JASON BONHAM: SAMMY HAGAR Is 'The Most Upbeat, Positive Person I've Ever Worked With In My Entire Life'

February 4, 2021

Jason Bonham spoke to AXS TV's "At Home And Social" about SAMMY HAGAR & THE CIRCLE's latest offering, "Lockdown 2020", a collection of covers recorded remotely during the coronavirus pandemic. On the topic of what it's like to work with Sammy Hagar, Jason said: "If somebody doesn't know Sammy Hagar, how could I explain being around him? You don't have time to be miserable. You don't have time to be sad. He is the most upbeat, positive person I've ever worked with in my entire life, and I've worked with a lot of different people. He is such a genuine [person] — what you see is what you get. There isn't an act; it's not false. He is the same way all the time. [He is] hugely generous.

"For an English person who always sees the glass half empty, Sammy always sees it half full," Jason continued. "So he's always, 'Come on!' He knows when I go silent on him, he's the one that goes, 'Come on, let's do this.' It's the same for everybody. 'Let's just do another song and let's keep being positive.'"

SAMMY HAGAR & THE CIRCLE's massively popular "Lockdown Sessions" began in March 2020, when the COVID-19 shelter-at-home order went into effect. With time on their hands and their upcoming tour in limbo, Jason challenged Hagar, Michael Anthony and Vic Johnson to record a warmup jam they'd been playing backstage before concerts for several years. Equipped with iPhones and their respective instruments, they each laid down their individual tracks from the den, music room, closet and even showers of their homes, and "Funky Feng Shui" and the band's "Lockdown Sessions" were born.

Over the next eight months, their "Lockdown Sessions" became a hit with critics and fans alike, producing 10 tracks and reaching an online audience approaching 30 million. The sessions gave the band the opportunity to throw down raw and raucous compact covers of classic hits that they'd jammed to backstage but never planned to record, including THE WHO's "Won't Get Fooled Again", Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds", AC/DC's "Whole Lotta Rosie" and more. When plans for an album came to fruition around the holidays, the band came together to record one more track, a cover of David Bowie's "Heroes" which they'd offer as an instant download or single purchase.
Last May, SAMMY HAGAR & THE CIRCLE's U.S. tour with NIGHT RANGER was officially canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

THE CIRCLE's first album of all-original material, "Space Between", was released in May 2019 via BMG.

Find more on Sammy hagar
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).