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)
Fire In The Hole
Van Halen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To tell, or not the truth (yeah)
So open up and say amen
Rinse cup, and spit again
Forked tongue in double speak
Pretty soon you just might
Spring a leak
Inhale before you begin
There's a fire in the hole
Fire in the hole
There's a fire in the hole (hey hey hey hey hey)
Fire
Sweet and sour, filibister
Faucet pouring, fresh and bitter
Come on smile and say cheese
On a count of three
Ya got a mindful of decavities
Hey
Chew your words, lest you choke
You better watch your mouth
Wash it out with soap, yeah
Tongue tied in a tangled web
Your bile inside better left unsaid
There's a fire in the hole
Fire in the hole (hey hey hey hey hey)
There's a fire in the hole (hey hey hey hey hey)
Fire
Ah, shoot it
Hey-hey-yeah
Huh
Yeah
Hey-hey-yeah
(Hey hey hey hey hey)
There's a fire in the hole
Fire in the hole (hey hey hey hey hey)
There's a fire in the hole (hey hey hey hey hey)
Fire in the hole (hey hey hey hey hey)
There's a fire, fire, fire
A fire
Rudder of ship, which sets the course
Does not the bit, bridle the horse
Great is the forest, set by a small flame
Like a tongue on fire, no one can tame
The lyrics of Van Halen's song "Fire in the Hole" speak out against those who speak with a "forked tongue" and engage in "double speak." The lyrics begin with a reference to wisdom teeth and the choice to tell the truth or not. The song advises people to watch what they say and to "chew their words" before they speak, lest they "choke." The song's lyrics encourage people to be wary of those who speak with deception and suggest that such people are like a "bag of wind."
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "Fire in the Hole" and describes the intensity of the emotions experienced by those who speak with double meanings and deception. The song suggests that those who speak in such ways carry with them an explosive and destructive force that can cause great harm if left unchecked.
Overall, the lyrics of "Fire in the Hole" encourage honesty in communication and warn against the dangers of speaking with a "forked tongue." The song suggests that honesty is the best policy when it comes to communication and that those who choose to speak with deception do so at their own peril.
Line by Line Meaning
In a word to the wisdom tooth
To give a piece of advice to someone who needs guidance
To tell, or not the truth (yeah)
To decide whether to be honest or lie
So open up and say amen
To confess and accept one's wrongdoing
Rinse cup, and spit again
To prepare to speak one's truth
Forked tongue in double speak
To speak deceitfully and with ambiguity
Pretty soon you just might
Eventually you may
Spring a leak
Reveal something unintentionally
Inhale before you begin
Take a deep breath before speaking
Your iron lung's a bag of wind
Even though you think your argument is solid, it's just a lot of hot air
There's a fire in the hole
There's danger ahead
Sweet and sour, filibister
Using nonsensical or irrelevant speech to avoid answering a question
Faucet pouring, fresh and bitter
Speaking bluntly and harshly
Come on smile and say cheese
Be disingenuous and fake
On a count of three
At a specific time or moment
Ya got a mindful of decavities
Your words are causing harm and damage to yourself and others
Chew your words, lest you choke
Be careful what you say, or it'll come back to haunt you
You better watch your mouth
Be mindful of your words
Wash it out with soap, yeah
Cleanse yourself of hurtful words
Tongue tied in a tangled web
Unable to speak clearly or honestly
Your bile inside better left unsaid
Your anger or bitterness should be kept to yourself
Ah, shoot it
Just say what you mean
Fire in the hole
Danger ahead
Rudder of ship, which sets the course
The decisions we make determine our path
Does not the bit, bridle the horse
Our words and actions control the direction of our lives
Great is the forest, set by a small flame
Small words or actions can lead to big consequences
Like a tongue on fire, no one can tame
Words can create destruction that is difficult to control
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Alex Van Halen, Edward Van Halen, Gary Cherone, Michael Anthony
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Michael Jones
The world just seems a little less cool now knowing that Eddie is no longer with us ... we miss you already Ed
Ray Bones
U fuckin right
Elliott Braybon
He is here..He is NOT GONE!!!
ericmdk
Outro riff at 5:00 is magical. Should've been a song or major part of this song. It's good stuff.
Lael Destan
The riff reminds me of the song "Baluchitherium" from the Balance album.
Murphdawg1 gaming
I would say this is the best song on the album.
Robert Potter-Irwin
Not saying much
Bobby Jackie
I would say ….shut up
Arch Angel
Fire in the Hole is definitely the best song on Van Halen 3!🤘🏻💪🏻😎
Jay Jackson
I prefer a year to the day and I plan on playing that first on Oct 6th