Sammy Hagar’s solo album I Never Said Goodbye featuring Eddie Van Halen on bass turned 35 today. The syndicated radio show “In The Studio with Red Beard” recently re-released the album’s 25th anniversary interview with Hagar.
About The Never Said Goodbye Album
I Never Said Goodbye, released on June 23rd, 1987 through Geffen Records, was Hagar’s ninth studio album overall and first since his hit 1984 album VOA. It was also the first and only solo album he released while a member of Van Halen, who had just come off a hugely successful album in 1986 with 5150.
I Never Said Goodbye was recorded as a way for Hagar to fulfill a contractual obligation to Geffen, who had just released him to join Van Halen (who was with Warner Bros. Records). Geffen OK’d the deal as long as Hagar recorded one last album for them, which he did in quick time. I Never Said Goodbye was recorded and mixed in just ten days, and he was joined by his bandmate Eddie Van Halen, who played bass on the album.
The album was originally titled Sammy Hagar, and included an untitled cover. The album was renamed I Never Said Goodbye thanks to an MTV promotional contest.
I Never Said Goodbye spent 23 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart and became his highest charting solo album, peaking at number 14 on the chart on August 15, 1987. Hagar released four singles from the album: “Give To Live” (#23 Billboard Hot 100, #1 Mainstream Rock), “Eagles Fly” (#82 Billboard Hot 100, #22 Mainstream Rock), “Boys Night Out” (#15 Mainstream Rock) and “Returning Home” (#20 Mainstream Rock).
Here is a quick rundown of what you’ll hear during Hagar’s “In The Studio” interview from 2012.
- How being in Van Halen made Sammy a better musician
- The speedy rehearsal to studio to mixing process of I Never Said Goodbye
- Sammy on “Give To Live”
- Sammy on writing “Eagles Fly”
- Sammy on joining Van Halen
- Sammy on the critics during the Van Halen 5150 tour