Love Walks In

"Love Walks In" is a song by American hard rock band Van Halen released as the third single from the band's seventh studio album, 5150 (1986). It was the first song the band wrote with vocalist Sammy Hagar, and it is about aliens.[1][2] It peaked at number 4 on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart,[3] and reached number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100.[4]

"Love Walks In"
Single by Van Halen
from the album 5150
B-side"Summer Nights"
ReleasedJuly 23, 1986
Recorded1985–1986
Studio5150 Studios, Hollywood, California
Length5:11
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)Eddie Van Halen, Sammy Hagar, Alex Van Halen and Michael Anthony
Van Halen singles chronology
"Dreams"
(1986)
"Love Walks In"
(1986)
"Best of Both Worlds"
(1986)

Chuck Klosterman of Vulture.com ranked it the 32nd-best Van Halen song, noting that the "track’s synthesized framework is lush and satisfying."[5]

Background

Sammy Hagar told on Van Halen's concert at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New Haven, Connecticut on August 27, 1986 (later released as the live concert video Live Without a Net in 1987) that "Love Walks In" is about aliens and it was the first song they worked together on as a band.[1]

"The first time Eddie played me that song, late one night, I got goosebumps," recalled singer Sammy Hagar to Classic Rock Magazine in 2014. "It was so beautiful. I wrote the lyrics on the spot and I sang it live with a hand-held mic. If you listen closely, it ain't the best vocal sound in the world, but the performance is slammin'."[6]

Composition

The song starts with Eddie Van Halen (lead guitar, keyboards) playing a slow synth, and kicks into the song. The song begins in the key of C and moves into F for the band entrance, then going to the relative D minor for the verses. The pre-chorus jumps to A minor, and in the chorus it goes back to C, keeping a cyclic structure.

Charts

Chart (1986) Peak
position
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[7] 65
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[8] 4
US Billboard Hot 100[9] 22

Personnel

References

  1. "Van Halen - "Love Walks In" - Live Without A Net (1986)". Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  2. Tannenbaum, Rob (October 6, 2020). "Eddie Van Halen's 12 Essential Songs". New York Times.
  3. "Van Halen - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
  4. "Van Halen - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
  5. Klosterman, Chuck (October 6, 2020). "All 131 Van Halen Songs, Ranked From Worst to Best A look back at the band's formidable legacy". Vulture.com. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
  6. Elliott, Paul (March 2014). "The best of both worlds". Classic Rock. No. 194. p. 48.
  7. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0734." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  8. "Van Halen Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  9. "Van Halen Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved October 8, 2020.



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