Sammy Hagar says he is open to the idea of a Van Halen reunion tour that would also feature David Lee Roth.
“You mean that [2002] Sam and Dave tour with Van Halen as the backup band? Yeah, that would be a dream scenario for me too, but it would be the same old thing,” Hagar tells Rolling Stone. “On the [2004] reunion tour, we traveled on separate planes. You check into the hotel at different times so you don't even see them [the Van Halen brothers] in the lobby. You don't really see them until the gig. I could deal with Dave on that level. [Huge laugh.] But he'd have to be cool.”
In the summer of 2002, Hagar and Roth teamed up in the "Song For Song, The Heavyweight Champs of Rock and Roll" tour, also known by fans as the 'Sans-Halen' or 'Sam & Dave' Tour. The shows featured the singers swapping headline status at each date on the run, while maintaining their distance from each other.
“A tour like that [with Van Halen] would be the coolest thing for the fans ever,” continued Hagar. “I would do it for the fans. I wouldn't do it just for the money. Everybody would have to be cool and have their hearts in it. I hate to give out bad news, but I just doubt it'll ever happen. I would like to just see [bassist] Mike [Anthony] back in the band with Dave. If that works, all right, I'll come in next.”
Asked if their might a scenario where Hagar would regroup with Van Halen only, the rocker says “I would play with anybody that loves me and that I love. That would include Van Halen, but the love's not there right now. I do love those guys. We really bumped heads on the last tour [in 2004.] Anyone that saw that last tour or read my book knows that I'm not gonna take any blame 'cause there's no blame to give me. I went out and did my job probably better than anyone else in that band. Anyone that saw the show, I think, would agree with me.”
“That tour was just a mess and I would never go into a mess like that again,” he added. “I'm too happy as a human being to be that miserable ever again. I was miserable for the last 40 shows. The first 40 shows I was thinking, ‘Well, maybe Eddie will straighten out’ or ‘Maybe this can come together.’ But that didn't happen, and by the last 40 I was miserable. I would, however, be in the original band that we started. That was a love fest full of creativity.”
Hagar has just released his first acoustic album, “Lite Roast.”
The project sees Sammy teamed with Waboritas guitarist Vic Johnson to deliver stripped-down versions of tunes from Hagar’s career – including two Van Halen tracks: “Dreams” and “Finish What Ya Started.”
See also:
Sammy Hagar reveals origins of Van Halen classic Dreams
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Search Sammy Hagar at hennemusic
