Van Halen

Van Halen is an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. From 1974 until 1985, the band comprised guitarist Eddie Van Halen, vocalist David Lee Roth, drummer Alex Van Halen, and bassist Michael Anthony.

The band went on to become major stars, and by the early 1980s they were one of the most successful rock acts of the time. 1984 was their most successful album. The lead single, "Jump", became an international hit and their only single to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The following singles, "Panama" and "I'll Wait", both hit number 13 on the U.S. charts. The album went on to sell over 12 million copies in the U.S. alone. In 1985, the band replaced lead singer David Lee Roth with ex-Montrose lead vocalist Sammy Hagar. With Hagar, the group would release four U.S. number-one albums over the course of 11 years. Hagar left the band in 1996 shortly before the release of the band's first greatest hits collection, Best Of – Volume I. Former Extreme frontman Gary Cherone was quickly recruited as lead singer to replace Hagar, and Van Halen III was released in 1998. Cherone left the band in frustration in 1999 after the tour due to the poor commercial performance of the album.

Van Halen (album)

Van Halen is the debut studio album by American rock band Van Halen. Released on February 10, 1978, the album peaked at number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album became widely recognized as the band's popularity grew, selling more than ten million copies in the United States by 1999 and achieving RIAA diamond status.

Van Halen contains many of Van Halen's signature songs, including "Runnin' with the Devil", the guitar solo "Eruption", The Kinks cover "You Really Got Me", "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", "Jamie's Cryin'", and the cover version of John Brim's "Ice Cream Man".

Packaging and artwork

The cover photos for Van Halen were taken at the Whisky a Go Go, a Los Angeles club at which Van Halen often performed during the mid-1970s. The guitar pictured on the cover of the album is Eddie Van Halen's famous Frankenstrat Guitar, a Fender prototype replica of which is now housed in the Smithsonian Institution.

Release and reception

In the United States, Van Halen's debut album reached number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100; their debut single, a cover of the Kinks' "You Really Got Me", spent three weeks on the chart, peaking at number 36.

Van Halen II

Van Halen II is the second studio album by American hard rock band Van Halen, released on March 23, 1979. It peaked at number 6 on the Billboard charts and spawned the singles "Dance the Night Away" and "Beautiful Girls". To date, it has sold over five million copies in the United States. Critical reaction to the album has been positive as well, with the The Rolling Stone Album Guide praising the feel-good, party atmosphere of the songs.

Background and recording

Recording of the album took place less than a year after the release of the band's eponymous debut album; the process was completed in three weeks. Many of the songs on Van Halen II are known to have existed prior to the release of the first album, and are present on the demos recorded in 1976 by Gene Simmons and in 1977 by Ted Templeman, including an early version of "Beautiful Girls" (then known as "Bring on the Girls") and "Somebody Get Me a Doctor".

In the band's licensed game, Guitar Hero: Van Halen, four of the ten tracks of this album are available for play: "Dance the Night Away", "Somebody Get Me a Doctor", "Spanish Fly" and "Beautiful Girls".

Wild Thing

Wild Thing or Wild Things can refer to:

In entertainment and media

In film

In television

In music

In print and literature

In people

In other uses

Wild Thing (comics)

Wild Thing (Rina Logan) is a fictional character from Marvel Comics, who exists in the MC2 universe, an alternate future to the Marvel Universe. She is the daughter of the X-Men's Wolverine and the rogue mercenary Elektra. She first appeared in J2 #5 and was created by Tom DeFalco and Ron Lim.

An unrelated character named Wild Thing, who fought crime in a future virtual reality world, had her own brief series under the Marvel UK imprint in 1993.

Publication history

Wild Thing first appeared in Marvel Comics' "MC2" line of spin-offs (specifically, in J2 #5). She soon gained her own (short-lived) series. The run enjoyed some acclaim, but due to low sales, the title was cancelled after issue #5. Rina later appeared in the Last Hero Standing miniseries.

Fictional character biography

Rina was the new girl at a high school, where some of the more popular girls tried to make her life miserable, describing her as the daughter of an immigrant and an unemployed biker. However, when her father Logan (Wolverine) picked her up from school on his bike, opinions changed about her, especially when they learned that her mother Elektra was a wealthy martial arts expert. As Wild Thing, Rina saved a classmate from a high-speed kidnapper, defeated a computerized assassin, stopped a demonic invader and fought one of her teachers when he was turned into a Prime Sentinel.

Wild Thing (The Troggs song)

"Wild Thing" is a song written by Chip Taylor. Originally recorded by American band The Wild Ones in 1965, "Wild Thing" is best known for its 1966 cover by the English band The Troggs, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July 1966. The song peaked at No. 2 in Britain.

As performed by The Troggs, "Wild Thing" is ranked #261 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Composition

The song is in the key of A major, and is based around the chord progression (I - IV - V - IV), which is the basis for the main riff. Also the instrumental parts during the chorus are in key with the rest of the song. However, the guitars are not strictly tuned to middle C in the Troggs' version and the slightly sharp tuning causes the chords to actually be midway between A and Bb. This has mystified many guitar players trying to play along with the record. It has been suggested that The Troggs did this as a joke. As a side note, the middle eight was originally someone whistling, but in The Troggs' version this was replaced by Colin Fretcher, musical director, playing an ocarina.