Unchained (song)

Vocalist David Lee Roth's working title for the song was "Hit the Ground Running." The song features prominent use of the MXR M-117 flanger, which became a popular sound and spurred sales of the pedal. A preset for the flanger was also included on the EVH Flanger MXR pedal. It uses a Drop D tuning with suspended fourth chords interspersed. The song is producer Ted Templeman's only vocal contribution to the band, when he says "Come on, Dave, give me a break!" during the interlude of the song. ==Reception==

A 2011 Rolling Stone reader's poll placed the song at number one on a list of the 10 best Van Halen songs. Chuck Klosterman of Vulture.com named it the second-best Van Halen song, writing that it "merely feels like insatiable straight-ahead rock, but the lick is freaky, obliquely hovering above the foundation while the drums oscillate between two unrelated performance philosophies." == References ==