Van Halen Vinyl Boxset Shipping This Week!

I posted about this awhile ago and now orders are shipping: Van Halen has a new boxset of remastered albums from the Sammy Hagar era of the band. There are also rarities included in this four-studio album set. The new set is called The Collection II. The collection's release date is October 6.

I like that Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony got together to take a little photo to promote the set.

Also I'm pretty sure I can actually see money coming out of Sammy Hagar's pores in this shot!

New Hagar-Era Van Halen Boxset Coming

Van Halen will release The Collection II on October 6. Four studio albums from the Sammy Hagar-fronted era will be remastered. There will also be rarities.

The compilation will be available on vinyl and CD. Albums included are 5150, OU812, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge and Balance.

It is controversial but I love Balance. It is probably my favorite Sammy Hagar-era release. The album just sounds massive and the tour was great, too. Looks like the pre-order price is right around $125 for the vinyl, which I assumed would be higher. You can click the logo at left to see the Amazon listing. 

'Atomic Punk' -- 2023 Version

Happy Friday and "new" music for the weekend!

David Lee Roth is back with one of his classic Van Halen re-recordings. This time it's "Atomic Punk." I think he sounds good here and I support these new recordings of classic hits. Plus, the download is free at the link in the post below.

Record Store Day 2023 Haul

For my Record Store Day celebration, I went to Catacomb Records, near Dayton, Ohio. It's a store that is all Metal, all the time. Yep.

I picked up that Van Halen Live Right Here, Right Now 30th anniversary I wanted... plus two rare Cinderella discs. They are OG year pressings and one is a Japanese press! Photos below and reviews coming soon!

RSD 2023 Haul... Cinderella!

David Lee Roth Releases New Version Of 'Unchained'

"Unchained" is definitely one of my favorite Van Halen tracks. It's a classic! The song is on the 1981 release Fair Warning and it just might be one of the best rock songs ever recorded. Well, move over original because David Lee Roth has re-recorded the song... because he can. The redo was recorded back in May 2022.

.

And a look back in time... "Unchained" live in 1981!

2023 Record Store Day Album List Revealed

The list of albums coming up for Record Store Day on 2023 was just released. This year, RSD will be on April 22. The most exciting release on the list for me is Van Halen: LIVE, Right Here, Right Now.

 It will be on four albums and cost $100. This is the first time Live, Right Here, Right Now will be on vinyl and there will only be 9,500 records pressed. The release will be on red translucent vinyl -- of course! This is the Sammy Hagar "Red Rocker" era of Van Halen, after all!

pic.twitter.com/lUScfW0Hsi

— =VH5150VH= (@VH5150VH1) February 16, 2023

'Nothing Could Have Stopped Us Back Then Anyway' -- David Lee Roth, New Song

Another surprise track release from David Lee Roth! He just released "Nothing Could Have Stopped Us Back Then Anyway" which is a song about the beginnings of Van Halen. The full track is below.

All these tracks have been sitting around for some time and it does make me wonder why we are getting so many of them now and in such an odd fashion.

Roth literally "announced" the song by dropping a clip of the tune on his social platforms. The music and lyrics are a love letter to those early rock n' roll days for the band, with Diamond Dave looking back and recalling tears and laughter, pranks, heartache and happy meals. This one hits me in all the feels.