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Hagar interview
Volume 14, Issue 10
Published June 28th, 2006
Soundcheck: Sammy Hagar
Red Rocker
By Ed Condran
If there's one thing you can count on in rock, it's that Sammy Hagar will record a disc and tour. It doesn't matter that Van Halen is MIA. Hagar doesn't need Eddie or Alex Van Halen as bandmates or his old sparring partner, David Lee Roth, to tour. Hagar and his band, the Wabos, just recorded Livin' It Up, which will drop in late July. The new tunes and old favorites will be showcased at this show, which is billed as a Fourth of July party of sorts. Hagar recently spoke about life as a solo recording artist, Van Halen reunion rumors and the aforementioned Diamond David. — Ed Condran
SAMMY HAGAR & THE WABOS
July 4th, 2006 4:00 PM
Tower City Amphitheater
351 Canal Road, Cleveland
216-241-5555
Hey Sammy, it's Ed.
Hey Ed, I have to tell you, your name scares me. When I hear the name Ed, I worry. If it's Ed [Van Halen], is he coherent? Can he talk?
Is that a crack at someone who was afflicted with tongue cancer?
Absolutely not. If I did that I would owe him a huge apology. It's about the bottle.
I thought you were a lover of the bottle?
I am, but you can't get so ripped that you lose control of yourself. You don't drink during the day unless you're having some spicy tacos in Cabo. Have a beer with that. If you have two beers with that you're bordering on insanity. I wait until the sun goes down. I drink in the evening. When you stumble and stagger and say, "oops," you go dance it off or go straight to your room.
I don't have an advance of your new disc. What's it sound like?
You don't have an advance because this record was finished four months ago. I love this record. This will be one of my favorite records right up there with Standing Hampton and Not for Sale, which is my least successful record but my favorite record.
Maybe you screwed yourself by naming it Not For Sale. Maybe fans took the title literally.
You know what, I hope you're right because I love that record. It only sold about 70,000 records.
What's your set list made up of?
It's crazy. My band and I have 100 songs to choose from.
How many Van Halen tunes are you doing?
We do 10 Van Halen songs. [Former VH bassist] Michael Anthony comes out with me to play Van Halen songs. He does his bass solo. It's a three-hour show.
What are some of the songs?
We play some of the obscure songs since that's what a lot of fans want to hear. We play "Good Enough," "Judgement Day" and "Amsterdam."
Rumors are flying that VH will reconcile.
I'm not saying that I wouldn't do it, but I wouldn't do it the way we did last time. If Ed wants to come up with a new plan that is more user-friendly, I'm all ears.
When was the last time you spoke with Ed?
The last time was during the last show we did. I'll tell you straight up that I don't get along with Ed. But Ed doesn't get along with [Van Halen drummer] Al [Van Halen]. Ed doesn't get along with Mike or anybody.
Are you surprised that your old friend David Lee Roth's syndicated morning show tanked?
I'm not surprised that anything Diamond Dave does tanks. I love him. I got to say it. I actually like Dave. He came on tour with me. We had our ups and downs. But I found that he and I could have some fun together. We could have some drinks and have a good time. But he's unpredictable. That's part of his appeal but when you're doing something structured like a tour, you can't be so unpredictable.
He said that you tried to compete with him when you toured together.
I just went out and did what I do. I didn't change anything to try to compete with David Lee Roth. Anyone has the right to say they like the early Van Halen material more than the Van Hagar material. But right now, if you look at how well Dave sings and how well Sammy sings, you can see who is better.
Van Hagar outsold Van Halen.
They never had a number one, and I know the kind of business they did on tour wasn't up to what we did. But it's not about that. If you like "Runnin' With the Devil" better than "Dreams" that's your prerogative.
Published June 28th, 2006
Soundcheck: Sammy Hagar
Red Rocker
By Ed Condran
If there's one thing you can count on in rock, it's that Sammy Hagar will record a disc and tour. It doesn't matter that Van Halen is MIA. Hagar doesn't need Eddie or Alex Van Halen as bandmates or his old sparring partner, David Lee Roth, to tour. Hagar and his band, the Wabos, just recorded Livin' It Up, which will drop in late July. The new tunes and old favorites will be showcased at this show, which is billed as a Fourth of July party of sorts. Hagar recently spoke about life as a solo recording artist, Van Halen reunion rumors and the aforementioned Diamond David. — Ed Condran
SAMMY HAGAR & THE WABOS
July 4th, 2006 4:00 PM
Tower City Amphitheater
351 Canal Road, Cleveland
216-241-5555
Hey Sammy, it's Ed.
Hey Ed, I have to tell you, your name scares me. When I hear the name Ed, I worry. If it's Ed [Van Halen], is he coherent? Can he talk?
Is that a crack at someone who was afflicted with tongue cancer?
Absolutely not. If I did that I would owe him a huge apology. It's about the bottle.
I thought you were a lover of the bottle?
I am, but you can't get so ripped that you lose control of yourself. You don't drink during the day unless you're having some spicy tacos in Cabo. Have a beer with that. If you have two beers with that you're bordering on insanity. I wait until the sun goes down. I drink in the evening. When you stumble and stagger and say, "oops," you go dance it off or go straight to your room.
I don't have an advance of your new disc. What's it sound like?
You don't have an advance because this record was finished four months ago. I love this record. This will be one of my favorite records right up there with Standing Hampton and Not for Sale, which is my least successful record but my favorite record.
Maybe you screwed yourself by naming it Not For Sale. Maybe fans took the title literally.
You know what, I hope you're right because I love that record. It only sold about 70,000 records.
What's your set list made up of?
It's crazy. My band and I have 100 songs to choose from.
How many Van Halen tunes are you doing?
We do 10 Van Halen songs. [Former VH bassist] Michael Anthony comes out with me to play Van Halen songs. He does his bass solo. It's a three-hour show.
What are some of the songs?
We play some of the obscure songs since that's what a lot of fans want to hear. We play "Good Enough," "Judgement Day" and "Amsterdam."
Rumors are flying that VH will reconcile.
I'm not saying that I wouldn't do it, but I wouldn't do it the way we did last time. If Ed wants to come up with a new plan that is more user-friendly, I'm all ears.
When was the last time you spoke with Ed?
The last time was during the last show we did. I'll tell you straight up that I don't get along with Ed. But Ed doesn't get along with [Van Halen drummer] Al [Van Halen]. Ed doesn't get along with Mike or anybody.
Are you surprised that your old friend David Lee Roth's syndicated morning show tanked?
I'm not surprised that anything Diamond Dave does tanks. I love him. I got to say it. I actually like Dave. He came on tour with me. We had our ups and downs. But I found that he and I could have some fun together. We could have some drinks and have a good time. But he's unpredictable. That's part of his appeal but when you're doing something structured like a tour, you can't be so unpredictable.
He said that you tried to compete with him when you toured together.
I just went out and did what I do. I didn't change anything to try to compete with David Lee Roth. Anyone has the right to say they like the early Van Halen material more than the Van Hagar material. But right now, if you look at how well Dave sings and how well Sammy sings, you can see who is better.
Van Hagar outsold Van Halen.
They never had a number one, and I know the kind of business they did on tour wasn't up to what we did. But it's not about that. If you like "Runnin' With the Devil" better than "Dreams" that's your prerogative.
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