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Episode 5 covers the 1982 album Diver Down by Van Halen. Mark, Kevin, Alex, and Chris take you on a historical journey surrounding the album as well as share our favorites and not-so favorites from the album. We go on a deep dive track-by-track listen of this album as well as share personal stories of discovering Diver Down, US Festival 83, the famous Largo and South America pro-shot videos… you know the drill.
Subscribe, Rate, and Review:
Quick Reviews
Mark So many moments here that I’d have passed by on first listen. This one really grows on you.
Chris Another record of moments, competently and professionally recorded. Covers are well done. A pull back into the charts record. Under appreciated ugly step child of early Van Halen.
Alex Has always been a VERY strong favorite. The underdog of the Roth era, it’s the perfect summer album, even more so than VH2 IMO. “Hang ’em High” and “Secrets” baby!
Kevin Alex convinced me on this one over the years. Intoxicating, summer fun makes this an album on the rise.
Love It or Flush It
| M | C | A | K | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Where Have All the Good Times Gone!" | 3:02 | F | L | L | L | |
| 2 | "Hang 'Em High" | 3:28 | B | L | L | B | |
| 3 | "Cathedral" | 1:23 | F | L | L | T | |
| 4 | "Secrets" | 3:28 | L | L | L | L | |
| 5 | "Intruder" | 1:39 | L | L | L | F | |
| 6 | "(Oh) Pretty Woman" | 2:53 | L | F | F | L | |
| 7 | "Dancing in the Street" | 3:43 | T | L | L | L | |
| 8 | "Little Guitars (Intro)" | 0:42 | F | T | L | L | |
| 9 | "Little Guitars" | 3:47 | L | B | L | B | |
| 10 | "Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now)" | 2:44 | L | L | L | L | |
| 11 | "The Full Bug" | 3:18 | L | L | B | L | |
| 12 | "Happy Trails" | 1:03 | L | L | T | L |
Love It or Flush It Legend
L = Love. As many as you like.
F = Flush. Must flush at least one track per album.
B = Buy. Purchased for the ultimate LTS “Best Of” playlist for each of us. One per album.
T = Terminate. Should have never even existed. One per album.
The Rules
Each of us must Love, Flush, Buy, and Terminate AT LEAST ONE track on an album, no matter how great or terrible the album is. Whoever wins the “7 for the Buy” section gets an extra Buy or Terminate to use on the album. Because Chris hosts this section and thus cannot win, he gets an extra Buy or Terminate every 4 albums.
Album Information
Diver Down is the fifth studio album by American hard rock band Van Halen and was released on April 14, 1982. It spent 65 weeks on the album chart in the United States and had, by 1998, sold four million copies in the United States. It is their shortest album to date.
The album cover artwork displays the “diver down” flag used in many US jurisdictions (which indicates a SCUBA diver is currently submerged in the area).[4] Asked about the cover in a 1982 interview with Sylvie Simmons (Sounds, June 23, 1982), David Lee Roth said it was meant to imply that “there was something going on that’s not apparent to your eyes. You put up the red flag with the white slash. Well, a lot of people approach Van Halen as sort of the abyss. It means, it’s not immediately apparent to your eyes what is going on underneath the surface.” While impressed by Roth’s creative marketing spin, manager Noel Monk, also explained the sophomoric, sexual double-entendre “dive her down” in his 2017 band memoir Running With the Devil. The back cover of the album features a photo by Richard Aaron of Van Halen on stage at the Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Florida, that was taken on October 24, 1981, as they concluded a set opening for The Rolling Stones.
