Review by Shawn Perry
Photos by Joe Schaeffer
Head down to Cabo San Lucas, and you likely have fishing, snorkeling and chilling on your agenda. Come nighttime, there are plenty of restaurants and night clubs to visit. If you like to drink, rock and drink more, you’ll probably end up at Sammy Hagar’s Cabo Wabo. The restaurant has grown to several locations, Cabo Wabo tequila has made Hagar rich, and the red rocker’s birthday parties at the original Cabo Wabo every October are the stuff of legend. Sammy Hagar’s High Tide Beach Party & Car Show, staged on the sands of Huntington Beach a week before his birthday gigs, is another extension of the singer’s passion for rock and roll, cars, the seaside and the ever-faithful Redheads. And it’s a little bigger.
Touted as “the ultimate all-day beach party,” Sammy Hagar’s High Tide Beach Party & Car Show featured a wide array of activities, hideouts, sideshows, eating and drinking options to enhance the eclectic lineup of bands and cars. Despite a couple of inaugural missteps, it was a massive success and a unique, enjoyable concert experience for the 13,000 or so hearty souls who braved the cool breeze within the compound set up on the Huntington Beach shoreline.
There was a slight delay, a little over an hour after the scheduled noontime opening. Small little details, like getting beach access pathways in place to accommodate those with disabilities (and anybody who didn’t want to walk on the sand), were still being attended to. Hardly deal breakers — and with one bar open and serving, and Hawaiian music and hula girls brightening the atmosphere, the VIPs at the gate didn’t have much to complain about. It might have been a different story for those in the long line that stretched down to Beach Blvd.
Once the gates were opened, there was no shortage of directions to go and things to do. The Cabo Cantina pop-up had its own stage with live music, a taco stand, and a selection of beers, wine, plus Sammy’s Beach Bar Rum and Santo Mezquila drinks. You could get more libations at the Red Rocker Bar, as well as wiggle your fanny on a shiny dance, learn a little hula, and compete in a limbo contest. There was also some kind of Corn Hole tournament — whatever that is — where one lucky winner would get a backstage tour and a meet-and-greet with Sammy Hagar.
The range of food and beverage choices was impressive. If you couldn’t get a taco at Cabo Wabo, Outback Steakhouse was there with ribs, chicken and various sides. Grab a Corona or craft beer from one vendor, a tri-tip sandwich or a burger from another. There was no reason to starve if you had the means. VIPs, of course, were entitled to additional extras, like access to a general store, cabanas, hammocks and a soaking pool, and they definitely paid for the privilege. Whatever was left likely went to the merchandise tent, with its vast wall of T-shirts, beach towels and tokens of branded swag.
A popular destination for many just coming in was the High Tide Car Show, which featured a wild selection of rare, high performance automobiles. The crown jewel was Hagar’s 1982 Ferrari BB512 from his “I Can’t Drive 55” video. Also onsite was ZZ Top guitarist Billy Gibbons’ 1983 Chevrolet El Camino, the Vicious Stang known as ‘The Million Dollar Mustang’ and Gary Corns’ Radial Engine 1939 Plymouth, which has been featured on Jay Leno’s Garage. A number of well-known figures in the high-performance car industry were on hand, including Hagar’s son Aaron, whose Rat Runners Garage builds, customizes and restores hot rods and motorcycles. Owners of some of the cars were later honored and awarded 70-pound skull trophies on the Encore Welding Supply Main Stage.
This was the same stage where the day’s main music attractions would be held. Along the stage right was an open area for first-come, first-seated general admission ticket holders. A barricaded space in front of the stage was for high-rolling VIPs, with 20 or so rows of reserved seats behind that for those who needed a spot to call their own. Further back, another wide open area for the general admission awaited those who wanted their space and some distance. Beyond that, scattered Adirondack chairs and benches were made available for anyone seeking solitude, relaxation, or both.
The music program was running a little late, as people continued to pore in and get situated. The first band, Sir, Please, featuring two of REO Speedwagon singer Kevin Cronin’s sons, played a short set, and was followed by Hagar’s other son, Drew. It was like the offspring of Hagar, REO Speedwagon, and even Toto guitarist Steve Lukather, whose son Trev and his band ZFG showed up, were all tasked to keep the still-arriving audience entertained. A little after 2:00, the Dead Mermaids, featuring Green Day drummer Tré Cool, unleashed their brand of Icelandic death metal to stir things up. After Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers finished their fun-filled spot, the gaps started to fill in and it was starting to look like a rock concert.
Orange County-based Reel Big Fish went over well with their spunky brand of ska punk, infused with humor, brass, sass and sturdy musicianship. They were obviously excited to be playing before what had ballooned to several thousand. The band’s frontman Aaron Barrett later said, “It was very surreal to be playing a show with some of my musical heroes! Sharing the stage with some of the people who have had a huge influence on me as a musician was unbelievable! If only the 16-year-old me could see me now! Pretty cool! I still can’t believe it happened!”
The sun began its downward spiral just as REO Speedwagon took the stage before what appeared to be a packed house. Here’s a band with a setlist comprising an intoxicating mix of high-energy rockers and fluffy ballads, executed by a long-standing lineup of five world-class musicians. At this moment, with the audience finally prepared to rock, there wasn’t a better band to put this event into overdrive than REO Speedwagon.
They got right into Hi Infidelity, the album that turned REO into superstars, with ‘Don’t Let Him Go” and “In Your Letter.” Singer and guitarist Kevin Cronin, bassist Bruce Hall and guitarist David Amato, a one-time Huntington Beach resident, manned the frontline, while original keyboardist Neal Doughty and drummer Bryan Hiatt blasted out their respective instruments from behind with thousands of beach bums before them and the ocean gnawing on the horizon.
In the middle of the set, Eddie Money and his daughter Jesse were invited to the stage, and off they went with REO into “Two Ticket To Paradise.” What could be more appropriate? Money can still bring it when he has to, and along with his daughter, he got the crowd and band revved up. Afterwards, “Take It On The Run,” a Top 5 hit for REO in 1981, had everyone on their feet, singing the last verses. Amato played a stinging lead on that one.
“Time For Me To Fly” had everyone waving their arms before “Ridin’ The Storm Out” blew the lid off the joint, enticing Cronin to shout out: “This is a fucking party.” He would later take a seat behind a grand piano and lead the masses through “Keep On Loving You.” The power ballad, which owned the #1 spot in March 1981 and went on to sell a million copies, left the audience enraptured, ready to seize the day.
Darkness settled in as the audience, musically marinated and ready to party thanks to REO Speedwagon, got primed for Sammy Hagar and The Circle, featuring guitarist Vic Johnson, bassist Michael Anthony and Drummer Jason Bonham. Come 7:00 and a video retrospective of Sammy Hagar flashes up on the big screen. Eddie Trunk dispensed with the introductions. “Huntington Beach — we’re at your service,” Hagar announced and it was on with “There’s Only One Way To Rock,” a signature opener and one of the singer’s biggest solo hits.
Looking more than comfortable in his black Sammy’s beach Bar Rum T-shirt, Hagar is approaching 71 like a champion fighter entering the ring — fearless, calculated, chill — albeit with a sly grin, a lot of family and friends, and a jigger of tequila to keep it all loose and friendly-like. He and the Circle cranked through Van Halen’s “Poundcake,” Led Zeppelin’s “Good Times, Bad Times” and Montrose’s “Rock Candy” without taking a breath, and the VIPs in front kept on demanding more.
“We are The Circle and this is what we do all night,” Hagar remarked. At this point, Mötley Crüe singer Vince Neil, looking a bit too comfortable, came up and wailed through “Kickstart My Heart” and “Wild Side.” He managed to get Anthony, known for his arching high harmonies, to pipe in on the chorus of “Wild Side.” For his third and final number, Neil brought out Kevin Cronin and Dave Amato from REO Speedwagon for a rousing “Girls, Girls, Girls.” One could only wonder where it would go from here.
There was no way Hagar could leave without doing “I Can’t Drive 55.” There was also room for “Heavy Metal,” and more Van Halen, namely “Right Now” and “Why Can’t This Be Love,” the band’s first hit with Hagar, and second overall Top 10 hit following “Jump.” Then, out of nowhere, there was “No Worries,” a newer song that more or less outlined the whole theme behind the High Tide Beach Party. The tequila flowed during “Mas Mezquila” before guitarist Joe Satriani arrived to take Sammy Hagar and The Circle around for one final lap.
Satriani was given the spotlight to play his alluring instrumental “Surfing With The Alien,” rather fitting given the setting. Then, Hagar and Satriani with The Circle for support tumbled through three Chickenfoot cuts — “Soap On A Rope,” “Oh Yeah” and “Big Foot.” For the big finale, Hagar turned to Bonham and said, “This is a tribute to your father — the greatest rock and roll drummer of all time…” With that, the greatest rock and roll drummer’s son stomped out the famous intro to Led Zeppelin’s “Rock And Roll,” and Huntington Beach was swept up in a fervor.
Ending just before 9:00, the crowd peacefully and somewhat excitedly exited with little fanfare. There were no reports of any major incidences and everyone seemed to have a really good time. Plans are already in place to follow up tonight’s sold-out show with an even bigger and better High Tide Beach Party & Car Show in 2019.
Now that the bugs have been worked out and the reaction exceeded expectations, Sammy Hagar could very well surprise us all with who knows what (and we all know what you’re thinking) before he hits the ripe old age of 72.
