16 Mar 2011 05:20:16
ex? During Van Halen's live shows, Hagar says the four band members set up tents under the stage where they would have trysts with hand-picked women who were rounded up by roadies.
Drugs? You name it, Hagar has snorted, smoked or ingested it.
Rock 'n' roll? He's played with some of the biggest names in music, from Van Halen and the Grateful Dead to Kenny Chesney and Toby Keith.
Most musicians' memoirs have some of each category covered, but the Red Rocker's life look-back doesn't skimp on the details.
"I'm not a liar," Hagar writes. "I'd rather tell you the truth and deal with it."
And that's exactly what he does, providing readers with a backstage pass that shows how a guy who grew up "bone poor" in post-World War II California and relied on welfare money to survive in his early adult years ascended to the pinnacle of the rock world.
Hagar's first big successes in music came in the 1970s with Montrose, which, in a bit of foreshadowing, was a band named after a lead guitarist who later replaced Hagar as singer.
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He spent the next decade as a solo artist, churning out hit records and songs ("I Can't Drive 55") and playing sold-out shows around the world.
In the mid-'80s, Hagar returned from a lengthy tour with the idea of slowing down and spending more time at home with his wife and kids.
"Then Eddie Van Halen called," Hagar writes.
Van Halen, the guitarist of the eponymous top-selling hard rock act that also featured his brother, Alex, on drums, was in the market for a new vocalist after David Lee Roth's departure.
Hagar writes he didn't plan on joining Van Halen, but after jamming with them, "got the goose bumps all over my body."
The next 10 years provided Hagar with some of the highest highs and the lowest lows of his life, and some of the book's best passages.
The highs: The reconfigured Van Halen's first three albums went to No. 1, spawned a series of hit songs ("Why Can't This Be Love," "When It's Love," "Right Now"), and their live shows, complete with Eddie Van Halen's famed solos, became the stuff of legend.
Drugs? You name it, Hagar has snorted, smoked or ingested it.
Rock 'n' roll? He's played with some of the biggest names in music, from Van Halen and the Grateful Dead to Kenny Chesney and Toby Keith.
Most musicians' memoirs have some of each category covered, but the Red Rocker's life look-back doesn't skimp on the details.
"I'm not a liar," Hagar writes. "I'd rather tell you the truth and deal with it."
And that's exactly what he does, providing readers with a backstage pass that shows how a guy who grew up "bone poor" in post-World War II California and relied on welfare money to survive in his early adult years ascended to the pinnacle of the rock world.
Hagar's first big successes in music came in the 1970s with Montrose, which, in a bit of foreshadowing, was a band named after a lead guitarist who later replaced Hagar as singer.
More in Entertainment
The New Royals: Insight on Prince William & Kate Middleton's wedding
Full coverage of the royal wedding on Yahoo! News
Complete entertainment coverage
He spent the next decade as a solo artist, churning out hit records and songs ("I Can't Drive 55") and playing sold-out shows around the world.
In the mid-'80s, Hagar returned from a lengthy tour with the idea of slowing down and spending more time at home with his wife and kids.
"Then Eddie Van Halen called," Hagar writes.
Van Halen, the guitarist of the eponymous top-selling hard rock act that also featured his brother, Alex, on drums, was in the market for a new vocalist after David Lee Roth's departure.
Hagar writes he didn't plan on joining Van Halen, but after jamming with them, "got the goose bumps all over my body."
The next 10 years provided Hagar with some of the highest highs and the lowest lows of his life, and some of the book's best passages.
The highs: The reconfigured Van Halen's first three albums went to No. 1, spawned a series of hit songs ("Why Can't This Be Love," "When It's Love," "Right Now"), and their live shows, complete with Eddie Van Halen's famed solos, became the stuff of legend.
