Sammy Hagar is an American musician and songwriter with a music career spanning over 40 years. He rose to prominence during the early 1970s as the lead vocalist of the hard rock band Montrose. He left the band in the mid-1970s and embraced a solo career, releasing his debut studio album Nine on a Ten Scale in 1976. He has since kept a steady successful solo career, achieving a hit in 1984 with "I Can't Drive 55". Hagar later joined Van Halen, replacing lead singer David Lee Roth in 1985. Hagar is also known for having associated with and being a member of various other bands.