Iconic vocalist Sammy Hagar was recently asked by VH1 Radio Network‘s Dave Basner if he still keeps in touch with his former bandmates?
Hagar responded (as transcribed by blabbermouth.net), “I figure [former Van Halen bassist] Michael Anthony and I are the other half. Ed [Van Halen, guitar] and Al [Van Halen, drums] are always going to be Ed and Al. [I] love the guys, [but] we don’t get… I can’t say ‘we,’ [because] I get along with Al, but I can’t get along with Ed.”
He continued: “That last reunion tour was just a horrible experience for me. I wrote about it in my book, and I’m not sorry I said all those things. I was kind, in my opinion, to what really happened on that thing. It was really a bad deal.”
Sammy added: “Those guys, I hate to just say it, but I gotta say it, those guys fucked me around about four times and that’s it. I mean, how many times are you going to let somebody just fuck you? Look at what they did to Mikey. I mean, come on, they didn’t even tell him that he was out of the band; he reads it in fricking Rolling Stone [magazine] or something that Wolfie [Van Halen] was the [new] bass player in VAN HALEN. The guys that do that, it’s just not cool, and I don’t care to be around people like that or play with them, so we don’t have a relationship.”
Despite Hagar’s harsh words, he still remains proud of the albums he recorded with the band.
“To say anything bad about the body of work, not a chance,” Hagar said. “To say anything bad about the musicianship, not a chance. [They are] great, great guys on their instruments and we wrote some great songs and we had about nine years of some of the most fun I’ve ever had in my life in any band or in any situation. We partied, we loved it, we had a blast and had so much success, but they turned on me, man. I don’t know what happened.”
Hagar’s current band, The Circle, also includes Anthony, drummer Jason Bonham and Vic Johnson.
45 Responses
So much for my hopes of a Van Halen/Van Hagar reunion tour, that would have been really cool, but I guess some things just aren’t meant to be.
I don’t know how Sammy and Starchild do it anymore. The same f’n questions with the same f’n answers. Stop saying this crap and they’ll stop asking about this crap. But mind you nobody in mainstream media is going to interview Sammy unless the topic is VH. Sammy just please go and enjoy your life Dude. You’ve earned it. Stop being the whiny dude who got cheated on.
Bravo DR!
Such a great band. Wish they could all go out with some class. But, they keep crying over spilt milk. All rich as fuck, with nothing to do and can’t put aside their massive egos and get on with it. But, at least none of them is putting hits out on people. I guess things could be worse.
Sammy, you are not part of “the other half”. You were a replacement for Mr. Rock And Roll, David Lee Roth.
Exactly!
F-ked him around four times yet he is still the one talking about a reunion. Mixed messages much there Sam ? Let it go , your as bad as Ace with Kiss. It’s over accept it and move on. I really didn’t care for Van Hagar that much. I loved VH with Dave and Sammy’s solo stuff. But together they became Journey and one of those is more than enough.