To be fair, fitting Sammy Hagar into a supergroup at a Black Sabbath farewell concert between the Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan and Tobias Forge from Ghost is weird. Of the three singers, one doesn't fit and it's Hagar.
The fact is that Hagar is likely the luckiest musician (if one can call him that) in rock music history. He has a decent voice for a pop-rock star, but that isn't saying all that much. He took over for David Lee Roth with Van Halen and any charisma the band had went with it.
Sure, Eddie Van Halen was a guitar genius, but Roth was fun. Hagar was just some guy who ended up fortunate to sing for the group.
Sammy Hagar was absolutely terrible at Black Sabbath's farewell concert
Hagar was part of the lineup of what was termed "Supergroup B" during Black Sabbath's farewell gig. Corgan was good as the frontman at first, and then Hagar came on and did a cover of Ozzy Osbourne's "Flying High Again," but didn't sign as much as voice the lyrics, like a cheerleader trying to do karaoke of a Black Sabbath song.
I take that back. The cheerleader might actually be better and more interesting.
Hagar did ask the crowd to cheer and "have fun," which is weird. A vocalist shouldn't try to entice the audience, especially at a show like this. The crowd is already into it, just lead them along. Hagar's lack of awareness of the situation made him seem so out of touch, and well...boring.
Worse, while other vocalists or supergroup band members were part of good songs their own bands had produced, somehow Hagar's song (which he was quick to point out he wrote) "Rock Candy" was played. The tune was part of the Montrose catalog, a band that Hagar began with that you have long forgotten about.
And for good reason. Montrose wasn't good. Neither was Hagar. There was a reason he lived mostly in the shadows of rock before being invited to make Van Halen from a great hard rock outfit to a radio-friendly group. It was a misstep by Eddie and Alex Van Halen, and Hagar continues to live off of it.
Hagar definitely paled in comparison to Corgan, and when Steven Tyler showed up to do a couple of numbers, including an excellent cover of Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love," Hagar's mediocrity shone brightly. Tyler has battled vocal issues in recent years and was great. Hagar just kind of spits out his lyrics.