By: Rob Cavuoto
When Sammy Hagar and The Wabos hit the stage at the Sands Casino in Bethlehem PA, you could instantly tell from the grin on his face that he loves what he’s doing – making music and playing live.
On the second to last show of his Four Decades of Rock Tour we celebrated the Red Rocker’s success of his 11th Billboard Top 25 album, Sammy Hagar & Friends, which debuted at #23 on the US Billboard 200. This album marks the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer’s highest charting solo album in 18 years, so everyone including Sammy had a reason to celebrate tonight.
Sammy has a reputation for being one of the craziest live acts so a good time was expected. From the second he and his band hit the stage until the moment they left, there was nothing but high octane fun. Sammy kept the crowd entertained with banter between songs about anything that came into his head, from the type of beer he was drinking on stage to pissing off the crew with the unexpected set list changes. The near sold out crowd couldn’t get enough of him.
He opened with a medley of Montrose hits from the ‘70s, “Space Station #5,” “Rock Candy,” and “Bad Motor Scooter.” He then went on to play a few songs from each of his solo CDs in order of release, as well as some of the mega hits he penned with Van Halen. Noticeably missing in the set list were Chickenfoot songs.
He hammered out some Van Halen classics like “Why Cant This be Love,” “Top of the World,” “Right Now,” and “Finish What Ya Started,” but the songs that brought down the house were “I Can’t Drive 55,’ “Three Lock Box,” and “Mas Tequila.”
From his new CD he played “All We Need is an Island” who he dedicated to his wife, “Bad on Fords and Chevrolets,””Knockdown Dragout” and closed with “Personal Jesus.”
The lightening was custom designed to the Red Rocker’s affection to the color red as he was bath in a spectacular array of red, pink and purple lights for most of the night. l must say out of all the venues I’ve been to for shows, I think the Sands Casino tops my list due to its amazing sound, stellar lighting, a tremendous view from anywhere in the house. I will be back again to see other shows.
Sammy has played with some of the best guitarists in the world but he’s no slouch himself on the guitar. Tonight he played guitar on a majority of the songs and even tore it up countless leads with his Red Rocker Les Paul and his Gibson Signature Series Explorer.
Sammy strummed and sang while accompanied by his faithful band, The Wabos; Mona Gnadar on bass, Vic Johnson on guitar and David Lauser on drums. The Wabos have been touring with Sammy for over 13 years and their musical skills are simply epic. These guys know how to play their instruments and they know how to play together. They are as rock solid and tight a band as you will ever hear.
Sammy told me that he was going to continue to make music for the rest of his days. I’m confident he will as potent as his Beach Bar Rum.
Latest MegaHits News | MEGA MILLIONS (10 years ago)
[…] Sammy Hagar Four Decades of Rock Live at the Sands Casino He then went on to play a few songs from each of his solo CDs in order of release, as well as some of the mega hits he penned with Van Halen. Noticeably missing in the set list were Chickenfoot songs. He hammered out some Van Halen classics like “Why … Read more on Guitar International […]