Considered one of the greatest debut albums in rock history, Van Halen took the music world by storm in 1978 with an 11-song manifesto that features some of rock radio's most played songs of all time and scorching concert staples like "Runnin' With The Devil," "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love," "Jamie's Cryin'," the band's signature cover of The Kinks' "You Really Got Me," and Eddie Van Halen's finger-tapping tour de force, "Eruption." Six years and five albums later, Van Halen had become one of the biggest bands in the world around the release of 1984, which includes a number of the band's most legendary songs such as the #1 hit, "Jump," "Panama," and "Hot For Teacher."
Mastering engineer Chris Bellman, who remastered the original albums for Bernie Grundman Studios, Hollywood, CA, was enlisted for these new versions. In order to produce the original sound the band intended, Bellman cut straight from the quarter-inch tapes for CD; for 180-gram vinyl; and for the digital version.
"It's the best showcase of Van Halen's instrumental prowess as a band, the best showcase for Diamond Dave's glorious shtick, the best showcase for their songwriting, just their flat-out best album overall."
- Stephen Thomas Erlewine - allmusic.com
