Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MoFi),the renowned leader in high-fidelity audio reissues, has released definitive audiophile treatments of Van Halen‘s 1982 album Diver Down. The four-times platinum record is now available for order as a strictly limited UltraDisc One-Step 180g 45RPM 2LP set and a numbered Hybrid SACD edition.
The 180g 45RPM 2LP set is sourced from the original analog tapes (1/4″ / 15 IPS analog master to DSD 256 to analog console to lathe),pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing, and strictly limited to 7,500 numbered copies, Mobile Fidelity‘s UltraDisc One-Step 180g 45RPM 2LP set is housed in a deluxe slipcase, featuring a special foil-stamped jacket and faithful-to-the-original graphics. Also sourced from the original analog tapes, MoFi‘s numbered-edition hybrid SACD is housed in mini-LP-style gatefold packaging.
Eddie and Alex Van Halen, David Lee Roth and Michael Anthony recorded Diver Down with producer Ted Templeman in just 12 days in Los Angeles. The results of that speedy session can now be experienced with unparalleled transparency, balance, definition. Listeners can crank this version as high as possible without risking noise-floor interference or shrillness. Even at lower levels, the advanced degrees of separation, imaging, soundstaging, and fullness will grant a fresh perspective on a record that hit No. 3 and spent more than a year on the charts.
Speaking about the record, Alex Van Halen offered this new reflection, “‘Diver Down’ was a pivotal moment for the band. Four guys in a room… making music. Then lightning struck. The rest is history.”
Van Halen‘s winning track record with cover songs can be traced back to its 1978 debut. This ambitious approach, showcasing the band’s diversity, creativity, flair, and fun, takes precedence on Diver Down. Featuring five covers, including the radio staples (Oh) Pretty Woman) and Dancing In The Street, Diver Down remains a fan favorite and the quartet’s most carefree set, yet what makes the record much more intriguing is the vast assortment of styles represented and the group’s all-in performances. Bookended by Where Have All The Good Times Gone! and the winking barbershop-quartet send-up Happy Trails, the album explores every corner of the band’s ambition. Highlights include the menacing instrumental Intruder, the pioneering, church organ-like Cathedral and the visionary Little Guitars (Intro) which finds Eddie Van Halen replicating a classically informed flamenco technique. Completing the mélange of fun and skill is the jazz ditty Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now), featuring a special guest contribution on clarinet from the Van Halens‘ father, Jan.
“Diver Down” track listing (vinyl sequence):
Side One:
1. Where Have All The Good Times Gone!
2. Hang ‘Em High
3. Cathedral
Side Two:
1. Secrets
2. Intruder
3. (Oh) Pretty Woman
Side Three:
1. Dancing In The Street
2. Little Guitars (Intro)
3. Little Guitars
Side Four:
1. Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now)
2. The Full Bug
3. Happy Trails
Diver Down marks the latest Van Halen audiophile-quality reissue by MoFi.
For more Van Halen releases, including Van Halen, Van Halen II, Women And Children First and Fair Warning, click here.