10 Things about Van Halen's "Balance"

Twenty-one years ago this week, Van Halen’s “Balance” was the number one album in the country. Here are ten things you might not know about the album: 

 1. The band worked eight-hour days for three weeks to record the effort. 

 2. “Balance” was Sammy Hagar’s final album singing with the band. 

 3. On May 12th, 2004, “Balance” was certified triple platinum for selling more than three-million copies in America. 

 4. The photo of conjoined twins on the album cover was actually just a superimposed shot of some kid from Denver. 

 5. Guitarist Eddie Van Halen once said that he always hated the words “Wham, Bam Amsterdam” in their hit single “Amsterdam” because they were about smoking pot. Eddie told “Guitar World,” “They were just stupid. Lyrics should plant some sort of seed for thought, or at least be a little more metaphorical.” Sammy wouldn’t change them though since he wrote the song about how a tourist sees the Netherlands capital. 

 6. The song “The Seventh Seal,” which features bells and chanting monks, was actually written before Van Halen became a band. 

 7. The track “Don’t Tell Me (What Love Can Do)” references Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain’s suicide. 

8. “Can’t Stop Lovin’ You” pays tribute to the Ray Charles song “I Can’t Stop Loving You.” Sammy even sings, “Hey Ray, what you said is true.” 

 9. The instrumental track “Baluchitherium” is named after an extinct rhinoceros-like creature that was one of the largest land mammals to ever live. 

 10. Toto guitarist Steve Lukather did some backing vocals on “Not Enough.”