Sammy Hagar Explains How Eddie Van Halen Wrote a Song With Him in a Dream

While Eddie Van Halen joined forces with his brother, Alex Van Halen, to form Van Halen, the musician used the spotlight to showcase his amazing talents with a guitar. No matter if it was Rolling Stone or Guitar World Magazine, Eddie always landed on the list of Greatest Guitarists of All Time. A true artist when it came to performing on stage and writing songs, in October 2020, Eddie sadly passed away. Having dealt with numerous health issues over the years, the guitarist passed from throat cancer. While his legacy continued on, Sammy Hagar revealed that Eddie helped him write a new song. 

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Although musicians helping write songs is nothing new, it is rather interesting when the songwriter happens to be somebody who passed. But according to Hagar, Eddie appeared to him in a dream. And instead of catching up or sharing a fond memory, the musician wanted to write some music. 

Joining forces with Joe Satriani, Kenny Aronoff, and Michael Anthony, Hagar will release the new song “Encore, Thank You, Goodnight” on Friday, April 25th. Featuring a guitar lick from Eddie himself, Hagar explained how the new song happened. “About two months ago, I had this dream and Eddie came. He’s going, ‘Man, let’s write some music!’ I said, ‘Yeah, f**k it, man. Here, let’s go!’”

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Sammy Hagar Wrote The Song As A “Thank You”

While the dream took place years ago, Hagar never forgot about his spiritual meeting with Eddie. “[Eddie] did this harmonic thing and he slid it up to a chord, like a slide guitar. We wrote a song with that lick. I remembered it. I got up in the morning and I wrote the song.” He continued, “I used the f**kin’ lick that he showed me in the song.”

For over a decade, Hagar toured the world with Van Halen and appeared on hit albums like Balance, OU812, 5150, and For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge. Sharing his thoughts on the new song, the singer insisted, “This song is my final bow to that part of my life. It’s not meant to be anything more than a thank-you – with love, with respect, and with one hell of a guitar solo.” 

Outside of new music, Hagar also prepared to hit the road. On April 27th, the singer will headline at the Stagecoach Music Festival. And shortly after his performance, Hagar looked to travel to Las Vegas for his Best of All Worlds residency.

(Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images)