New Hagar Article

**Zahzoo** · 11.18.02, 08:26 AM

This was posted on CNN.com today... nothing new, except for one quote about Dave (See Bold) ... but thought I'd share...

At 55, Sammy Hagar 'Not 4 Sale'
Van Halen reunion 'inevitable,' but not so with Roth
By Geneen Pipher
CNN
Monday, November 18, 2002 Posted: 10:01 AM EST (1501 GMT)

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- In an industry where images are manufactured and marketing execs create pop stars, Sammy Hagar says he is the real deal -- an authentic rock 'n' roller.

Hagar, former Van Halen frontman, said true rockers, like blues or jazz artists, play for the love of the music.

"The blues guys -- John Lee Hooker, Lightnin' Hopkins, Muddy Waters and all those guys -- they sang and played the blues until they died," Hagar said in a recent telephone interview. "They got onstage and played the blues and no one asked them, 'Hey are you getting too old for this?' But for some reason people think rock is different. Well, it's not."

At 55, when many his age are planning for retirement, Hagar is picking up steam.

Hagar owns the famed Cabo Wabo Cantina in the Mexican resort town of Cabo San Lucas, he manufactures his own brand of tequila, owns a hotel on the California coast, started a record label and, of course, he plays music too.

In late August, Hagar wrapped a successful summer tour with former Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth, and he and his band, The Waboritas, recently released "Not 4 Sale," his 16th solo album.

'A wonderful place to be'
As the album title suggests, he has reached a place in his life where he can do what he wants, when he wants, without having to worry about his next paycheck.

"It's a wonderful place to be in your life," he said. "I'm not money-driven. I'm not success-driven. I'm not thinking, 'Oh if I do this I'll make a bunch of money or if I do that my record will sell a whole bunch.' I'm just driven by creativity and fun and doing what my band and I do best, and that's playing -- we love playing."

The critics have not always been kind to Hagar's brand of rock. A 1997 Entertainment Weekly review called his music "a mix of macho bloat and navel-gazing vagueness." But his earnest attitude and focus on fun keep his fans coming back for more.

"It's all about fun," he said. "If you can't have fun, what's the point? The title track of my new album says, 'my friend's worth a couple million and he's miserable as any man can be.' And, I know so many people like that ... I'd rather be happy rummaging in a dump than miserable with a million bucks."

Now that he can pick and choose his projects, he lets his instinct be his guide. But he ignored his gut instinct that teaming up with Roth was a bad idea.

"When he called me, my stomach went wrench!" Hagar said. "[I thought], Maybe Dave and I can buddy up and all of a sudden I'll just get in a car at the end of the tour and drive down and see Eddie and Alex [Van Halen] and say, 'OK, guys, off your asses, let's go! We're going out and doing this.' "

Not happy with Roth
Hagar said the possibility of rekindling his friendship with the Van Halen brothers was his primary motivation for touring with Roth, but he quickly realized a reunion would be impossible.

"Seeing what kind of person Dave is, now I know why they have never been able to do the reunion with him because he is unreasonable," Hagar said. "He's a complete nut. He is not an average bear. He's on the moon. He's unreasonable and he's shot."

Roth, who stopped giving interviews halfway through the tour, was unavailable for comment.

Though the Hagar-Roth-Van Halen "happy family" reunion he had hoped for didn't pan out, Hagar believes he will eventually reunite with the band.

He's a complete nut. He is not an average bear. He's on the moon. He's unreasonable and he's shot.
-- Sammy Hagar on David Lee Roth

"To me it is inevitable," he said. "I am not saying it is in the oven right now, but I know it is inevitable. It's just a matter of time when Eddie and Alex get their lives together ... You can't let such a great band like that just go away and die."

A little bit 'retro'
While "Van Hagar" fans await such a reunion, they can listen to Hagar's new tunes.

"It's kind of a groovy record," Hagar said. "It's almost a little retro. It's not '80s-type fist-in-the-air Sammy Hagar -- well, a couple of songs are always like that because that's where I came from -- but it's almost more '70s rock."

The 1970s shine through in Hagar's tribute to Led Zeppelin, "Whole Lotta Zep," a song that puts a new spin on some of Zep's classic cuts.

Hagar says "Not 4 Sale" was produced out of pure love and inspiration.

"With Van Halen we used to play 'Whole Lotta Love' and I used to play 'Rock And Roll' with Montrose," he said. "In the Cabo Wabo ... we play 'Black Dog' ... so I just kind of threw them all together and tried to make it a little sexy in the choruses and bring it down to ... a kind of a groove."

While he has his '70s groove on, the music is quintessential Hagar: guitar-laden, no-holds-barred rock 'n' roll -- music he hopes will uplift and inspire.

He wrote his favorite tune, "Halfway to Memphis," to give courage to those at a crossroads.

"I like to give people hope and confidence ... to maybe help them walk right through that door," he said. "And then they just spread their wings and go. And that's the best thing in anyone's life when you make that step that takes you there."

"I like to be the person who writes the songs for when you need that. And that's my gift ... if I can do that for the rest of my life, man, that makes me feel good."

[ November 18, 2002, 08:27 AM: Message edited by: Zahzoo ]

**rrussou812** · 11.18.02, 08:36 AM

Originally posted by Zahzoo:
Though the Hagar-Roth-Van Halen "happy family" reunion he had hoped for didn't pan out, Hagar believes he will eventually reunite with the band.

Well damnit I hope so, at this point Ernest Borgnine could front the band for all I care

LET'S GET BACK TO BASICS AND JUST CRANK OUT SOME =VH=!!!!!!!! [img]graemlins/thumb.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/thumb.gif[/img]

**Bob_R** · 11.18.02, 08:36 AM

Same ol' shit Sammy [img]graemlins/sleep.gif[/img] I think even your own fans would like you to shut the fuck up already! [img]graemlins/sssh.gif[/img]

**Executionor** · 11.18.02, 08:42 AM

That was that one interview he did on the tour remember? He only said this stuff a very few times. Keep it up Sam. He is the kinda of manipulative person that probably did tour with Roth just so he could bad mouth him and say look at me vh bros, i am the good guy. please like me again. Dave bad, me good. Dave bad guy, me good guy. gronk like van halen.

**ross** · 11.18.02, 08:46 AM

EVH FANATIC is right. It's just the same old same old from Sammy. Maybe the people interviewing him are just all asking the same questions but really I sick and tired of hearing the same time over and over again.

**ebmm_axis** · 11.18.02, 08:55 AM

Man, this interview is the SAME interview to a different person. Nothing new here.

We all know, Sammy thinks Dave is fried, weird, selfish, egotistical, self-centered, unfair, crazy, bald, shot, etc, etc.

Everybody in the world knows this, VH fans and NON-VH fans, DLR fans and NON-DLR fans, Sammy fans and NON-Sammy fans.

The question is, WHY does Sam vent his frustrations like that through the press? This is worse than the Limp Bizkit/Creed feud... whatever it was and whenever it happened...

**weesfreewheelin** · 11.18.02, 09:02 AM

Poor sammy has LMD. Little Mans Disease. [img]graemlins/sssh.gif[/img]

**Han Valen** · 11.18.02, 09:07 AM

Those who are sick to DEATH of the SAME interview that sets up the inevitable Dave vs. Sam thread please make this face, [img]graemlins/wtf.gif[/img]

**Han Valen** · 11.18.02, 09:08 AM

[img]graemlins/wtf.gif[/img]

**ebmm_axis** · 11.18.02, 09:09 AM

Originally posted by Han Valen:
Those who are sick to DEATH of the SAME interview that sets up the inevitable Dave vs. Sam thread please make this face, [img]graemlins/wtf.gif[/img]

[img]graemlins/wtf.gif[/img]

**TPStang** · 11.18.02, 09:33 AM

I would like to formally apologize to all the Rothtards out there. A few months ago, I posted how tired about all the Dave "One Liner's"... Ya know, "spokesperson for the immoral majority" and all that jazz...

Well, I am MOST DEFINETLY tired of Sammy's one liners as well. Y'all know what I'm talking about...

1) "my reunion with VH is inevatible"
2) "dave's lost all sense of reality"
3) "Mas tequila"

It must suck to be old and irrelevent....

**LoveWillLeadUs** · 11.18.02, 09:43 AM

We are the minority group who has heard all of these repeat info interviews. The rest of the country has NO IDEA what is going on with the VH family (except that maybe ED and Val split).

Sammy as we all know by now likes to market himself and his products, and I can't knock him for that since that is his career. And yes it is very boring for us to keep hearing the same message over and over, and the reason for that is because his manager and publicity people keep trying to get the Sam message out there which is essentially, "I am the man for the band, and buy my new record.

I wish Dave was half as ambitious and marketed himself as the man for the band instead of refusing to admit his faults and his overwhelming stubborness. His current plan of action for his ultimate career goal is to sit in his house alone waiting for Ed to call him. And that just sucks.

**Vantrix** · 11.18.02, 09:53 AM

What the fuck do all of you care what Sammy says anyway???????? If Dave were to be on the spotlight like he USED to be, he would have been saying the same crap too over and over. I don't believe that these guys go asking to do interviews. When they are asked questions they answer them. Put yourself in the situation. If you are asked the same questions by 20 different people, are you going to asnwer them all different. It's called consistency.

**willyum** · 11.18.02, 10:10 AM

Interviews are written assuming that the common Joe will only read one, thereby packing the latest B.S. P.R. campaign in to one condensed write up and distributing it as widely as possible. They are not intended for the fanatic goofballs like us who will read anything and everything regarding anyone who even lives close to Coldwater Canyon in hopes of some little shred info....

**LoveWillLeadUs** · 11.18.02, 10:12 AM

Agreed. People are just getting frustrated now, and unfortunately some are using the Sam vs. Dave thing as something to express their anger about the whole non-VH news. I hope the brothers don't wait much longer to make an announcement because if they wait too long, half of the diehard fans are going to still be pissed off because they won't be happy with the singer they chose.