Van Halen

In retrospect, the stars were always aligned for Van Halen. Able to draw upon the peerless, virtuosic lead guitar of Eddie Van Halen, the natural charisma of original vocalist Dave Lee Roth and the power and swing of rhythm section Michael Anthony and Alex Van Halen, the hard-rocking Californian quartet had vast reserves of talent – and they quickly climbed the ladder, with their self-titled debut album moving over ten million copies in 1978.

To their credit, though, Van Halen repeatedly proved they had more to offer than muscle and flash – and they remained among the biggest-selling rock acts on the planet for the next two decades. Culminating in their multi-platinum album 1984 – featuring the monster hits Jump and Panama – their classic line-up’s initial six-album spree secured their legend, but all three of their post-Roth albums with Sammy Hagar also topped the US charts. Often overlooked, Van Halen III, the lone album they made with Gary Cherone as their frontman, is also worthy of reappraisal, while their final chartbuster – 2012’s A Different Kind Of Truth – featured a returning Dave Lee Roth and ensured Van Halen finished where they started: right at the top of their game.