Which Van Halen era sold more records: Roth or Sammy Hagar

Van Halen was formed in Pasadena, California in 1972 by the brothers Alex and Eddie Van Halen. Their first classic formation would only be complete in 1974 after David Lee Roth and Michael Anthony joined them. They were playing together in parties and in the bar circuit for four years until they finally got the chance to record their groundbreaking debut album in 1978.

The huge success continued in the following years until 1985, when David Lee Roth decided to leave the band and start his solo career. He was replaced by the former Montrose vocalist and successful solo artist Sammy Hagar, who gave the band a new beginning.

Both eras were extremely successful and there are fans who love both of them, but also others who have their favorite vocalist. But when it comes to record sales, which era of the band sold more records?

Which Van Halen era sold more records: With David Lee Roth or Sammy Hagar:

Van Halen released 12 studio albums in their career, seven of those records had David Lee Roth as the band’s vocalist, so he had a good advantage, since he was part of more than 50% of the band’s album, including their final one released in 2012.

The band sold an estimated amount of more than 75 million records worldwide. But if we count only the studio albums, the David Lee Roth era sold more than 36 million copies, while Sammy Hagar‘s era sold an estimated amount of more than 16 million. Gary Cherone’s album with the band hasn’t sold more than 1 million copies.

The Van Halen album sales with David Lee Roth:

• “Van Halen” (1978) – More than 11 million copies sold
• “Van Halen II” (1979) – More than 5 million copies sold
• “Women and Children First” (1980) – More than 3 million copies sold
• “Fair Warning” (1981) – More than 2 million copies sold
• “Diver Down” (1982) – More than 4 million copies sold
• “1984” (1984) – More than 11 million copies sold
• “A Different Kind of Truth” (2012) – More than 40 thousand copies sold

Total: 36 million copies

So David Lee Roth’s era in the band have sold an estimated amount of more than 36 million copies worldwide. Those records had huge hits like “Jump”, “Panama”, “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” and “Runnin’ With The Devil”.

The “Van Hagar” era

Nicknamed “Van Hagar” by many fans, the era of Van Halen with Sammy Hagar on vocals lasted from 1985 to 1996 and from 2003 to 2005. Many fans of the band stopped listening to their new records. The reason was because they complained the sound changed and Eddie was experimenting more with the keyboards and not always focusing on the guitar anymore. But it helped the band to gain a new audience. So they became one of the few bands which were able to remain successful even after their previously famous vocalist left.

The Van Halen album sales with Sammy Hagar:

• “5150” (1986) – More than 6 million copies sold worldwide
• “OU812” (1988) – More than 4 million copies sold worldwide
• “For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge” (1991) – More than 3 million copies sold worldwide
• “Balance” (1995) – More than 3 million copies sold worldwide

Total: 16 million copies

Although the David Lee Roth era sold more than 30 million copies more than “Van Hagar’s” era still is a huge number for a group that had to start again with a new singer for a consolidated audience.

Hagar’s albums with the band had many famous hits. Some of them are: “Why Can’t This Be Love”, “Can’t Stop Loving You”, “Dreams”, “Love Walks In” and “”When It’s Love”.

Besides David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar, Van Halen also recorded one album with Gary Cherone

Although when Van Halen comes to mind the first two vocalists people remember are David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar, the band also had the Extreme vocalist Gary Cherone as a member.

After Sammy Hagar was fired in 1996, they even tried to see if things could work out with David Lee Roth again. But they decided to move on with a new singer. The chosen one was Gary Cherone, who already was a famous artist fronting the band Extreme.

He was in the band for only three years, from 1996 to 1999 and recorded the album “Van Halen III”. That record represented the third era of the band, which coincidentally, only lasted three years.

By 1998 when the album was released, Rock and Roll had already changed a lot. The industry was also beginning to notice how file sharing of music on the internet could be harmful. So the new album wasn’t as successful as the other records the band made.

The Van Halen album sales with Gary Cherone:

• “Van Halen III” (1998) – More than 700 thousand copies sold

It is probably the most different album Van Halen ever done and is still one of those albums that not many fans of the band like to listen to.

The record sales numbers are from Best Selling Albums. The website compiles the numbers based on certifications received all over the world.