Press Releases

Sammy Hagar with members of winning band Resident Hero. Photo Credit: Kristen Townsend.

BUENA PARK, CA (October 21, 2005) — Yamaha Guitars recently wrapped co-sponsorship of “A Shot at the Cabo,” awarding AES620 SH Sammy Hagar signature electrics to the winners of the third annual national battle of the bands, which came to a rocking end at Hagar’s famous music venue, the Cabo Wabo Cantina.

Cabo Wabo hosted hundreds of nightly band competitions in seven markets across the U.S., narrowing the finalists down to seven bands. Finalists included Rock City Dropouts (Atlanta, Ga.); Broken Teeth (Austin, Tex.); Paperface (Dallas, Tex.); Rubber Planet (Denver, Colo.); Resident Hero (Los Angeles, Calif.); Deepset (Miami, Fla.); and Charm School Dropouts (San Francisco, Calif.). In addition to the guitars, prizes included a chance to play in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, at Hagar’s star-studded Birthday Bash on Friday, September 30.

From L to R: Mike Tempesta, Yamaha Guitars Artist Relations; Ken Dapron, director, Yamaha Guitar Development; Sammy Hagar; Bryan Savage, Yamaha Guitars marketing manager; and Barry Angus, president of Cabo Wabo.

The final competition was judged by a panel of music industry experts, who scored the bands according to originality of music and lyrics, appeal of pop/ rock style, musicianship, presentation and audience reaction.

Winners Resident Hero received a five-day recording session at the San Francisco’s Plant Studios, prizes from Yamaha, Crate and Oasis CD, and a chance to open for Hagar on Saturday, October 1.

“Yamaha based the AES620 SH on the award-winning AES620, but it definitely has some of the Red Rocker’s touches,” says Bryan Savage, marketing manager, Yamaha Guitars, “We were happy to be a part of this very cool contest. We got to hear some great bands, and the guitar was a totally appropriate prize.”

For more information on the AES series electric guitars, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Pro Audio & Combo Division, Guitar Products, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622; telephone (714) 522-9011; e-mail infostation@yamaha.com; or visit www.yamahaguitars.com.