I another thread, it was brought up about Sammy having to go out to secure the rights for the cabo tequela???? When did this come about?
( mods, feel free to close once answered )

Maybe Sam had a business partner(s) and ensured his legal entitlement to the tequila entity.

There has been speculation that shortly after the break up 96, he had to sign paperwork not to bring the Cabo Wabo franchise to the United States.

Rumor has it, becuase he agreed to rejoin the band, that contract was torn up and the VH Brothers agreed to let sam bring the Cabo franchise to America.

Not sure if any of it's true...but a good story.

There has been speculation that shortly after the break up 96, he had to sign paperwork not to bring the Cabo Wabo franchise to the United States.

Rumor has it, becuase he agreed to rejoin the band, that contract was torn up and the VH Brothers agreed to let sam bring the Cabo franchise to America.

Not sure if any of it's true...but a good story.


I don't think that would be the case. The Tahoe Cantina would have taken a couple years to market, sell, develop and build. So it would have had to have been in motion long before Van Halen's new contract was drafted. I thought in the mid-90s he bought the shares he didn't already own from the brothers and Mike because the place was going down the tubes. Hager, with some help of some other business associates, helped keep it afloat, and eventually prosper. Not sure if that's completely accurate or not...but I'm pretty sure that's how it basically went down.

It seems I read something about when the Cabo wasn't making money for a time, he got the brothers to sign an agreement that he would have full rights after seven years and they would be free and clear of any financial burden. He brought in a new manager with money and turned the thing around. I think I read that in the excert from Sam's unreleased biography?

According to Sam's book, in 1994 he bought out Ed/Al and they also forced Mike to sell his shares to Sammy. Sam also claims as part of that deal, his doing anything at or for the Cabo Wabo could not interfere with his Van Halen job.

As far as the US rights thing goes, who knows. But Garibaldi is right about the timeline. Sam did not speak to Al until Nov 03 and Tahoe Wabo had to be already in the works by then since it opened in April 04.

The one thing I remember about the US was that if anything was brought to the US and opened VH would get a cut. I don't know if this is true but I'm sure that's what I read somewhere.

Then again, I could be wrong. :p

...here's what I've read:

"Believe me," lamented the Red Rocker, "the papers I had to sign with the
brothers to get the club was a really shit deal for me. The terms were
unbelievable. For instance, if I ever made a penny selling it, I would
have to repay the band the money they wrote off on their taxes. Next, if
I ever brought the concept to the United States and tried to franchise
it, they would get fifty percent of the profits forever. That same deal
also extended to anything associated with the Cabo Wabo name. I had to
sign all these documents that stated in the event anyone got sued, I paid
all the costs. It even said in the contract that I could not let the
club interfere with the band. If Eddie and Al voted that it was not a
good time for me to travel to Cabo because they needed me, I couldn't go.
God's truth that fucking clause was in there. I had to agree to all
these conditions, otherwise there was no deal."

Hagar had no bargaining power, and he knew it. Apparently, neither did
Michael Anthony. The brothers made him divest his interest in the club as
well. If he didn't, Sammy says, they would have kicked him out of Van
Halen.

"When it came right down to it," he said assuredly, "they didn't want
Mike to have anything to do with the Cabo Wabo. They especially didn't
want him and me to own the club. The bottom line to the whole deal was
this. I gave the brothers what they wanted, which was control over me.
Eddie and Al knew that I'd do anything to keep my wonderful, great idea.
They wanted to rub my face in it and say, 'See, it didn't work. We lost
all this money.' Believe me, they didn't like the idea of me saving it.
What they pulled on me was nothing but a powerplay; I guarantee it. The
funny thing is it backfired. From January 1, 1994 when David Haliburton
walked out to January 1, 1995, we paid off all the outstanding debts,
redesigned the club, and I pocketed a tidy $300,000 profit. It was
unreal."