Singer, songwriter, former front man for Van Halen and Montrose, current front man of Chickenfoot, and tequila entrepreneur Sammy Hagar is back with a fun-filled romp with the appropriate titles of Sammy Hagar & Friends. Covering some classics as well as handling some brand-new tunes, Hagar relies on a lot of his high-profile and heavy friends to help these 10 tracks shine.
“Not Going Down,” written by Jay Buchanan of Rival Sons, has got a good trashy beat set in motion by drummer Denny Carmassi with support from bassist Bill Church – Hagar’s band mates from Montrose. Dave Zirbel’s lap steel and the gospel-flavored backing vocals arm this one with an uncharacteristic soulful and bluesy feel. That carries over to Depeche Mode’s “Personal Jesus,” a chunky thing of brilliance with Journey’s Neal Schon rocking the guitar, along with Chickenfoot’s Michael Anthony on bass and Chad Smith on drums.
There’s a light Cajun acoustic and Andre Thiery accordion pushing the verses of “Father Sun” with a chorus that rocks, while “Knockdown Dragout,” a duet with Kid Rock, is just pure shouting rock and roll with a high-end trilling solo from Chickenfoot guitarist Joe Satriani. A slightly more salsa-like cover of Jimmy Buffett’s “Margaritaville” has Hagar trading verses with Toby Keith. Heart’s Nancy Wilson joins the Red Rocker on the Hawaiian-sounding “All We Need Is An Island.”
Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart’s intricate technique mixes well with the soft bed of Zirbel’s Tahitian Ukulele to present one of the quieter songs on the disc. “Going Down (Live in Studio-Take 1)” rocks a great ending with three-quarters of Chickenfoot once again on a live version with Neal Schon applying his guitar pyrotechnics on a song that features one of Hagar’s best vocals.
A Deluxe CD/DVD package of Sammy Hagar & Friends includes a sizzling live version of the classic “Space Station #5” from the Ronnie Montrose Tribute Concert held on April 29, 2012 in San Francisco. The DVD has a “Making Of” album documentary and a video for “Knockdown Dragout.” For someone who can make music on his own terms without worrying about having hits, Hagar is moving into some new, unexplored territory on this album. For that alone, Sammy Hagar & Friends proves to be a commendable effort on a variety of levels.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
