Sammy Hagar — “Two Sides Of Love”

Entered Top 40:  August 18, 1984
 3 weeks 
Peaked at: 38

Sammy Hagar had been flirting with the next level for a while in the late ’70s, then things started to jell in 1981-82. Rick Springfield covered Hagar’s “I’ve Done Everything For You” in a power-pop arrangement and took it to #8 in 1981. Hagar placed songs on a couple of big-deal, youth-oriented soundtrack albums: titular tracks for Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Heavy Metal (okay, one of two title songs from that film); and then his own “Your Love is Driving Me Crazy” entered the Top 40 on Christmas 1982, eventually peaking at #13. That one’s still Hagar’s highest-charting solo song.

In Summer 1984 Hagar released his VOA album, with a new label (Geffen) and producer (Ted Tempelman, hot at the time for producing all of Van Halen’s records), and the team decided “Two Sides of Love” would be the lead single. While it became a #5 Rock track, it didn’t get much mainstream attention.

So “Two Sides of Love” bottomed out, but in October Hagar’s next single “I Can’t Drive 55” would take off. It “only” reached #26, but this time Hagar & co. got more creative with their music video. The song was a huge MTV phenomenon, and is now arguably Hagar’s signature solo hit.

Within a year, Van Halen would approach Sammy Hagar to replace David Lee Roth; he’d front Van Halen for 11 years, during which time they’d somehow get even bigger.