Sam Just Won’t Stop

[Vinnie Velvet]

Ed was the greatest guitar player of all time. The six pack is a testament to that title.

However....

He was a neurotic, paranoid, drug riddled, chain smoking alcoholic who in my opinion is the main culprit for the downfall of his once great band.

[Nitro Express]

Ed definitely was his own enemy. Al realized he had a problem and from what I hear once he set his mind to cleaning up he was a way better person. Unfortunately Ed didn’t and things would have been better if he did.

Valerie is a whack job. Like Sammy she’s using her affiliation with Ed to promote herself. It’s pretty sick. Well honey, you probably helped kill him by making him so miserable he couldn’t kick the booze and cigarettes because he had to deal with you.

[twonabomber]

https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/sammy-hagar-planned-retire-until-received-call-eddie-van-halen

This ran on the Fox News site the other day.

Sammy Hagar planned to retire until he received a call from Eddie Van Halen

The Red Rocker joined Van Halen in 1985 after a successful solo career and performing with the band Montrose

Sammy Hagar and Van Halen almost never were.

While speaking to Fox News Digital after receiving his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Tuesday, Hagar explained he was about to pump the brakes on his music career — until Eddie Van Halen called.

"Then comes Van Halen when I was ready to retire. I hate to use that word because I swear it’s not in my DNA. But I was ready to say, ‘You know, I’m going to quit for a while. I’m going to stop. I’ve been touring my whole life,’" the rocker shared.

"This is 1985, you know. I just came off a major tour, platinum albums in a row, you know. I was rich and famous. So, I thought, ‘Why am I going to keep doing this?’ And then Eddie [Van Halen] calls. That was a defining moment."

Before his time as Van Halen’s frontman, Hagar rose to fame playing with the band Montrose in the 1970s and then had a successful solo career.

Hagar told Fox News Digital with a laugh that another defining moment of his career was "getting thrown out of Van Halen" in 1996 after creative differences with Eddie. "I had to roll up my sleeves and go back to work."

He said joining Montrose early on was also an important moment in his career.

"Joining Montrose was a big step from playing clubs, someone else's music, to writing my own music and making my own album of original material and then going on tour all over the world," he told Fox News Digital. "So, that was a big moment. I mean, that was a defining moment. I learned everything from Ronnie Montrose. How to play on stage, how to write songs, how to do all that."

He eventually rejoined Van Halen from 2003 to 2005 and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the group in 2007. Eddie Van Halen died in 2020.

Hagar was joined Tuesday by celebrities like fellow Van Halen member Michael Anthony, Red Hot Chili Peppers musician Chad Smith, John Mayer and Food Network star Guy Fieri.

"But it was great. It was an amazing ceremony and so deserved by Sammy," he added. "Such a great guy, way beyond the music. He’s a philanthropist. He’s a community guy. He’s a worldly person. This was one of the highlights of my career without question."

Mayer also spoke about his bond with Hagar during his speech at the ceremony.

"Sammy Hagar was already a hugely successful artist in his own right when he was asked to join Van Halen," Mayer told the audience gathered near Amoeba Music on Hollywood Boulevard.

"He certainly didn’t have to join another band to continue making hit records. I think the reason he took them up on the offer is for the same reason he does anything — because it sounded like fun. Sammy is driven by having fun. Sammy has the kind of fun we only dream about letting ourselves have.

"Every time I think of him, a thought comes to mind that I’d like to share with you today: Wherever you are, whatever you’re doing, Sammy Hagar is having way more fun than you."

[twonabomber]

So let's pick this apart.

Anyone who believes Sam was going to retire is an idiot.

Platinum albums in a row? Um, no. Standing Hampton came out in 1982 but didn't go platinum until 1992! Three Lock Box only went gold, VOA was released in 1984 and went platinum in November of '85. His first post-VH solo album went gold...and he hasn't had a gold or platinum solo album since. Well, maybe Unboxed, but it's a compilation and it didn't go gold until '95. Proof: https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?...search_section

We've gone over the "I played multiple nights in arenas" thing before.

The Hollywood walk of fame doesn't just hand out stars, one has to be sponsored and someone has to pay for it. Someone may have sponsored Hagar, I wouldn't be surprised to find out he paid for it himself.

[Seshmeister]

I'm beginning to wonder how accurate these Fox News people actually are.