High Hopes by Sammy Hagar

Album: Unboxed (1994)

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Songfacts®:

Hagar explained that this song is based on people who create wonderful plans and aspirations while under the influence of drugs, but then fail to follow through when they come down. He says it's based on personal experience.
"High Hopes" is the title of a standard from the 1950s popularized by Frank Sinatra. That song is about reaching for your dreams and putting in the hard work to get there. Hagar uses the same title but shifts the meaning to be about hopes that happen while high.
"High Hopes" is the leadoff song from Sammy Hagar's 1994 Unboxed album. The cover of the album shows Hagar in a boxing ring, a tribute to his father, a professional boxer who fought under the names Robert Hagar and Bobby Burns. Sammy was headed down that road until moving to Southern California at age 19. From then on, he played in numerous bar bands.
Sammy Hagar was still the lead singer of Van Halen when he released this song. Along with "Buying My Way Into Heaven," it's one of two new songs on the Unboxed compilation, which is a greatest hits collection of his solo hits like "I Can't Drive 55" and "Three Lock Box."

Around this time, fissures were forming in Van Halen. In 1996 Hagar left the group and was replaced with Gary Cherone.

Comments: 2

Dougee from San Bernardino, CaThis song has some cool guitar work, but the lyrics sound like run-of-the-mill anti-pot drivel. One doesn't necessarily need to be stoned to daydream plans that never come true. A few beers, being a kid, or watching a typical episode of The Flintstones will yield similar results. On the other hand, there are some true geniuses out there (Carl Sagan for one) who have gotten at least some of their inspiration from lighting a phattie during their moments of contemplation, so Sammy's assertions are not always on the mark.
Edward from Deptford, NjSome claim this album was partially responsible for the break up of VH. Sammy never wanted to do a VH "Best of..". Eddie argued that Sammy had just done a "best of", this album. However, Sammy ONLY did this album to finish out his contract with his record label. This was the last one we was obligated to do to fulfill his deal.

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