How in the hell have we not featured this video yet? How? Before I knew everybody’s name in the band, before I knew one single album title, I knew Van Halen simply because of this music video. It wasn’t just that the song is good…it’s one of my top-list favorites…but it was the A-4 Skyhawks of the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels that pushed me over the edge. Now, had you told me the Blue Angels were Navy and not Air Force back in the day, it might have broke my heart. Why? My grandfather Ken was a retired Air Force colonel and our trips to Petersen Air Force Base and the U.S. Air Force Academy were highlights for a very young McTaggart. I was used to seeing all manner of jets flying around Colorado Springs, and seeing the skilled pilots of those Skyhawks in action to a Van Halen song…to this day it still does something to me, inspires me to get into gear, to go out and seize the day by the throat if I have to.

“Dreams” was one of 5150‘s hits, which coming from an album made during a time where Eddie and Alex Van Halen were…well, let’s just say they were being brothers…and everybody was wondering how the band was going to be now that former frontman David Lee Roth had up and bailed and was doing fine thanks to a solid solo album that followed a surprisingly catchy covers album. And that was before engineer Donn Landee locked himself inside of the studio and threatened to burn the tapes. Many wondered if bringing Sammy Hagar was a good decision or not. When the album dropped, many critics weren’t too impressed, but the sales didn’t lie: 5150 was Van Halen’s first #1 album.

Good for them. All I know is that I hear this song, I think of screaming jets and Pikes Peak on a sunny day in summer. Life is good once again, even if it’s just for five minutes.