Legendary rocker Sammy Hagar has once again clarified his recent comments about no longer wanting to spend any time on the road. Referencing his Las Vegas residency, “Best Of All Worlds Tour – The Residency”, which kicked off last night (Wednesday, April 30) at Dolby Live, the 77-year-old former VAN HALEN and MONTROSE frontman told KQRS host Steve Gorman (former THE BLACK CROWES drummer) (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “I used to [not] like [it] in VAN HALEN when we used to play four nights in New York, four nights in Detroit, four nights in Chicago, four nights in San Francisco, four nights in L.A. I used to think, ‘God, I hate that because I feel so, ‘Man, I did that last night.’ ‘Oh, I said that last night.” Even my clothes, ‘Oh, I wore that last night’ — even though it’s been dry cleaned. ‘I can’t wear it tonight.’ So that puts stress on me, ’cause I’m a spontaneous guy; I don’t like to do the same show every night. So that’s the only thing that worries me, is that element of it. But I guess Vegas turns over every weekend,. And the crazy fans, there’s always those fans, the hardcores, that are gonna see multiple nights. I guarantee you there’s a handful of guys that will see every single show — a handful of people that will see every single show — and I’m more worried about them than I am the people that are seeing it for the first time. I’m just goofy. I still care a lot, and I drive myself crazy. But I’m hoping that I’ll love this residency, so we don’t have to move every day and I’ll have time to work out a couple new songs in the show every night, like change a song here and a song there. ‘Cause you can’t do that on tour. You’re packing your bags, you’re getting on a plane, you’re getting in a car, you’re trying to get something to eat, you’re trying to get some sleep. Next thing you know, you’re on stage going, ‘Damn.’ And so the rest factor, that I don’t have to travel, is gonna be great for a guy my age. So I’m really looking forward to it being the secret to me being able to continue to do this.”
He continued: “I don’t think I can go on tour again. I don’t wanna say I’m retiring — I would never say that — but I just don’t know. My head, my mind, my heart and soul is not saying to me, ‘Oh, boy, let’s book another tour next year.’ And my manager’s talking about all these offers, ’cause this show has done so well that all the promoters, ‘Oh, we want it. We want it Europe.’ I’m going, ‘I can’t say yes to it.’ I wanna get through the residency and see if that satisfies me and I can pull it off on the level I want to pull it off. And if I can, I’ll probably do it again.”
Hagar previously discussed his unwillingness to tour again this past January in an interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He said at the time: “I don’t think I want to go on tour anymore. I hate to say that, because I don’t want to piss my fans off. I’ll go out and do a one-off show and do things like that, but the residency is going to give me a good extension of my career. That’s what I’m hoping for.”
Referencing the Vegas residency, Sammy said: “With this, I don’t have to travel, I don’t have to unpack and pack and get on an airplane every day. You know, at my age, it hurts my shoulders to do all this. And I have to perform. I’m a performer, at the end of the day.”
“I keep telling my manager, ‘Don’t take any tours, let me do this residency,'” Hagar added. “If I like it enough, I’ll do another one. And if that’s successful I’ll do another one, and I can squeeze a few more years out of my career.”
A few days after he made his original comments to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Hagar shared a video message on his Instagram in which he attempted to offer more insight into his thinking with regard to potentially touring in the future. He said: ”The last couple of weeks, yeah, I’ve been getting all these messages from people, ‘Oh my God. You’re not gonna tour anymore.’ I didn’t say I’m not gonna tour anymore. I was referring to the residency coming up in May with Joe Satriani, Michael Anthony, Kenny Aronoff, Rai Thistlethwayte, the same ‘Best Of All Worlds’ band, ‘Best Of All Worlds’ tour. We’re gonna do a residency [at] MGM Park. And I’m hoping that that will be a lot easier for me than packing bags every day and getting on an airplane, flying in the next city, checking in the hotel, running a soundcheck, trying to get something to eat, go to the meet-and-greet, get to the show and then doing a show. Without all that crazy travel and all that extracurricular stuff, it should be easier for me — waking up, having a nice breakfast in the town where you’re gonna play, not having to do anything but maybe go to the gym, maybe rehearse. Yeah, man, now you’re talking. [Laughs] I’ll be chomping at the bit when it comes showtime, because I will be well rested without all that travel. I just think it’s gonna be great. And maybe I will able to squeeze fifty, a hundred more shows out of this voice and this body.
“I’m a performer,” he continued. “I like to perform, and it takes it out of you. So that’s all I’m saying, is hopefully the residency will be the answer to be able to continue on for many more years, because if not, touring is getting tough, and I will be doing less and less. And eventually, I probably won’t be able to do it at all. I mean, it’s inevitable. I’m only human. [Laughs]
“Anyway, it’s all good,” he added.” I’m not gonna stop performing ever. I will play music — live music — as long as I can. I fricking love it. Are you kidding me?
“All right, there’s your answer.”
Last November, Hagar admitted to People magazine that retirement had “crept into my head for 10 years.”
“I get insecure in between shows, in between tours, and I think, ‘Gee, do I still have it? Can I really still do all that?’ And I get out there, and it’s like it’s riding a bike or having sex,” he said.
“I’m going to retire when I can’t do this, when I can’t sing anymore… I’m not going to have people pay the kind of money that it costs to see these concerts these days and not deliver. So that’s where my retirement is. It’s in the hands of the higher being.”
“The Best Of All Worlds Tour – The Residency” reunites the rock powerhouse band of Sammy, Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani and Kenny Aronoff with a new “only in Las Vegas” setlist.
This residency showcases Sammy‘s career-spanning hits, from seminal breakouts with MONTROSE, his iconic solo hits, and a deep dive into his tenure with VAN HALEN, CHICKENFOOT, and everything in between. Presented in partnership by Live Nation and MGM Resorts International, the residency is custom-designed for Dolby Live, giving fans an intimate, high-energy concert experience in the 5,200-seat entertainment venue.
The Las Vegas residency follows on the heels of the chart-topping success of “The Best Of All Worlds” tour, which sold out amphitheaters and arenas across North America and Japan in 2024.
Source: blabbermouth.net
