On this day in music history…
In 1979, Van Halen released their second studio album, Van Halen II. The album was the band’s first to chart in the top 10, peaking at number 6. Ted Templeman, who had produced Van Halen’s debut album, worked with the band once again on Van Halen II, and would go on to produce five more of their albums. David Lee Roth is shown in a cast in the album’s inner liner notes, as he allegedly broke his heel on the third try of the spread-eagle jump used on the back cover photo.
In 1983, ZZ Top released their eighth studio album, Eliminator. The album peaked at number 9 on the chart. Two of the album’s singles were Top 40 hits; “Gimme All Your Lovin’” reached No. 37, and “Legs” peaked at number 8, making it one of the band’s highest-charting singles. The video for “Legs” was even more successful, winning the MTV Video Music Award for Best Group Video in 1984. The video for “Sharp Dressed Man” was also successful, despite the single only charting as high as number 56 in the US.
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