Sammy Hagar, 'Osmic Universal Fashion'

Rock
SAMMY HAGAR OSMIC UNIVERSAL FASHION
LOUD & PROUD
ESSENTIAL "Cosmic Universal Fashion"

Many people want to consign ex-Van Halen singer Sammy Hagar to the scrap heap, but this album has some surprisingly effective moments. Hagar is here in all of his multiple personalities - some maddening (do we really need a cover of the Beastie Boys' "Fight for Your Right to Party"?), some silly (the NASCAR-tailored "I'm on a Roll"), and some reflecting a newfound maturity. Hagar wears a John Lennon T-shirt on the CD's back cover, which suggests more social protest to come in "Psycho Vertigo" (about the world mired in vertigo) and "Peephole," a spooky hard-rocker based on a true story about a girl locked in a closet by her father. These last two songs have guitarist Neil Schon of Journey adding some Eddie Van Halen-like guitar flash, along with ex-Van Halen mate Michael Anthony crackling on bass. Other stars show up later: the Cult's Billy Duffy riffs on the apt "Loud" and ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons adds his quirky baritone to "Switch on the Light" (Gibbons plays a dad trying to get his son to stop being a couch potato). The CD ends with two live tracks, notably "Dreams," plucked from his Van Halen days. The album is a pastiche, but Hagar transcends his clownish ways to make some legitimate social statements. (Out now)

STEVE MORSE