Chickenfoot

Chickenfoot
Live at the Bospop festival, 2009. Left to right: Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani, Sammy Hagar, Chad Smith.
Background information
Origin	Cabo San Lucas, BCS, Mexico
Genres	Hard rock, blues rock, heavy metal
Years active	2008 (2008)–present
Labels	eOne, Redline
Associated acts	Van Halen, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Planet Us
Website	www.chickenfoot.us

Chickenfoot is a rock supergroup formed in 2008. The group consists of vocalist Sammy Hagar (ex-Van Halen and Montrose), bassist Michael Anthony (also ex–Van Halen), guitarist Joe Satriani, and drummer Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers). Due to consistent recording and touring commitments to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kenny Aronoff joined the group in 2011 as a touring replacement for Smith. While the band has not formally announced a breakup, in June 2016 Smith said that he had doubts about the band touring or recording again due to the busy schedule of each band member.

The group has released two studio albums, one live album and one box set.

While the band's name and logo are a disparaging term for the peace symbol, the "footprint of the chicken," bassist Michael Anthony asserts that the name originated from initial jam sessions between Hagar, Smith and himself: "there are three talons on a chicken’s foot and there [were] three of us." Later Anthony stated: "it was just supposed to be a bullshit name that we’d used for a while, and then [when] the rumors spread about the band, everybody used that name so we thought, 'fuck it, let’s call it Chickenfoot' – it all comes down to the music anyway." Chickenfoot's second studio album, Chickenfoot III, was released on September 27, 2011.

According to vocalist Sammy Hagar: "Chickenfoot started off with me, Michael Anthony, and Chad Smith jamming at my club, Cabo Wabo, in Mexico. Then people started asking us when we were going to tour, make a record, etc. So I said if we’re going to do this properly then we’re going to have to get a guitarist, so let’s talk to Joe Satriani. As far as I’m concerned he’s the best guitarist in the world." Hagar, Anthony and Satriani had previously collaborated in 2002 under the name Planet Us.

The band's first performance together was in February 2008 at a Hagar concert in The Pearl Concert Theatre @ The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. The show included a three song set which included Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll", Traffic's "Dear Mr. Fantasy" and "Going Down", a song often performed by Hagar and Anthony in their other band, Los Tres Gusanos. Regarding the show, bassist Michael Anthony states: "At that point, we knew the chemistry was there. It was so much fun, and the instant gratification from the audience was great. We decided to take the next step and see what we could do. It was just too much fun to pass up."