Writer: Ray Davies
Producer: Ted Templeman
Recorded: 1977 at Sunset Sound Recorders in Hollywood, California
Released: January 18th, 1978
| Players: | Eddie Van Halen — guitar Alex Van Halen — drums Michael Anthony — bass David Lee Roth — vocals |
| Album: | Van Halen (Warner Bros) |
Brothers Eddie and Alex Van Halen formed Van Halen in 1974, after their previous band, Mammoth, was transformed by the addition of frontman David Lee Roth and bassist Michael Anthony.
The group changed its name to Van Halen after it was discovered another band was also calling itself Mammoth. They also considered using the name Rat Salade for a time.
Van Halen gained notoriety for gigs at backyard parties where they learned their craft playing everything from Led Zeppelin to KC & the Sunshine Band.
Written by Ray Davies, “You Really Got Me” was a Number Seven hit for his band, the Kinks, in 1964.
Van Halen's cover version, which was their first single, peaked at Number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100, but became an FM rock staple in part because of the song that preceded it on the album, Eddie Van Halen's guitar showcase “Eruption.”
“You Really Got Me” wasn't the only cover song to hit for Van Halen. The group also scored with versions of Roy Orbison's “(Oh) Pretty Woman” and Martha & the Vandellas' “Dancing In The Street,” both in 1981. They also did another Kinks song, “Where Have All The Good Times Gone?”
The Van Halen album, which peaked at Number 19 on the Billboard 200, has sold well over 10 million copies.
