Happy 79th Birthday to the Red Rocker! Sammy Hagar turns 79 today (October 13), and he’s celebrating in familiar fashion by rocking out with his friends and fans in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
Sammy’s annual Birthday Bash is underway at his Cabo Wabo Cantina, with the first two shows taking place Friday (October 9) and Sunday (October 11). Both nights featured plenty of surprises, with Sammy reaching deep into his catalog for songs spanning more than five decades.
From Montrose classics and solo favorites to Van Halen hits and some unexpected covers, the first two nights have offered a little something for everyone. And there’s still one more show to go, tonight, on Sammy’s actual birthday.
Night One: Montrose, Solo Classics and Van Halen
Friday night’s opening show was especially heavy on material from Sammy’s early days with Montrose. After kicking things off with “Good Rocking Tonight,” he rolled through “Make It Last,” “Space Station #5,” “Rock Candy,” “Rock the Nation,” and “Bad Motor Scooter.”
From there, Sammy moved into his solo catalog, performing “Marching to Mars,” “There’s Only One Way to Rock,” “I’ll Fall in Love Again,” “Three Lock Box,” and “Red.”
Van Halen fans were treated to three songs from the Sammy era: “Best of Both Worlds,” “Top of the World,” and “Poundcake.”
The evening also included a cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man,” before closing with Sammy’s “Heavy Metal.”
Steve Nowicki from The Howard Stern Show came again this year, and is featured on guitar in some of the video from the bash. Steve said, “Cabo Wabo Birthday Bash Night 1 was unreal. It was an absolute honor to play some of my favorite songs with the greatest of all time.”
Sammy Hagar – “There’s Only One Way to Rock” (October 9, 2026)
Sammy Hagar – “Best of Both Worlds” (October 9, 2026)
Sammy Hagar – “Simple Man” (October 9, 2026)
Sammy Hagar – “Heavy Metal” (October 9, 2026)
Night Two: A Whole New Setlist and a Special Guest
Sammy returned to the Cabo Wabo stage Sunday night with a considerably different setlist. In fact, only one song from Friday’s show — “Good Rocking Tonight” — made a return appearance.
This time, the show opened with “I Can’t Drive 55,” followed by Van Halen’s “Runaround.” Other highlights included “I’ve Done Everything for You,” “Your Love Is Driving Me Crazy,” “Give to Live,” and covers of Depeche Mode’s “Personal Jesus” and AC/DC’s “Whole Lotta Rosie.”
The Van Halen portion of the evening also featured “Finish What Ya Started” and “Why Can’t This Be Love.”
One of the night’s biggest surprises came when Alice in Chains guitarist Jerry Cantrell joined Sammy for two songs. First up was Van Halen’s “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love,” followed by Alice in Chains’ “Man in the Box.”
Sammy continued digging through his musical history with “Rock ‘n’ Roll Weekend,” Montrose’s “I Got the Fire,” and “A Whiter Shade of Pale,” a nod to his days with Neal Schon in HSAS.
The party atmosphere was in full swing as the set moved through the Beastie Boys’ “Fight for Your Right” and Sammy’s own “Mas Tequila.”
And to close out the evening, Sammy brought things back to Van Halen with “Dreams.”
Sammy; “Last night was insane. I didn’t know how we were gonna top Friday’s show and I’m not sure we did but it was rocking. Looking forward to Tuesday.”
WATCH: Sammy Hagar with Jerry Cantrell – “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” (October 11, 2026)
One More Night in Cabo
One familiar face missing from this year’s Birthday Bash is Michael Anthony, who is spending time with his wife, Sue, as she celebrates her 70th birthday.
Michael explained that after more than 25 years of Sue spending her birthday in Cabo while he performed at Sammy’s bash, she wanted to do something different this year. So the couple headed to Oregon for a birthday celebration of their own.
Meanwhile, Sammy has been talking about returning more of his attention to his solo material following the conclusion of his Best of All Worlds tour. Judging by the first two nights in Cabo, he’s already doing just that, while still keeping plenty of Van Halen music in the mix.
Tonight, Sammy will take the stage for the third and final show of his 2026 Birthday Bash.
Not a bad way to celebrate turning 79.
Happy Birthday, Sammy!
Sammy Hagar’s 2026 Cabo Birthday Bash Setlists
Friday, October 9 — Night One
- Good Rocking Tonight
- Make It Last
- Space Station #5
- Rock Candy
- Rock the Nation
- Bad Motor Scooter
- Marching to Mars
- There’s Only One Way to Rock
- I’ll Fall in Love Again
- Three Lock Box
- Red
- Best of Both Worlds
- Top of the World
- Poundcake
- Simple Man
- Heavy Metal
Sunday, October 11 — Night Two
- I Can’t Drive 55
- Runaround
- I’ve Done Everything for You
- Your Love Is Driving Me Crazy
- Give to Live
- Personal Jesus
- Whole Lotta Rosie
- Finish What Ya Started
- Why Can’t This Be Love
- Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love (with Jerry Cantrell)
- Man in the Box (with Jerry Cantrell)
- Rock ‘n’ Roll Weekend
- I Got the Fire
- Good Rocking Tonight
- A Whiter Shade of Pale
- Fight for Your Right
- Mas Tequila
- Dreams