High Tide Beach Party w/Sammy Hagar & the Circle, REO Speedwagon, Reel Big Fish, Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers concert review: Huntington Beach, Calif.

photo courtesy: Kelly Swift

Few musicians can throw a party quite like Sammy Hagar.

Each October, the veteran singer, guitarist and entrepreneur marks his birthday by performing in Cabo San Lucas. The shows at Hagar’s flagship Cabo Wabo Cantina nightclub/restaurant have a legendary reputation among diehard fans.

High Tide Beach Party and Car Show, held last Saturday at Huntington State Beach, was envisioned as a much bigger extension of those bashes. It drew an estimated 13,000 people and ran nearly eight hours. Unlike the smaller-scale Like Totally ‘80s Festival, which I attended in the same location last spring, this one was located right on the sand (with classic autos lined up on an adjacent parking lot).

Once the gates opened, people could take photos in front of Hagar’s black Ferrari from the 1984 music video to “I Can’t Drive 55” and marvel at a few dozen other eye-catching cars, sample grub and drinks from the Cabo Wabo pop-up, enter cornhole or limbo contests and more.

Introduced by deejay and television personality Eddie Trunk, Hagar and the Circle put on a spirited and powerful 100-minute set that encompassed The Red Rocker’s days in VH (“Poundcake,” “Right Now,” “Why Can’t This Be Love”; bassist Michael Anthony provided plenty of lead and harmony vocal assists), Montrose (“Rock Candy”), Led Zeppelin (“Rock and Roll,” “Good Times Bad Times”; drummer Jason Bonham did his late father John proud) and solo hits (“Heavy Metal,” “I Can’t Drive 55,” “There’s Only One Way to Rock”; Hagar displayed his electric guitar prowess.

The band also debuted “No Worries,” a laid-back new song from the forthcoming Circle album due in early 2019 that had scene appropriate lyrics about “crashing on the beach” and “not a care in the world.”

Special guest Vince Neil was shaky at best during his own “Kickstart My Heart,” “Girls Girls Girls” and “Wild Side” (REO Speedwagon’s Kevin Cronin and Dave Amato enthusiastically joined in), but the Motley Crue singer still moved energetically around the stage. The latter part of the show dragged when Joe Satriani appeared for a flashy instrumental and then he and Hagar performed their minor lumbering rock hits from Chickenfoot, “Oh Yeah” and “Big Foot.” Hagar was in fine vocal form throughout the night.

photo courtesy: Kelly Swift

REO Speedwagon’s solid 70-minute set went down a storm. Kicking off with the tribal “Don’t Let Him Go,” it featured crowd singalongs galore, all the hit singles from 1980’s multi-platinum album “Hi Infidelity,” many of their classic rock radio staples and longtime concert faves.

Affable frontman Cronin recalled the band’s “rich history” in SoCal and how they first came here in ‘72 to play the Whisky. “Rock ‘n’ roll will keep you young forever,” said the singer/guitarist, celebrating his 67th birthday.

Standout moments included some sunny group harmonies during “In Your Letter,” Dave Amato’s wicked guitar solos amid “Take it On the Run” and “Ridin’ the Storm Out,” original member Neal Doughty’s shining piano and organ work during “Can’t Fight This Feeling” and “Roll with the Changes,” respectively, plus Cronin’s passionate vocal delivery on “Time for Me to Fly” and “Keep on Loving You” (where he described how it was written). REO backed guest Eddie Money for a perfunctory take on his 1978 hit “Two Tickets to Paradise” with daughter Jesse on backing vocals. I really thought the Money Man would do more than a single tune and possibly reappear with Hagar, but no.

Reel Big Fish is always a joy to watch, especially with leader Aaron Barrett’s sarcastic banter and antics. Even obvious classic rock fans seemed to warm to the Orange County ska/punk band. Starting with the popular cover of A-ha’s “Take on Me,” the exuberant 11-song set went by in a flash. Alt-rock hit “Sell Out,” “Ban the Tube Top,” a quick tease of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’ and full cover of Van Morrison’s “Brown-Eyed Girl” and “She’s Got a Girlfriend Now” (with a guest female singer) were all performed with whimsical fervor.

Having several songs that reference alcohol and being South of the border was a boon for Arizona’s Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers. They got a hearty reception, especially when the Reel Big Fish horn section helped elevate “Mexico” from Clyne’s 1990s alt-rock band The Refreshments, as well as “Flowerin’” off last year’s “Native Heart” album (kudos for keen lyrical nods to David Bowie and Paul McCartney and Wings). Other set standouts in the engaging set included The Refreshments’ hit “Banditos,” the insanely catchy newer tune “Hello Tiger” and “Counterclockwise.”

(Diehard Clyne fans should check out "Live from the Belly Up," a nearly two-hour, 24-song download taken from a show in Solana Beach, Calif. on November 2016 as part of the venue's ongoing series via www.bellyuplive.com.) 

Tre Cool and his satirical “Icelandic” metal band Dead Mermaids were good for a few laughs. The Green Day drummer was out front on vocals and looked as if he just stepped off a Sunset Strip curb circa 1988. At various points, he threw rubber fish into the small crowd, banged on a gong and did a not-too-awful cover of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs.”

My review originally appeared at ocregister.com