Show 8:00PM.

He hit the stage at the Zoo Amphitheatre running. Playing to a crowd of nearly 4400, Sammy Hagar proved he can still dominate the stage by himself. The Saturday show was the second of his "Evening with Sammy Hagar" style tour. It opened with a mariachi band, who played "La Bamba" and then got off the stage.

The first song was the title track from his new album, Marching to Mars. Dancing around in red velour stretch pants, a bright yellow shirt, and sneakers with flames painted on them, Sammy played to the audience's excitement and set a wild, energetic mood that carried the whole show. He played some of his older material, "One Way to Rock", "Returning Home" and "I'll Fall in Love Again", then another song from his newest album, "Salvation". He said the song is about the power of belief, about the power of faith. A very soulful tune, it moves slowly with a quiet intensity which Sammy is quite capable of delivering. During the next song, "Why Can't This Be Love", the audience pelted the stage with clothes and banners. Sammy loved it, saying "the roadies just don't understand, this stuff stays on stage for the whole show, so they can just stop trying to take it away." He would put on a shirt, wear it for a bit, then take it off and toss it back to the audience. He played another from MTM called "Who Has the Right?", a song he's been trying to write for ten years. "One thing you can not do is take other people's lives", Hagar said. "That's wrong." Then it was back to some older material, with "Bad Motor Scooter" the energetic "Good Rockin' Tonight", and a bluesy version of "Finish What Ya Started". "I wanted to save this next song for tonight because it's special," Hagar said of "Kama". He explained that the song is named for and is about his daughter, who was born last April; "kama" is a Sanskrit word that means "love". "Kama" is kind of a mellotron lullaby. The sun set during this song, leaving behind red clouds. The crowd seemed to appreciate the emotion behind the song.

Thanks to Jazz Somers for sending this review.

ADDITIONAL REVIEW

The redrocker treated the crowd at the Zoo Amphitheater in OKC to a spectacular two and a half hour show on Saturday night, June 21. He opened and closed the show with Marching to Mars. The close included the backing vocals of the lucky winners of a radio contest sponsored by Rock 100 the Katt. The show included may fan favorites from the new album, old singles, work with Van Halen, Heavy Metal, and even back to Montrose.

The show opened with a mariachi band singing La Bamba in front of the Cabo Wabo. Prior to hitting the stage, the band roamed the crowd while working its way up front.

About the only song Sammy did not perform was Give to Live.

Just thought I would pass on a brief message from a fan in attendance.

Thanks to Martin J. Duke for this review!

WHO WENT