Van Halen fans were on pins and needles in the spring of 1986, when the California rockers replaced iconoclastic vocalist David Lee Roth with former Montrose frontman/rhythm guitarist Sammy Hagar. This unexpected partnership will be examined in full on a box set offering the first ever remastered editions of the group's Hagar-led albums on vinyl and CD - plus some bonus material, to boot.

The Collection II, released October 6, is a sequel to Warner/Rhino's 2015 box containing new remasters of the Roth-led material, released from 1978 to 1984. (Each has been itself remastered from the original master tapes, as overseen by the group's longtime engineer Donn Landee.) Included in this new box are the albums 5150 (1986), OU812 (1988), For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991), Balance (1995) and a collection of eight bonus cuts from the Hagar era, from soundtrack and compilation appearances to the group's only true B-side.

While fans fretted that Hagar's approach would pull Van Halen in an even more mainstream direction after the unexpected pop crossover of their 1984 album, 5150 did offer a bracing mix of Eddie Van Halen's furious guitar riffs and virtuosic keyboards, the latter of which was key to 1984 hits like "Jump" and "I'll Wait." (Hagar's presence as a secondary guitarist further enabled Ed to explore that space in concert.) The sterling rhythm section of bassist/background vocalist Michael Anthony and drummer Alex Van Halen fit their frontman like a glove, and even a new production team, swapping longtime producer Ted Templeman for Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones and longtime engineer Landee. 5150 - no doubt bolstered in equal measure by the success of Roth's presence and controversy over his absence - became the group's first to top the Billboard 200. Lead single "Why Can't This Be Love" climbed to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, while follow-ups "Dreams" and "Love Walks In" (all featuring heavy keyboard presence) were Top 40 hits.

The revitalized quartet kept the energy going into the end of the '80s, self-producing (with Landee) OU812 in 1988 and retaining the balance of pop and arena-filling rock. (The title was long rumored to be a veiled reference to Roth's cocky full-length debut album Eat 'Em and Smile, issued the same year as 5150.) Another synth-led upbeat ballad, "When It's Love," kicked off the promotion as a Top 5 hit, while three more Top 40s followed in "Finish What Ya Started," "Black and Blue" and "Feels So Good." (A key deep cut hinted at the direction Hagar would take over the decades to come: "Cabo Wabo," recorded on a vacation in Mexico. The title was later used for a franchise of nightclubs and tequila funded by the singer.)

While rock tastes shifted considerably throughout the early '90s, Van Halen's next move was For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge - put those first four letters of each word together! The group reunited with Templeman on this 1991 release, which followed its two predecessors to the top of the Billboard charts. While none of the singles performed quite as well on the Hot 100, three songs topped the magazine's rock charts: the electric drill-assisted "Poundcake," "Top of the World" and "Runaround." Equally as important: the anthemic "Right Now," whose video took home three MTV Video Music Awards including Video of the Year. (The track was also infamously featured in ads for the short-lived soft drink Crystal Pepsi, featuring a similar style to the video.)

While 1995's Balance was a fourth consecutive No. 1 album and featured one more Top 40 hit in "Can't Stop Loving You," the album - overseen by Bon Jovi/Aerosmith producer Bruce Fairbairn - marked a period of unrest in the band. Hagar and the Van Halen brothers began to have disagreements over musical and business directions, and both brothers were beset by various health issues, from Ed's need of a hip replacement (and, more happily, a successful transition to sobriety from alcohol) and Alex's neck injury, all of which led the ensuing concert trek to be jokingly named "The Ambulance Tour."

In 1996, multiple issues arose during the creation of a greatest hits collection that culminated in Hagar's exit and surprise studio reunion with Roth. (A charged appearance by the original line-up at the 1996 VMAs fell apart before a proper reunion could commence, with Roth and the band blaming each other for the fallout.) After an ill-received 1998 album with Extreme frontman Gary Cherone, the group remained on hiatus until a stilted tour with Hagar in 2004; by that journey's end, both Hagar and Anthony would leave the band. Three years later, the group reformed with Roth and Ed's son Wolfgang on bass - a lineup that would tour consistently and release 2012's A Different Kind of Truth, largely sourced from unreleased early VH songs. Eddie's death in 2020 after lengthy bouts with cancer ended the band for good.

The Collection II features all four chart-topping albums with Hagar on lead, as they were originally released on vinyl (all fitting on one disc each, but with several tracks cut for space). Luckily, all those tracks - the Lowell George-penned OU812 cut "A Apolitical Blues" and the Balance instrumental "Baluchitherium" - are included on the box's bonus disc. Also featured: "Crossing Over" - the only true Van Halen B-side, an extra track on the "Can't Stop Loving You" single - the tracks "Humans Being" and "Respect the Wind" (terrific selections from the soundtrack to the 1996 disaster movie Twister), and three new tracks for a 2004 compilation. The set is ready to pre-order below.

The Collection II (Warner/Rhino, 2023)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

CD/LP 1: 5150 (released as Warner Bros. Records 25394, 1986)

1. Good Enough
2. Why Can't This Be Love
3. Get Up
4. Dreams
5. Summer Nights
6. Best of Both Worlds
7. Love Walks In
8. 5150
9. Inside

CD/LP 2: OU812 (released as Warner Bros. Records 25732, 1988)

1. Mine All Mine
2. When It's Love
3. A.F.U. (Naturally Wired)
4. Cabo Wabo
5. Source of Infection
6. Feels So Good
7. Finish What Ya Started
8. Black and Blue
9. Sucker in a 3 Piece

CD/LP 3: For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (released as Warner Bros. Records 26594, 1991)

1. Poundcake
2. Judgement Day
3. Spanked
4. Runaround
5. Pleasure Dome
6. In 'N' Out
7. Man on a Mission
8. The Dream is Over
9. Right Now
10. 316
11. Top of the World

CD/LP 4: Balance (released as Warner Bros. Records 45760, 1995)

1. The Seventh Seal
2. Can't Stop Lovin' You
3. Don't Tell Me (What Love Can Do)
4. Amsterdam
5. Big Fat Money
6. Doin' Time
7. Aftershock
8. Strung Out
9. Not Enough
10. Take Me Back (Déjà Vu)
11. Feelin'

CD/LP 5: Studio Rarities 1989-2004

1. A Apolitical Blues
2. Baluchitherium
3. Crossing Over
4. Respect the Wind
5. Humans Being
6. It's About Time
7. Up for Breakfast
8. Learning to See

Track 1 from CD pressings of OU812
Track 2 from CD pressings of Balance
Track 3 from "Can't Stop Loving You" single - Warner Bros. 17909, 1995
Tracks 4-5 from Twister: Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack - Warner Sunset 46254, 1996
Tracks 6-8 from The Best of Both Worlds - Warner Bros. R2 78961, 2004