Before Van Halen, Sammy Hagar was seen as an up-and-coming solo artist with a great singing voice and excellent tunes to boot. This is by far one of the best early releases in his career, so it is definitely worth hearing, so let’s do just that.

We begin with I’ll Fall In Love Again which is a really awesome slice of classic Pop/Rock music. It is about breaking up with a partner but is not overly pessimistic. In fact, it is rocking and upbeat. A great song, and an awesome piece of music in Sammy Hagar’s back catalogue. With some awesome singing and melodies in it, the midsection, in particular, is really awesome. A brilliant and energetic song, this is a really great Sammy Hagar song. Nice and melodic driven Pop/Rock music which is about moving on from old love with no regrets. Great stuff.

Next is There’s Only One Way To Rock which is a brilliant, energetic and upbeat song to boot. It is loud and powerful, with a great sense of melodicism about it. Very headbanging material, this is awesome to hear. Singalong, loud and catchy, Sammy Hagar does not fail here, this is one of his best songs to this date. A truly awesome listen, and a great ode to music. Solid from start to finish, this is catchy and excellent. Some image evoking lyrics are here, too. A truly awesome piece of songwriting, riffs and construction, a great song.

Baby’s On Fire comes next. It is a slow burner, but a very good one at that. It is about a girl who is sexually appealing and awesome to boot. A wonderful song about lust that never dies, this is really awesome to hear and is about a nymphomaniac of a lady. Great song, with a great sense of lyricism about it, brilliant tune.

Can’t Get Loose begins with a very 1980s synthesizer keyboard melody, before Sammy Hagar begins singing about difficulties in love and life. Although this is a lesser song here, it is still really solid material and has Sammy Hagar singing from a social realist perspective. Instead of a guitar solo is a keyboard part that changes in this song, before the guitar solo eventually is welcomed in. The second half in particular lyrically discusses more love relationship type issues. Another good song by Sammy Hagar. The guitar solo in the outro is really excellent.

Next is Heavy Metal which is likely one of the best, if not best, early songs by Sammy Hagar. It begins with loud overdriven guitars, before going into a wonderful song about the music at hand. Very 1980s, but still awesome to hear today. Loud, heavy and wonderful, this is an amazing listen to this day. Definitely awesome and totally listenable, a great song from start to finish. The second half has a blistering guitar solo that is really top, showing that Sammy Hagar could rock. Heavy Metal, indeed, blast this one at loud volume.

Following is Baby It’s You comes next, and it has an odd intro, before launching into an acoustic guitar-driven piece. A lovely sounding piece of music then enters, and Sammy Hagar sings passionately about being deeply in love with a lady. A great and superb listen although it takes a while to begin, this is a fine piece of music. The guitar solo is slower and more heartfelt than other songs on this album. A great and interesting listen, this is a good song, although this is a lesser track on this album. A fine listen.

Surrender is next and sounds a little odd from what is usually done. This is a quirky sounding piece about surrendering to love and is short and romantic lyrically. Sammy Hagar begs for a lover to surrender to him once he pulls the right moves, and is a good song, although not as great as some of the other songs here. Enjoyable though.

Inside Lookin’ In comes next, and has a reference to marijuana use at the start of it. This song is a strange one, with some good lyrics and melodicism about a partner and oneself being in a difficult relationship. A great song about said topic, this is really a weird listen, at least lyrically. Musically, it has some excellent riffs and soloing in it. A great song and piece about being in a difficult situation, this is different, in a really good way.

Following is Sweet Hitchhiker which is a more upbeat piece which is about picking up a lady who is looking for something sexual. A very good story about a said journey with a blonde hitchhiker in a red dress, it is an interesting story and a good piece of music, which is very much worth a listen. Good story and music to match.

Last here is Piece Of My Heart which begins with a good guitar riff and some awesome singing from Sammy Hagar. It quickly bursts into a lively Rock song about giving it all to a lover in a relationship. A really awesome and fiery listen from Sammy Hagar, this is really excellent to hear. Very catchy, awesome and singalong, this song and album demands repeat listens. A beautiful saxophone solo is here as well. Really anthemic and great listening, this is wonderfully done and constructed music. Awesome to finish off this album with.

This is by far one of the best Sammy Hagar solo albums out there. Did he really need to join Van Halen after all this? Maybe, maybe not. Still, this is both a keeper and a great album to listen back to when you need to Rock out.

Fabulous.

9/10