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Song · Van Halen

“Unchained” by Van Halen

From the album Fair Warning (1981)

“Unchained” by Van Halen appears on 74 radio countdowns from 24 stations between 1981 and 2026. It was first released in 1981 on the album Fair Warning. Its best result is #2 on the KISW 25 Biggest Rock Songs from 1981. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #309 classic rock song of all time.

74countdowns
24stations
#2best position
0#1 finishes
2top 10 finishes
1981–2026years charted

Watch

Van Halen - Unchained (Official Music Video)

Video from YouTube (Van Halen). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Unchained" roars out of Van Halen's 1981 album Fair Warning on a riff that wobbles and swooshes like a jet coming in low, courtesy of Edward Van Halen's MXR M-117 flanger. The sound caught on so hard it sent guitarists out to buy the pedal. He tuned down to drop D-flat and sprinkled suspended fourth chords through it, while Alex Van Halen and Michael Anthony pound away and David Lee Roth, whose working title was "Hit the Ground Running", struts all over the top. All four share the writing credit.

Ted Templeman produced, with Donn Landee engineering, and the interlude holds the producer's only vocal cameo on a Van Halen record, a bit of mock-exasperated studio banter aimed at Roth. A Rolling Stone readers' poll in 2011 voted it the best Van Halen song of all.

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

RockLists rankings

Classic Rock

Hard Rock & Metal

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1981 2 KISW Seattle-Tacoma, WA KISW 25 Biggest Rock Songs from 1981 25

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1990 583 Z-Rock Z-Rock Top 1001 Songs of All-Time (1990) 1000
1994 382 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1994) 1000
1995 431 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1995) 1000
1996 567 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1996) 1000
1997 683 102.3 WBAB WBAB Top 1,023 Rock and Roll Songs of All Time (1997) 1023
1998 410 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1998) 1000
1999 428 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1999) 998
2002 132 KISW KISW Top 999 of All Time (2002) 999
2004 378 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2004) 923
2010 226 97.9 The Loop The Loop USO Rock 'N' Roll 500 (2010) 500
2011 566 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1100 Countdown (2011) 1100
2012 569 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1200 Countdown (2012) 1200
2012 812 WXPN WXPN 885 Greatest Rock Songs (2012) 885
2013 228 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Grand Jam 1000 (2013) 1000
2013 389 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2013) 500
2014 540 Big 100 BIG 1000 New Year's Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 122 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX 1K Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 132 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 400 (2014) 400
2015 194 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2015) 499
2015 228 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Classic Rock Countdown (2015) 1007
2015 292 I-95 I-95 Memorial Day Weekend Top 500 (2015) 500
2016 290 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2016) 500
2016 416 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2016) 500
2016 613 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Countdown for 2016 1007
2016 288 103.5 The Fox The Fox Memorial Day 500 (2016) 299
2017 418 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2017) 500
2017 23 97.9 The Loop 97.9 The Loop Top 540 Countdown (2017) 540
2018 469 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2018) 500
2019 476 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2019) 499
2019 352 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2019) 500
2019 272 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ 500 (2019) 500
2019 383 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2019) 500
2019 217 102.5 KZOK KZOK Top 1025 of 2019 1025
2019 421 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2019) 500
2020 94 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ 500 (2020) 500
2020 325 Q105.7 Q105.7 Memorial Day 500 (2020) 499
2020 469 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2020) 500
2020 418 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2020) 500
2020 282 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2020) 1025
2021 354 WCSX WCSX Rock & Roll 500 (2021) 499
2021 342 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2021) 499
2021 353 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2021) 500
2021 317 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ 500 (2021) 500
2021 299 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) 1043
2021 408 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2021) 500
2022 427 94.1 KRNA KRNA Memorial Day 500 (2022) 500
2022 34 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2022) 500
2022 290 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2022) 500
2022 226 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2022) 500
2022 487 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2022) 500
2022 404 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2022) 500
2022 454 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2022) 1025
2022 227 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2022) 500
2023 427 101.5 WPDH WPDH Top 1015 (2023) 1015
2023 23 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2023) 500
2023 241 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2023) 500
2023 127 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2023) 1043
2023 354 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2023) 500
2024 318 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2024) 499
2024 3 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2024) 500
2024 249 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2024) 498
2024 397 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2024) 1043
2024 470 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2024) 500
2025 418 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2025) 500
2025 40 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2025) 500
2025 201 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2025) 1043
2025 248 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2025) 500
2025 492 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2025) 500
2025 243 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2025) 498
2026 312 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2026) 500
2026 499 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2026) 500
2026 344 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2026) 500
2026 118 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2026) 500

Also listed as: Unhained.

Charting alongside it in 1981

Best songs of 1981 →
  1. 1Start Me UpThe Rolling Stones
  2. 2Tom SawyerRush
  3. 3I Love Rock-N-RollJoan Jett
  4. 4Every Little Thing She Does Is MagicThe Police
  5. 5Jukebox HeroForeigner
  6. 6For Those About to RockAC/DC

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