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)
Blood and Fire
Van Halen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The saints and the sinners
Down at the starting line
I'm a lucid vision
Of the unforgiven
I'm your wave-tossed guy
King-size, we were crushin'
Stakes have never been higher
Come back when you're younger
'Cause I can feel the thunder
1-800-IT'S TIME
Ooh yeah
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
Now look at all of the people here tonight
It's a world of fools
That's just what's expected
None of 'em know it
Or even suspect it
God must love the lazy
Shiftless and the crazy
Puttin' so many in life
Ooh yeah
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
Now look at all of the people here tonight
Forgotten empires
Lost victories, long past
Every time I bloomed again
I thought it was the last
And then something crazy happens
And boom
I'm doing the victory dance
Told ya I was comin' back
(Told ya)
Say you miss me
(Say it)
Say it like ya mean it, ahh say it
You can always tell the winners
Saints and the sinners
Down at the starting line
Ooh yeah
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
The lyrics of Van Halen's "Blood and Fire" speak of a race, where the winners are easily identifiable - the saints and the sinners. The persona of the song identifies himself as a lucid vision of the unforgiven, a person who has made mistakes and is burdened with guilt. He also proclaims himself to be someone who can handle the metaphorical wave-tossed sea of life. Despite being crushed by troubles aplenty, he is determined to persevere, and he reminds the younger folks that he can feel the thunder, a testament to his experience, and perseverance.
Throughout the song, there is an interplay between the persona's struggles with life and the external world's perceptions of them. The persona notes how the world is full of fools, who are content with their laziness, and God must love them since they are still alive. He also speaks of forgotten empires, lost victories, and how he had thought things were over for him, only for life to surprise him yet again. The song concludes with a declaration of victory, asking to be missed.
Line by Line Meaning
You can always tell the winners
It's easy to spot those who have succeeded in life
The saints and the sinners
Regardless of morality, both types can be successful
Down at the starting line
Success can be determined from the beginning
I'm a lucid vision
I am clear-headed and focused
Of the unforgiven
I am among those who have not been forgiven for past mistakes
I'm your wave-tossed guy
I am the unpredictable one in this situation
King-size, we were crushin'
We had great power and were unstoppable
Trouble by the dozen
We faced many obstacles
Stakes have never been higher
This is a pivotal moment in our lives
Come back when you're younger
You need more experience before you can handle this
'Cause I can feel the thunder
I sense the excitement and anticipation in the air
1-800-IT'S TIME
It's time to take action
Ooh yeah
This is an exclamation of excitement
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
We have overcome intense adversity to get here
Now look at all of the people here tonight
Reflecting on the crowd - this is a moment to remember
It's a world of fools
The world is full of foolish people
That's just what's expected
This is the norm and should not be surprising
None of 'em know it
Most people are unaware of their own foolishness
Or even suspect it
And may not even consider the possibility
God must love the lazy
Lazy people seem to be blessed with luck and success
Shiftless and the crazy
Like the lazy, those without direction or who act recklessly also seem to be favored
Puttin' so many in life
Many people end up in these categories
Forgotten empires
Once-great civilizations that are no longer prominent
Lost victories, long past
Past successes that have been forgotten and unrepeated
Every time I bloomed again
Each time I had success or made progress
I thought it was the last
I thought my days of success were behind me
And then something crazy happens
And unexpectedly, things fall into place
And boom
Suddenly
I'm doing the victory dance
I am celebrating my success
Told ya I was comin' back
I promised I would return and succeed
Say you miss me
Admit that you were wrong to doubt me
(Say it)
(Reiterating the request)
Say it like ya mean it, ahh say it
Be sincere when admitting your mistake
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
We have overcome intense adversity to get here
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
We have overcome intense adversity to get here
We came, we came, we came through blood and fire
We have overcome intense adversity to get here
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Wolfgang Van Halen, Alex Van Halen, Edward Van Halen, David Lee Roth
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Roland Beaulieu
Roth's contribution is so huge on this song. The phrasing, lyrics, everything. Not hard to imagine how much of his fingerprint is on the classic stuff. I often wondered how he would have treated everything that came out post 1984 if you were to give him just the music.
Mason Lawlor
This song is a great indicator of what Classic Van Halen would've sounded post-84. The music is right out of the 83-85 range.
Megalodon Sean Casey
@akimmbo , David & Sammy both made Faustian deals so they didn't write the music & neither did Eddie...RUNNNIN WITH THE DEVIL ain't just a song title
akimmbo
@Roland Beaulieu 😆
Roland Beaulieu
@akimmbo "Sam throws a party. I am the party" -DLR
Roland Beaulieu
@Dave Patek Dude, Ed only wrote the music - not the melody or lyrics? My point, was that Dave would have given all of those songs a different treatment entirely. Lower range, swagger etc. I am not trying to get into the 'who's better' debate, but more - "Wouldn't it be interesting to hear"?
Josh Dietrich
As bummed as I am about Eddie’s passing, at least they went out with a pretty killer album!
Mason Lawlor
I do really like Tattoo, but this should've been the first single released. It's like a story of Van Halen: "we came through Blood and Fire." Would've been a perfect fit to release as the first record with Dave since 1984. Missed opportunity.
Roland Beaulieu
@Devin Comiskey I totally agree. I found I had a similar reaction to "Why Can't This Be Love' when it first came out. More of a giant question mark than anything. I like both songs, but maybe it was all the hype beforehand that threw me off. Blood and Fire would have been an amazing release. Although Outta Space as a launch would have blown my face off. :)
Devin Comiskey
Agreed. Tattoo really turned me off from getting the album. Turns out, I may be a dummy. 🤣