On Friday (April 25), Sammy Hagar unveiled his brand-new song, “Encore, Thank You, Goodnight.” The track was co-written with Joe Satriani and it was inspired by a dream Hagar had about Eddie Van Halen.
Hagar joined Loudwire Nights on Friday to dive deep into that dream and talk about writing with Satriani — and he even shared some details about his part in Ozzy Osbourne’s final show on July 5. Listen to the full conversation in the player near the end of this article.
“I dream about Eddie all the time,” Hagar told host Chuck Armstrong.
“This particular one, we were in a corner. When Eddie would have a song idea, he’d say, ‘Come here, come here, I want to show you, come here, come here.’ He would take me away from [Alex Van Halen] and [Michael Anthony] and everybody. He didn’t want to be bothered showing me this song because everybody would put their two cents in. Al would go, ‘No, you’re playing too fast, Ed.'”
In Hagar’s dream, Van Halen was showing him a new song, just like he used to do.
“I woke up so fast, I remembered it and I got my pad and I started writing things down,” Hagar recalled.
“I got my guitar out, I got my iPhone out, I recorded some melody. I fucking sang it into my iPhone and boom, that was the beginning of the song. I’ve written songs out of dreams, but not like this.”
Sammy Hagar Is Getting Ready For Ozzy Osbourne’s Final Show
In addition to celebrating his new song, Hagar spent some time talking about his part in Back to the Beginning, the final show for Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath set for July 5 in Birmingham, England.
“When the word started leaking out, Tom Morello calls me and says, ‘Hey man, would you interested,'” Hagar said.
“I went, ‘Yes!’ He didn’t have to say what. Would you be interested? ‘Yes, Tom, I’m all in.’ I was so flattered that I was one of the early guys on.”
Hagar admitted that he’s an interesting pick to be part of the show because he doesn’t sing like Ozzy — but he’s been prepping every day to get ready.
“I’ve been studying,” he said. “Everybody asks, ‘What do you listen to?’ Him. I’m listening to Ozzy until the 5th. I got to learn his phrasing. His melodic structures are so unique, he’s such a unique singer. I’m so honored.”
While others involved in Back to the Beginning have been relatively quiet about what they’re planning to do, Hagar was excited to share some details around his involvement.
“I chose to do ‘No More Tears’ and Tom goes, ‘Oh, that would be great,’ Hagar revealed.
“And then he comes back and says, ‘Guess what? Ozzy’s going to try and sing five songs and he wants to sing ‘No More Tears.’ I said, okay, ‘Flying High Again,’ and he goes, ‘You got it.’ So right now, I’m singing ‘Flying High Again.’ If Ozzy changes his mind, I’ll sing ‘Flying High Again’ and ‘No More Tears.'”
READ MORE: Ozzy Osbourne Reveals His Training Regimen For Back to the Beginning Concert
Hagar said he was offered to sing one of his own songs, too, and he’s leaning toward some of his older material that was part of the same period as Black Sabbath.
“I thought I would sing ‘Rock Candy,'” he said.
“Montrose and Sabbath were from the same kind of era…I’m so excited.”
What Else Did Sammy Hagar Discuss on Loudwire Nights?
- Who else he has dreams about: “I dream about people that have passed all the time. I dream about Elvis Presley believe it or not. John Lennon. I’m talking about hanging out with these guys. My mother, my father, my brother, a lot of friends that have passed. Bill Graham is another one I used to dream about all the time. I haven’t had a dream about him in a long time.”
- Why he nearly released the song under a different band: “This is almost Chickenfoot. It’s almost Chickenfoot … I almost said this song is by Chickenfoot. It’s not a Sammy Hagar song. It’s not a Sammy and Joe song. What the hell is it? It’s not a Van Halen song. It’s almost a Chiceknfoot song.”
- What he was drinking the night he had the dream that inspired the new song: “Oh, I’m probably drinking the same shit, probably had a margarita and a half of a bottle of wine.”
Listen to the Full Interview in the Podcast Player Below
Sammy Hagar joined Loudwire Nights on Friday, April 25; the show replays online here, and you can tune in live every weeknight at 7PM ET or on the Loudwire app; you can also see if the show is available on your local radio station and listen to interviews on-demand.
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Gallery Credit: Joe DiVita
