Some of the most memorable songs have an interesting backstory to match, with Sammy Hagar's "I Can't Drive 55" having a clear inspiration behind it. The hard rock track became a staple in the genre after the Van Halen member had a run-in with police on the highway.
Released as the lead single and first track of his eighth studio album, VOA, in 1984, Hagar had a love for fast cars thanks to his mechanic Claudio Zampoli. He was the one who got Hagar his first new Ferrari and introduced him to Eddie Van Halen. Hagar's love for driving over the speed limit soon led him to get stopped by police for speeding, inspiring the rage-fueled "I Can't Drive 55."
While driving in New York outside Albany, the rocker was driving at 62 mph on the Northway, which had a set 55 mph speed limit. The speed limit was the result of a law that was passed in 1974, the National Maximum Speed Law.
"Two o'clock in the morning, I'm driving a rental car to Albany, from Albany to Lake Placid. Four-lane Highway, not a soul, I'm going about 62 miles an hour exactly. Cop pulls me, a little wet I didn't even know while I was going the speed limit changed. I'm sitting there, I was so burnt, I was just exhausted," he said in an interview with Professor of Rock.
"I just handed my driver's license, hand him the Rent-A-Car stuff. He starts to write it up and the guy said how fast is 62. I said like 'I thought it was 65', you know, and he's going […] 'We give tickets around here for 62!'. You know like ‘Where have you been?’. I went 55, get to my house, wrote the song. Oh man, I mean, four o'clock in the morning. I picked up my guitar. I just wrote that damn song. It came that quick."
"I Can't Drive 55" would become a rock anthem that landed at No. 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart after its release. It also landed at No. 9 on the Top Rock Tracks. Many fans also see it as a rebellion anthem as Hagar's lyrics protest the US national speed limit after getting pulled over. The rocker even once recalled wanting to meet up with the officer who gave him the ticket.
The track also gained popularity thanks to its music video, which was on heavy rotation during the early start of MTV. It featured Hagar's real Ferrari 512 BBi, which he drives in the opening of the music video before he and the band get jailed for traffic violations. Zampolli also appears as himself, tuning up the car. Reports claim that Hagar ended up burning his clutch during filming, which led to a $5,800 repair.
Hagar's track became a concert staple during his time with Van Halen, and for TV and car commercials. It's even heard during the 1989 film Back to the Future Part II.
Related: 1983 No.1 Rock Classic, Rumored as a Tribute to a Hollywood Icon, Became a Career-Defining Anthem
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