From 1974 until 1985, Van Halen consisted of Eddie Van Halen; Eddie's brother, drummer Alex Van Halen; vocalist David Lee Roth; and bassist/vocalist Michael Anthony. Upon its release in 1978, the band's self-titled debut album reached No. 19 on the Billboard pop music charts and would sell over 10 million copies in the U.S. By 1982, the band released four more albums (Van Halen II, Women and Children First, Fair Warning, and Diver Down), all of which have since been certified multi-platinum. By the early 1980s, Van Halen was one of the most successful rock acts of the day. The album 1984 was a commercial success with U.S. sales of 10 million copies and four hit singles; its lead single, "Jump", was the band's only U.S. number one single.
In 1985, Roth left the band to embark on a solo career and was replaced by former Montrose lead vocalist Sammy Hagar. With Hagar, the group released four U.S. number-one, multi-platinum albums over the course of 11 years (5150 in 1986, OU812 in 1988, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge in 1991, and Balance in 1995). Hagar left the band in 1996 shortly before the release of the band's first greatest hits collection, Best of Volume 1. Former Extreme frontman Gary Cherone replaced Hagar and recorded the commercially unsuccessful album Van Halen III with the band in 1998, before parting ways in 1999. Van Halen then went on hiatus until reuniting with Hagar in 2003 for a worldwide tour in 2004 and the double-disc greatest hits collection The Best of Both Worlds. Hagar again left Van Halen in 2005. In 2006 Roth returned, but Anthony was replaced on bass guitar by Eddie's son, Wolfgang Van Halen. In 2012, the band released their final studio album A Different Kind of Truth, which was commercially and critically successful; it was also Van Halen's first album with Roth in 28 years and the only one to feature Wolfgang.
As of March 2019, Van Halen is 20th on the RIAA list of best-selling artists in the United States; the band has sold 56 million albums in the States and more than 80 million worldwide, making them one of the best-selling groups of all time. As of 2007, Van Halen is one of only five rock bands with two studio albums to sell more than 10 million copies in the United States and is tied for the most multi-platinum albums by an American band. Additionally, Van Halen has charted 13 number-one hits on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart. VH1 ranked the band seventh on a list of the top 100 Hard Rock artists of all time.
Eddie was diagnosed with cancer in 2001, and died of the disease on October 6, 2020. A month after his father's death, Wolfgang confirmed that Van Halen had disbanded.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Halen
Studio albums
Van Halen (1978)
Van Halen II (1979)
Women and Children First (1980)
Fair Warning (1981)
Diver Down (1982)
1984 (1984)
5150 (1986)
OU812 (1988)
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991)
Balance (1995)
Van Halen III (1998)
A Different Kind of Truth (2012)
As Is
Van Halen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
One, two, three, four
Yesterday I was a bum and broke
Today I am a star and broke
In this town that's called progress
That's how we do biz
Rich was better, totally better
Requires a degree of acceptance
As in, "Must accept as is"
Drive my search engine home
Dropped, chopped, Alabama chrome
Hey what the hell it runs, so
The day is done so
Let's have some fun so
Yours very truly
As is
That's how it goes
How expensive he was
Or what was he worth?
Ain't no Brinks truck
Following no Hearse
Drive my search engine home
Dropped, chopped, Alabama chrome
Hey what the hell it runs, so
The day is done so
Let's have some fun so
Yours very truly
As is
Ahh, this next part should really confuse things
Everybody let's stay focused
Love of the craft
Or love of the buck
Every day down here's a rainy day
We don't save up
Little more volume in the headphones please
Unspoiled by progress
"As Is" is how I follow through
It's not who you squeeze
But who returns once again to squeeze you, no doubt
Love 'em all I says
Let Cupid sort 'em out, woo
Drive my search engine home
Dropped, chopped, Alabama chrome
Hey what the hell it runs, so
The day is done so
Let's have some fun so
Yours very truly
As is
Love of the craft
Or love of the buck
Every day down here's a rainy day
We don't save up
La-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la, woo
La-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
Van Halen's song As Is is a commentary on the fleeting nature of success and money. The lyrics describe the cyclical nature of life, where one day you can go from being a down-and-out bum to a successful superstar, but still be broke. The chorus of the song emphasizes the importance of accepting life as it is and not expecting things to be perfect. The lyrics suggest that this attitude is necessary for achieving true success, as it is impossible to control everything in life.
The song also touches on the theme of love, suggesting that it is not always about finding the perfect person, but rather accepting and loving everyone. The line "Let Cupid sort 'em out" implies that it is not up to us to choose who we love, but rather to accept whoever comes our way.
The repeated line "Love of the craft or love of the buck" suggests that success can come from either a love of one's work or a desire for money, but regardless of how one achieves success, it is important to remember to enjoy life and not take things too seriously.
Line by Line Meaning
One, two, three, four
Counting to start the song
One, two, three, four
Counting to start the verse
Yesterday I was a bum and broke
In the past, I was penniless and insignificant
Today I am a star and broke
Now I am famous, but still not financially successful
In this town that's called progress
This is how we measure success
That's how we do biz
That's how we conduct our business
I've been rich and I've been poor
I've experienced both wealth and poverty
Rich was better, totally better
I prefer being rich over being poor
Requires a degree of acceptance
Accepting my circumstances is necessary
As in, "Must accept as is"
I have to accept things the way they are
Drive my search engine home
I'm driving my car
Dropped, chopped, Alabama chrome
My car has received customizations
Hey what the hell it runs, so
As long as it works, that's all that matters
The day is done so
The workday is over
Let's have some fun so
Now it's time to enjoy ourselves
Yours very truly
Sincerely yours
As is
Without alteration or modifications
That's how it goes
That's how things usually turn out
How expensive he was
His value was determined by his cost
Or what was he worth?
What was his actual value?
Ain't no Brinks truck
We can't take our money with us when we die
Following no Hearse
Money won't be taken with us after our death
Love of the craft
Passion for the art of creating music
Or love of the buck
Making money as a motivation for creating music
Every day down here's a rainy day
Money doesn't always stretch far enough
We don't save up
We don't put money aside for rainy days
Unspoiled by progress
Not yet affected by societal advancements
"As Is" is how I follow through
I prefer things unaltered
It's not who you squeeze
Success isn't guaranteed by who you know
But who returns once again to squeeze you, no doubt
Your real friends will always be there to support you
Love 'em all I says
I believe in loving everyone
Let Cupid sort 'em out, woo
Let fate decide who I end up with romantically
La-la-la-la
Vocal improvisation
La-la-la-la-la, woo
Vocal improvisation with added flair
La-la-la-la
Vocal improvisation
La-la-la-la-la
Vocal improvisation
La-la-la-la
Vocal improvisation
La-la-la-la-la
Vocal improvisation
La-la-la-la
Vocal improvisation
La-la-la-la-la
Vocal improvisation
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Wolfgang Van Halen, Alex Van Halen, Edward Van Halen, David Lee Roth
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@1Wade9
This song is a paradox. Everyone always said VH was "pop metal". This is of a species of Hard Core metal, yet so authentically Van Halen, that only Van Halen can sound this way. High testosterone rock with tonnes of attitude. Very original. It sounds like they’re 18 years old again. *Hugely underrated album.
@chrisheroldt5871
HUGELY
@adamshowler8807
Agreed
@adamshowler8807
RIP Edward Van Halen
@1Wade9
I’m in shock. I wasn’t expecting his departure this soon
@thomasvillanueva3942
very underrated work on this album. Rest Peacefully EVH. Huge loss.
@usernamevince1
I love this song,especially the "la,la,la,laaaa" at the end. Classic Van Halen. Classic Dave.
@jironthunder7519
wooo woo woowoo wooo!!
@shaunclifton5281
Dave Rules. I wish he was Eternally 32
@savewhatrockis
@@shaunclifton5281 he's eternally 24, no matter what the docs tell him