A couple of notes: she has the Van Halen Best of Both Worlds, which is pretty comprehensive, so no need to add Van Halen songs to the mix. I also added a few songs that might not normally make the cut because there are a few that were tailored to her. And after nearly two-dozen albums, he's got a lot of songs to choose from. I added a few songs in this mix that maybe wouldn't make the cut on a different day because I may have feel more strongly about something else. That's the tough thing about Best Of's...
I'll get around to my definitive Hagar Best Of in the future. I will say that there are some official Best Of's out there: namely The Essential Red Collection and the remastered Classic Masters. Most of this mix CD I made came from those because they're remastered. I'll try to include the original album (if I could determine it-- his Capitol label era has tons of best of and live stuff) as well as the album I used to make the mix.
1. "Bad Motor Scooter"; Montrose (Montrose)/Essential Red Collection. Hagar's first tune, made when he fronted Montrose. It's also got a meaning for my friend-- or at least I tie the song to her.
2. "Red"; Red/Essential Red. The song that will forever link him to the color and gave him his Red Rocker nickname.
3. "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay"; single/Classic Masters. This Otis Redding cover was a hit for him. It also showcases his talented voice.
4. "Rock 'N' Roll Weekend"; Red/Classic Masters. Just a cool tune. You can imagine him and his friends hangin' at the beach, drinking beers, and listening to the radio.
5. "Cruisin' & Boozin'"; Red/Classic Masters. I like the rhythm of the verses. And it's just a fun song.
6. "I've Done Everything For You"; B-side to "Dock of the Bay"/Classic Masters. If you listen hard enough, you can hear the disappointment in his voice when he realizes all his efforts were for naught. And, for the record, Hagar wrote the song (and put it on vinyl), and Rick Springfield covered it three years later.
7. "You Make Me Crazy"; Musical Chairs/Classic Masters. Another early hit. I like the tune of it.
8. "Three Lock Box"; Three Lock Box/Unboxed. One of those great "singalong" songs that are cool to hear live.
9. "There's Only One Way to Rock" Standing Hampton/Essential Red. Great hard rock vibe. Also a great one to hear live. He did a mean version with Van Halen on Right Here, Right Now where Ed just went wild.
10. "I'll Fall in Love Again"; Standing Hampton/Essential Red. One of my favorite songs. It's one of those turning point songs everyone has when they're growing up. It really got me through some rough times.
11. "Fast Times At Ridgemont High"; Fast Times At Ridgemont High soundtrack/Essential Red. One of my friend's favorite movies. And the song has some cool sounds in it.
12. "Heavy Metal"; VOA/Essential Red. Great hard rock tune.
13. "I Can't Drive 55"; VOA/Essential Red. Probably the song he's best known for.
14. "Give to Live"; I Never Said Goodbye/Essential Red. Another of those seminal songs for me growing up off the first Hagar album I ever bought.
15. "High Hopes"; Unboxed/Essential Red. Probably doesn't need to be in here, but I was feeling it at the time.
16. "Little White Lies"; Marching to Mars/Essential Red. Probably my favorite Hagar song (which changes depending on my mood-- it's always in the Top Five). This song proved to me that he'd be okay after the Van Halen split. The rage from the Van Halen mess just comes through so clearly. He got some game-changing help from friends like Slash and Huey Lewis as well. The acoustic opening with the crunching electric guitar breaks during the first two verses, sliding into Lewis' harmonica solo (with the ominous electric getting closer), and then the full-blown hard rock ending that just drops on you. Perfect.
17. "Mas Tequila"; Red Voodoo/Essential Red. A "reimagination" of "Rock and Roll II" that he made his own. A fun song to party with.
18. "Let Sally Drive"; Ten13. Another one that maybe didn't need to be included, but it's a fun song nonetheless. I love when everything stops for a split-second and then "Drive drive drive, Sally drive!"
19. "Serious Juju"; Ten13. I love this song. It didn't work so well live, but the studio track is great. It's dark and mean and a departure from regular Hagar fare. And I'm not clear on who did the lead guitar (Sam or Vic Johnson), but it sure ruled. It'd be perfect entrance music for Al Gore when he does his global warming presentations. "Mother Earth will punish you... with some... serious... juju."
20. "Sam I Am"; Livin' it Up. A fun little tune off his most recent album that my friend said she liked.
21. "Let Me Take You There"; Livin' it Up. Another borderline tune, but it's different, so I thought it would round the mix out.
Not a bad track listing if I do say so myself. It runs the gamut from his first song to his most recent. There's some rocking songs, party songs, serious songs, ballads; some that feature his voice, others that feature his guitars. Some that you just need to sing along with, and others that you don't dare try to sing. And, most importantly, they are all his songs (or ones he put his own touch on). You can play any one of them, and say "This is a Sammy Hagar song."
So, I'm going to sound the call out again: who is your favorite artist? Who are you an expert on? Make a Best Of mix that tells a novice everything they need to know about your favorite. [One of my loyal readers is a Hagar expert himself, so I'm curious to hear what he thinks (you know who you are).]
Write a comment to this post with your Best Of, or e-mail me at teameckblog@charter.net, and I'll work it into a post. As I said in my last post, there are no right or wrong answers. There are no right or wrong artists. This is just suppsoed to be a fun exercise-- and maybe a little way to brag about what you're an expert on. Do a track listing of 15-20 songs that you'd play for someone who wanted to know what your artist is about; what "their sound" is. And, for fun, throw in an oddball you really like as a "bonus track" (for Hagar, I'd probably do one of his guest appearances on another artist's album).
I'd like this to be a summer-long project. Send your Best Of for a favorite band and then spend some time on another artist. I could do a Hagar one, a non-solo career Hagar, a Van Halen one, a Roth-era VH, a Hagar-era VH, a Best of Eddie Van Halen. Hell, I've got all but one of Roth's albums, too, so I could even do one of his. Make a workout album like I posted about a few months ago. The possibilities are endless.
And you may be surprised by what happens when you do it. I made a Traveling Wilburys mix for my four-year old that had Wilburys tunes (the ones that weren't too adult-- amazing how being a parent of little people changes your outlook) and Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty songs from around the time of the supergroup. I couldn't even put all my favorite tunes in due to content and whatnot, and I was amazed by how much I actually liked the album anyway. It totally brought me back to that magical time in my life: high school. It's also funny to hear my little guys sing songs that I just couldn't help but sing along with in front of them (I do not have a good singing voice, so I tend not to sing around them at all).
So, hey, have fun. If you're shy, don't tell me your name (and if I know it, I won't offer it unless given permission).
Who knows, you might just create a new fan for your favorite artist. The friend I made the Hagar mix is becoming a fan because of me. The Hagar expert I hoped would share his thoughts on my list? Who do you think turned him on to Hagar? Do the same for your favorite.
1 comment:
Here is my list:
Brian’s Best of List – Sammy Hagar
This is a list of my favorite Sammy Hagar songs. I had to include Van Halen songs in order to make it complete for me. I don’t have much of the old Hagar stuff, as I don’t really like much of it. I don’t have all the “hits” or “singles” listed as they don’t always mean much to me. Also, many of the “in-concert” essentials are not included as I only like them live and in the moment, but skip through them when I am listening to the records. (Heavy Metal, I Can’t Drive 55, Mas Tequila, etc.). These are my personal favorites and nothing further. It would be cool if this list got you to listen to tracks they might usually skip over, or more than that, become a fan. I recommend making a disc with these songs for your friend you mentioned in your blog and see what she thinks.
1. I’ll Fall in Love Again, Standing Hampton: One of my favorite old school Hagar Songs. I like the way it sounds very modern, but is 16 years old.
2. Winner Takes All, Over the Top Soundtrack: I always like this song, even before I became a true Hagar fan.
3. When the Hammer Falls, I Never Said Goodbye: I remember hearing this song soon after Hagar joined Van Halen. I’m not sure if this record was released before or after 5150 came out. I remember thinking that this song just really rocked. Another song that I liked before becoming a true Hagar fan.
4. Returning Home, I Never Said Goodbye: Just a song that I found likeable from the first listen.
5. Eagles Fly, I Never Said Goodbye: Great inspirational song, and always a good sing along song at a Hagar show.
6. Little White Lie, Marching To Mars: Hearing this song for the first time on the radio when I was living in Des Moines, IA was a big moment for me. It was the first post-Van Halen cut and it was different hearing Sam’s voice without Ed’s guitar and Mikey’s background vox. I was never a Hagar fan pre-Van Halen, so this was different for me. It also reminds me of my friend Justin driving down to Des Moines to see Hagar live on this tour.
7. Both Sides Now, Marching To Mars: Just a great song. When I think of my favorite Hagar songs, this usually doesn’t come up, but when I hear it, I always think, “This has got to be my favorite Hagar tune.”
8. Would You Do it For Free?, Marching To Mars: I liked the groove to this song from the first time I heard it. I also thought it was cool that Bootsy Collins played bass on this cut.
9. Red Voodoo, Red Voodoo: A song that sums up the Redhead lifestyle.
10. The Love, Red Voodoo: One of those songs I usually skipped over when I listened to the record. Honestly, I didn’t even know what record it was on until my friends Justin and Amy played it for their first dance at their wedding. I thought that was the coolest thing I had ever seen at a wedding. I pulled out my CD’s and found it and it soon became one of my favorites. Nothing better than a love song that actually rocks.
11. Dreams, 5150: One of the first songs I liked after I accepted Sammy as the new Lead singer for Van Halen.
12. Best of Both Worlds, 5150: When I think of a Van Halen concert, I think of this song. Also, when I hear this song now, I have the picture permanently burned in my mind of Justin doing the VH strut across the handicapped balcony at the Resch center on the reunion tour.
13. Love Walks In, 5150: Solid ballad. Apparently this song has something to do with Sam and an alien abduction.
14. Feels So Good, OU812: When I first heard this, I thought it was very different than Van Halen’s normal style. I have loved this song for years.
15. Mine All Mine, OU812: Again, something different from the normal VH style. Just a unique song that I have come to like in recent years.
16. When It’s Love, OU812: Another solid ballad.
17. The Dream is Over, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge: One of those non-hit songs that I have always liked.
18. The Seventh Seal, Balance: When Balance came out, I still wasn’t sold on Hagar. I still thought Roth was true VH. I bought this record and didn’t listen much. I was on an Alternative rock kick at the time. I saw VH live on this tour and thought this song rocked when they opened the show with it (after a long intro chant from the Tibetan Monks). Days after, I started listening to balance and thought his song just rocked.
19. Can’t Stop Lovin’ You, Balance: Great melodic rock song, great music video too.
20. Don’t Tell Me (What Love Can Do), Balance: Looking back, this song was a sign of things to come as far as the way Ed was taking his playing style. This song could fit on Van Halen 3. I know this has nothing to do with Hagar, but just a thought.
21. Take Me Back (Déjà Vu), Balance: I heard this song on radio when I first moved to Des Moines, IA. They had a station that played deep cuts and songs that were not hits. I had the Balance record, but wasn’t listening to it much. I was a great song at an uncertain time in my life – new city, no job yet.
22. Humans Being, Twister Soundtrack: This song rocks. I’d venture to say one of Hagar/VH’s hardest songs. Totally different. I remember when this came out; the future of VH was up in the air. It also reminds me heading from Des Moines, IA to UW-Stout for homecoming weekend. It was the weekend Mike and I snuck Justin’s Eddie Van Halen Standup out of the package and took pictures with Ed.
23. Deeper Kind of Love, Ten 13: Kind of a different sounding Hagar cut, but I always liked it. I also enjoyed hearing it live and stripped down during Sam’s solo time on the VH reunion tour a couple of years ago.
24. The Message, Ten 13: I love the mixture of piano and some hard rocking licks, mixed with some great background vox from Mona on this track.
25. Things’ve Changed, Not For Sale: A great low-key song. It also made me think, “wow – things have changed for Hagar over the years.”
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