Van Halen – Diver Down – 1982

Diver Down is in my world a little so silly, too ridiculous. I’ve read somewhere that this was a step toward the lighter side after the previous album Fair Warning. And that might be true but I don’t care much for this album at all. It’s not bad, I don’t think these guys could ever release anything that could be called bad. But it’s utterly boring and the Covers on there are a disaster for the most part. There are some guitar parts that are not half bad of course. My favorite track is probably Little Guitars.

But Diver Down also has a few covers as I mentioned. I think that their cover of Roy Orbison’s Pretty Woman might be the worst cover I’ve heard – ever! There are a couple of more strange songs on Diver Down too. Marvin Gaye’s Dancing in the Street is another example of something that didn’t work at all. I guess that it’s actually a compliment that the original songs are way better but I can’t deny that swing-blue-jazz numbers as Big Bad Bill (is Sweet William Now) add a bit of charm and humor.

The cover art is kick-ass though. It’s an album that you can’t help but notice when went looking for a new album to buy, especially in the vinyl era. I wouldn’t buy it just for the cover though. Certainly not the best Van Halen album but there are a couple of killer songs in there. Boogie rocking The Full BUg stands out. I loved that song. And then they ruin it by finishing of with an acapella number of Happy Trails. Diver Down is an odd album for sure