Sammy Hagar took the stage at Aerosmith‘s California Dream On event at the Hollywood Bowl on Thursday night, delivering a pair of rousing tunes.
After a long intro by the night’s MC, comedian Bill Burr, Hagar confidently strode onstage to the cheers of thousands in attendance. With an all-star backing band — including Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, Bon Jovi guitarist Phil X, Ozzy Osbourne keyboardist Adam Wakeman and producer/guitarist Andrew Watt — Hagar launched into the title track to Aerosmith’s 1977 album, Draw the Line.
From there, the Red Rocker decided to dip into a different group’s catalog. Aerosmith was known to cover the Beatles throughout their career, including “Come Together” for the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band soundtrack and “I’m Down” for their Permanent Vacation LP. In 1991, they decided to record a rendition of “Helter Skelter” for their Pandora’s Box compilation, and Hagar opted to cover the same tune during his Hollywood Bowl set.
The frenzied track was one of the night’s highlights, as Hagar energetically bounced around while delivering the famous lines. “God bless Aerosmith!” the Red Rocker declared at the end, raising his hands as he walked off stage.
Sammy Hagar Could Have Been in Aerosmith?
Thursday’s Hollywood Bowl collaboration showed a brief glimpse at what could have been. Back in 2009, Aerosmith approached Hagar about the possibility of becoming their new singer. At the time, Steven Tyler and his bandmates were reportedly in turmoil, with the frontman eyeing a solo career.
“The Aerosmith hint … came around that time when Joe Perry tried to get me to join that band, and the management asked me to go to South America and try it out,” Hagar recalled to UCR in 2021. “I almost did it. I think if I would have done both those things, I would have been the guy that replaced the guy. You know, always the guy replacing the guy, and that’s a strange legacy for a guy like me, you know what I mean?”
Hagar turned down the invitation and Aerosmith’s members ultimately patched things up. The Red Rocker has remained reverential towards the Boston group, an admiration that is likewise returned from the band.
Watch Sammy Hagar Cover Aerosmith’s ‘Draw the Line’
Watch Sammy Hagar Cover ‘Helter Skelter’
The Best Song From Every Sammy Hagar Album
Solo or in a group, he proves there’s more than one way to rock.
Gallery Credit: Matthew Wilkening
