Van Halen's 7 Best Songs of the David Lee Roth Era

It's tough to pick just 7, but here's our list.
Van Halen, singer Dave Lee Roth performs as part of their 2012 North American tour at Staples Center
David Lee Roth Photo credit Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
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There aren’t many more rock ‘n roll fan debates that are more polarizing than the David Lee Roth vs. Sammy Hagar eras of Van Halen. We personally loved them both. Roth has the benefit of being the original, but how many replacement singers could have helped keep the band relevant through the rest of the 80s and then the 90s the way Hagar did?

Still, Roth manned the mic for the formative years of Van Halen when they changed the direction of hard rock. The Southern California band delivered six albums in seven years with Roth at the helm, and while rumors come and go about the future of the band, Roth is plotting his own course with an upcoming Vegas residency.

The 65-year-old is promising a mix of Van Halen classics and solo material, which leaves him with plenty to choose from. So what are the best VH songs from the DLR era? Here’s our list in order of their year of release.

AIN'T TALKIN' 'BOUT LOVE

Eddie Van Halen kicks off the Van Halen (1978) track with one of his best riffs.

JAMIE'S CRYIN'

One of the best drum intros of all-time, a sing-along chorus, and Eddie Van Halen's guitar talking in between.

DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY

The kind of song that makes you feel like you're back in high school, no matter when you went to high school.

AND THE CRADLE WILL ROCK

The band came out of the gate swinging on 1980's Women and Children First.

UNCHAINED

A popular show-starter from 1981's Fair Warning.

JUMP

Longtime fans were stunned by the synth at the time, but it has to be on the list.

HOT FOR TEACHER

The lyrics may not hold up, but the drums and guitar are ridiculous.

Honorable Mention: Runnin’ with the Devil, Beautiful Girls, Everybody Wants Some, Panama, I’ll Wait.