“I’m so disappointed how they’ve handled everything”: Sammy Hagar on the lack of an Eddie Van Halen tribute event

Since the passing of Eddie Van Halen in 2020, talks of a potential tribute concert have cyclically swirled and been shut down.

Rumours of a tribute tour surfaced again in 2022, which held enough weight for Jason Newsted, Joe Satriani and David Lee Roth to comment on their potential involvement.

• READ MORE: Sammy Hagar on his fallout with Eddie Van Halen: “What happened with us at the end was such a shame”
  

The plans ultimately fizzled out, with Sammy Hagar commenting, “It’s really not Van Halen without Eddie,” and Satriani adding: “That’s an impossible thing to do; you can’t replace Eddie Van Halen. Nobody can.’”

Now Sammy Hagar has said that he’s “so disappointed” a tribute of some kind never materialised for his late former bandmate.

In a new interview with the Rock of Nations With Dave Kinchen and Shane McEachern podcast, he says [per Blabbermouth]: “As far as the tribute goes, I’m so disappointed how they’ve handled everything, including when I left the band, what they did, and that.

“I don’t know – the dysfunction in that band… When I was in the band the first nine years, we got along like fricking brothers and sisters and we were happy together and one big family.”

He continues: “Things went wrong. Drugs and alcohol are a band thing when it turns ugly, and it’s just never been the same. And for them not to have done something for Eddie Van Halen, the greatest guitar player in the world, the greatest rock musician, I’m telling you… It’s ugly, but it’s not my job.”

Hagar says that while a Van Halen tribute concert or tour may never happen, his band The Circle – in which he’s joined by former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony – is helping keep the Van Halen spirit alive.

“Mike and I are doing our thing and we’re gonna go out next year again,” he says. “I’m gonna do this as long as I can. I don’t know how much longer I can sing those songs and sing my own songs and go out and jump around on stage and do a great show, performance.

“So as long as I can do it, I’ve gotta keep doing it. But I think we just keep adding more Van Halen songs to the set; that’s what we’re doing. Mikey sang Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love last night. We’re serving the Van Halen stuff up pretty good.

Elsewhere, Sammy Hagar recently discussed the intense work ethic of the Van Halen brothers during his decade-long tenure with the band, saying, “They wanted to work 367 days a year.”

But despite their work ethic, Hagar says the group still found time to regularly let their hair down.

“When we got out of the limo to the airport or to jump on the plane to go to the first gig, we started partying,” he says. “And on the way home in the last leg, getting off the plane, back into the limo – most of us stopped when we got back in the limo to go home.”