Chickenfoot - Hagar, Satch, Chad Smith, Micheal Anthony

[D]

I think Chad Smith is the best drummer going today but I've always hated Van Halen and this is no different.

[gilld1]

I have been pleasantly surprised by this album.  As someone else said, it is a great summer time rock record.

BTW, Chad Smith rules!!

[D]

are they doing originals or covers?

[Hammy]

are they doing originals or covers?

Originals.

Check the album out on Spotify.

Supergroups are often motley groups seemingly formed at the end of an after-concert party but few are quite as strange as Chickenfoot, an endeavor featuring Van Halen's Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony, guitar legend Joe Satriani, and drummer Chad Smith from the Red Hot Chili Peppers. These four musicians are tied together by their many years playing in the arena rock trenches, a circuit that doesn't necessarily yield common musical ground although it does lend its veterans a certain knack for pleasing crowds. This eagerness is evident on the band's eponymous 2009 debut, which should come as no surprise seeing that Sammy Hagar has never seen a party he couldn't rock, but this mentality doesn't quite jibe with Satriani's immaculate, tightly controlled playing. Satch always seems to want to burst out but can't help leaning on precision, a problem that's the polar opposite to Hagar's let-it-all-hang-out philosophy, and this dichotomy is mirrored in the rhythm section, where Anthony's chugging bass doesn't quite fill the gaps Smith leaves. All this means is that Chickenfoot's big picture is roughly in place but the pieces don't quite fit, but that doesn't stop the group from trying to force it, with Sammy sounding as awkward singing about south-of-the-border drug runners as Satriani does spinning off complicated riffs on party rockers. There's too much professionalism for this to be a trainwreck but the whole thing is rather laborious, with everybody working far too hard to have a good time.

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:kvftxzu0ldse

[gilld1]

This may be the best Van Halen album that VH never wrote. 

Solos:  check
classic sound:  check
Michael Anthony:  check
awesome drumming:  check
vintage Sammy:  check

All Down the Drain is my pick for best song of the bunch.

[FunkyMonkey]

CHICKENFOOT: 'Oh Yeah' Video Available - June 11, 2009

"Oh Yeah", the new video from CHICKENFOOT ? the rock supergroup comprised of drummer Chad Smith (RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS), bassist Michael Anthony (ex-VAN HALEN), guitarist Joe Satriani and vocalist Sammy Hagar (ex-VAN HALEN) ? can be viewed below.

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=121772

[gunner22]

Nice song and video. 

[overmatik]

This may be the best Van Halen album that VH never wrote. 

Solos:  check
classic sound:  check
Michael Anthony:  check
awesome drumming:  check
vintage Sammy:  check

All Down the Drain is my pick for best song of the bunch.

To me already beats anything that Van Roth may record in the future, although I think Satriani could have done more.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

Garbage.

Well, if they had a different singer it could have been better, musically it's not bad.

[gunner22]

Garbage.

Well, if they had a different singer it could have been better, musically it's not bad.

I disagree, I was surprised by how good his vocals were for 61 year old man. I was expecting much more from Satriani and Michale, though.

Still pretty good record.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

Garbage.

Well, if they had a different singer it could have been better, musically it's not bad.

I disagree, I was surprised by how good his vocals were for 61 year old man. I was expecting much more from Satriani and Michale, though.

Still pretty good record.

When half of your lyrics are made up of the word "yeah" I must say, it is garbage.

[AxlsMainMan]

Garbage.

Well, if they had a different singer it could have been better, musically it's not bad.

I disagree, I was surprised by how good his vocals were for 61 year old man. I was expecting much more from Satriani and Michale, though.

Still pretty good record.

When half of your lyrics are made up of the word "yeah" I must say, it is garbage.

You're just pissed there's no Poundcake cover

[GeraldFord]

are they doing originals or covers?

Originals.

Check the album out on Spotify.

Supergroups are often motley groups seemingly formed at the end of an after-concert party but few are quite as strange as Chickenfoot, an endeavor featuring Van Halen's Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony, guitar legend Joe Satriani, and drummer Chad Smith from the Red Hot Chili Peppers. These four musicians are tied together by their many years playing in the arena rock trenches, a circuit that doesn't necessarily yield common musical ground although it does lend its veterans a certain knack for pleasing crowds. This eagerness is evident on the band's eponymous 2009 debut, which should come as no surprise seeing that Sammy Hagar has never seen a party he couldn't rock, but this mentality doesn't quite jibe with Satriani's immaculate, tightly controlled playing. Satch always seems to want to burst out but can't help leaning on precision, a problem that's the polar opposite to Hagar's let-it-all-hang-out philosophy, and this dichotomy is mirrored in the rhythm section, where Anthony's chugging bass doesn't quite fill the gaps Smith leaves. All this means is that Chickenfoot's big picture is roughly in place but the pieces don't quite fit, but that doesn't stop the group from trying to force it, with Sammy sounding as awkward singing about south-of-the-border drug runners as Satriani does spinning off complicated riffs on party rockers. There's too much professionalism for this to be a trainwreck but the whole thing is rather laborious, with everybody working far too hard to have a good time.

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:kvftxzu0ldse

AMG gave it 2 out of 5 stars, which I thought was harsh. I thought that review was overthinking it a little. CF isn't the best band ever, but it's solid. I think 3.5 stars (of 5) would be right on.

[gunner22]

Garbage.

Well, if they had a different singer it could have been better, musically it's not bad.

I disagree, I was surprised by how good his vocals were for 61 year old man. I was expecting much more from Satriani and Michale, though.

Still pretty good record.

When half of your lyrics are made up of the word "yeah" I must say, it is garbage.

Nice vocals, good guitar work, solid bass work, nice drum work are really not that important anyway.

[FunkyMonkey]

Michael Anthony: Chickenfoot Is 'Not a Super Group'

7.28.2009

Michael Anthony of Chickenfoot would like to dispel the rumors that his band ? which also features drummer Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, guitarist Joe Satriani and singer Sammy Hagar ? is a 'super group.'

"When we first got together and played, there was a magic and a chemistry there," Anthony told Noisecreep. "Even in the beginning, we didn't go out and look for a record label. We just went in and started recording and doing it ourselves. We were just four guys having fun. We are not a super group. We're destroying that whole super group rumor now.

"We're a cult band. We're working on our cult following. When you think of super groups anyway, you think of a prefabricated thing, a put together type of project that usually only lasts one album and one tour. They do it for the sake of publicity."

Chickenfoot, however, was grown out of four friends playing music and having a good time, said Anthony, a former member of Van Halen.

"It's great," Anthony said. "It really inspired me again to realize why I got into doing this in the first place ? that was to make music and have fun. Everything else, like sports, or a lot of entertainment industry stuff, once it becomes big corporate business, you lose sight of why you're doing this. It's just great because we were right there recording it live in the studio. We're having a lot of fun on stage, too."

Even though the band has done very little touring in support of its self-titled debut, Chickenfoot is planning its sophomore effort.

"Before each show, we get together and we have our little set up backstage, where we kind of jam a lot," Anthony said. "It's pretty much to loosen up before the show. But there's all kinds of ideas coming out. We keep saying, 'We have to get a little mp3 recorder or something like that and just turn it on when we're back there.' But there's all kinds of ideas floating around.

"I don't want to think about [a second album], because we haven't really toured yet," Anthony added. "We did nine small shows over here and then a month of shows in Europe. But I'm looking forward to kicking off a tour here in the States."

Chickenfoot's North American tour kicks off Aug. 2 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

"When we start in August over here, we'll be doing mostly theaters, and a few amphitheaters," Anthony said. "There's no ego-driven thing behind this band or money. We want to build a following up. We could have easily have said, 'Let's go straight into arenas.' We didn't want to do it that way. We wanted people to realize this is a new band. That's why we're not doing any Van Halen stuff, any Chili Peppers stuff, any Satriani stuff right now. We're keeping it all Chickenfoot."

http://www.noisecreep.com/2009/07/28/michael-anthony-chickenfoot-is-not-a-super-group/

[FunkyMonkey]

Gibson Interview: Sammy Hagar Talks Chickenfoot, Guitars, And Songwriting

08.28.2009

How do Joe and Eddie Van Halen differ in their approach to the guitar and in their approach to songwriting?

As a writer, Joe is faster. That makes him easier for me to work with, because I come up with things really fast as well. As soon as I hear a chord structure, I have a melody, instantly. And then five seconds later I?m writing lyrics. Working with Joe is great. If I say to him, ?Hey, let?s do something funky,? next thing I know he?s saying, ?How about this?? It?s like, bang, he?s done. Whereas with Eddie, he would come back a week later and want to re-do something.

But that said, working with Eddie was great, and we wrote great songs together. The Van-Hagar stuff still holds up fantastically well, but it was a slow process. It took three years to write the For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge album. And when I tried to do the Van-Hagar reunion, in 2004, and we were trying to make a new record, Eddie could only squeeze three songs out. He?s just not as prolific, and not as fast. So that?s the difference between them as far as writing.

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/Features/sammy-hagar-828/

[FunkyMonkey]

Anthony tries to escape Van Halen squabbles

09/18/2009

Michael Anthony didn't participate in last year's Van Halen reunion tour, which saw Wolfgang Van Halen playing bass. It wasn't a true reunion, he said.

?I caught a little of it on YouTube and word of mouth,? the former Van Halen bassist said. ?I found out they were doing that reunion like everybody else did. Eddie (Van Halen) would go, 'Oh, he's playing with Sammy now.' My phone's always here. I jammed with Sammy because I wasn't asked to do the reunion.?

How does it get to that point?

?Why does a marriage get to a point? How come Jon and Kate plus eight? How come they're all (expletive)? After a while, it's a big corporate business.

?It's weird because it almost takes something like Chickenfoot to make me realize why I was playing music in the first place. And that's to have fun.?

There has never been a sit-down with Eddie Van Halen. ?Unfortunately, with someone like him, you can't because he always has to have the last word.?

Anthony notes that only he and Hagar showed up when Van Halen was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

?That was weird. You can't put your crap aside even for one evening? At this point in my career and my life, I want to have fun. I'm not 20 years old anymore. If I was still in my 20s, I'd say, 'Bring the fight on.' But I want to hang out with people that are positive and upbeat. Sammy? You don't get much more positive than this guy.?

http://www.mysanantonio.com/entertainment/music/59710602.html

[FunkyMonkey]

Here is an interview with Chickenfoot on the Pentagon Channel before their Baltimore show.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbYIX4VB2Uw

[Baby Firefly]

I tried to like them but fell short.

[FunkyMonkey]

From last night...

Chickenfoot "Sexy Little Thing" Jimmy Kimmel Live!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qD2arSioav4