And the Cradle Will Rock... explained

And the Cradle Will Rock...
Cover:Van Halen - And the Cradle Will Rock.jpg
Type:single
Artist:Van Halen
Album:Women and Children First
B-Side:
Released: (US)[1]
Recorded:December 1979February 1980
Genre:Hard rock
Length:3:31
Label:Warner Bros.
Producer:Ted Templeman
Prev Title:Beautiful Girls
Prev Year:1979
Next Title:So This Is Love?
Next Year:1981

"And the Cradle Will Rock..." is a song written and performed by Van Halen. It appears on their 1980 album Women and Children First and was released as a single. It is also the first song released by the band that featured the keyboard playing of Eddie Van Halen.

Composition

The song begins with what sounds like a guitar, but is, in fact, a flanger-effected Wurlitzer electric piano played through Eddie Van Halen's 1960s model 100-watt Marshall Plexi amplifier.[2]

During live performances on the 1980 tour, Michael Anthony would play the keyboards.

Reception

Cash Box called the song a "tongue-in-cheek anthem," saying that "David Lee Roth's acrobatic vocal leaps are in fine form," that Eddie Van Halen provides "sonic lead guitar blasts" and that the song has "industrial strength rhythms."[3]

Chuck Klosterman ranked it the 50th-best Van Halen song, writing "I’ve always found it a bit ponderous and uncompromisingly average, but I’ve also listened to it somewhere in the vicinity of 8,000 times."[4]

Eric Carr of KISS played "And the Cradle Will Rock..." along with Van Halen's cover of "You Really Got Me" as part of his audition tape, which successfully led to his becoming the new drummer for KISS.[5]

Charts

Chart (1980)Peak
position
Canada (RPM)[6] 81
US Billboard Hot 100[7] 55

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Book: The Great Rock Discography. 1995. 866 . 9780862415419 . Strong . Martin Charles .
  2. Web site: And The Cradle Will Rock... . 24 April 2015 . Van Halen News Desk . 14 April 2013 .
  3. News: CashBox Singles Reviews. May 24, 1980. 21. Cash Box. 2022-01-01.
  4. News: Klosterman . Chuck . All 131 Van Halen Songs, Ranked From Worst to Best A look back at the band's formidable legacy. . October 10, 2020 . . October 6, 2020.
  5. Web site: ERIC CARR's Original KISS Audition Tape Being Auctioned . 24 April 2015 . Blabbermouth.com . 20 May 2005 .
  6. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-110.01-e.php?PHPSESSID=8p5k1rerala3n6bajf4aqaqc95&q1=Van+Halen&q2=Top+Singles&interval=20 Canadian peaks
  7. Book: Whitburn, Joel . Joel Whitburn

    . Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012 . Joel Whitburn . 2013 . Record Research . 879.