There have been rumors of a Van Halen reunion since 2022 and every time the rumors died down, a little snippet in an interview or leak would bring it back to the surface and no one really knew why it wasn’t happening. Joe Satriani and Jason Newsted both have made statements they were approached to be a part of it and even original bassist Michael Anthony was rumored to be on board.
In a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine to promote his upcoming book, “Brothers”, Alex Van Halen finally put to rest why the reunion did not happen, and he put the blame squarely on the shoulders of David Lee Roth. Alex said it ultimately fell apart after David Lee Roth had an outburst when discussing the idea of honoring and acknowledging Eddie Van Halen in the tour.
“The thing that broke the camel’s back, and I can be honest about this now,” Alex told Rolling Stone, “was I said, ‘Dave, at some point, we have to have a very overt — not a bowing — but an acknowledgment of Ed in the gig. If you look at how Queen does it, they show old footage.’ And the moment I said we gotta acknowledge Ed, Dave f**kin’ popped a fuse.… The vitriol that came out was unbelievable.“
“I’m from the street, You talk to me like that, motherfker, I’m gonna beat your fking brains out. You got it? And I mean that. And that’s how it ended.”
Rolling Stone noted that Alex is still baffled by Roth’s comments. “It’s just, my God. It’s like I didn’t know him anymore. I have nothing but the utmost respect for his work ethic and all that. But, Dave, you gotta work as a community, motherf**ker. It’s not you alone anymore.”
Sometimes fans have to think WTF.
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