Michael Anthony says it “bothers” him that he didn’t reconnect with Eddie Van Halen before his death

Van Halen’s former bassist, Michael Anthony, has expressed his regret at not reconciling with the late Eddie Van Halen before his death last year.

Anthony joined Van Halen in 1974, and left in 2006, being replaced by Eddie Van Halen’s son Wolfgang. In 2007, he told Rolling Stone: “I’m a little miffed that they’re calling it a Van Halen reunion,” referring to the return of former frontman David Lee Roth to the band.

Anthony recently appeared on an episode of the Talkin’ Rock With Meltdown podcast. He was asked what his relationship with the guitarist was like in the years before his death, to which he replied: “We actually hadn’t spoken, and unfortunately, we didn’t get a chance to. It kind of bothers me because we had some issues that were never resolved.”

“But what can you do?” he continued. “It was on the track of a reunion, which I’m really sad that it never happened. But life… the show goes on.”

Anthony also noted that “Eddie was very private about how ill he was. We all knew he was ill, but it was a real shock to all of us.”

Eddie Van Halen died on 6 October 2020 after a battle with cancer. He was 65. The last time Van Halen played as a band was five years before, in October 2015. His death led to an outpouring of tributes from across the music world, and from his former bandmates.

You can listen to Anthony’s appearance on Talkin’ Rock With Meltdown below.

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