Chickenfoot Debuts New ‘III’ Songs Live Via Webcast Concert
Chickenfoot debuted the lion's share of their brand-new album 'III' in an exclusive live webcast tonight (Sept. 27), to celebrate the record's release and introduce their temporary new drummer, Kenny Aronoff.
The band seemed to be in a loose and fun mood throughout the hour-long concert, with lead singer Sammy Hagar teasing everybody for their musical missteps. He also constantly extolled the power of positive thinking while willing the album to reach No. 1 on the album charts next week: "Hey, it worked for the book!"
Kicking off with the album's first single, 'Big Foot,' the band ran through eight of the the 10 songs from 'III,' (very meanly leaving off our favorite song, 'Dubai Blues.') They also threw in a strong version of 'Soap on a Rope' from their first album.
Then, after a brief interlude showing what founding drummer Chad Smith is up to in between Red Hot Chili Peppers gigs -- hunting the mythical Bigfoot, evidently -- tdhe band returned for a half-hour Q&A session.
Hagar revealed rather ambitious plans for Chickenfoot's next major tour, stating that he hopes to find a couple of other bands large enough to help them fill arenas: "This music was built in arenas...we wanna get a great, big '80s production going."
It was also revealed that much of 'III' was recorded live in the studio, with most songs being captured in 4 or 5 takes. When the show's host reminded everyone that the Beatles used to record up to 20 takes of each song, Hagar joked, "I know another band that does that," presumably referring to his and Michael Anthony's time in Van Halen, "and they STILL don't have a record out."
The most shocking revelation, though, was that the "Red Rocker" has gone green. That's right, Sammy Hagar (or, as he insists, his wife) is the new owner of an environmentally friendly electrically powered Chevy Volt. Which means he probably really can't drive 55!