The following interview was conducted by Bob Bitchin' from Solid Rock 92.9 WMFS in Memphis, TN on July 3, 1997.

Thanks to Paul Marshall and WMFS for yet another contribution to the Van Halen News Desk!

Bob Bitchin: All right, the big Sammy Hagar show tonight starts at 7:30, at least that's scheduled start. We'll see what happens. Plenty of tickets available. Get 'em at the Mud Island ticket office, and 22.50 tonight. I have the MAN with me...Sammy Hagar, how ya doin' man?

Sammy Hagar: I'm doin' pretty good. Ya know I'm really, really, happy to be here. It's really a great thing, this tour... This is our ninth show on the tour and the band is so tight already it's just unbelievable ya know? We got...it's really cool. It's a great show..it's a long show. We play a lil' Van Halen, and a lil' Montrose, and a lotta Sammy Hagar, and then a lotta new Sammy Hagar, and then some more old Sammy Hagar. We even throw a Zep tune in every now & then so...it's pretty...it's a pretty cool show. It's kinda the Cabo Wabo on tour.

Bob Bitchin: I hear that man. Well..you guys sounded tight in soundcheck. You were just goofin' around n stuff.

Sammy Hagar: Exactly. I always tell the guys at soundcheck: "Now we ain't playin songs we do in the set" in case some fans are standing out there listnin' I don't wanna give nuthin' away. This show is full of surprises y'know and it's uh..it's just like a..it's kinda like a history...a Rock history lesson.

Bob Bitchin: I hear that. Now You're your own boss now...you got the family on tour...

Sammy Hagar: I've ALWAYS been my own boss an' I've always had my family on tour. It's just that...No when you're in a band y'know you-you-ya have to compromise. Ya just have to. Because when you got 4 guys..Led Zeppelin-don't matter who it is, the Stones ya know-The Who...that's why they break up. Because it's always a compromise-no one ever gets their way. And..y'know..it's not that I wanted my way it's not why we broke up...We broke up because they decided to get David Lee Roth back an' do a Greatest Hits record and..that's...not...cool. I mean, In MY book it ain't..I mean, the Greatest Hits record was bad enough, but then they had get Roth back an' I'm goin' "well hey man..you guys..I thought we were buddies...what is this crap?" But anyway so...I was..I was pushed-I didn't jump. So, as I was pushed as I was fallin'..outta that...uh..wonderful rocketship we were on...y'know havin' a blast..uh, I developed these wings, and I'm flyin' an' I'm lovin it, and it's really great. I'm like a kid in a candy store-I'm doin' everything I wanna do, and we're really rockin'. We really got a special band and a special set and a special lighting designer and...a special crew...it-it's special. And anybody that misses it..it's uh..I mean, it's OK, I'm not tellin' poeple "come down here"..if you don't wanna come n' see Sammy Hagar; That's ok! But I'm tellin' ya...you're gonna miss sumthin'. It's really something special.

Bob Bitchin: Here's a goofy question for ya man; Do you think ever in your lifetime, you'd ever gig with David Lee Roth?

Sammy Hagar: No.

Bob Bitchin: Okay.

(laughter)

Sammy Hagar: Why would I do that? I mean if Dave could do somethin' it'd be different, but Dave.. I mean it's not like he's a great singer or anything...or a great musician...He's just a...he's an entertainer. And so y'know ya put him out there and just let him entertain. But...at some stage in your life, that's kinda silly to act goofy like that y'know?..I mean,like y'know...when you're..when you're in your 40's an you're..y'know...you-you're bald an weigh a couple hundred pounds..it's no longer cool to see a guy do the splits..ha-ha y'know? y'know what I mean...or a backflip or something cuz ya ain't gonna make it. Maybe it's real exciting if we did..maybe p-people would pay money to see if he didn't make it but..the point I'm makin' is that y'know...I would love to do somethin' with ANY artist...like playin' with Eddie was fantastic-he's an artist-he's a great musician. And that's the way I...I pattern my life now. I will only write with people that I respect and I would only play with people that I would really respect...as musicians, and not as...really entertainers. I mean, ya wanna be entertained, ya go to Vegas and see y'know all these guys that're..y'know Wayne Newton or somebody..y'know..I dunno Tom Jones or somebody. Those guys are cool y'know? But...uh actually those guys are pretty good singers.

Bob Bitchin: Y'know..check this out man; Sammy Hagar has been satisfying rock-n-roll fans for three decades...

Sammy Hagar: Yeah...73 in Montrose..my first band.

Bob Bitchin: Tell me this man...Is there a particular song, that Sammy did, that, man ..ya just sit there n'go "Man I am DAMN proud o' that song."?

Sammy Hagar: Aw..there's a bunch of 'em. I gotta say, there's a bunch of 'em, but one of 'em...uh...a staple for me is y'know, the song "Heavy Metal", I wrote for that movie...and uh, Of course "Red"..."One Way To Rock".."Dreams" in Van Halen, with-out a doubt one of the greatest songs I've ever..y'know..written in my life..uh...y'know..uh.. on the new album there's jus' so many..To me like "Marching To Mars" an'..."Little White Lie" and uh.."Who Has The Right?"...and "Kama"...Those are...WOW!..Those are..like..for me, the best songs I've ever written in my life so...My-My new record, to me, has more of..of... me...me singin' my life..I'm more proud of this, than anything I've ever done. Y'know I really am..I mean "Bad Motor Scooter" in Montrose.."Rock Candy". Those are great songs...but, they're like nostalgic for me when I play 'em but..y'know the newer stuff...uh...I'll be able to play for the rest of my life. They have a deeper meaning, and they're not fad tunes. If that makes any sense to you...They're just good...

Bob Bitchin: Y'know what blows me away...y'know, you hear the cliche' or whatever "You got your whole life to make your first album, you gt 6 months to make your second album" and a guy like you man...You've been in rock-n-roll for so many years..and then all this crap goes down and a couple months later..I mean hell..You gotta record deal..you gotta new album out..you're on tour...that's a tribute to you man...as a writer..as a peformer..man ther's not a lot of people that can do that. Crankin' out the hits like you do..

Sammy Hagar: Aw thank you very much, but you know I was very inspired and very motivated...When Van Halen broke up for me, I was very disappointed in that..And the disappointment turned into motivation. And inspiration...and that's what any artist needs. If you don't have inspiration..it's like an artist, a painter, y'know just paintin' that building over there without any feeling. And then... here comes Picasso, and these kinda guys and they look at that same building and put this whole different twist on it cuz they're inspired and they see something different. And that's what the trip with Van Halen did for me and that's why this record came so fast. And that's why it-it's my best record ever. Marching To Mars..I mean guys like Mickey Hart and...uh..Damon Johnson...people like that..it certainly didn't hurt writing with those guys...it's just great.

Bob Bitchin: Well, uh...quickly...who's playin' with you now?

Sammy Hagar: Victor Johnson on guitar, he's more like Marvin Hagler but that's OK he's gotta big punch y'know?...We got Victor Johnson on guitar...we got Mona...a female bass player and I tried out every bass player in the world and I tried out every guitar player in the world..I mean these two, really, really did it. I didn't want a girl bass player. I'm goin..I fought it..I'm goin' "A GIRL! y'know I'm goin' Man, what are we gonna do when I'm backstage with my stuff flyin'?" Y'know..after the show I'm goin' "Man this ain't gonna work"...sure enough I couldn't resist because she was so good...David Lauser on drums and Jesse Harms on keyboards.

Bob Bitchin: Very groovy man..now just..as a side note Sammy Hagar is lookin' smooth. he's got his cutoffs on. He's got his Van's on. and he's got his beach shirt on..You're lookin' good..you're feelin' good!

Sammy Hagar: ..Yeah..y'know I'm in the..I'm in the Cabo mode. This is my Cabo Wabo tour. That's what I said..I'm takin' Cabo Wabo...everything I've ever done now..my birthday parties jam y'know with all these people. I do this real loose show y'know..I even...I even make a margarita onstage in the middle of the set cuz...we play so long, the promoter's said we have to take a break. y'know? I said "I'm not takin' a break" so here's what we do..is we just strip the set down. And just me and an acoustic guitar and my guitar player with an acoustic sometimes a piano, we do all kinds of stuff for a bout a half an hour...we jam these song acoustically and goof off...get the fans involved Bring people onstage n' stuff...anyways I make a Wabo-rita, my special drink that I invented at Cabo Wabo. I show people how to make one an-and we sit an drink it..I said "This is a break-Hey Man!" It's a better break than I've ever taken...so...I can't wait for the break right now actually! But anyway..then we-we kick butt again for another y'know an hour or so. It's a really special show.

Bob Bitchin: Well Right on man!...Sammy H-

Sammy Hagar: And it IS a show...that's the other thing that I'd like to say. It's not...It's not a rock concert. It's a rock concert yeah...I mean I'm a rock-roller, but...it's a show..You actually could come n watch this thing..and like, trip. Like Whoa whoa..I'm sorry I took that earlier man..Cuz it'll take ya....We're goin to the moon. We're goin' to Mars..we're gonna land...with that lil probe..We're gonna walk around...and then come back to the Cabo Wabo...make a quick stop by the Cabo Wabo and drop you back off here when we're done.

Bob Bitchin: Right on man!

Sammy Hagar: You'll be back in Memphis 'fore the night's over. Peace, Love-n-Happiness!!!

Bob Bitchin: Kick some ass tonight.

Sammy Hagar: I am. I'm gonna do it!

Bob Bitchin: There he goes..the man with the...

Sammy Hagar: Best teeth in rock-n-roll man!!

Bob Bitchin: That's the one...Thank You Sammy!