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Post by kds on Aug 9, 2023 17:15:00 GMT
They're a hard bunch to get a grip on. It seems that at the very least, Edward Van Halen was a big part of the dysfunction, and David Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen seem to continue to be. Sammy Hagar says all the right things, but he also consistently takes jabs at DLR, which makes me question his innocence and "I love everybody, I'm up for anything" statements. I wonder whether Michael Anthony, Wolfie, and poor old Gary Cherone (who doesn't even really count--he's not even at David Marks status in the group, I don't think...maybe more like Ricky Fataar) are just sick to death of it all. (And meanwhile contemplating the lost millions of dollars those others are generating by not doing some obvious things.) Anthony was also on That Rocks, and he chose not to really say too much about the VH situation, and if there's anybody who has a right to say a cross word about the Van Halens, it's him.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 9, 2023 17:30:18 GMT
Yep, I listened to that episode (and the Sammy one). It seems that's always how Anthony does it, mostly just following the old "if you can't say something nice, say nothing" rule that our moms taught us.
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Post by kds on Aug 9, 2023 18:14:51 GMT
Yep, I listened to that episode (and the Sammy one). It seems that's always how Anthony does it, mostly just following the old "if you can't say something nice, say nothing" rule that our moms taught us. More power to him, I suppose, considering we live in an era where artists love to put all kind of dirt in their autobiographies, and air out their dirty laundry on extended interviews. There's something pretty refreshing about a guy like Michael Anthony who opts to be the bigger man.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 9, 2023 18:48:29 GMT
I would say that while maybe that's it--that he's just a great guy, as frankly everyone says about him--it's probably also a wise move, business-wise. He's not a star, he's not a main attraction. For guys like him (and guys below him in stature), burning bridges hurts him more than anyone. He needs somebody else to play with/for.
Some guys are known for flaming out of every band they work with, others seem to go from job to job with no drama whatsoever. And for all the Van Halen drama, Michael Anthony hasn't yet lacked for work in the almost 50 years he's been at it. Granted, not at the level of peak Van Halen, but he's been employed. If he were to have talked too much trash about Sammy Hagar, for example, that likely would not be the case.
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Post by kds on Aug 9, 2023 19:24:01 GMT
I would say that while maybe that's it--that he's just a great guy, as frankly everyone says about him--it's probably also a wise move, business-wise. He's not a star, he's not a main attraction. For guys like him (and guys below him in stature), burning bridges hurts him more than anyone. He needs somebody else to play with/for. Some guys are known for flaming out of every band they work with, others seem to go from job to job with no drama whatsoever. And for all the Van Halen drama, Michael Anthony hasn't yet lacked for work in the almost 50 years he's been at it. Granted, not at the level of peak Van Halen, but he's been employed. If he were to have talked too much trash about Sammy Hagar, for example, that likely would not be the case. Plus, Sammy has talked about scaling back on his workload, so one would think Michael might want another gig at some point if Sammy's not out there anymore.
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Post by Kapitan on Aug 18, 2023 22:21:34 GMT
Some interesting stuff from Eddie (and Michael, less so) from 1989 and 1985. Included is how he (said he) wanted to be remembered, along with how he thought of his innovations and other topics.
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Post by Kapitan on Nov 16, 2023 13:28:50 GMT
There is "news" that Sammy Hagar told Howard Stern he'd be touring next year with a Van Halen-heavy set, and that he's invited David Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen to participate. "I put ironic quotation marks around "news" since he's been strongly hinting, if not outright saying, this for years. As Alex continued to fail to announce any kind of official tribute to Eddie Van Halen, Hagar said he was going to do it one way or another, and spent much of this year saying he'd announce something for '24.)
Hagar's official band will be a Frankenstein's monster of his bands Circle and Chickenfoot, with original Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony (who is in both), Circle drummer Jason Bonham, and the guitarists from both bands, Vic Anthony (Circle) and Joe Satriani (Chickenfoot). I'm not as familiar with Vic Anthony, but Satriani is one of the earliest and brightest post-Van Halen virtuoso guitar heroes.
Based on everything we've heard and not heard from Roth and Alex Van Halen, it seems unlikely either will take up the offer to participate. But Hagar is also inviting musicians--especially guitarists--who want to pay tribute to Eddie/VH to participate when the band rolls through their towns. Id' bet we'll see a handful of post-EVH guitarists show up here and there. I'd hope Wolfgang will hop on stage on occasion, too--and he could do so on any of the required instruments, as he claims drums were his first and still best instrument, he is a guitar hero right now who nailed some Van Halen songs at the Taylor Hawkins tribute, and he was Van Halen's second bassist when he was still a teenager.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Nov 16, 2023 17:47:13 GMT
There is "news" that Sammy Hagar told Howard Stern he'd be touring next year with a Van Halen-heavy set, and that he's invited David Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen to participate. "I put ironic quotation marks around "news" since he's been strongly hinting, if not outright saying, this for years. As Alex continued to fail to announce any kind of official tribute to Eddie Van Halen, Hagar said he was going to do it one way or another, and spent much of this year saying he'd announce something for '24.) Hagar's official band will be a Frankenstein's monster of his bands Circle and Chickenfoot, with original Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony (who is in both), Circle drummer Jason Bonham, and the guitarists from both bands, Vic Anthony (Circle) and Joe Satriani (Chickenfoot). I'm not as familiar with Vic Anthony, but Satriani is one of the earliest and brightest post-Van Halen virtuoso guitar heroes. Based on everything we've heard and not heard from Roth and Alex Van Halen, it seems unlikely either will take up the offer to participate. But Hagar is also inviting musicians--especially guitarists--who want to pay tribute to Eddie/VH to participate when the band rolls through their towns. Id' bet we'll see a handful of post-EVH guitarists show up here and there. I'd hope Wolfgang will hop on stage on occasion, too--and he could do so on any of the required instruments, as he claims drums were his first and still best instrument, he is a guitar hero right now who nailed some Van Halen songs at the Taylor Hawkins tribute, and he was Van Halen's second bassist when he was still a teenager. Good for Sammy. I think a tribute to Eddie (and or Van Halen) is fitting and this one looks promising. Hey, if Alex Van Halen and David Lee Roth can't get it together for whatever reason(s), then I'm glad somebody else is stepping up. I'm sure the fans will love it.
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Post by kds on Nov 16, 2023 19:11:43 GMT
I'd be shocked if Alex showed up. Alex just doesn't appear to have any interest in anything VH related at the moment.
Same could be said for Eddie for the bulk of his last 20 years on Earth. From what I read, Wolfie had to practically drag him into the studio for A Different Kind of Truth.
But, kudos to Sammy and Mikey for flying the flag. This reminds me a bit of Van Halen's RNRHOF induction.
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Post by Kapitan on Nov 16, 2023 20:36:14 GMT
The Howard Stern Show posted a handful of videos from the full interview, which featured the whole band (not just Sammy), and it's got performances as well as interviews. I wish Howard would post his full interviews, but alas...
And a correction to my previous post, looks like it's just Satriani on guitar, not a 2-guitar lineup blending Chickenfoot with Circle in that respect. (So it's basically Circle swapping out for Chickenfoot's guitarist, or Chickenfoot swapping out for Circle's drummer!)
A few of the videos. There are at least half a dozen, though. Michael Anthony still hitting those high notes on background harmonies!
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Post by Kapitan on Nov 22, 2023 13:48:17 GMT
Well, this is a surprise: David Lee Roth apparently replied to Sammy Hagar's offer/challenge to participate in a Van Halen tribute tour. Roth's statement, made to a Van Halen news site, was short and to the point: "I'm ready to go. Let's do this." I'll believe it when I see it, but maybe this will really happen. I wonder whether Alex Van Halen will take part--hopefully at least in some California or West Coast shows.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 16, 2024 17:53:43 GMT
A little late, but a few weeks ago HarperCollins publishing house will release in October 2024 a 384-page memoir from Alex Van Halen titled Brothers. It is much anticipated because AVH has been mostly silent since the death of Eddie Van Halen despite various statements and bickering from Sammy Hagar, David Lee Roth, Michael Anthony, and Wolfgang Van Halen (along with more peripheral figures).
The announcement has me in a slightly VH state of mind, so I'm listening now to this 1985 AVH interview with Steve Rosen.
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