The 1987 song Sammy Hagar called the most spiritual he ever wrote: “Goosebump songs”
There are a number of different approaches that Sammy Hagar had to writing songs, and they all birthed pretty great music.
When David Lee Roth left Van Halen, there were a lot of music lovers who thought that maybe this could be the end for what is a prolific rock band. His performance style was immersive, and his voice was energetic enough that he could keep up with the energetic playing style of Eddie Van Halen. Who could ever replace him? Well, luckily, Sammy Hagar and Eddie Van Halen went to the same mechanic.
“My car mechanic, Claudio Zampoli, was also Eddie’s mechanic,” said Hagar, “One day, when Eddie was picking up his car, he was telling Claudio that Dave quit – nobody knew, it wasn’t public knowledge. And that’s when Eddie saw my black Ferrari 512, the car I used in the video for ‘I Can’t Drive 55’. He said, ‘Wow, nice car, whose is it?’ Claudio said, ‘It’s Sammy Hagar’s car – you should call him and get him in the band’.”
Sammy Hagar set out some pretty strict rules when he agreed to join the band, and they all revolved around how much of an authentic musician that he was. He didn’t want to be an artist who was merely filling the role of David Lee Roth, he wanted to bring his own unique personality to the band. That meant being allowed to write songs for the band and also not playing any of the songs that David Lee Roth had originally written for the band.
“What I brought to Van Halen was just who and what I am,” said Hagar, “It was Sammy Hagar, who and what I was at that moment, but very inspired by Eddie Van Halen’s musicianship… He inspired me to write songs… Goosebump songs.”
This authenticity has always been at the heart of Sammy Hagar’s songwriting, he wanted his music to be an honest reflection of himself, and that meant that he needed to ensure when joining Van Halen, he wasn’t just copying the singing of someone else. Even though Van Halen were at the top of their game when he was given the chance to join, and doing so meant he would undoubtedly be shot to stardom, he wasn’t interested in becoming a tribute.
This is something Hagar took into his solo career as well. Whenever he was writing music, he had to ensure that the songs came from a genuine place, and that resulted in some songs that were just fun and energetic, whereas you had others came from an incredibly emotional place. One of these tracks was ‘Eagles Fly’, which he has dubbed one of the most passionate he has ever written. When he speaks about the song, he goes to a place which is incredibly profound, one where he understands what it’s like to be alive and be connected to the earth.
“Because it came from a deep place, and that’s the difference between writing as an exercise and writing because something is moving through you like lightning,” he said, “I was alone in the low desert above Palm Springs, up in Idyllwild at about 4,800 feet elevation. It was warm, completely silent, deeply spiritual—just me, the wind, and a moment I’ll never forget.”
He continued, “I saw an eagle gliding around and something happened to me. I felt like I understood what it had felt like to take my first breath when I was born. First time I smelled anything, heard anything, felt anything. Taking your first breath is a big deal. It may have been the most spiritual moment I’ve ever had. And out of that came the song.”
