It's a Sammy Hagar-Off!

[Dave78]

One or the other, what's it gonna be?

 

[That 70s Guy]

Van Halen

 

[SanguineRemedy]

Solo artist without a doubt in my mind.

He's a better singer than Roth, but Roth is the better frontman.

 

[Magic]

Do I gotta............

Sammy was much more successful solo.

@Cadleson Roth was an outstanding frontman and he was (note I said WAS) the better vocalist, IMO. However, Dave is pretty much washed up these days whilst Sammy can still give it hell.

 

[SanguineRemedy]

@Cadleson Roth was an outstanding frontman and he was (note I said WAS) the better vocalist, IMO. However, Dave is pretty much washed up these days whilst Sammy can still give it hell.

I prefer Roth's vocals even though I may acknowledge Hagar to be a better singer.

 

[Texas King]

"Sammy in Montrose" should be an option.
Out of these two choices - neither.

 

[E-Z]

Sammy Hagar also known as the RED ROCKER was a hotshot guitarist in his own right as well as being a front man vocalist fronting Van Halen for a few years as well and the live album that he released in 1978 is a favourite of mine, that thing f**king rocks!!!!!!!!!!!!!.

E-Z

 

[Big Ears]

Hagar set the standard high with Montrose, and it was a height he struggled to reach again. Ronnie Montrose made the fine Warner Bros Presents album (with Bob James, another strong singer lost withoutout trace), and went on to form Gamma, which were at least as good as Montrose if not better.

Hagar's solo material was not bad, with the best of American hard rock musicians, but without a distinctive guitar player. What set Ronnie Montrose and Sammy Hagar apart from other other partnerships was their restraint peppered with fire. His solo work tended to fall a bit flat for my taste . . . unless I missed something. I understand it sold well in the US. He did have his moments, like his fantastic version of Young Girl Blues (definitely one for the covers thread) which really showed off his singing ability.

Van Halen were just not right for Hagar, who was too melodic and emotive for them. He said, on leaving Montrose, that one of the problems was the band were named after the guitarist! Again, he had his moments, as with Dreams. I could not get into the first Chickenfoot album at all. I have heard the more recent one is good, but I am in no hurry to track it down.

So, for me, the Sammy music I prefer is Montrose. This is one of the best Rolling Stones covers ever, and there is no shortage (another for the covers thread):

 

[Porch Monkey]

I've always loved the tracks "Space Station no.5", "Bad Motor Scooter" and "Make It Last", whether it be with Montrose, or Sammy performing live on later recordings, so it's more about the songs for me. But definitely prefer him pre-VH.

 

[Dave78]

"Sammy in Montrose" should be an option.
Out of these two choices - neither.

I didn't think his involvement on only two Montrose albums would be a fair comparison to either his solo career or Van Halen. I considered "Pre-Van Halen" which would include Montrose along with his solo work, but decided just to put his solo career up against Van Halen instead. But I do think that Montrose's S/T album is better than any of Sammy's solo albums, and is, at the very least, as good as VH's F#%K album. Or maybe I should say VH's F#%K album is at least as good as the Montrose S/T album.