The show that made Sammy Hagar want to leave Van Halen: “That was a terrible experience”
Most artists don’t just wake up one morning and realise that they want to quit their jobs. The idea of playing to millions of fans around the world is almost too good for anyone to pass up, and it would have to take an extraordinary set of circumstances to decide to hang it up for a solo career or walk away from the industry altogether. While Sammy Hagar admitted to having the time of his life with Van Halen, he knew that his days as their lead singer were numbered the minute he wrapped the final legs of his reunion tour with them.
When ‘The Red Rocker’ first joined the group, though, it felt like everyone had found their new best friend in the band. Everyone was on good terms with each other, and since they didn’t have to deal with the giant head of David Lee Roth walking into every room they played, Hagar’s humble persona was just what they needed on 5150.
After one too many years of disagreeing with Eddie, though, Hagar knew that his time was up when he worked on the song ‘Humans Being’ for the movie Twister. The song was successful, but whatever spark they had from their early days was gone, leading to Hagar moving back to his solo career.
Even for a group that is all about progression, it didn’t take Van Halen long to come back to Hagar. The dismal reception of Van Halen III made them look like they had lost their minds, and once Hagar was open to touring again, it looked like the good times were rolling. That is until Hagar actually saw what state Eddie was in.
For the past few years, the guitar legend wasn’t taking care of himself, and many of the shows saw him whittling down to a husk of his former self. There were moments when the spark was still there, but seeing some of the footage from around that time is hard to watch for anyone invested in the group.
When talking to the Arizona Republic, Hagar remembered the entire experience as the moment he knew he didn’t want to perform with them again, saying, “On the plane, I just sat there, shaking my head, going, ‘God, that was a terrible experience.’ It could’ve been so wonderful and so beautiful, but it wasn’t. I wasn’t interested in going back and doing more shows. I was like, ‘If anybody wants to continue this tour, don’t talk to me about it,’ you know?”
While Eddie would eventually clean up his act, he would never take the stage with Hagar ever again, even replacing original bassist Michael Anthony with his son, Wolfgang, when reforming the group with Roth for the record A Different Kind of Truth. The core of Van Halen was still there, but any fan would be lying if they said it was as good as it was during Roth’s prime.
Even though Hagar did manage to build bridges with Eddie shortly before his passing, it’s a shame that they never found a way to share the stage again while he was alive. No matter how many times Hagar carries on the legacy of his time in Van Halen, ‘Dreams’ is never going to sound the same unless Eddie is playing the guitar.
