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Sammy Hagar Wrote a Song with Eddie Van Halen in a Recent Dream

What are dreams made of? For Sammy Hagar, dreams are made of songwriting sessions with Eddie Van Halen. Hagar shared with Ultimate Classic Rock that he wrote a song titled “Thank…

Sammy Hagar and Eddie Van Halen
Kevork Djansezian, Ethan Miller/Getty Images

What are dreams made of? For Sammy Hagar, dreams are made of songwriting sessions with Eddie Van Halen.

Hagar shared with Ultimate Classic Rock that he wrote a song titled "Thank You" with his late bandmate in a dream.

Hagar explains, "About two months ago, I had this dream and Eddie came. We were in a room like this, [with] a bunch of people around. It was just like he’d been gone. It was not like he was passed, but he had just been out of my life and we hadn’t seen each other for a while. He’s going, 'Man, let’s write some music!' I said, 'Yeah, f--- it, man. Here, let’s go!'"

The Red Rocker says EVH played a riff in the dream that reminded him of one the guitarist played for him around the 2004 Van Halen reunion tour. Then, Sammy and Eddie wrote a song with that riff in the dream. After he woke up, Sammy remembered the song, and then he wrote it down.

"I told [Circle drummer] Jason [Bonham], 'I just really don’t know what to say lyrically.' I’ve got goosebumps, head to toe, [talking about it]. So, I wrote it [about that experience], and we’ll do that song someday, said Hagar. "...Now, that’s going to be an Eddie-influenced song, to the point that I’m going to co-write it with him. I’m going to give him credit, and then maybe we’ll donate the money to charity, whatever."

Hagar added, "I feel so embarrassed about it because everyone’s going to say, 'Oh, look at Sammy trying to capitalize on Eddie.' No, I’m not. You don’t understand. This was a real f---in’ dream, and I told you exactly what happened in it."

Fans will have to wait a bit for Hagar to record that track with his band The Circle. However, Hagar and The Circle are releasing a new album on September 30 titled Crazy Times. The new LP is currently available for pre-order here.

Eddie Van Halen was the most influential guitarist of our generation.

Of course, flashy, fleet-fingered guitarists were a dime a dozen in the late ‘70s and ‘80s. Eddie was better than all of them, but he was more than that. A songwriter, a keyboardist, a studio wizard, ¼ of Van Halen’s four-part harmony team and a band leader that was able to guide VH through losing the most distinctive frontman of the ‘80s and led them to four chart-topping albums with Sammy Hagar.

Here, we take on the tough task of ranking their top 30 songs. (It was really, really tough to cut any of the songs on the first six albums from this list.)

30. “Dirty Movies” - ‘Fair Warning’ (1981)

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29. “Happy Trails” - ‘Diver Down’ (1982)

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28. “Ice Cream Man” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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27. “Right Now” - ‘For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge’ (1991)

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26. “Intruder/(Oh) Pretty Woman” - ‘Diver Down’ (1982)

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25. “Finish What Ya Started” - OU812 (1988)

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24. “Little Dreamer” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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23. “Best Of Both Worlds” - ‘5150’ (1986)

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22. “Feel Your Love Tonight” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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21. “Summer Nights” - ‘5150’ (1986)

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20. “Atomic Punk” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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19. “Dreams” - ‘5150’ (1986)

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18. “So This Is Love?” - ‘Fair Warning’ (1981)

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17. “Jamie’s Cryin’” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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16. “Dance The Night Away” - ‘Van Halen II’ (1979)

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15. “Panama” - ‘1984’ (1984)

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14. “I’m The One” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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13. “Somebody Get Me A Doctor” - ‘Van Halen II’ (1979)

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12. “Hot For Teacher” - ‘1984’ (1984)

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11. “Everybody Wants Some!!” - ‘Women And Children First’ (1980)

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10. “Little Guitars (Intro)/Little Guitars” - ‘Diver Down’ (1982)

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9. “1984/Jump” - ‘1984’ (1984)

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8. “On Fire” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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7. “Unchained” - ‘Fair Warning’ (1981)

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6. “You Really Got Me” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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5. “Mean Street” - ‘Fair Warning’ (1981)

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4. “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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3. “And The Cradle Will Rock…” - ‘Women And Children First’ (1980)

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2. “Eruption” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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1. “Runnin’ With The Devil” - ‘Van Halen’ (1978)

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Erica Banas is a news blogger who's been covering the rock/classic rock world since 2014. The coolest event she's ever covered in person was the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Sir Paul McCartney inducting Foo Fighters? C'mon now!) She's also well-versed in etiquette and extraordinarily nice. #TransRightsAreHumanRights