Sammy Hagar Remembers Ronnie Montrose

Sammy Hagar put out one of the best remembrances of super-guitarist Ronnie Montrose this week (Ronnie passed away from cancer on March 3), speaking to Rolling Stone Magazine. Here is the whole thing:

I've got to tell you, for [1973's Montrose] being my first album I had ever been involved with my life, to have something that's that classic to still stand up, and it's still in my opinion one of the best recording projects I've ever been involved in - that's all due to Ronnie. I wrote songs with him, but it was his trip. He's the guy that got me to sing with him. I had no experience whatsoever; I just wrote the first four songs in my life, which were "Bad Motor Scooter," "Make It Last," "One Thing on My Mind," and "I Don't Want It," played them for Ronnie upon first meeting, shook my hand, and said, "Let's start a band." I went from zero to a hundred.

 I saw him at Winterland with the Edgar Winter Group, [touring in support of] They Only Come Out at Night, with "Free Ride" and "Frankenstein." And I didn't know who he was; I didn't know anything about him. I had a band that was a soul band – we were playing Tower of Power and James Brown – and we sat there and watched Edgar Winter. I just told my guitar player, "I want you to be like that" – like Ronnie Montrose. And he's going, "I don't want to play that kind of music," and I'm going, "Well, I do." We got into it. It broke my band up, by seeing Ronnie for the first time. I said, "I'm going to be like that guy. I'm going to play guitar like that and I'm going to sing like…the way I sing." [Laughs]

I was talking to a guy a couple of days after the show, and he was saying, "That's Ronnie Montrose, and that was his last show. He lives in Sausalito." I lived in San Francisco, and I said, "Do you have his address?" because I didn't even have a phone. He gave it to me, and I went and knocked on his door, dressed like David Bowie – big old high heel platform shoes, satin pants, probably had make-up on, with a Les Paul and a notebook pad with all kinds of lyrics in it. I said, "I'm Sammy Hagar. I heard you're looking for a singer." He said, "Come on in. You got any songs?" I played him my four songs, we shook hands, and he said, "Let's start a band. Do you know any drummers? I've got a bass player, Bill Church." I had a drummer, Denny Carmassi – wasn't in my band, but he was my favorite drummer around town.

Within a month we were signed to Warner Bros. Records, Ted Templeman producing, and the first Montrose album was born a month after that. It was the fastest thing I've ever done in my life. Like I said, I went from zero to a hundred in the blink of an eye – all because of Ronnie.

My opinion of him? The most high-energy guy on stage I've ever seen. At that time, he was completely running in circles, jumping in the air. I mean, he was just intense. And I loved it. I hadn't come out yet, and that's what I really wanted to be – but I didn't have the balls. And the band I was in, we were a soul band. I couldn't act like that in a soul band. They wanted me to dance. Honestly, huge influence on me.

He was a changeling. Ronnie never liked to stick with anything. We made one of the greatest hard rock/heavy metal albums of all time with that first Montrose album, and then he didn't want to do that any more. "Nah, nah, we've got to have better songs, we've got to change our image, that kind of music is out." Boy, he was just laying it on us. Ronnie really liked to change – immediately. Like, before it was really established, he wanted to change. We butted heads and I got thrown out of the band [after one more album, 1974's Paper Money], but I carried on with that "first Ronnie Montrose" I saw. The first guy that came out in Montrose – '73, that year, what I learned from Ronnie Montrose, I still utilize today when I step on a stage. I try to keep the energy up and the entertainment high.

The first time Eddie Van Halen and I met, it was around 1977. We were on a stadium show with Boston, Black Sabbath, myself, Van Halen. He came to my dressing room, and said, "I'm a Montrose freak, I love the band!" And Ted Templeman told me, when he signed Van Halen, they were called something else, and he wanted to name them after the guitar player. He said on the first Van Halen record, he took the first Montrose record in there and said, "Boom. We're going to have eight great songs, they're going to be this long, they're going to be this tempo." And pretty much patterned the whole thing after it – right down to saying, "Why don't you guys get Sammy Hagar to sing in this band? He's been thrown out of Montrose." That's a true story!

Eddie had a totally new twist on the whole guitar style thing, but as far as the chording goes – not his soloing as much as the chording – yeah, he took some of that big open chord thing [from Montrose]. The big open A, the big open D, the big open E. Everything as open as you could make it, to make it as heavy as possible with one guitar. And that was pretty much Ronnie's style, too. And of course the fire, too – Van Halen came out with all that fire, which is Ronnie. Ronnie was full of fire, man.

A couple of weeks ago [was the last time I spoke to Montrose], and about a week before that, and then four or five days before that. We were talking a lot, because we were planning a Montrose reunion for my birthday in Cabo this year. Montrose, the whole band, has not been there. Denny's been there, Bill's been there, Ronnie's been there – but [the whole band together] has never been there. I said to Ronnie, "Come on, man. We're all getting old. Let's do this again while we can." And he was in, we were all in. On my 65th, on October 13th, I was planning on coming out with Montrose, doing the whole first album, then going in with my other band, and then bringing Chickenfoot out. I was going to try to [cover] my whole four decades for the fans that night, without nobody knowing. The fans don't ever know what I'm going to do down there. And Ronnie was in. It's crazy. I even played back on my message box, February 10th – "Hagar, Ronzo…call me back!" It was all good. It's fucked up that those songs will never be played by those four members again. That's so weird to me. It's like the end of an era. Songs can go forever, but we can't. It's trippy.

[I would like Montrose to be remembered] as one of the pioneers of American heavy/hard rock. And certainly, one of the great hard rock guitar players. But he was more than that – he was really versatile. But if you're going to remember him for anything, put on that first Montrose record.

For me Ronnie's passing is the end of an era. Ronnie Montrose gave me my first break as a songwriter, as a front man, as a recording artist and as a touring artist, and for that I will always be grateful. The first Montrose album was the first album I ever recorded and it still stands as one of the best recordings I have ever been a part of.

The only positive I can grab onto is the fact that the music will live on. It's a shame to lose Ronnie and I'm so sorry for his loved ones. Rest in peace.

----- Nice, Sammy. And here is a pretty sweet video I found the other night:


Ronnie Montrose - Night of the Guitars by alexandru2006

Book Review: Sammy Hagar - Red: My Uncensored Life in Rock

I mowed through Sammy Hagar Red: My Uncensored Life in Rock in two days. It was pretty riveting. Sammy co-wrote it with Joel Selvin from the SF Chronicle, which probably means Sammy dictated it to Joel and Joel banged it into shape.

But however they did it, the book is very conversational and is a great read. Sammy is indeed a funny guy and I was laughing before I even turned to the second page.

Hagar's family history is pretty interesting. I usually want to skip over the childhood years in music bios, but this was a good one. Sammy had a pretty tough childhood yet he presents it with a refreshing objectivity and it shows how his strong work ethic and easygoing nature were formed.

Also, he grew up in a very rural area (Fontana, California), and he paints a vibrant picture of what life was like back in the 50s as kid.

His teenage years were spent in the 60s, and he got the rock and roll bug in time to attend the Monterey Pop Festival and take all sorts of the usual chemicals of the time. The cool thing is, after a close call with the law, he decided to clean it up and really focus on his dream of making it as a rock and roller.

In fact Hagar reminds me of Tom Petty (from Running Down A Dream) and Don Felder (from Heaven and Hell: My Life in the Eagles), who both were so driven to succeed that they left wreckage in their wake - wives, bandmates etc.

Hagar marries young and his wife sticks with him through the poverty and selfishness of living on nothing to chase a dream that few ever achieve, all the way through the payoff before and during the Van Hagar years, where Sammy is gone so much his kids never see him. And of course he ultimately dumps her for a newer model. There is more to the story than this (the wife train wrecked a bit), but it's a common theme and was the only bummer in Sammy's  story.

Otherwise, you'd be hard pressed to find a more easy-going, motivated, smart guy in rock and roll. Most know of Hagar's Cabo Wabo venue and tequila franchise, but he was starting businesses all the way back in the late 70s. Some tanked and others did OK, but he diversified and invested wisely. Very few rockers grasp that concept without the nudge of the accountant!

Of course the big dirt in the book is all about Van Halen. If you believe Sammy's story, he was the great motivator behind getting the songs written and recorded on the numerous Van Hagar albums. The Van Halen brothers were disorganized and dysfunctional - basically rich rock stars who never grew up and always had some screws loose. The magic was prevalent from the start of their collaboration, but the seeds of the breakup were already sown as well, namely in the form of the Van Halen brothers' alcoholism.

Talk about head trippers - mostly Eddie, but Alex was a major enabler. I mean, I already knew Eddie has zero respect for his fans and is generally a clueless genius with no manners - that was clear from his Guitar Player interviews in the 80s. But Hagar really tears the cover off of it and it's pretty astounding. Did nothing to change my opinion of Eddie Van Halen as a human being, which was already pretty low.

I knew very little about Alex Van Halen, though. According to the book, he was a major alcoholic (possibly cleaned up at this point but hard to tell) and very co-dependent with Eddie. Not as off the rails as Eddie but didn't do anything to help him put the brakes on either.

And David Lee Roth? Wow, what a weird dude. Another deluded head tripper but I guess we knew that already. The stories of the Sam and Dave tour, and the Van Hagar reunion are worth the price of the book alone.

Hagar also talks about his breakthrough with Montrose, the arc of his solo career and his recent new band, Chickenfoot. The book inspired me to listen to that CD again and it's a good band. Great chemistry. I reviewed that CD here in 2009.

Overall, the book paints a solid picture of Hagar - an amazingly successful, talented, driven, slightly ego-centric rock and roller and business man. Despite some of the lifestyle and personal choices I wouldn't have done myself, I came away with a lot of respect for the man. And overall, the book is a fun, easy read.

Van Halen Guitar Hero Discludes Michael Anthony

They say that in war, the winners write history. In rock and roll, the most recent example of this is certainly Eddie Van Halen, who not only is trying to get his version of Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony's departures from the band set in stone. He is now trying to delete their very existence in the band's history.

When Van Halen's son Wolfgang took over bass duties from Anthony on the recent reunion tour, some of the band's artwork was altered on the VH Web site - Anthony was actually airbrushed out of the covers from some of VH's first releases.

Now, Hagar and Anthony won't be represented in the VH Guitar Hero video game. According to Rolling Stone, the trailer was previewed at the recent E3 Expo, and follow up reports confirmed that Wolfgang will be your VH bass player if you want to play the game.

No reports yet if any Hagar-era songs will even be IN the game. But I doubt it.

Which would be a shame. The band has a great history, being hugely successful TWICE, with the different singers. I don't think they would (or should) put out a Guitar Hero - The Hagar Years. But come on, Ed, own up to your history and do it right.

Some folks may want to jam out to Summer Nights as much as to Jamie's Crying. Wait...

CD Review - Chickenfoot

I bought the new Chickenfoot CD partly because I liked the sound clips found in the YouTube montage fellow blogger Dr John posted. And partly because I wanted to check out the neato disappearing black ink packaging (it is very cool).

But I have been surprised at how strong an album this is, if you like guitar-based rock and roll (and who doesn't?). Right out of the gate, the first song Avenida Revolucion sets the stage for what you get on this CD. Namely, lots of shredding guitar and screamy Sammy Hagar vocals to a super solid backbeat.

But despite my initial impression, this is not a Van Halen soundalike band.

Some of Hagar's vocal approach leans on the Van Halen years but for the most part his work is standing on its own. And he mostly avoids the VH cliche vocal breakdowns "Come on fellas..." Instead, he goes into Jim Morrison-esque spoken word passages a couple of times.

Hagar is also kind of restrained with the 'party and hump chicks' lyrics, but let's be honest - it's a "good time" album, lyric-wise. As usual, Hagar's voice is in fine form and he delivers like you'd expect.

And yeah Satriani owes a lot to EVH, but he has taken the style into different areas. Truthfully, he is pretty restrained on this release. Oh yeah, it's shredaliscious, but only where it needs to be. The rest of the time, he plays some great tasty licks. I hear some Stevie Ray in there, and even his peers Neal Schon and Eric Johnson too. Overall his guitar tones are punchy and present. 

I don't have a lot of Satriani's stuff, because I stayed away from the shredding thing back in the 80s. But he really shines in a group context and is this band's secret weapon. Very impressive.

The songs are mostly based around interesting, sometimes heavy rock riffs. In fact, I hear almost as much Tony Iommi and Jimmy Page on this CD as I do EVH. You just know that Satriani brought in kick ass riffs, to which Hagar laid down catchy rock and roll vocals and everyone said 'Yeah!" 

The other great element is the rhythm section of Michael Anthony and Chad Smith. I have never liked the Red Hot Chili Peppers and always thought they were amazingly overrated (still do). But I have to admit that I am now a very big fan of Chad Smith, who lays down behind-the-beat grooves with just the right amount of Bonham fills. And Michael Anthony is right there doubling the complex licks (unless Satriani did the bass lines too).

I always hated how the Van Hagar era production always buried Anthony's bass. But it's very present on this CD, which helps it kick along.

Of course when Anthony sings back-up, we get that Van Hagar vocal sound, which is great. But I rarely thought the band sounded anything like Van Halen. To me, they are a kick ass hard rock band made up of very skilled musicians who are clearly clicking. I'd give this an 8.5 out of 10 and would recommend getting it if you dig any of these guys' former bands.

Chickenfoot Montage

So, I didn't even know it was out but the new Chickenfoot album is apparently available. Fellow blogger Dr John reviewed it and gave it 7 out of 10 stars. He posted the below montage video of songs. Some good moments. I may pick it up.

The one thing that strikes me is that the Hagar-Anthony vocals are so "Van Halen." Michael Anthony's sky high harmonies are as big a part of the band as Eddie's guitar work. Well, maybe not, but they are pretty damn important. You really do have half of Van Halen here - pretty cool.

Satriani and drummer Chad Smith sound great. Looks like a cool band. What do you think?

Oh, and if you go buy the actual CD, the packaging is something very different - it's heat sensitive. According to the band's site:

The ink reacts to heat and changes it’s appearance above and below 84ºF /29ºC. For example; If the package is at a general room temperature (around 73ºF) and is touched by a warm body part (above 84ºF) the ink will appear transparent at the point of contact. Once the surface of the ink returns to a cooler temperature (below 84ºF) it will return to it’s original opaque black color.

(Techie Fact) When you touch the thermo ink, you are literally moving millions of protons. This patented technology works by mastering the movement of a proton – essentially disconnecting and reattaching protons to turn colors “on” and “off."

Chickenfoot Posts Audio Clip on New Site

There were a few rumors last year about this new 'supergroup' with Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani and drummer Chad Smith, called "Chickenfoot."

Hagar went as far as to say they would rival Zeppelin in greatness, whatever that means.

But the band has a Web destination and today posted a brief audio clip that sounds like a VH outtake for the most part. Satriani is no slouch, though, so this could be a good group.

Check out the clip here while it's still up.