Sammy Hagar’s New Live Album Features Rai Thistlethwayte of Thirsty Merc

Sammy Hagar has always had a reputation for surrounding himself with powerhouse players, but his upcoming live album, Sammy Hagar & The Best Of All Worlds Band – The Residency (out October 10, 2025 via Big Machine Rock), brings a distinctly Australian twist. On keyboards, vocals and guitar is Rai Thistlethwayte, best known at home for fronting Thirsty Merc and more recently as a member of The Fabulous Caprettos. For Australian fans, the inclusion of Thistlethwayte in Hagar’s latest chapter is a striking reminder of how far the Sydney-born musician’s career has travelled.

Rai Thistlethwayte’s musical journey is as diverse as it is impressive. Born into a family of musicians, he studied jazz piano at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music before moving into the pop-rock mainstream with Thirsty Merc in the early 2000s.

Thirsty Merc’s 2004 self-titled debut album delivered hits like In the Summertime and Someday, Someday, establishing Thistlethwayte as one of Australia’s most distinctive voices and songwriters. The follow-up, Slideshows (2007), featured 20 Good Reasons, which became a multi-platinum smash and one of the most played Australian songs of the decade. Across four studio albums, Thirsty Merc became a staple of Australian radio and festival stages, blending piano-driven rock with Thistlethwayte’s soulful vocal style.

Beyond Thirsty Merc, Thistlethwayte has been a highly sought-after session player and collaborator. He has toured internationally with jazz-fusion outfits, performed solo, and in recent years became a founding member of The Fabulous Caprettos alongside Daryl Braithwaite, Russell Morris and Jack Jones. His adaptability across genres, pop, rock, soul, jazz, made him an ideal recruit when Sammy Hagar put together The Best of All Worlds band.

Sammy Hagar & The Best Of All Worlds Band – The Residency captures performances from Hagar’s 2025 Las Vegas run at Dolby Live, a show that revisited the deepest corners of his Van Halen years alongside his solo classics and Montrose beginnings. The band features Michael Anthony (bass, vocals), Joe Satriani (guitar), Kenny Aronoff (drums), and Thistlethwayte rounding out the sound with keys, rhythm guitar and harmony vocals.

For Thistlethwayte, the album marks his first appearance on a major U.S. rock release, placing him alongside some of the most recognisable names in hard rock history.

Hagar has been clear about the significance of revisiting his Van Halen catalog. “This is the deepest dive into my Van Halen years I’ve done in more than 20 years,” he said. “With Joe, Mikey, Kenny and Rai, the songs are sounding as powerful as they ever have.”

The 19-song setlist pulls heavily from Hagar’s 1985–1996 Van Halen output, balanced with solo career anthems. Each track carries its own history of release and chart performance:

Encore, Thank You, Goodnight. (Live) – New composition, debuted 2024–25 tour.
Top Of The World (Live) – From For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991), US #1 album.
Panama (Live) – From 1984 (1984), Van Halen’s diamond-selling album, US #2.
Summer Nights (Live) – From 5150 (1986), first Hagar-era VH album, US #1.
There’s Only One Way To Rock (Live) – Solo track from Standing Hampton (1982), US Top 30.
Humans Being (Live) – From Twister soundtrack (1996), US Rock #1.
Right Now (Live) – From For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991), Grammy-winning single.
5150 (Live) – Title track of 5150 (1986).
Poundcake (Live) – From For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991), US Rock #1.
Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love (Live) – From Van Halen’s debut Van Halen (1978), one of their most enduring songs.
Eagles Fly (Live) – Hagar solo, from I Never Said Goodbye (1987).
Best of Both Worlds (Live) – From 5150 (1986).
Why Can’t This Be Love (Live) – First Hagar-era Van Halen single, US #3 in 1986.
Rock Candy (Live) – Montrose classic from Montrose (1973).
Mas Tequila (Live) – From Red Voodoo (1999).
Heavy Metal (Live) – Title track from Hagar’s 1981 solo album, later featured in the film Heavy Metal.
I Can’t Drive 55 (Live) – Hagar solo anthem, from VOA (1984).
Love Walks In (Live) – From 5150 (1986), US #22.
When It’s Love (Live) – From OU812 (1988), US #5.

This tracklist effectively covers every phase of Hagar’s career—Montrose, solo, Van Halen, and beyond.

Thistlethwayte’s involvement is a reminder of the global reach of Australian musicianship. While Australia has often exported guitarists and drummers into the international rock scene, think Rick Springfield, Angus Young, or Colin Hay, keyboardists with pop-rock pedigree joining American supergroups are far less common.

For Australian fans, it is notable to see a musician associated with 20 Good Reasons and Someday, Someday now helping drive songs like Right Now and Why Can’t This Be Love on an international stage.

In The Fabulous Caprettos, Thistlethwayte has shown how seamlessly he can pivot between his own songs and the classics of Morris, Braithwaite and Jones. That versatility translates perfectly to Hagar’s show, where he is tasked with filling in layers of Van Halen’s famously complex arrangements.
At 77, Sammy Hagar remains one of rock’s hardest-working performers. Since his breakthrough with Montrose in 1973, through multi-platinum solo success, a Grammy-winning stint in Van Halen, and projects like Chickenfoot and The Circle, Hagar has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide. His “Best of All Worlds” tour in 2024–25 became one of the year’s top-grossing classic rock treks, feeding directly into the Vegas residency and the forthcoming live album.

Outside of music, Hagar’s business ventures in spirits, restaurants and lifestyle branding have made him a mogul, but his continuing commitment to live rock performance keeps his reputation as “The Red Rocker” intact.

For Rai Thistlethwayte, the album represents more than a guest appearance, it’s a new chapter in a career that has already crossed borders and genres. To stand alongside Hagar, Satriani, Anthony and Aronoff on a high-profile U.S. release is proof of the international recognition he has earned since his Thirsty Merc days.

When Australian fans hear The Residency, they will hear not only one of rock’s most enduring catalogues revitalised, but also the unmistakable voice and musicianship of an artist who began in Sydney and has now found himself embedded in American rock history.

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Tagged as: 90s, Australia, Rai Thistlethwayte, rock, Sammy Hagar, Thirsty Merc, Van Halen