VAN HALEN RECORDED A GROOVY TRIBUTE TO TOP JIMMY BEFORE ROTH WAS SHOWN THE DOOR

If you were born in `74 like I was and were raised in the 80`s, and you like some classic hard rock, then you`d have to admire some Van Halen songs, especially from the David Lee Roth era of the band. 

Along with AC/DC and Ozzy Osbourne, amongst other metal descendents of the 70`s, Eddie, Alex, Dave and Michael, the four often feuding members of Van Halen were
considered to be the bad boys of rock and roll. 

Obviously they got that reputation before thrash metal was invented, Metallica makes Van Halen look as bad as a few boys stealing chewing gum when they`re bank robbers. 

By the time Van Halen had recorded the album 1984, ironically in 1983, the tension in the band had reached breaking point, bass player Michael Anthony loathed Roth, even
though over the years there have been inaccurate reports Anthony was the one keeping the band together and acting as a mediator between Roth and Eddie Van
Halen. 

As much as Eddie and Dave had somewhat of a personality clash a lot of the time, the relationship between Dave and Michael Anthony was poisonous. 

The truth is Michael Anthony had always wanted Sammy Hagar in the band as the singer all the way back to when the band were just starting out, around the time they recorded their legendary self titled debut in 1978. 

The songs on 1984, besides the synthesiser driven gem JUMP and the grubby minded PANAMA, is good, solid hard rock which
has a hint of Eddie Van Halen`s legendary guitar excess but every time i listen to 1984 I have always thought half the album at least just lacks a bit of that Van Halen sparkle. 

It is amazing, considering the disarray the band was in by 1983, that they managed to record the album they did. 

The Van Halen brothers were barely talking to Michael and Dave, both Eddie and Dave were getting smashed out of their minds on booze, it took over a year to record what took Van Halen a week to record back in 1978.

But amongst all the mayhem of the moment, Van Halen recorded a completely overlooked skiffle-charged rock`n`roller named TOP JIMMY, a tribute song to the band by the
name of Top Jimmy & the Rhythm Pigs, a punk hardcore rock band which was a big influence on Van Halen in Los Angeles before they hit the big time. 

Incredibly, TOP JIMMY was erased off the latest double greatest hits album, which included the best songs from the Sammy Hagar era of the band. 

It may seem slightly airy fairy, perhaps Van Halen could have beefed it up a bit more, but I still think it`s as classic as rock`n`roll ever
got in the 80`s. 

Probably the most incredible thing about this song is that there was no video clip to go with it. That`s probably an indication that by this stage no one in the band cared about too much at all and that Roth`s days in the band were already counting down to the end.