Sam Roy "Sammy" Hagar (born October 13, 1947), also known as The Red Rocker, is an American rock singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He also sings Country Music.
Hagar came to prominence in the 1970s with the hard rock band Montrose. He afterwards launched a successful solo career, scoring an enduring hit in 1984 with "I Can't Drive 55". From 1985 to 1996, and 2003 to 2005, Hagar was the singer for Van Halen. On March 12, 2007, Hagar was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Van Halen. He has worked with hard rock guitarists such as Eddie Van Halen, Ronnie Montrose, Neal Schon of Journey, and Joe Satriani.
Outside of music, he founded the Cabo Wabo Tequila brand and restaurant chain. He currently resides in Mill Valley, California, and also has a residence in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. His present musical project is as lead singer of Chickenfoot.
Hagar became interested in the burgeoning Southern California music scene, fronting his first band, the Fabulous Castilles.
In 1968, the duo known as Samson & Hagar, backed by the Peppermint Trolley Co., released a 7" promotional record on Ranwood Records with the tracks "Reach Out to Find Me" and "Read My Thoughts".
Later that same year, Hagar joined the Johnny Fortune Band as a vocalist and rhythm guitarist. Hagar was also a member of a string of other pre-Montrose bands including Big Bang, Skinny, Dustcloud, Cotton, Jimmy, and Manhole. Hagar then became a member of the Justice Brothers along with guitarist Bob Anglin, keyboardist Al Shane, bassist Jeff Nicholson, and drummer David Lauser. The Justice Brothers were the house band at a bar called "The Nightclub" in San Bernardino, California, before relocating to San Francisco.
After parting ways with vocalist David Lee Roth, the remaining members of the band Van Halen contacted many potential replacements. In July 1985, given Eddie Van Halen's appreciation of Montrose and his mechanic's suggestion, the band auditioned and quickly hired Hagar to fill the opening. With Hagar at the front, Van Halen produced four multi-platinum, #1 Billboard charting albums: 5150, OU812, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, and Balance, as well as many chart hits, including nine #1 Mainstream Rock hits. During Hagar's stint as Van Halen's vocalist, the band was often informally referred to by fans as "Van Hagar" as a way to distinguish the band from the previous "David Lee Roth albums". Internal disputes eventually led to Hagar's departure from the band in June 1996. Hagar disagreed with a decision to record two new tracks for the soundtrack to the film Twister, after the band had agreed to take time off following their 1995 world tour. Hagar was also opposed to the issuance of a greatest hits record at that point in the band's career. These two items were pushed by Van Halen's new manager Ray Danniels, Alex Van Halen's brother-in-law, brought in after the death of their longtime manager Ed Leffler. Hagar wanted instead to record a new studio album, but only after Eddie, Alex, and Hagar's pregnant wife had all dealt with their respective medical issues. Although there are several versions of how the split occurred, Hagar has stated that the final straw came when he was with his wife in Hawaii, where they had arranged for a natural delivery of the baby (meaning outside of a hospital), and Eddie wanted him back in the studio in California. Hagar claimed to have flown to Los Angeles with his wife only to discover that she could not fly back to Hawaii. In the ensuing argument, he claims that he was fired. Eddie, on the other hand, says that Hagar quit. The end came when Eddie started to work with former lead singer David Lee Roth instead of Hagar, and two new songs were made with Roth for the greatest hits album Best of Volume I. When Van Halen again parted ways with Roth, instead of rehiring Hagar, the band hired Gary Cherone, the former lead singer of Extreme.
Hagar went on to produce several new solo records after the split with Van Halen in 1996. In 1999, Hagar formed a long term solo band, called The Waboritas, consisting again of David Lauser on drums, as well as former keyboardist Jesse Harms, and new to the mix was former The Bus Boys guitarist Vic Johnson, and former Tommy Tutone bassist Mona Gnader. His subsequent tours were known for spontaneity, once doing an improve version of "Folsom Prison" by Johnny Cash at the IC Light Ampitheatre in Pittsburgh after a train disturbed his show.
In 2005, Hagar continued to play with The Waboritas as he toured the Atlantic coast and the Midwest and added ex-Van Halen bass player Michael Anthony, calling the band Los Tres Gusanos (The Three Worms). In August of that year, Hagar went on another mini-tour starting at DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston, Michigan and then hitting the southwest before finishing at his own Cabo Wabo Cantina. Hagar's 2006 tour with The Waboritas also included a segment with Michael Anthony playing as a band called The Other Half (a reference to Hagar and Michael being the half of Van Halen that was not Van Halen by name) for a set of songs in the middle of the show, including both Hagar- and Roth-era tunes. The band also invited Kid Rock on stage at DTE Energy Theatre for a couple of songs, including covers of Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll" and Beastie Boys' "You Gotta Fight For Your Right (To Party)".
Hagar also released an album and DVD called "Livin' It Up! In St. Louis" with the Wabos on July 25, 2006. Hagar has a longstanding and strong relationship with St. Louis. Often in concerts, he can be seen wearing a red St. Louis Cardinals cap. He has said that he credits St. Louis fans and the radio station KSHE in St. Louis with helping to launch his professional career.
In 2008, Hagar formed a "supergroup" named "Chickenfoot" with Michael Anthony, Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, and guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani. Their self-titled debut album was released in June 2009 and debuted at #4 on the Billboard Music Chart. The band played June 5 on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien, the last day of O'Brien's first week as host of the show. They then launched a European and North American tour that lasted through September. In September 2009, the RIAA certified the Chickenfoot debut as Gold (having sold 500,000 copies). The band was also featured performing the track "Sexy Little Thing" on the November 6, 2009 broadcast of Jimmy Kimmel Live.
