“Right Now” by Van Halen

"Right Now" is the big, earnest statement on For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, Van Halen's 1991 album, and its roots go back much further. Edward Van Halen had the music in 1983, before he wrote "Jump", but nobody wanted anything to do with it; an early sketch of the melody even turned up in his score for the 1984 film The Wild Life. Before Sammy Hagar came in to replace David Lee Roth, Eddie had toyed with an album of guest singers, and this one was earmarked for Joe Cocker.

Instead Hagar got it, and he rates the words as the best he wrote for the band: he was sick of cheap sex songs and wanted to take on the state of the world. Eddie's keyboards and guitar carry it from a stately build to a full-bore roar, with Michael Anthony and Alex Van Halen driving hard underneath. Ted Templeman and Andy Johns produced it with the band, and the video picked up honors at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.