the ambition that was to come.

Make no mistake: Women and Children First knows how to party hard, but there are also undercurrents of somber tension missing on the first two albums. Van Halen matures here and it's a welcome evolution, as confirmed by the power ballad "In a Simple Rhyme" and country-flavored "Take Your Whiskey Home." But above all, this album rocks harder than any other VH effort. 

No, the bottle of hairspray and liter of Jack Daniel's aren't included with this killer reissue, but cue this meticulously pressed LP up on a good system, turn up the volume, and the good time pleasures forever associated with early Van Halen come rushing back! Guaranteed.

Mastered by Chris Bellman from the original analog tapes and pressed at RTI, Rhino's new 180g LP brings brings the dynamics and punch of the fervent music into crystal-clear focus and also shines a spotlight on the group's trademarks: Roth's shuck-and-jive deliveries; Alex Van Halen's booming percussion; Michael Anthony's soulful bass; and of course, Eddie Van Halen's inimitable guitar heroics.

Rock on!

"All three albums sound dramatically better than the original pressings. Sharing similar warmth, dynamics, and soundstage, Women and Children First mirror the sonic elements on Van Halen II. Again, we are treated to a much larger helping of Eddie Van Halen’s guitar sound on record, and whether you prefer the full-on crunch of “And the Cradle Will Rock” or the delicacy gracing “Take Your Whiskey Home,” it’s all here."
--Jeff Dorgay, TONE Audio, Issue 34

Van Halen Women and Children First Track Listing:

1.  And the Cradle Will Rock
2.  Everybody Wants Some!!
3.  Fools
4.  Romeo Delight
5.  Tora! Tora!
6.  Loss of Control
7.  Take Your Whiskey Home
8.  Could This Be Magic?
9.  In a Simple Rhyme