1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:14,440 Speaker 1: Rivals as a production of I Heart Radio. Hello everyone, 2 00:00:14,440 --> 00:00:16,840 Speaker 1: and welcome to Rivals, to show about music, beefs and 3 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:20,800 Speaker 1: feuds and long simmering resentments between musicians. I'm Steve and 4 00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:23,000 Speaker 1: I'm Jordan's and we are back for the second of 5 00:00:23,000 --> 00:00:25,560 Speaker 1: our two part episode in honor of Eddie van Halen, 6 00:00:25,600 --> 00:00:28,400 Speaker 1: who died on October six at the age of sixty. 7 00:00:29,320 --> 00:00:31,600 Speaker 1: Last week we looked at the relationship between Van Halen 8 00:00:31,640 --> 00:00:33,519 Speaker 1: and David Lee Roth, and this week we're gonna go 9 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:36,960 Speaker 1: deep on the Sammy Hagar years. Yes, that's right, Van 10 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:41,440 Speaker 1: Hagar fans rejoice. Get some cricket sound effects in there. 11 00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:45,000 Speaker 1: I think, okay, I can tell that. I guess I'm 12 00:00:45,000 --> 00:00:46,840 Speaker 1: going to be the one in this episode who says 13 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:49,680 Speaker 1: nice things about Van Hagar. I don't relish this position. 14 00:00:49,720 --> 00:00:53,000 Speaker 1: I feel like like Atticus Finch and Kill a Mockingbird. 15 00:00:53,440 --> 00:00:56,880 Speaker 1: I'm playing the defense attorney in this episode, but like Johnny, 16 00:00:56,920 --> 00:01:00,640 Speaker 1: position I've been put into and I accepted nonetheless. Look, 17 00:01:00,680 --> 00:01:03,480 Speaker 1: I bought Van Hagar tapes as a kid. I still 18 00:01:03,520 --> 00:01:06,880 Speaker 1: put on occasionally, and I let the power balladry of 19 00:01:07,000 --> 00:01:09,960 Speaker 1: dreams wash over me like a fleet of blue angels. 20 00:01:10,319 --> 00:01:12,480 Speaker 1: Please don't judge me too harshly. They do have some 21 00:01:12,520 --> 00:01:14,600 Speaker 1: good songs, and you know, it's really interesting. There were 22 00:01:14,640 --> 00:01:18,000 Speaker 1: discussions about whether to actually rename the band Van Hagar 23 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:20,839 Speaker 1: when Sammy joined, like basically as a way to preserve 24 00:01:20,920 --> 00:01:23,840 Speaker 1: the Van Halen brand if it all went south, and 25 00:01:23,920 --> 00:01:26,520 Speaker 1: the decision to carry on under the original name was definitely, 26 00:01:26,560 --> 00:01:28,760 Speaker 1: you know, a practical one, and I'm sure they had 27 00:01:28,800 --> 00:01:31,160 Speaker 1: you know, dollar signs dancing in their heads and everything, 28 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:33,880 Speaker 1: but also it was a giant middle finger today because 29 00:01:33,959 --> 00:01:36,440 Speaker 1: bands tend to get held hostage by their lead singers 30 00:01:36,440 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 1: in front Man. We saw this with Bernie sum there 31 00:01:38,560 --> 00:01:41,320 Speaker 1: in New Order, because you know, they're viewed as justifiably 32 00:01:41,360 --> 00:01:43,280 Speaker 1: the one member of the band you really can't replace 33 00:01:43,720 --> 00:01:46,080 Speaker 1: unless you're in a band called Van Halen and you 34 00:01:46,120 --> 00:01:48,520 Speaker 1: are one of the Van Halen's. So in this case, 35 00:01:48,800 --> 00:01:51,400 Speaker 1: they bucked this trend with a new lead singer. And 36 00:01:51,720 --> 00:01:53,720 Speaker 1: I don't know, aside from A C d C or 37 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:56,400 Speaker 1: maybe Black Sabbath or Genesis, I can't really think of 38 00:01:56,440 --> 00:01:59,520 Speaker 1: another band that achieved that much success with a new singer, 39 00:01:59,800 --> 00:02:02,040 Speaker 1: not just as a replacement, but as a way forward. 40 00:02:02,360 --> 00:02:04,640 Speaker 1: And it's just so fascinating to me because this was 41 00:02:04,720 --> 00:02:07,120 Speaker 1: such a hugely successful era for the band. I mean, 42 00:02:07,160 --> 00:02:09,760 Speaker 1: all their albums went to number one, but it just 43 00:02:09,919 --> 00:02:14,040 Speaker 1: seems to be universally looked down upon by Van Halen fans. 44 00:02:14,040 --> 00:02:16,440 Speaker 1: Wouldn't you say, Oh, yeah, for sure. I mean it's 45 00:02:16,440 --> 00:02:18,840 Speaker 1: not cool to see like Van Hagar. I mean you 46 00:02:18,880 --> 00:02:21,240 Speaker 1: look at Van Halen with David the Roth in the band, 47 00:02:21,360 --> 00:02:23,440 Speaker 1: and they're just like one of the most fun, infectious, 48 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:27,400 Speaker 1: like badass American rock bands ever. And then with Sammy Hagar, 49 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:30,320 Speaker 1: they just took this sort of adult contemporary turn towards 50 00:02:30,360 --> 00:02:33,000 Speaker 1: power ballads. You know, I mentioned Dreams before us, you 51 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:35,720 Speaker 1: also had songs like right Now and like Love Walks 52 00:02:35,760 --> 00:02:38,480 Speaker 1: In and when It's Love, lots of songs with love 53 00:02:38,480 --> 00:02:40,560 Speaker 1: in the title. But yeah, I think it's worth noting 54 00:02:40,600 --> 00:02:43,440 Speaker 1: that like the change with Hagar occurred at a time 55 00:02:43,440 --> 00:02:45,440 Speaker 1: in the band's trajectory when I think they needed to 56 00:02:45,440 --> 00:02:47,760 Speaker 1: grow up a bit or risk turning into a caricature. 57 00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:50,040 Speaker 1: And like it or not, Sammy Hagar brought them into 58 00:02:50,040 --> 00:02:52,839 Speaker 1: a more mature era, which is kind of crazy given 59 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:55,080 Speaker 1: that Sammy Hagar is a guy who drinks tequila all 60 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:57,400 Speaker 1: day and write songs about the time he was abducted 61 00:02:57,400 --> 00:03:01,320 Speaker 1: by aliens. Yeah, I mean Jimmy off It meets Guy Fieri, 62 00:03:01,400 --> 00:03:03,840 Speaker 1: you kind of get like Sammy Hagar vibes there. I mean, yeah, 63 00:03:03,880 --> 00:03:07,040 Speaker 1: he seems awesome. But yeah, the Van Halen van Hagar 64 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:09,680 Speaker 1: debate is one for the ages and something that's pitted 65 00:03:09,720 --> 00:03:13,000 Speaker 1: brother against brother and torn apart marriages. Uh. It's something 66 00:03:13,040 --> 00:03:15,119 Speaker 1: we'll get too later on this episode comparing the two 67 00:03:15,280 --> 00:03:17,560 Speaker 1: incarnations of the band, but for now we'll focus on 68 00:03:17,600 --> 00:03:20,200 Speaker 1: Sammy versus the other members of Van Halen. So I 69 00:03:20,200 --> 00:03:23,000 Speaker 1: hope you have your bottle of kabba wabo handy. Yeah, 70 00:03:23,040 --> 00:03:24,919 Speaker 1: I mean yeah, Like Sammy might seem like a laid 71 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:26,920 Speaker 1: back guy, but he actually had a pretty bitter fight 72 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:29,880 Speaker 1: with Van Halen after he left the band and then 73 00:03:29,960 --> 00:03:32,840 Speaker 1: when he left the band again. So I'm excited to 74 00:03:32,880 --> 00:03:35,360 Speaker 1: get into it. So without further ado, let's get into 75 00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:41,200 Speaker 1: this mess. So there's an alternate universe where Sammy Hagar 76 00:03:41,360 --> 00:03:43,920 Speaker 1: was actually always part of Van Halen, which, you know, 77 00:03:44,280 --> 00:03:47,680 Speaker 1: mind blown there. When the band recording their first record 78 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:50,640 Speaker 1: in nineteen seventy seven, the producer Ted Templeman came into 79 00:03:50,640 --> 00:03:52,960 Speaker 1: the studio with an album he produced by Sammy's former 80 00:03:52,960 --> 00:03:55,480 Speaker 1: band Montrose, and effectively said, you know, we're gonna make 81 00:03:55,480 --> 00:03:57,720 Speaker 1: an album like this. He wanted to give van Halen's 82 00:03:57,760 --> 00:04:01,640 Speaker 1: record that big rock candy sound, and Eddie was totally 83 00:04:01,640 --> 00:04:03,840 Speaker 1: cool with this. He was a huge Montrose fan, so 84 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:06,880 Speaker 1: he thought it was fine as a blueprint. And it's 85 00:04:06,880 --> 00:04:09,320 Speaker 1: interesting to hear that Sammy was sort of was a 86 00:04:09,320 --> 00:04:11,520 Speaker 1: decade older than the guys in Van Halen, so he's 87 00:04:11,560 --> 00:04:13,800 Speaker 1: kind of part of the generation that inspired the band. 88 00:04:13,880 --> 00:04:16,279 Speaker 1: And and like I said, Eddie was heavily influenced by 89 00:04:16,360 --> 00:04:19,480 Speaker 1: Ronnie Montrose as a guitarist, particularly the use of big 90 00:04:19,520 --> 00:04:22,480 Speaker 1: open cores, a big crunchy guitar chord sounds that Van 91 00:04:22,520 --> 00:04:26,120 Speaker 1: Halen used. So Templeman went even further to suggest that 92 00:04:26,160 --> 00:04:28,640 Speaker 1: they hire Sammy, who by that point was thrown out 93 00:04:28,640 --> 00:04:31,440 Speaker 1: of Montrose. And it doesn't seem likely that the band 94 00:04:31,440 --> 00:04:34,760 Speaker 1: ever seriously considered this, but it's definitely an alternate universe 95 00:04:35,279 --> 00:04:37,960 Speaker 1: thing I like to consider from time to time. Yeah, 96 00:04:38,000 --> 00:04:40,080 Speaker 1: it would have been interesting if Hagar was in the 97 00:04:40,080 --> 00:04:42,800 Speaker 1: band originally. I don't think they would have been van Halen. 98 00:04:42,800 --> 00:04:44,320 Speaker 1: I don't think they would have been as successful as 99 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:46,560 Speaker 1: they ultimately were with Roth. Of course, will never know. 100 00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:48,960 Speaker 1: But I mean we talked about this last week, just 101 00:04:49,000 --> 00:04:52,279 Speaker 1: the magic that Roth and Eddie Van Halen had together 102 00:04:52,480 --> 00:04:55,440 Speaker 1: that was really kind of based on diametrically opposed personalities 103 00:04:55,480 --> 00:04:58,480 Speaker 1: and it just created this tension that put out sparks 104 00:04:58,520 --> 00:05:00,960 Speaker 1: and created this kind of special elk me that resulted 105 00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:02,560 Speaker 1: in the Van Hillen that we all know and love 106 00:05:02,600 --> 00:05:04,800 Speaker 1: on those first six albums. While Van Hillen is like 107 00:05:04,960 --> 00:05:07,240 Speaker 1: rising to you know, being one of the biggest bands 108 00:05:07,240 --> 00:05:09,560 Speaker 1: in America, Sammy Hagar is actually taking like a much 109 00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:12,800 Speaker 1: I guess more workman like path through his career. He's 110 00:05:12,839 --> 00:05:15,640 Speaker 1: known as this guy who's like never like the most 111 00:05:15,920 --> 00:05:18,479 Speaker 1: popular person on the radio. He's not often like the 112 00:05:18,520 --> 00:05:21,760 Speaker 1: headliner at his shows, but he's a worker. He's someone 113 00:05:21,800 --> 00:05:25,279 Speaker 1: that like puts in the time, uh to entertain the audience. 114 00:05:25,360 --> 00:05:26,839 Speaker 1: In a way, he's as much of a showman as 115 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:29,400 Speaker 1: David Lee Roth. But whereas David Lee Roth is very 116 00:05:29,480 --> 00:05:32,160 Speaker 1: much like the rock star in the gilded cage, you know, 117 00:05:32,200 --> 00:05:35,800 Speaker 1: like the the exacted bird type rock star, Sammy Hagar 118 00:05:35,960 --> 00:05:38,120 Speaker 1: is like the everyman rock star. He's the guy that 119 00:05:38,160 --> 00:05:39,680 Speaker 1: you look on stage and you think, oh, I could 120 00:05:39,680 --> 00:05:43,040 Speaker 1: be that guy, and he's also someone who's really good schmoozing, 121 00:05:43,640 --> 00:05:46,799 Speaker 1: you know, program directors at radio stations and tour promoters, 122 00:05:47,040 --> 00:05:49,080 Speaker 1: and he becomes this person that is like really popular 123 00:05:49,080 --> 00:05:51,240 Speaker 1: in the industry that people want to give him a chance. 124 00:05:51,279 --> 00:05:54,440 Speaker 1: So by the mid eighties he's actually achieving like the 125 00:05:54,440 --> 00:05:56,839 Speaker 1: greatest success of his career. He puts out that song 126 00:05:56,920 --> 00:05:59,640 Speaker 1: I Can't Drive fifty five. It's a big hit. It's 127 00:05:59,640 --> 00:06:01,960 Speaker 1: the song I think that's still most associated with him 128 00:06:01,960 --> 00:06:04,360 Speaker 1: as a solo artist. And he puts out his first 129 00:06:04,360 --> 00:06:07,359 Speaker 1: platinum record, which is called v o A, which is 130 00:06:07,800 --> 00:06:10,240 Speaker 1: short for Voice of America. Have you ever heard that album? 131 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:13,440 Speaker 1: By the way, my only frame of reference for that album, 132 00:06:13,480 --> 00:06:15,640 Speaker 1: aside from I Can't Drove fifty five is Dick in 133 00:06:15,680 --> 00:06:18,240 Speaker 1: the Dirt because my father's name is Dick. So I 134 00:06:18,279 --> 00:06:21,760 Speaker 1: got endless amusement from that track. Oh man, well, I 135 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:23,960 Speaker 1: would think that your dad, you know, due respect to 136 00:06:23,960 --> 00:06:25,680 Speaker 1: your dad, if you if you're called Dick, there's like 137 00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:27,640 Speaker 1: lots of other references that you could also make to 138 00:06:27,680 --> 00:06:29,440 Speaker 1: that name, I would think. So it's not just on 139 00:06:29,480 --> 00:06:32,120 Speaker 1: Sammy Hagar that you were tortured for that. But yeah, 140 00:06:32,200 --> 00:06:34,680 Speaker 1: Dick in the Dirt is from v O A and 141 00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:38,720 Speaker 1: that album. It is this mix of like patriotic songs, 142 00:06:38,800 --> 00:06:41,080 Speaker 1: like on the cover of the album, Sammy Hagar is 143 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:44,240 Speaker 1: parachuting onto the lawn in front of the Capitol Building 144 00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:46,640 Speaker 1: in Washington, d C. Because like Sammy Hagar is, like 145 00:06:47,080 --> 00:06:49,560 Speaker 1: I think he was. I don't understand even what that 146 00:06:50,120 --> 00:06:51,640 Speaker 1: idea was. Like, you know, there was like a lot 147 00:06:51,640 --> 00:06:53,760 Speaker 1: of like sort of anti Russian sentiment at the time. 148 00:06:53,800 --> 00:06:55,680 Speaker 1: I think that he was like like a like a 149 00:06:55,680 --> 00:06:58,280 Speaker 1: soldier rocker type thing, and he was a big fan 150 00:06:58,320 --> 00:07:00,720 Speaker 1: of Ronald Reagan, like, and Sammy Hagar generally has been 151 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:03,479 Speaker 1: known to be leaning on the politically conservative side of 152 00:07:03,520 --> 00:07:06,080 Speaker 1: the spectrum. And so yeah, he's writing hiss like sort 153 00:07:06,080 --> 00:07:09,320 Speaker 1: of like patriotic songs, or he's writing like really dumb 154 00:07:09,880 --> 00:07:12,760 Speaker 1: sex songs, and this is going to be something that 155 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:16,000 Speaker 1: he will of course eventually take to Van Halen where 156 00:07:16,200 --> 00:07:18,040 Speaker 1: I always feel like that's the difference between him and 157 00:07:18,120 --> 00:07:19,760 Speaker 1: David Lee Roth. We talked about this a little bit 158 00:07:19,840 --> 00:07:21,560 Speaker 1: last week, where I feel like David Lee Roth he 159 00:07:21,560 --> 00:07:23,800 Speaker 1: could write these dumb sex songs, but there was always 160 00:07:23,840 --> 00:07:26,280 Speaker 1: like a wink and a nod in there where again 161 00:07:26,320 --> 00:07:27,800 Speaker 1: you felt like he was in on his own joke, 162 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:31,480 Speaker 1: like he was acknowledging the seediness of it, the ridiculousness 163 00:07:31,520 --> 00:07:33,880 Speaker 1: of it. Whereas Sammy Hagar writes a song like Dick 164 00:07:33,920 --> 00:07:37,240 Speaker 1: in the Dirt and it's an earnest song. He's actually 165 00:07:37,280 --> 00:07:39,160 Speaker 1: serious about his dick being in the dirt. I mean, 166 00:07:39,280 --> 00:07:42,160 Speaker 1: that is the difference between those two guys, like a 167 00:07:42,200 --> 00:07:44,600 Speaker 1: smart guy who acts dumb in the case of David 168 00:07:44,680 --> 00:07:46,440 Speaker 1: Lee Roth, and a guy who maybe just is kind 169 00:07:46,480 --> 00:07:48,920 Speaker 1: of dumb but likable in the case of Sammy Hagar. 170 00:07:49,240 --> 00:07:51,520 Speaker 1: So we get to the mid eighties, Sammy Hagar is 171 00:07:51,600 --> 00:07:54,400 Speaker 1: writing High as a solo act. Meanwhile, Van Halen they 172 00:07:54,400 --> 00:07:56,520 Speaker 1: need a new lead singer after David the Roth exits 173 00:07:56,560 --> 00:07:58,360 Speaker 1: the band to become a movie star, which of course 174 00:07:58,400 --> 00:08:01,280 Speaker 1: never happens, and they go through a couple of different singers. 175 00:08:01,480 --> 00:08:04,040 Speaker 1: They go to Patty Smythe the singer from Scandal who 176 00:08:04,600 --> 00:08:07,160 Speaker 1: had a big hit at the time called The Warrior 177 00:08:07,360 --> 00:08:09,800 Speaker 1: that was like a big radio hit in the mid eighties. 178 00:08:10,120 --> 00:08:13,120 Speaker 1: She said no. Apparently, they approached Darryl Hall of Hall 179 00:08:13,200 --> 00:08:15,640 Speaker 1: of Notates to be the lead singer of Van Halen, 180 00:08:15,880 --> 00:08:18,520 Speaker 1: which just seems insane. Darryl Hall is a great singer, 181 00:08:18,760 --> 00:08:20,880 Speaker 1: but more of a blue eyed soul type singer. I 182 00:08:21,360 --> 00:08:24,320 Speaker 1: don't really see him being the frontman of Van Halen. 183 00:08:24,360 --> 00:08:26,960 Speaker 1: Of course he didn't either. He said no. There's actually 184 00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:29,640 Speaker 1: a story recently that Steve Perry from the band Journey 185 00:08:29,720 --> 00:08:32,120 Speaker 1: was approached by Eddie van Halen about possibly being a 186 00:08:32,160 --> 00:08:35,080 Speaker 1: singer in the band, which I think is interesting given 187 00:08:35,320 --> 00:08:37,679 Speaker 1: the direction that Van Halen was going in, which I 188 00:08:37,679 --> 00:08:40,880 Speaker 1: think was more akin to Journey than the early records 189 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:42,959 Speaker 1: of van Halen War. They were moving in more of 190 00:08:43,000 --> 00:08:45,480 Speaker 1: that kind of middle of the road direction. But Steve 191 00:08:45,480 --> 00:08:47,560 Speaker 1: Perry said no, he was already in a successful band. 192 00:08:47,720 --> 00:08:50,360 Speaker 1: So then he gets hooked up with Sammy Hagar because 193 00:08:50,559 --> 00:08:55,080 Speaker 1: the mechanic for his Lamborghini suggested Sammy Hagar, which is 194 00:08:55,120 --> 00:08:58,760 Speaker 1: the most mid eighties rock dude thing ever. It's like 195 00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:01,800 Speaker 1: the Lamborghini mechanic, right, I mean, Sammy brought his card 196 00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:03,560 Speaker 1: and because he's like, hey, I can't I can't drive 197 00:09:03,600 --> 00:09:05,600 Speaker 1: fifty five. Can you fix this please? Like I need 198 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:08,840 Speaker 1: you need someone to fix this car exactly. I mean, yeah, 199 00:09:09,080 --> 00:09:13,120 Speaker 1: that's amazing. But I guess Eddie took his mechanics suggestion 200 00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:15,480 Speaker 1: and they put in a call to UH to Sammy 201 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:19,400 Speaker 1: and they arranged an audition at h at Eddie's studio 202 00:09:19,440 --> 00:09:23,520 Speaker 1: at his house fifty Studios and UH. It was basically 203 00:09:23,520 --> 00:09:25,640 Speaker 1: something approaching love at first sight. I guess the song 204 00:09:25,720 --> 00:09:28,360 Speaker 1: Summer Nights came out of their first jam session, and 205 00:09:28,360 --> 00:09:31,960 Speaker 1: in his memoir, Sammy compared the sound to his favorite 206 00:09:31,960 --> 00:09:34,360 Speaker 1: band Cream. He said, this was something about this sound 207 00:09:34,360 --> 00:09:38,760 Speaker 1: of slow, confident, almost majestic. My rock had always been 208 00:09:38,760 --> 00:09:41,679 Speaker 1: more intense, but they relaxed into this groove thing, even 209 00:09:41,720 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 1: if it was up tempo. I decided I was in. 210 00:09:44,440 --> 00:09:47,640 Speaker 1: And the band loved Sammy because he could provide rhythm guitar, 211 00:09:47,920 --> 00:09:49,880 Speaker 1: which Dave hadn't been able to do. But moreover, they 212 00:09:49,920 --> 00:09:52,440 Speaker 1: felt he was a better singer. And Alex would even say, 213 00:09:52,800 --> 00:09:56,160 Speaker 1: it's like driving a Porsche after years of owning a Volkswagen. 214 00:09:56,520 --> 00:10:01,800 Speaker 1: Oh man, it's brutal. Yeah, Like it's the most colorful 215 00:10:01,960 --> 00:10:04,760 Speaker 1: and high kicking Volkswagen of all time if it is 216 00:10:04,760 --> 00:10:07,840 Speaker 1: a Volkswagen. I don't think that's a real affair comparison. 217 00:10:07,880 --> 00:10:10,280 Speaker 1: Alex van Halen. I think another thing that's important too, 218 00:10:10,440 --> 00:10:14,120 Speaker 1: is that Eddie Van Halen and Sammy Hagar became fast friends. 219 00:10:14,480 --> 00:10:17,640 Speaker 1: They actually genuinely liked each other personally. I think they 220 00:10:17,720 --> 00:10:20,600 Speaker 1: lived like on the same stretch of beach in Malibu, 221 00:10:20,640 --> 00:10:22,400 Speaker 1: like they had beach houses, like it was like one 222 00:10:22,440 --> 00:10:25,080 Speaker 1: over from each other. So I think in the early days, 223 00:10:25,080 --> 00:10:27,200 Speaker 1: like Eddie and Helen would be playing guitar in his 224 00:10:27,280 --> 00:10:29,840 Speaker 1: porch and he would like walk over to Sammy Hagar's 225 00:10:29,840 --> 00:10:32,120 Speaker 1: house and they would write songs that way, which is 226 00:10:32,320 --> 00:10:35,080 Speaker 1: never a relationship they had that existed between Davidie Roth 227 00:10:35,280 --> 00:10:37,440 Speaker 1: and Eddie van Halen. Those guys were never close, So 228 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:39,240 Speaker 1: I think there was like a genuine sort of personal 229 00:10:39,240 --> 00:10:41,960 Speaker 1: bond there. But of course, no matter how good they 230 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:43,560 Speaker 1: might have felt about each other at the time, it 231 00:10:43,760 --> 00:10:46,040 Speaker 1: was risky for Van Halen to bring in a new 232 00:10:46,120 --> 00:10:48,000 Speaker 1: lead singer. And you know you said this earlier. They 233 00:10:48,000 --> 00:10:50,120 Speaker 1: were thinking about maybe changing the name. There was just 234 00:10:50,160 --> 00:10:52,160 Speaker 1: concerned that this was going to blow up in everyone's faces. 235 00:10:52,200 --> 00:10:54,720 Speaker 1: But when the record company heard the songs that they 236 00:10:54,720 --> 00:10:57,320 Speaker 1: were working on a fifty, I think, especially the song 237 00:10:57,360 --> 00:10:59,920 Speaker 1: why Can't This Be Loved? The head of the band's label, 238 00:11:00,120 --> 00:11:04,240 Speaker 1: Moe Austin, said, I smell money. What's the quote? When 239 00:11:04,240 --> 00:11:07,800 Speaker 1: he heard that song, which again extremely mid eighties, just 240 00:11:07,840 --> 00:11:11,120 Speaker 1: like a sleazy like record label thing to say, even 241 00:11:11,120 --> 00:11:13,079 Speaker 1: though Mo Austin is held in pretty high esteem in 242 00:11:13,080 --> 00:11:15,520 Speaker 1: the record industry, but just the idea, like they heard 243 00:11:15,520 --> 00:11:17,120 Speaker 1: this song and they're like, oh yeah, like this band 244 00:11:17,320 --> 00:11:19,600 Speaker 1: is going to be huge. And of course that song 245 00:11:19,679 --> 00:11:21,640 Speaker 1: ended up being a huge hit from the record. I 246 00:11:21,679 --> 00:11:23,480 Speaker 1: think it was like a top five song on the 247 00:11:23,480 --> 00:11:26,440 Speaker 1: pop charts, and of course went through the roof when 248 00:11:26,440 --> 00:11:30,000 Speaker 1: it was released, and you know, you listen to and 249 00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:32,240 Speaker 1: I think a lot of fans like that, you know, 250 00:11:32,280 --> 00:11:36,600 Speaker 1: love the Roth era. They were really turned off because 251 00:11:36,600 --> 00:11:38,960 Speaker 1: it did have this sort of corporate rock sound like 252 00:11:39,000 --> 00:11:41,880 Speaker 1: I likened them the Journey earlier. The producer of that 253 00:11:41,920 --> 00:11:43,800 Speaker 1: record is this guy Mick Jones, who played in the 254 00:11:43,800 --> 00:11:47,240 Speaker 1: band Foreigner, so it has again like it feels more 255 00:11:47,280 --> 00:11:51,160 Speaker 1: like Journey Foreigner, you know, Ario Speedwagon, like bands of 256 00:11:51,160 --> 00:11:54,560 Speaker 1: that ilk then like the hard charging party band of 257 00:11:54,600 --> 00:11:56,800 Speaker 1: old But again I have to say that, like I mean, 258 00:11:56,840 --> 00:11:58,600 Speaker 1: Sammy Hagar is certainly a part of that, but I 259 00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:00,960 Speaker 1: think he's somewhat of a scapegoat out here because the 260 00:12:00,960 --> 00:12:02,520 Speaker 1: fact of the matter is that Eddie van Hillen was 261 00:12:02,559 --> 00:12:05,280 Speaker 1: writing this music like he wanted to move in this direction, 262 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:08,880 Speaker 1: and I think obviously, like with the success of Jump, 263 00:12:08,960 --> 00:12:11,520 Speaker 1: that proved that putting synths on a Van Haillen song 264 00:12:11,559 --> 00:12:14,160 Speaker 1: would be very commercial, and I think there's a pretty 265 00:12:14,240 --> 00:12:17,319 Speaker 1: natural progression from that to fifty, which is like pretty 266 00:12:17,360 --> 00:12:19,480 Speaker 1: heavy on the sense. Yeah, absolutely, I mean all the 267 00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:21,440 Speaker 1: way back to diver Down. I mean it's something that 268 00:12:21,480 --> 00:12:23,960 Speaker 1: it seems like Dave was the one who was primarily 269 00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:26,480 Speaker 1: against it. With him gone, he could really indulge in that. 270 00:12:26,559 --> 00:12:29,720 Speaker 1: And also Sammy was a guitarist too, so on stage 271 00:12:29,960 --> 00:12:31,960 Speaker 1: for all the songs that you know needed guitar parts, 272 00:12:32,240 --> 00:12:34,320 Speaker 1: Sammy could play that, and then it would allow free 273 00:12:34,400 --> 00:12:36,360 Speaker 1: Eddie up to play more of those parts too. So 274 00:12:36,400 --> 00:12:39,640 Speaker 1: I think it definitely allowed him to expand further down 275 00:12:39,679 --> 00:12:42,199 Speaker 1: that route too, because not only were people not objecting 276 00:12:42,200 --> 00:12:45,280 Speaker 1: to it anymore, but also just from a practical standpoint 277 00:12:45,280 --> 00:12:46,839 Speaker 1: on stage, he was able to do that more and 278 00:12:46,880 --> 00:12:49,000 Speaker 1: allow that to be more part of the band's live sound. 279 00:12:49,360 --> 00:12:51,080 Speaker 1: I have to do a quick sidebar on the song 280 00:12:51,160 --> 00:12:53,000 Speaker 1: Love Walks in which I think is like one of 281 00:12:53,000 --> 00:12:57,080 Speaker 1: the better power Baldy songs from Sammy. Haggard wrote that 282 00:12:57,120 --> 00:13:00,400 Speaker 1: song about aliens and he's written like a bunch of 283 00:13:00,400 --> 00:13:03,280 Speaker 1: songs about Aliens and like, I don't know if you've 284 00:13:03,280 --> 00:13:06,400 Speaker 1: read like his memoir Read, which came out I think 285 00:13:06,400 --> 00:13:09,679 Speaker 1: about ten years ago. It's like an underrated memoir. People 286 00:13:09,679 --> 00:13:11,960 Speaker 1: don't talk about it and like when they talk about 287 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:15,200 Speaker 1: the great memoirs of recent years. But there's some haunting 288 00:13:15,240 --> 00:13:17,440 Speaker 1: lines in that I have to say, especially later on 289 00:13:17,520 --> 00:13:20,040 Speaker 1: about with any Yeah, yeah, the stuff about Evan Halan 290 00:13:20,120 --> 00:13:22,360 Speaker 1: is great, but like just Sammy Hagar is like such 291 00:13:22,400 --> 00:13:25,680 Speaker 1: a weirdo, like and he's a fascinating guy. Actually interviewed 292 00:13:25,760 --> 00:13:27,440 Speaker 1: him when he put that book out, and he was 293 00:13:27,480 --> 00:13:29,320 Speaker 1: a great interview I think we talked for like almost 294 00:13:29,400 --> 00:13:33,160 Speaker 1: ninety minutes. Like he man like he is, this guy 295 00:13:33,280 --> 00:13:36,240 Speaker 1: is a good storyteller and he's just like this eccentric dude. 296 00:13:36,640 --> 00:13:40,319 Speaker 1: And he writes in his book about how he actually 297 00:13:40,480 --> 00:13:43,320 Speaker 1: like met aliens when he was a kid. Like there's 298 00:13:43,360 --> 00:13:45,600 Speaker 1: this passage in the book he says, I was laing 299 00:13:45,640 --> 00:13:48,120 Speaker 1: in bed one night, dreaming. I saw a ship and 300 00:13:48,200 --> 00:13:50,960 Speaker 1: two creatures inside of the ship. I couldn't see their faces. 301 00:13:51,160 --> 00:13:53,760 Speaker 1: I just knew that there were two intelligent creatures sitting 302 00:13:53,800 --> 00:13:56,120 Speaker 1: up in a craft in the little Creek Forest area 303 00:13:56,280 --> 00:13:58,800 Speaker 1: at about twelve miles away in the foothills above Fontana. 304 00:13:58,840 --> 00:14:01,600 Speaker 1: He's talking about Northern all Fourni here and they were 305 00:14:01,640 --> 00:14:04,720 Speaker 1: connected to me, tapped into my mind through some sort 306 00:14:04,760 --> 00:14:08,520 Speaker 1: of mysterious wireless connection. They downloaded his thoughts. That's like 307 00:14:08,559 --> 00:14:11,240 Speaker 1: what it is. It's amazing. And I think that the 308 00:14:11,240 --> 00:14:13,840 Speaker 1: implication here too, is that like the aliens helped to 309 00:14:13,920 --> 00:14:17,240 Speaker 1: set him on this path toward rock and roll greatness. Yeah, 310 00:14:17,280 --> 00:14:19,800 Speaker 1: he say in interviews, like they taught me some things 311 00:14:19,840 --> 00:14:21,840 Speaker 1: that really helped me in life. Was that he would 312 00:14:21,840 --> 00:14:23,920 Speaker 1: always say that he learned from them, and he named 313 00:14:23,960 --> 00:14:26,360 Speaker 1: his publishing company after them. He said that they were 314 00:14:26,360 --> 00:14:28,960 Speaker 1: from the ninth dimension and he named his music publishing 315 00:14:29,040 --> 00:14:31,840 Speaker 1: nine Music in their honor. And he actually said that 316 00:14:31,920 --> 00:14:34,400 Speaker 1: like he wanted to write more about aliens in his book, 317 00:14:34,640 --> 00:14:37,040 Speaker 1: but his co author Joel Selvin was like, no one 318 00:14:37,080 --> 00:14:40,720 Speaker 1: wants to hear about the aliens. Do exactly, And he 319 00:14:40,800 --> 00:14:42,360 Speaker 1: was like, I could write a whole book about aliens, 320 00:14:42,360 --> 00:14:44,680 Speaker 1: and I was like he should please do that. That 321 00:14:44,720 --> 00:14:48,000 Speaker 1: would be amazing because like, honestly, the mantro stuff it's 322 00:14:48,080 --> 00:14:51,120 Speaker 1: kind of interesting, but like aliens downloading thoughts into your 323 00:14:51,120 --> 00:14:54,560 Speaker 1: brain with a wireless connection, you know, many decades before 324 00:14:54,560 --> 00:14:57,240 Speaker 1: the Internet. I'm into that. So you know, the song 325 00:14:57,320 --> 00:14:59,360 Speaker 1: Love Walks In is about that. Did he talk more 326 00:14:59,360 --> 00:15:01,560 Speaker 1: about that to you? We delved in into it a 327 00:15:01,560 --> 00:15:03,160 Speaker 1: little bit, not as much as I would like. I 328 00:15:03,160 --> 00:15:05,440 Speaker 1: think again, like he's sort of into talking about it, 329 00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:08,440 Speaker 1: but also feels like maybe I should be promoting my book, right, 330 00:15:08,560 --> 00:15:13,120 Speaker 1: not this transcendent experience I had with extraterrestrials. That's more 331 00:15:13,160 --> 00:15:15,040 Speaker 1: in line with his brand. I guess you're right. So 332 00:15:15,080 --> 00:15:17,480 Speaker 1: that's that is. Sammy brings a lot to the band. 333 00:15:17,520 --> 00:15:20,760 Speaker 1: He brings his guitar playing, he brings his alien experiences, 334 00:15:21,040 --> 00:15:22,920 Speaker 1: and of course he brings his voice, which you know, 335 00:15:22,960 --> 00:15:25,040 Speaker 1: I don't think anyone could argue, even though I'm more 336 00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:29,160 Speaker 1: pro Roth than pro Hagar, much stronger voice than Roth. 337 00:15:29,320 --> 00:15:32,120 Speaker 1: I mean, he's a real singer. I mean no disrespect 338 00:15:32,120 --> 00:15:34,360 Speaker 1: to Roth, but he, as you said in the last episode, 339 00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:37,000 Speaker 1: is more of like like a scat singing kind of 340 00:15:37,160 --> 00:15:40,080 Speaker 1: proto rapper or kind of He's not a singer, you know. 341 00:15:40,120 --> 00:15:42,600 Speaker 1: And I think that with having Sammy there and he 342 00:15:42,680 --> 00:15:45,120 Speaker 1: was able to write expand his range even greater. Not 343 00:15:45,160 --> 00:15:47,120 Speaker 1: only the keyboard realm, but write the kind of songs 344 00:15:47,120 --> 00:15:49,400 Speaker 1: that David would never really be able to sing. Yeah, 345 00:15:49,520 --> 00:15:52,000 Speaker 1: and again I go back to that story about Steve 346 00:15:52,040 --> 00:15:54,400 Speaker 1: Perry being approached by Eddie Van Hallen about and and 347 00:15:54,480 --> 00:15:56,800 Speaker 1: and Steve Perry has said that, like, I'm not clear 348 00:15:56,840 --> 00:15:58,600 Speaker 1: on whether he was inviting me to join the band 349 00:15:58,640 --> 00:16:00,520 Speaker 1: or if he just wanted to jam. But when you 350 00:16:00,520 --> 00:16:03,880 Speaker 1: look at Steve Perry or Patti Smith or Daryl Hall 351 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:07,120 Speaker 1: these other singers that came up as possible replacements, they 352 00:16:07,160 --> 00:16:09,960 Speaker 1: are all just sort of classically like great singers, Like 353 00:16:09,960 --> 00:16:11,320 Speaker 1: you would look at them and say like, oh, yeah, 354 00:16:11,320 --> 00:16:13,760 Speaker 1: those people can sing anything. And it does seem that, 355 00:16:13,800 --> 00:16:16,120 Speaker 1: like Eddie Van Halen, that was something that he wanted 356 00:16:16,200 --> 00:16:18,040 Speaker 1: at the time, and it seems like it was more 357 00:16:18,120 --> 00:16:21,120 Speaker 1: in tune again with the music that he was writing. Again, 358 00:16:21,160 --> 00:16:23,440 Speaker 1: I think that if you don't like Van Hagar, to 359 00:16:23,680 --> 00:16:26,800 Speaker 1: define the band purely by him, I think for Eddie 360 00:16:26,840 --> 00:16:29,520 Speaker 1: Van Halen would would be offensive. Because we talked about 361 00:16:29,520 --> 00:16:31,240 Speaker 1: this last week that he didn't like it when people 362 00:16:31,240 --> 00:16:34,240 Speaker 1: split the band into different eras according to the lead singer, 363 00:16:34,280 --> 00:16:37,160 Speaker 1: because to him, it's like I'm the common denominator. I'm 364 00:16:37,160 --> 00:16:39,560 Speaker 1: the tour of this band, it's all van Halen music. 365 00:16:39,560 --> 00:16:41,120 Speaker 1: These guys are just sort of coming in and out 366 00:16:41,120 --> 00:16:43,480 Speaker 1: of the band, And I think if you look at 367 00:16:43,520 --> 00:16:45,360 Speaker 1: the band that way, which is I don't think most 368 00:16:45,360 --> 00:16:47,400 Speaker 1: people look at it that way. They look at the 369 00:16:47,480 --> 00:16:50,520 Speaker 1: singers as being almost like the protagonists in Van Halen. 370 00:16:50,560 --> 00:16:52,200 Speaker 1: But if you look at it as Eddie van Halen 371 00:16:52,240 --> 00:16:54,840 Speaker 1: being the protagonist, it's pretty clear that he makes this 372 00:16:54,880 --> 00:16:58,600 Speaker 1: progression from the party rock of the late seventies two 373 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:02,440 Speaker 1: more of this again corporate rock, adult contemporary sound into 374 00:17:02,480 --> 00:17:05,000 Speaker 1: the late eighties. And as much as I think we 375 00:17:05,080 --> 00:17:08,080 Speaker 1: all prefer the Roth era, I think it does make 376 00:17:08,160 --> 00:17:12,040 Speaker 1: sense in a commercial sense and also an aesthetic sense 377 00:17:12,080 --> 00:17:14,560 Speaker 1: that they would make that evolution, because if if you 378 00:17:14,560 --> 00:17:18,760 Speaker 1: still have davidly Roth in the band and or five, 379 00:17:18,800 --> 00:17:21,120 Speaker 1: that would have been a pretty dated band. I think 380 00:17:21,160 --> 00:17:22,680 Speaker 1: it would have been harder for them to do what 381 00:17:22,800 --> 00:17:24,919 Speaker 1: Van Helen did, which was be one of the only 382 00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:28,520 Speaker 1: bands of their era to continue to be successful, you know, 383 00:17:28,560 --> 00:17:30,760 Speaker 1: into the late eighties and then into the alternative rock 384 00:17:30,800 --> 00:17:34,720 Speaker 1: era of the nineties. And Sammy Hagar certainly wasn't hip 385 00:17:34,920 --> 00:17:38,000 Speaker 1: and they were not an alternative band, but I think 386 00:17:38,000 --> 00:17:40,600 Speaker 1: there was maybe something a little bit more shall we say, 387 00:17:40,640 --> 00:17:43,919 Speaker 1: dignified about this era van Halen, like as weird as 388 00:17:43,920 --> 00:17:45,760 Speaker 1: it is to say that about them, but like they 389 00:17:45,800 --> 00:17:48,560 Speaker 1: just seemed more like an older band with him in 390 00:17:48,600 --> 00:17:51,640 Speaker 1: the band, and maybe that was more appropriate for this era. Yeah, 391 00:17:51,640 --> 00:17:53,919 Speaker 1: it allowed them sort of instantly mature. I mean, not 392 00:17:53,960 --> 00:17:56,680 Speaker 1: only for their own reputation and you can't be pushing 393 00:17:56,720 --> 00:17:58,280 Speaker 1: forty and doing the kind of things that David Lee 394 00:17:58,359 --> 00:18:00,600 Speaker 1: Roth was, but also their sound too. Mean, the sound 395 00:18:00,640 --> 00:18:03,840 Speaker 1: of rock from the late eighties to early nineties is 396 00:18:03,880 --> 00:18:06,520 Speaker 1: such a massive shift from like the tail end of 397 00:18:06,560 --> 00:18:09,080 Speaker 1: hair metal, which was basically people trying to be van 398 00:18:09,160 --> 00:18:11,840 Speaker 1: Halen but to the nth degree, to stuff like grunge, 399 00:18:11,880 --> 00:18:15,240 Speaker 1: which leads you to their album Balance, which I always 400 00:18:15,240 --> 00:18:17,119 Speaker 1: thought was kind of van Halen's take on doing a 401 00:18:17,119 --> 00:18:20,240 Speaker 1: grunge album. Yeah, definitely feels that way. Like there's that 402 00:18:20,760 --> 00:18:22,760 Speaker 1: the lead single, Don't Tell Me What Love Can Do, 403 00:18:22,920 --> 00:18:27,359 Speaker 1: which which was supposedly inspired by kurk Obain's suicide, and 404 00:18:27,680 --> 00:18:30,479 Speaker 1: you listen to the guitar and it does feel I 405 00:18:30,480 --> 00:18:34,119 Speaker 1: guess grungy. It feels so strange to apply that adjective 406 00:18:34,520 --> 00:18:36,960 Speaker 1: to Eddie van Halen's guitar tone, because I just think 407 00:18:36,960 --> 00:18:40,440 Speaker 1: of his guitar tone as just being inherently bright and hot. 408 00:18:40,840 --> 00:18:43,960 Speaker 1: You know, it's not sludgy really um, and it's not 409 00:18:44,080 --> 00:18:45,479 Speaker 1: really sluedge you on that song. But I think like 410 00:18:45,520 --> 00:18:48,440 Speaker 1: in the realm of Van Halen Um, this was like 411 00:18:48,440 --> 00:18:52,600 Speaker 1: like a relatively like angry moody record. And this record 412 00:18:52,600 --> 00:18:56,119 Speaker 1: comes out, and it was a four year gap between 413 00:18:56,119 --> 00:18:58,640 Speaker 1: this album and the previous record, which was for Unlawful 414 00:18:58,640 --> 00:19:00,960 Speaker 1: Cornel Knowledge that came out the Spring of ninety one, 415 00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:03,720 Speaker 1: comes out really before grunge has become a big thing, 416 00:19:03,840 --> 00:19:06,080 Speaker 1: like never Mind and Ten are going to come out 417 00:19:06,080 --> 00:19:08,040 Speaker 1: a little bit later in ninety one, so Van Halen 418 00:19:08,080 --> 00:19:10,840 Speaker 1: kind of got onto the wire there, and again, like Balance, 419 00:19:10,880 --> 00:19:12,919 Speaker 1: it ended up debuting at number one, so it's their 420 00:19:12,960 --> 00:19:15,359 Speaker 1: fourth consecutive number one record. But I know, like for me, 421 00:19:15,720 --> 00:19:18,800 Speaker 1: like as someone again, I was buying Van Hagar tapes 422 00:19:19,240 --> 00:19:21,840 Speaker 1: as like a ten eleven year old, you know, I 423 00:19:21,840 --> 00:19:23,720 Speaker 1: had dropped out of Van Halen by the time of 424 00:19:23,760 --> 00:19:27,439 Speaker 1: Balance Um because they just maybe didn't seem quite like 425 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:30,080 Speaker 1: they were of the era, and it also seemed like 426 00:19:30,160 --> 00:19:32,879 Speaker 1: Van Halen was valling apart a little bit. Like I 427 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:34,960 Speaker 1: don't know if you've seen like clips of them performing 428 00:19:35,000 --> 00:19:36,960 Speaker 1: at this time, but like they look pretty beat up. 429 00:19:36,960 --> 00:19:38,920 Speaker 1: Like this was around the time that Alex van Halen 430 00:19:39,119 --> 00:19:41,760 Speaker 1: was like playing with a neck brace on stage all 431 00:19:41,760 --> 00:19:44,199 Speaker 1: the time, which like I hate to laugh because he 432 00:19:44,240 --> 00:19:45,639 Speaker 1: was in pain at the time. But like, whenever I 433 00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:47,800 Speaker 1: see the neck brace, I always think of like those 434 00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:50,119 Speaker 1: legal shows, like where the person is pretending to be 435 00:19:50,160 --> 00:19:52,960 Speaker 1: injured and then we're in the neck brace, and then 436 00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:55,120 Speaker 1: like they take it off and like you know, play 437 00:19:55,119 --> 00:19:57,840 Speaker 1: a drum solo. Yeah, they take it off. It's proven 438 00:19:57,840 --> 00:19:59,479 Speaker 1: that they're faking it or something. It's always like this. 439 00:19:59,640 --> 00:20:03,159 Speaker 1: I was associate neck braces with comedy, I guess, so 440 00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:04,720 Speaker 1: to see him on the stage with the neck brace, 441 00:20:04,800 --> 00:20:07,320 Speaker 1: it's just so bizarre. And of course Eddie van Halen 442 00:20:07,440 --> 00:20:09,320 Speaker 1: was having his issues with his hip where it was 443 00:20:09,359 --> 00:20:11,880 Speaker 1: hard for him to move around on stage, so they're 444 00:20:11,880 --> 00:20:14,359 Speaker 1: following apart physically, and then of course they're also starting 445 00:20:14,359 --> 00:20:17,640 Speaker 1: to have tension finally with Sammy Hagar again, like him 446 00:20:17,680 --> 00:20:20,359 Speaker 1: and Eddie were legitimate friends for a long time, but 447 00:20:20,400 --> 00:20:23,280 Speaker 1: it seems like around this time the tension that derived 448 00:20:23,400 --> 00:20:25,640 Speaker 1: from the relationship seemed to be that, like Eddie Van 449 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:28,159 Speaker 1: Halen was like a workaholic, always in his home studio 450 00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:31,560 Speaker 1: fifty one fifty recording, where Sammy Hagar again, He's drinking 451 00:20:31,560 --> 00:20:33,760 Speaker 1: tequila all day long. He's got the flip flops on, 452 00:20:33,800 --> 00:20:37,159 Speaker 1: he's got the baggy shorts, the Oakley's glasses. He's like 453 00:20:37,400 --> 00:20:40,639 Speaker 1: becoming the Jimmy Buffett of heavy metal essentially at this time. 454 00:20:40,800 --> 00:20:42,919 Speaker 1: And he's just a much more easy going guy. And 455 00:20:42,920 --> 00:20:46,159 Speaker 1: it seemed like maybe Eddie looked at Sammy as being lazy, right, 456 00:20:46,200 --> 00:20:47,640 Speaker 1: I mean, also, it sounds like there was a lot 457 00:20:47,640 --> 00:20:50,840 Speaker 1: of musical differences during the recessions for balance to I mean, 458 00:20:50,840 --> 00:20:53,600 Speaker 1: he would say that this was the era when when 459 00:20:53,880 --> 00:20:55,560 Speaker 1: Sammy would say, you know, because that was the record 460 00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:57,719 Speaker 1: where if I said black, Eddie said white, and if 461 00:20:57,760 --> 00:20:59,680 Speaker 1: I said okay, white, he'd said, no, I want black. 462 00:21:00,000 --> 00:21:01,399 Speaker 1: Then he'd say, okay, well I want to black to 463 00:21:01,440 --> 00:21:03,240 Speaker 1: begin with, and then Eddie would go, well, I don't 464 00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:04,800 Speaker 1: know what I want, but let you know when I do. 465 00:21:05,040 --> 00:21:07,119 Speaker 1: He just wanted the opposite with Sammy wanted. That's what 466 00:21:07,160 --> 00:21:09,719 Speaker 1: he said in years later too, So it's definitely spilled 467 00:21:09,720 --> 00:21:12,360 Speaker 1: over into into the creative realm too, all right hand, 468 00:21:12,400 --> 00:21:24,920 Speaker 1: We'll be right back with more rivals. And then things 469 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:28,800 Speaker 1: really come to a head weirdly enough, Uh during sessions 470 00:21:28,840 --> 00:21:33,439 Speaker 1: for the Twister soundtrack, which you know, there was chaos 471 00:21:33,560 --> 00:21:36,480 Speaker 1: going on screen and also chaos behind the scenes apparently, 472 00:21:36,600 --> 00:21:39,919 Speaker 1: well yeah, becaucause the band's longtime manager who joined right 473 00:21:39,920 --> 00:21:42,639 Speaker 1: when Sammy joined, had just died and uh, and they 474 00:21:42,680 --> 00:21:45,400 Speaker 1: got a new manager who was also Alex's brother in law, 475 00:21:45,880 --> 00:21:48,280 Speaker 1: and he was doing what a manager did, which come 476 00:21:48,320 --> 00:21:49,680 Speaker 1: up with a lot of ways to make a lot 477 00:21:49,680 --> 00:21:53,040 Speaker 1: of money very quickly. Someone called these schemes canny, others 478 00:21:53,040 --> 00:21:55,520 Speaker 1: would call them kind of crass and cheap. And one 479 00:21:55,520 --> 00:21:57,000 Speaker 1: of his plans was to do a song for the 480 00:21:57,040 --> 00:21:59,720 Speaker 1: Twister soundtrack, but it was supposed to be done when 481 00:21:59,760 --> 00:22:01,280 Speaker 1: the bay him, we're on a break. I was supposed 482 00:22:01,320 --> 00:22:05,280 Speaker 1: to be after their Balance tour in in and everybody 483 00:22:05,280 --> 00:22:08,240 Speaker 1: really needed some downtime, especially Sammy, who had just gotten 484 00:22:08,280 --> 00:22:10,200 Speaker 1: married and his wife is about to have a baby 485 00:22:10,600 --> 00:22:12,920 Speaker 1: and he wanted to go be with her, and I 486 00:22:12,960 --> 00:22:14,879 Speaker 1: guess they were planning to have the baby out in 487 00:22:14,880 --> 00:22:17,399 Speaker 1: in Hawaii, have a natural birth out in Hawaii, and 488 00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:20,160 Speaker 1: so he got roped back in to do these sessions 489 00:22:20,200 --> 00:22:23,800 Speaker 1: for Twister, And not only did he have to go work, 490 00:22:23,840 --> 00:22:26,199 Speaker 1: he had to go fly across the Pacific back to 491 00:22:26,840 --> 00:22:28,840 Speaker 1: Eddie's house. So it's not bad enough they had to 492 00:22:28,840 --> 00:22:31,040 Speaker 1: like move, Eddie just has to go into his backyard. 493 00:22:31,080 --> 00:22:34,119 Speaker 1: Sammy has to fly across the Pacific to leave his wife, 494 00:22:34,240 --> 00:22:37,359 Speaker 1: his pregnant wife, to go do these songs. And the 495 00:22:37,440 --> 00:22:41,440 Speaker 1: sessions were really tense. They were trying to write multiple 496 00:22:41,520 --> 00:22:44,560 Speaker 1: songs and they weren't coming together, so they just did 497 00:22:44,600 --> 00:22:48,800 Speaker 1: one song called I think it's called Human Beings, which 498 00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:51,400 Speaker 1: I have to say I played once. It's not called 499 00:22:51,480 --> 00:22:55,719 Speaker 1: human beings. It's called humans being, which is a terrible title. 500 00:22:56,320 --> 00:22:59,640 Speaker 1: I don't understand it's called humans being because human beings 501 00:23:00,119 --> 00:23:01,840 Speaker 1: makes sense. That's why you thought it was called that. 502 00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:06,320 Speaker 1: It was called humans being for which I don't know 503 00:23:06,359 --> 00:23:10,080 Speaker 1: what that has to do with with tornadoes. But apparently 504 00:23:10,080 --> 00:23:13,520 Speaker 1: when there's a certainato in the vicinity, you can't properly 505 00:23:13,600 --> 00:23:15,760 Speaker 1: title a song like that's something that just causes your 506 00:23:15,800 --> 00:23:18,800 Speaker 1: brain to blank out. But yeah, they're trying to write 507 00:23:18,840 --> 00:23:20,240 Speaker 1: multiple songs, but that was the only one that they 508 00:23:20,240 --> 00:23:23,840 Speaker 1: could finish, right, And then so they finish it. He 509 00:23:23,880 --> 00:23:26,080 Speaker 1: goes back to Hawaii and then they can call from Eddie, 510 00:23:26,119 --> 00:23:27,879 Speaker 1: oh man, we actually gotta do a second one. Can 511 00:23:27,920 --> 00:23:30,959 Speaker 1: you come back? And Sam He's like, no, my wife's 512 00:23:30,960 --> 00:23:32,679 Speaker 1: about to have a baby. I'm not. So they end 513 00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:35,800 Speaker 1: up putting an instrumental on the album to fulfill their 514 00:23:36,040 --> 00:23:38,199 Speaker 1: their commitment for a second song on there too. But 515 00:23:38,280 --> 00:23:40,960 Speaker 1: that's really a major line in the sand for them. 516 00:23:41,080 --> 00:23:44,320 Speaker 1: Is ironically the Twister soundtrack, which I believe I could 517 00:23:44,320 --> 00:23:46,600 Speaker 1: be wrong, is what brought Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks 518 00:23:46,640 --> 00:23:51,199 Speaker 1: back together in the right Yeah. Oh man, So this 519 00:23:51,240 --> 00:23:55,520 Speaker 1: Twister soundtrack bringing people together also tearing them apart. This 520 00:23:55,600 --> 00:23:58,520 Speaker 1: is like the moment, like the most momentous classic rock 521 00:23:58,560 --> 00:24:01,320 Speaker 1: related album of the night these I thought oral history 522 00:24:01,320 --> 00:24:06,119 Speaker 1: on the Twister soundtrack. So there's issues over the Twister soundtrack. 523 00:24:06,280 --> 00:24:08,960 Speaker 1: Sammy Hagar, I think with justification, felt like I don't 524 00:24:09,040 --> 00:24:10,960 Speaker 1: really have time for this. You know again, my wife 525 00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:13,479 Speaker 1: is having a difficult uh birth. I want to be 526 00:24:13,520 --> 00:24:15,359 Speaker 1: with her. But Eddie and Alex are looking at him 527 00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:17,760 Speaker 1: as not being a team player. Essentially, they don't feel 528 00:24:17,800 --> 00:24:19,919 Speaker 1: like he's contributing his fair share to the band, and 529 00:24:19,960 --> 00:24:23,320 Speaker 1: this gets compounded when the Greatest Hits album for Van 530 00:24:23,359 --> 00:24:25,600 Speaker 1: Halen comes up, and this has ends up being tense 531 00:24:25,680 --> 00:24:28,920 Speaker 1: for multiple reasons because not only are the Van Halen 532 00:24:28,920 --> 00:24:30,800 Speaker 1: Brothers trying to get Sammy in the studio to record 533 00:24:30,800 --> 00:24:32,679 Speaker 1: a couple of new songs for this Greatest Hits album, 534 00:24:32,880 --> 00:24:34,960 Speaker 1: but they're also working with David Lee Roth and they 535 00:24:35,119 --> 00:24:37,520 Speaker 1: haven't told Sammy Hagar that they're working with David E. 536 00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:40,399 Speaker 1: Roth on these songs, and when he hears about this, 537 00:24:40,440 --> 00:24:42,080 Speaker 1: of course he's going to hit the roof. So that 538 00:24:42,280 --> 00:24:44,119 Speaker 1: is a big issue in the band. But from the 539 00:24:44,200 --> 00:24:46,399 Speaker 1: Van Halen Brothers perspective, they were really feeling out of 540 00:24:46,400 --> 00:24:49,480 Speaker 1: frustration because they were having trouble getting Sammy to work 541 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:53,040 Speaker 1: on these songs. Meanwhile, two years before this, Sammy Hagar 542 00:24:53,119 --> 00:24:56,440 Speaker 1: had put out his own greatest Hits record called Unboxed, which, 543 00:24:56,480 --> 00:25:00,000 Speaker 1: by the way, who's buying a Sammy Hagar Greatest Sets album? 544 00:25:00,119 --> 00:25:03,600 Speaker 1: Was buying this? You you need more songs than I 545 00:25:03,640 --> 00:25:06,399 Speaker 1: can't drive fifty five that's all you need. I guess. 546 00:25:06,400 --> 00:25:09,199 Speaker 1: This was the nineties and you couldn't download songs, you 547 00:25:09,200 --> 00:25:12,480 Speaker 1: couldn't stream songs, so people were like, I love I 548 00:25:12,480 --> 00:25:16,199 Speaker 1: can't Drive fifty five so much I'm gonna spend on 549 00:25:16,280 --> 00:25:19,119 Speaker 1: a Sammy Hagar Greatest Hits record. Maybe you end up 550 00:25:19,840 --> 00:25:23,439 Speaker 1: stuff on there. I am not familiar with the Sammy 551 00:25:23,440 --> 00:25:25,760 Speaker 1: Hagar Greatest Hits record, I must say, I guess I'm 552 00:25:25,800 --> 00:25:27,800 Speaker 1: hoping maybe Dick and the Dirt is on that record. 553 00:25:27,840 --> 00:25:30,360 Speaker 1: All apologies to your father, of course. But the Van 554 00:25:30,400 --> 00:25:33,160 Speaker 1: Hallin Brothers look at this, and Sammy Hagar had recorded 555 00:25:33,240 --> 00:25:36,720 Speaker 1: a couple of extra songs for that album, essentially because 556 00:25:36,920 --> 00:25:38,680 Speaker 1: the record company was going to give him extra money 557 00:25:38,680 --> 00:25:41,080 Speaker 1: for that, and he was getting divorced at the time, 558 00:25:41,080 --> 00:25:42,720 Speaker 1: and he just like took that money and gave it 559 00:25:42,760 --> 00:25:45,080 Speaker 1: to his ex wife. So it was just a pure 560 00:25:45,359 --> 00:25:48,880 Speaker 1: sort of like divorce settlement type thing. Shades of here, 561 00:25:48,920 --> 00:25:51,800 Speaker 1: my dear, I guess, only now instead of a masterpiece, 562 00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:55,440 Speaker 1: it's a shitty Sammy Hagar Greatest Hits album. But the 563 00:25:55,520 --> 00:25:57,560 Speaker 1: Van Halin Brothers look at this and they just see 564 00:25:57,880 --> 00:26:00,720 Speaker 1: Sammy Hagar again not being a team player and also 565 00:26:00,840 --> 00:26:03,000 Speaker 1: being a bit of a hypocrite because you did it 566 00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:05,040 Speaker 1: for your greatest Hits record. This is for a Van 567 00:26:05,119 --> 00:26:07,520 Speaker 1: Hill and Greatest Its record that people actually care about, 568 00:26:07,880 --> 00:26:10,840 Speaker 1: and you're not contributing and Sammy would say like this 569 00:26:10,880 --> 00:26:13,400 Speaker 1: project is where the all the bad blood really started. 570 00:26:13,520 --> 00:26:16,399 Speaker 1: And the details of their final split are disputed, but 571 00:26:16,480 --> 00:26:19,240 Speaker 1: it's apparently it ended with a phone call on Father's Day, 572 00:26:19,240 --> 00:26:22,560 Speaker 1: which is very fitting considering the issues of Sammy wanted 573 00:26:22,600 --> 00:26:26,440 Speaker 1: to be there for for his wife's birth on Father's Day, 574 00:26:26,600 --> 00:26:29,040 Speaker 1: and in Eddie's version, he called Sammy and basically read 575 00:26:29,040 --> 00:26:30,920 Speaker 1: on the riot act like, you know, if you want 576 00:26:30,920 --> 00:26:32,600 Speaker 1: to make another record, do another tour, you have to 577 00:26:32,640 --> 00:26:35,040 Speaker 1: be a team player. Dan Halen is a band, not 578 00:26:35,080 --> 00:26:38,760 Speaker 1: the Sammy Hagar show. And uh, Sammy apparently responded by saying, 579 00:26:38,880 --> 00:26:40,760 Speaker 1: you know, I'm frustrated. I want to go back to 580 00:26:40,760 --> 00:26:43,560 Speaker 1: being a solo artist and and he said all right, 581 00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:46,960 Speaker 1: well fine, like thank you for being honest, And his 582 00:26:47,119 --> 00:26:49,399 Speaker 1: version of story at least said, you know, with minimal fury, 583 00:26:49,520 --> 00:26:52,439 Speaker 1: said well go go back and go do that, and 584 00:26:52,480 --> 00:26:55,879 Speaker 1: we're gonna do our own things. So uh, according to Eddie, 585 00:26:55,880 --> 00:26:58,359 Speaker 1: Sammy quitting an egotistical huff because he wanted to go 586 00:26:58,400 --> 00:27:00,840 Speaker 1: do his own thing rather than several made his artistic 587 00:27:00,920 --> 00:27:04,040 Speaker 1: vision with Van Halen. Uh. Sammy, as you might expect, 588 00:27:04,080 --> 00:27:07,000 Speaker 1: disputes this version. He basically says that he was fired 589 00:27:07,440 --> 00:27:09,520 Speaker 1: and then you know, adding insult to injury. They turned 590 00:27:09,520 --> 00:27:12,080 Speaker 1: around really quickly and got Dave back into the mix too, 591 00:27:12,160 --> 00:27:14,560 Speaker 1: which for him, he said that was worse than sleeping 592 00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:16,760 Speaker 1: with the enemy. We bumped heads and the next thing 593 00:27:16,800 --> 00:27:18,960 Speaker 1: I know, Eddie calls and David Lee Roth is back, 594 00:27:19,320 --> 00:27:22,639 Speaker 1: and that's uh, that's the end of it. Seems like 595 00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:25,880 Speaker 1: there's like a some timeline confusion here because I've heard 596 00:27:25,880 --> 00:27:28,360 Speaker 1: stories that Van Halen were working with David Lee Roth 597 00:27:28,520 --> 00:27:31,080 Speaker 1: on these tracks for the Greatest Hits album again, because 598 00:27:31,200 --> 00:27:32,639 Speaker 1: the idea was that they were going to record a 599 00:27:32,680 --> 00:27:34,480 Speaker 1: couple songs with him and a couple of songs with 600 00:27:34,560 --> 00:27:37,240 Speaker 1: Sammy Hagar to represent both eras at the band. But 601 00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:40,520 Speaker 1: Sammy Hagar makes it sound like they contacted Roth after 602 00:27:40,800 --> 00:27:43,760 Speaker 1: Hagar left and then maybe they kept it from him 603 00:27:43,760 --> 00:27:45,960 Speaker 1: for fear of him like freaking out. So it's not 604 00:27:46,040 --> 00:27:47,600 Speaker 1: really clear. I mean to me, like what this really 605 00:27:47,640 --> 00:27:50,960 Speaker 1: speaks to is for all the success that Van Hagar had, 606 00:27:51,080 --> 00:27:53,000 Speaker 1: I feel like Sammy Hagar always had a bit of 607 00:27:53,000 --> 00:27:56,800 Speaker 1: insecurity about David Lee Roth and that really manifested itself 608 00:27:56,960 --> 00:28:00,000 Speaker 1: in their concerts because he wouldn't perform David Lee Roth's 609 00:28:00,000 --> 00:28:03,080 Speaker 1: songs in the show, and I think his idea was that, 610 00:28:03,160 --> 00:28:05,040 Speaker 1: you know, this is a new band. I want to, 611 00:28:05,359 --> 00:28:07,520 Speaker 1: you know, stay true to this era. I want to 612 00:28:07,520 --> 00:28:10,520 Speaker 1: stay true to our songs. Obviously, Van Hagar was very successful, 613 00:28:10,880 --> 00:28:12,919 Speaker 1: so you know, they had hits of their own, they 614 00:28:12,920 --> 00:28:15,919 Speaker 1: didn't necessarily have to play the older songs. But I 615 00:28:15,960 --> 00:28:20,440 Speaker 1: feel like that might have backfired on him because you know, look, 616 00:28:20,480 --> 00:28:23,080 Speaker 1: if you love Van Halen, you want to hear Running 617 00:28:23,080 --> 00:28:25,000 Speaker 1: with the Double, You want to hear a talking about love, 618 00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:27,439 Speaker 1: you want to hear Panama. And the fact that like 619 00:28:27,560 --> 00:28:30,680 Speaker 1: they never played those songs with Hagar, I think it 620 00:28:30,800 --> 00:28:33,520 Speaker 1: just created like a mythology about that period that like 621 00:28:33,680 --> 00:28:37,159 Speaker 1: made people really pine for that. Like what if Hagar 622 00:28:37,240 --> 00:28:39,480 Speaker 1: had just sung those songs and like people thought, Wow, 623 00:28:39,520 --> 00:28:42,040 Speaker 1: like these songs sound even better with Sammy Hagar, or 624 00:28:42,080 --> 00:28:44,800 Speaker 1: they sound as good with Sammy Hagar. I just think 625 00:28:44,840 --> 00:28:47,680 Speaker 1: that at some point maybe people wouldn't have felt so 626 00:28:47,800 --> 00:28:51,000 Speaker 1: much affection for the Roth era if Hagar had sort 627 00:28:51,040 --> 00:28:53,040 Speaker 1: of like blocked it out or tried to block it 628 00:28:53,080 --> 00:28:55,640 Speaker 1: out so completely from his years in Van Halen. Does 629 00:28:55,680 --> 00:28:58,680 Speaker 1: that make sense? Yeah, it didn't rock, do the same 630 00:28:58,760 --> 00:29:00,600 Speaker 1: thing too, but people basic he said, like he just 631 00:29:00,640 --> 00:29:02,840 Speaker 1: didn't have the chops to sing Hagar songs. But I 632 00:29:02,840 --> 00:29:04,440 Speaker 1: feel like Roth sort of did the same thing and 633 00:29:04,480 --> 00:29:06,920 Speaker 1: refused to sing the Hagar Era's different with him, though. 634 00:29:07,080 --> 00:29:08,880 Speaker 1: I think that, like, if you're going to see like 635 00:29:08,960 --> 00:29:12,360 Speaker 1: the Roth Era van Halen, you just want to hear that. 636 00:29:12,520 --> 00:29:15,000 Speaker 1: I don't want to hear David Ross sing you want 637 00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:16,680 Speaker 1: to pretend it's nineteen. I don't want to hear him 638 00:29:16,720 --> 00:29:20,160 Speaker 1: singing love walks in and talking about aliens. That's like 639 00:29:20,240 --> 00:29:22,680 Speaker 1: the Sammy Hagar alien song. I want to hear David 640 00:29:22,760 --> 00:29:24,560 Speaker 1: Lee Roth do the rath Era stuff. I think the 641 00:29:24,600 --> 00:29:28,160 Speaker 1: onus was on Hagar to like plant his flag in 642 00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:30,280 Speaker 1: the rath Era and say, hey, I can perform these 643 00:29:30,320 --> 00:29:32,080 Speaker 1: songs as well as he can, which I don't think, 644 00:29:32,240 --> 00:29:34,400 Speaker 1: by the way, he could have. I think their styles 645 00:29:34,400 --> 00:29:37,200 Speaker 1: are so different that like hearing Sammy Hagar do like 646 00:29:37,240 --> 00:29:39,719 Speaker 1: the David Lee Roth stick, you know, like you know, 647 00:29:39,880 --> 00:29:42,920 Speaker 1: he's the seat back that whole Panama rapped. You know, 648 00:29:43,480 --> 00:29:45,400 Speaker 1: that would have been weird. You know, he wouldn't have 649 00:29:45,440 --> 00:29:47,560 Speaker 1: done it as well. But I just feel like that 650 00:29:47,680 --> 00:29:49,640 Speaker 1: he did that. I think so people wouldn't compare the 651 00:29:49,640 --> 00:29:51,800 Speaker 1: two versions of the band, but I think in the 652 00:29:51,800 --> 00:29:54,720 Speaker 1: way he sort of like inadvertently exacerbated it. I wonder 653 00:29:54,760 --> 00:29:56,640 Speaker 1: how much Eddie was involved with that though, too, Like 654 00:29:56,680 --> 00:29:59,200 Speaker 1: I wonder if he said, you know what, no new era, like, 655 00:29:59,240 --> 00:30:01,200 Speaker 1: we're gonna do mine new songs, like I wonder, like 656 00:30:01,240 --> 00:30:03,640 Speaker 1: whose decision that fully well possible. I just feel like 657 00:30:03,680 --> 00:30:06,280 Speaker 1: he probably would have done it. And I remember I 658 00:30:06,520 --> 00:30:09,360 Speaker 1: read Ian Christie's book Everybody Wants Some, which is a 659 00:30:09,400 --> 00:30:11,920 Speaker 1: great biography of Van Halen, and the sense I got 660 00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:14,120 Speaker 1: from that book is that, especially towards the end of 661 00:30:14,200 --> 00:30:16,280 Speaker 1: Van Hagar, that like he was itching to play some 662 00:30:16,320 --> 00:30:18,400 Speaker 1: of those songs again because they're great songs, and he 663 00:30:18,720 --> 00:30:20,880 Speaker 1: I'm sure he knew that if he played ain't talking 664 00:30:20,920 --> 00:30:23,640 Speaker 1: about love that like he's gonna burn down any arena 665 00:30:23,800 --> 00:30:25,840 Speaker 1: in the world, you know, like people are going to 666 00:30:25,880 --> 00:30:28,440 Speaker 1: be so excited to hear that. But it doesn't. May 667 00:30:28,720 --> 00:30:31,760 Speaker 1: Hagar leaves the band, I think kind of hastily. You know, 668 00:30:32,120 --> 00:30:34,400 Speaker 1: this exit to me doesn't make as much sense as 669 00:30:34,480 --> 00:30:37,200 Speaker 1: Roth leaving. Like they're arguing about the Greatest Hits album 670 00:30:37,600 --> 00:30:40,440 Speaker 1: and the Twister soundtrack. It seems very petty to me, 671 00:30:40,720 --> 00:30:43,280 Speaker 1: like whereas I feel like Roth was clearly growing apart 672 00:30:43,440 --> 00:30:45,800 Speaker 1: from van Halen, but like Hagar again, Hagar and van 673 00:30:45,840 --> 00:30:48,360 Speaker 1: Halen were actually pales and to blow up the band 674 00:30:48,400 --> 00:30:50,600 Speaker 1: over this, it just seems sort of silly to me. 675 00:30:50,880 --> 00:30:52,480 Speaker 1: Maybe he seemed to have a lot of remorse and 676 00:30:52,520 --> 00:30:55,000 Speaker 1: regret over it all, Like not that long after he said, 677 00:30:55,040 --> 00:30:57,120 Speaker 1: you know, if I knew that my making the greatest 678 00:30:57,200 --> 00:31:00,480 Speaker 1: hits album, the unboxed album was gonna do is the band, 679 00:31:00,480 --> 00:31:02,520 Speaker 1: I wouldn't be in van Halen anymore. I never would 680 00:31:02,520 --> 00:31:05,000 Speaker 1: have done it. Like he seems genuinely sad about all this, 681 00:31:05,040 --> 00:31:07,400 Speaker 1: which I don't think Dave ever was. Throughout the eighties. 682 00:31:07,440 --> 00:31:09,400 Speaker 1: I mean, Dave was in the wings kind of like 683 00:31:09,400 --> 00:31:12,600 Speaker 1: a w w F fighter, trash Chalk and Sammy every 684 00:31:12,680 --> 00:31:14,560 Speaker 1: chance he could in the press, and like, you know, 685 00:31:15,160 --> 00:31:18,320 Speaker 1: there's a singer, Sammy, Hagar is a singer, but I'm 686 00:31:18,440 --> 00:31:21,240 Speaker 1: the singer. I think one of his great quotes, So, like, 687 00:31:21,520 --> 00:31:24,440 Speaker 1: you know, Dave never really had that kind of regret. 688 00:31:24,440 --> 00:31:27,000 Speaker 1: I don't think where Sammy seemed very quickly, like very 689 00:31:27,040 --> 00:31:29,200 Speaker 1: sad about all this in the short run, though he 690 00:31:29,240 --> 00:31:31,720 Speaker 1: did take some shots at the van Hillen brothers, and 691 00:31:31,800 --> 00:31:34,840 Speaker 1: of course, like his book read is like brutal to 692 00:31:35,320 --> 00:31:37,520 Speaker 1: uh to both of them, but especially Eddie van Halen. 693 00:31:37,760 --> 00:31:40,440 Speaker 1: But in the short run he puts up the solo 694 00:31:40,480 --> 00:31:43,840 Speaker 1: record called Marching to Mars, which is another alien reference, 695 00:31:43,880 --> 00:31:46,560 Speaker 1: I guess, And the album kicks off with a song 696 00:31:46,600 --> 00:31:49,120 Speaker 1: called Little White Lie, which is him basically just like 697 00:31:49,360 --> 00:31:52,200 Speaker 1: venting about what he sees again as the van Halen 698 00:31:52,240 --> 00:31:54,240 Speaker 1: brothers stabbing him in the back, you know, sleeping with 699 00:31:54,280 --> 00:31:56,560 Speaker 1: the enemy, as it were, by working with David Lee Roth. 700 00:31:56,880 --> 00:31:59,840 Speaker 1: Also like that album, it ends with a song called 701 00:32:00,120 --> 00:32:02,600 Speaker 1: Both Sides Now, which is not the Joni Mitchell song, 702 00:32:02,640 --> 00:32:06,560 Speaker 1: although it'd be hilarious were if he's saying the Joy 703 00:32:06,640 --> 00:32:08,680 Speaker 1: Mitchell song. But like that song is, you know, it's 704 00:32:08,680 --> 00:32:10,760 Speaker 1: like he vented his spleen on the first track, but 705 00:32:10,800 --> 00:32:13,120 Speaker 1: now he's like a little bit more reflective. And there's 706 00:32:13,160 --> 00:32:14,760 Speaker 1: the line of the song where he says, yeah, we 707 00:32:14,840 --> 00:32:16,840 Speaker 1: gotta learn how to listen before we learn how to talk. 708 00:32:17,120 --> 00:32:19,120 Speaker 1: We gotta learn how to crawl before we learn to walk. 709 00:32:19,480 --> 00:32:21,440 Speaker 1: If you want a little piece, sometimes you gotta fight. 710 00:32:21,520 --> 00:32:23,520 Speaker 1: We gotta walk through the darkness before we stand in 711 00:32:23,560 --> 00:32:26,240 Speaker 1: the light. Oh, yeah, that's about this philosophical as uh 712 00:32:26,440 --> 00:32:29,840 Speaker 1: Sammy Hagar gets in his lyrics. You can feel like 713 00:32:30,120 --> 00:32:32,320 Speaker 1: that regret. I think a little bit there that Okay, 714 00:32:32,360 --> 00:32:34,480 Speaker 1: maybe you know, we could have talked this out, like 715 00:32:34,520 --> 00:32:36,440 Speaker 1: we had a great thing going, maybe just take a 716 00:32:36,480 --> 00:32:39,120 Speaker 1: breather and then come back, but instead we've just blown 717 00:32:39,160 --> 00:32:41,800 Speaker 1: up this hugely profitable band. My favorite part about that 718 00:32:41,840 --> 00:32:44,360 Speaker 1: album too, is that he gets Slash into play. I 719 00:32:44,360 --> 00:32:46,000 Speaker 1: think it was on a Little White Lie actually, the 720 00:32:46,040 --> 00:32:47,960 Speaker 1: song where he's venting his spleen, and I always thought 721 00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:49,880 Speaker 1: that was a message, like you know what, because this 722 00:32:49,920 --> 00:32:51,680 Speaker 1: was when Slash was on the outs with Axel and 723 00:32:51,720 --> 00:32:54,680 Speaker 1: I thought, Okay, I'm gonna get my own guitar god 724 00:32:54,960 --> 00:32:57,840 Speaker 1: Eddie and my own guitar god who hates his lead singer, 725 00:32:57,920 --> 00:32:59,440 Speaker 1: And like, you know, see, I feel like that was 726 00:32:59,480 --> 00:33:02,560 Speaker 1: just him like sort of openly replacing him in a 727 00:33:02,600 --> 00:33:04,960 Speaker 1: in a small way on that song, like look like 728 00:33:04,960 --> 00:33:06,880 Speaker 1: we can David Rock try the same thing when he 729 00:33:06,920 --> 00:33:10,200 Speaker 1: brought in Steve I on his early solo records and like, yeah, 730 00:33:10,200 --> 00:33:12,840 Speaker 1: everyone is always just trying to replace Eddie van Halen, 731 00:33:12,880 --> 00:33:15,800 Speaker 1: which of course you cannot do. Like Evan Helen is 732 00:33:15,880 --> 00:33:17,479 Speaker 1: Eddy van Helen, and I gotta say to that, Like 733 00:33:17,600 --> 00:33:20,800 Speaker 1: the Van Hagar records, you know, even if like Sammy 734 00:33:20,840 --> 00:33:22,840 Speaker 1: Hagar isn't your cup of tea, there is still like 735 00:33:22,920 --> 00:33:25,760 Speaker 1: some pretty great Edie van Halen guitar and Alex van 736 00:33:25,760 --> 00:33:27,760 Speaker 1: Halen drums on those records. Like I was listening to 737 00:33:27,800 --> 00:33:30,400 Speaker 1: oh You eight one two, which is an album as 738 00:33:30,480 --> 00:33:34,040 Speaker 1: dumb as that album title basically, but like if you 739 00:33:34,160 --> 00:33:36,800 Speaker 1: just listen to the instrumental tracks, there's like some hot 740 00:33:36,840 --> 00:33:39,760 Speaker 1: playing on that record. Same with Foreign level Kernel knowledge, 741 00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:43,400 Speaker 1: Like there's some like terrible lyrics like the song Sucker 742 00:33:43,400 --> 00:33:45,520 Speaker 1: and a three piece from oh U eight one two 743 00:33:46,000 --> 00:33:49,520 Speaker 1: so stupid, or black and Blue, which you know you 744 00:33:49,560 --> 00:33:51,680 Speaker 1: can just tell from the title that's just like a 745 00:33:51,720 --> 00:33:54,520 Speaker 1: gross sex song. But you know those guys could play 746 00:33:54,520 --> 00:33:57,719 Speaker 1: and they and they could elevate even like terrible lyrics, 747 00:33:57,920 --> 00:34:00,479 Speaker 1: whereas like I'm marching to Mars I don't know Slash 748 00:34:00,520 --> 00:34:03,840 Speaker 1: can like elevate Sammy Hagar's terrible lyrics in the same 749 00:34:03,840 --> 00:34:06,360 Speaker 1: way that Eddie Van Halen ken No yeah, I mean 750 00:34:06,720 --> 00:34:08,800 Speaker 1: also even mentioned powder Kick Yet, which is one of 751 00:34:08,880 --> 00:34:12,279 Speaker 1: my favorite songs in the Van Hagar Our bound Cake 752 00:34:12,320 --> 00:34:17,320 Speaker 1: Pound Cakes Yeah, pound cake exactly pound cake. Stupid stupid title, 753 00:34:17,680 --> 00:34:21,600 Speaker 1: stupid lyrics, but pretty like rock and music. So you know, 754 00:34:21,680 --> 00:34:23,520 Speaker 1: that was always the case. I think with Van Hagar 755 00:34:23,719 --> 00:34:25,719 Speaker 1: much more than with David the rock where I think, 756 00:34:25,719 --> 00:34:27,800 Speaker 1: like the lyrics and the music, we're working more in 757 00:34:27,920 --> 00:34:30,640 Speaker 1: concert with each other. We talked about this last week, 758 00:34:30,719 --> 00:34:32,680 Speaker 1: But there was the Sammy Hagar and David the Rock 759 00:34:32,760 --> 00:34:35,719 Speaker 1: tour that occurred in the early odds, which was during 760 00:34:35,719 --> 00:34:38,960 Speaker 1: this period was post the Gary Sharone era where you know, 761 00:34:39,000 --> 00:34:42,319 Speaker 1: they put up Van Halen three, that record just tanks 762 00:34:42,400 --> 00:34:45,719 Speaker 1: and Van Halen goes on yatis for an extended period 763 00:34:45,760 --> 00:34:47,960 Speaker 1: of time. Eddie van Halen really kind of lapses into 764 00:34:48,000 --> 00:34:50,880 Speaker 1: a dark period of alcoholism in the early odds, and 765 00:34:50,960 --> 00:34:53,799 Speaker 1: the idea again like for this Hagar davidly rock tour 766 00:34:53,920 --> 00:34:56,680 Speaker 1: was that, Like, I think it was partly to troll 767 00:34:57,040 --> 00:34:58,879 Speaker 1: the van Halen brothers, but I think also I think, 768 00:34:59,000 --> 00:35:01,560 Speaker 1: certainly from Sammy hag Our perspective, it was also to 769 00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:04,960 Speaker 1: kind of goad them back into touring again. Yeah, I 770 00:35:05,000 --> 00:35:08,200 Speaker 1: can't tell if he knew that. I mean, he openly 771 00:35:08,239 --> 00:35:10,319 Speaker 1: said like this was the pist off Alex and Eddie, 772 00:35:10,480 --> 00:35:12,319 Speaker 1: So I know, I feel like almost that was at 773 00:35:12,480 --> 00:35:15,680 Speaker 1: least it right there that that's my gut. It would 774 00:35:15,680 --> 00:35:17,759 Speaker 1: be nice to think if that actually was responsible for 775 00:35:17,800 --> 00:35:20,239 Speaker 1: the two thousand four reunion, although when we get to 776 00:35:20,280 --> 00:35:22,680 Speaker 1: the two thousand four reunion with such a disaster that 777 00:35:22,760 --> 00:35:24,520 Speaker 1: I'm sure you'd probably be crab. I think like in 778 00:35:24,520 --> 00:35:27,120 Speaker 1: the Ian Christie book, there's a bit and there about 779 00:35:27,120 --> 00:35:29,560 Speaker 1: how I think Sammy Hagar felt like, oh, if I 780 00:35:29,600 --> 00:35:32,319 Speaker 1: can just show them how many fans still want to 781 00:35:32,520 --> 00:35:35,480 Speaker 1: hear this music, that it will inspire them maybe to 782 00:35:35,560 --> 00:35:38,440 Speaker 1: like get out of whatever funk they're in and get 783 00:35:38,480 --> 00:35:40,799 Speaker 1: the band back together again. And as much of a 784 00:35:40,840 --> 00:35:42,960 Speaker 1: train wreck in a lot of ways is that Sammy 785 00:35:43,120 --> 00:35:45,799 Speaker 1: Hagar and David Lee Ross tour was. It was like 786 00:35:45,880 --> 00:35:48,960 Speaker 1: pretty successful, like they played large venues, they sold a 787 00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:51,560 Speaker 1: lot of tickets, and you know, whether it was directly 788 00:35:51,600 --> 00:35:54,759 Speaker 1: responsible or not for the reunion, Sammy Hagar did end 789 00:35:54,800 --> 00:35:57,040 Speaker 1: up back in the Fold in two thousand four. And 790 00:35:57,480 --> 00:36:00,319 Speaker 1: this era is so dark, but it began with uh 791 00:36:00,600 --> 00:36:03,120 Speaker 1: with some good feelings like that they taught became was 792 00:36:03,440 --> 00:36:07,400 Speaker 1: a phone call between Sammy and Alex van Halen and 793 00:36:07,400 --> 00:36:12,120 Speaker 1: they encouraged him to stop by and Uh and jam 794 00:36:12,160 --> 00:36:13,600 Speaker 1: a little bit and just kind of, you know, see 795 00:36:13,640 --> 00:36:16,120 Speaker 1: if they could get the old magic back. And Uh. 796 00:36:16,200 --> 00:36:20,200 Speaker 1: In Sammy's memoir he describes it's like it's too bleak 797 00:36:20,239 --> 00:36:23,080 Speaker 1: to even quote this, like really dark scene with Eddie 798 00:36:23,360 --> 00:36:26,719 Speaker 1: really descended an alcoholism. And he's walking around with like 799 00:36:26,760 --> 00:36:29,239 Speaker 1: you know, rope for a belt and like boots with 800 00:36:29,280 --> 00:36:31,680 Speaker 1: like gaffer tape over him to cover the holes, and 801 00:36:31,719 --> 00:36:34,960 Speaker 1: he's he's drinking wine out of a bottle and it's 802 00:36:35,000 --> 00:36:38,120 Speaker 1: just rough, but he can still He's still Eddie van 803 00:36:38,160 --> 00:36:41,040 Speaker 1: Halen and Uh, Eddie and Alex start playing some music 804 00:36:41,040 --> 00:36:43,000 Speaker 1: that they've been working on, and he said it just 805 00:36:43,040 --> 00:36:46,480 Speaker 1: sounded great. He was really inspired by it. So they decided, 806 00:36:46,520 --> 00:36:48,200 Speaker 1: you want, we're gonna start fresh. We're gonna do this, 807 00:36:48,200 --> 00:36:50,480 Speaker 1: We're gonna rise above it. And they decided to make 808 00:36:50,560 --> 00:36:52,960 Speaker 1: a new album and it was supposed to be a 809 00:36:52,960 --> 00:36:54,759 Speaker 1: full length album. It was gonna be called the Best 810 00:36:54,760 --> 00:36:59,840 Speaker 1: of both Worlds and Uh. They recorded some songs and 811 00:37:00,280 --> 00:37:02,520 Speaker 1: they were in a couple of weeks they recorded I 812 00:37:02,520 --> 00:37:05,000 Speaker 1: think almost the full album's worth, and they were waiting 813 00:37:05,000 --> 00:37:07,400 Speaker 1: for Eddie to put his guitar solos on it and 814 00:37:07,600 --> 00:37:09,680 Speaker 1: Corn to Sammy at least Eddie was just in no 815 00:37:09,840 --> 00:37:11,920 Speaker 1: state to do it, and it was just taken months 816 00:37:11,960 --> 00:37:14,240 Speaker 1: to get these solos on and it was just taken 817 00:37:14,640 --> 00:37:18,200 Speaker 1: way too long. So instead they decided to put out 818 00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:21,480 Speaker 1: a Van Halen or Van Hagar I guess era Greatest 819 00:37:21,520 --> 00:37:24,000 Speaker 1: Hits album and put these new songs on it. Uh 820 00:37:24,040 --> 00:37:26,680 Speaker 1: and tour. I love that. Like Sammy Hagar in his 821 00:37:26,760 --> 00:37:30,040 Speaker 1: book Read describes Eddie van Halen as quote the weirdest 822 00:37:30,080 --> 00:37:35,160 Speaker 1: funck I've ever seen. I mean, yeah, that's what he 823 00:37:35,200 --> 00:37:37,719 Speaker 1: wasn't that air? I guess? Yeah, he's just in rough shape. 824 00:37:37,760 --> 00:37:40,319 Speaker 1: There's this terrible story that he tells in the book 825 00:37:40,360 --> 00:37:42,120 Speaker 1: about how, you know, they were getting ready to go 826 00:37:42,160 --> 00:37:44,359 Speaker 1: on the road, you know for and by the way, yeah, 827 00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:46,279 Speaker 1: like those tracks that they recorded, I don't think they've 828 00:37:46,280 --> 00:37:48,399 Speaker 1: ever been released, have they. I mean that I don't 829 00:37:48,400 --> 00:37:51,200 Speaker 1: think that's this time, and that's probably for the best. 830 00:37:51,320 --> 00:37:53,800 Speaker 1: But there's this terrible story about how they were getting 831 00:37:53,800 --> 00:37:55,400 Speaker 1: ready for the tour and like Eddie van Halen was 832 00:37:55,440 --> 00:37:57,520 Speaker 1: not in good shape. He was drinking a lot and 833 00:37:57,719 --> 00:38:00,279 Speaker 1: he says, according to Sammy Hagar, at one point he says, 834 00:38:00,280 --> 00:38:02,879 Speaker 1: I will kill the first motherfucker that tries to take 835 00:38:02,880 --> 00:38:05,440 Speaker 1: this bottle away from me. I left my family for 836 00:38:05,440 --> 00:38:07,520 Speaker 1: this ship. You think I'm gonna do it for you guys, 837 00:38:08,040 --> 00:38:11,640 Speaker 1: which is just that is the darkest behind the music 838 00:38:11,840 --> 00:38:14,600 Speaker 1: moment ever. But it just it speaks to like, how 839 00:38:14,760 --> 00:38:16,480 Speaker 1: you know, they're trying to get back on the road again. 840 00:38:16,520 --> 00:38:19,160 Speaker 1: This is a very profitable brand, and I remember that 841 00:38:19,239 --> 00:38:21,399 Speaker 1: the expectations for this tour, even though it wasn't rough, 842 00:38:21,520 --> 00:38:24,000 Speaker 1: I mean, the Van Hager, I think Erro was already 843 00:38:24,080 --> 00:38:26,960 Speaker 1: kind of like had receded in a steam by this time. 844 00:38:27,160 --> 00:38:28,799 Speaker 1: But people were still excited. I mean they were still 845 00:38:28,800 --> 00:38:30,880 Speaker 1: playing arenas, and I think there were a lot of 846 00:38:30,920 --> 00:38:33,560 Speaker 1: there's a lot of excitement at least initially, but yeah, 847 00:38:33,600 --> 00:38:36,000 Speaker 1: they just could not really get their act together behind 848 00:38:36,000 --> 00:38:38,080 Speaker 1: the scenes. Yeah, I mean they went on the road, 849 00:38:38,120 --> 00:38:40,799 Speaker 1: they just they decided to put the album on ice permanently, 850 00:38:41,280 --> 00:38:43,800 Speaker 1: and uh and Eddie was just in a bad way 851 00:38:44,000 --> 00:38:47,160 Speaker 1: throughout this tour, I mean, flooding solos and forgetting songs 852 00:38:47,200 --> 00:38:49,520 Speaker 1: and at one show he kept tripping over his guitar 853 00:38:49,640 --> 00:38:51,920 Speaker 1: cable and I'm plugging it in some so some hapless 854 00:38:51,960 --> 00:38:54,120 Speaker 1: guitar tech. At the following around the whole show, just 855 00:38:54,160 --> 00:38:57,240 Speaker 1: to make sure he's plugged in. Bad bad vibes all around. 856 00:38:57,239 --> 00:38:59,200 Speaker 1: I guess after one show there was nearly a full 857 00:38:59,239 --> 00:39:02,960 Speaker 1: scale brawl backstage. In in Sammy's memoirs a lot of 858 00:39:03,000 --> 00:39:06,640 Speaker 1: really horrific backstage stories about Eddie flipping out on him, 859 00:39:06,680 --> 00:39:09,359 Speaker 1: and I guess after one show, Sammy decided to take 860 00:39:09,400 --> 00:39:12,200 Speaker 1: a shower before heading to their private plane, and when 861 00:39:12,200 --> 00:39:14,200 Speaker 1: he got on the plane, Eddie was waiting for him 862 00:39:14,200 --> 00:39:16,680 Speaker 1: and basically, don't you ever make me fucking wait for 863 00:39:16,719 --> 00:39:19,799 Speaker 1: you again. Without me, You're nothing. You need me. You'll 864 00:39:19,800 --> 00:39:21,919 Speaker 1: see at the end of this tour, you guys will 865 00:39:21,960 --> 00:39:24,000 Speaker 1: have nothing. You're gonna have to call me if you 866 00:39:24,040 --> 00:39:26,640 Speaker 1: ever want to tour again. Which is quite a thing 867 00:39:26,680 --> 00:39:28,680 Speaker 1: to say to somebody for taking a shower and making 868 00:39:28,680 --> 00:39:31,719 Speaker 1: you wait a little bit. Uh So, yeah, bad bad 869 00:39:31,800 --> 00:39:33,759 Speaker 1: vibes on this tour all around. But I know you 870 00:39:33,800 --> 00:39:36,359 Speaker 1: saw this tour. How was that? This is the only 871 00:39:36,400 --> 00:39:39,560 Speaker 1: time I saw Van Halen who was on the tour 872 00:39:39,800 --> 00:39:42,440 Speaker 1: where Eddie van Hillen was fall down drunk and Sammy 873 00:39:42,440 --> 00:39:44,239 Speaker 1: Hagar was hitting everyone in the band like that was 874 00:39:44,280 --> 00:39:46,160 Speaker 1: the only time I saw them. My memory of it 875 00:39:46,239 --> 00:39:48,719 Speaker 1: is that it was like pretty good, like I enjoyed it. 876 00:39:48,760 --> 00:39:51,520 Speaker 1: I think my standards were probably pretty low because you know, 877 00:39:51,560 --> 00:39:53,120 Speaker 1: I listened to Van Halen since I was like a 878 00:39:53,120 --> 00:39:56,239 Speaker 1: little kid, and I was just excited see any incarnation 879 00:39:56,280 --> 00:39:58,200 Speaker 1: of them. A notable thing about this tour as far 880 00:39:58,239 --> 00:40:00,399 Speaker 1: as Sammy Hagar goes, is that he did say some 881 00:40:00,600 --> 00:40:03,120 Speaker 1: roth era songs on this tour. I remember he did 882 00:40:03,200 --> 00:40:05,759 Speaker 1: jump and he might have done like some songs from 883 00:40:05,800 --> 00:40:08,600 Speaker 1: the first record, so he had definitely loosened up on 884 00:40:08,640 --> 00:40:13,319 Speaker 1: that by this time. But yeah, you read about this 885 00:40:13,360 --> 00:40:15,799 Speaker 1: tour and like you have to laugh, even though it 886 00:40:15,880 --> 00:40:18,200 Speaker 1: is again depressing because Eddie van Halen is such a 887 00:40:18,239 --> 00:40:20,600 Speaker 1: great musician and this was like a low point for him. 888 00:40:20,920 --> 00:40:23,799 Speaker 1: There's that story I think they're playing in Chicago where 889 00:40:23,800 --> 00:40:25,719 Speaker 1: he was in the middle of a solo and he 890 00:40:25,800 --> 00:40:29,000 Speaker 1: stops playing and he says, sorry, folks, I've run out 891 00:40:29,000 --> 00:40:32,480 Speaker 1: of gas. Like he just stopped like that, which is 892 00:40:32,520 --> 00:40:35,359 Speaker 1: just incredible. And you know, again he's just drinking a lot, 893 00:40:35,400 --> 00:40:37,160 Speaker 1: and it sounds like, you know, either because he was 894 00:40:37,239 --> 00:40:39,359 Speaker 1: drunk or because he was just sick of Sammy Hagar. 895 00:40:39,440 --> 00:40:42,719 Speaker 1: He was like just openly disrespectful. The Sammy Hagar. There's 896 00:40:42,760 --> 00:40:45,400 Speaker 1: that other story where, like I guess backstage at a 897 00:40:45,440 --> 00:40:47,000 Speaker 1: show like this was towards the end of the tour, 898 00:40:47,600 --> 00:40:50,560 Speaker 1: he pointed at Sammy's Kabbo Wabo tattoo and he said, 899 00:40:50,920 --> 00:40:53,560 Speaker 1: that thing ain't gonna last. And then he pointed to 900 00:40:53,640 --> 00:40:55,799 Speaker 1: like his own Van Halen tattoo and he said, see 901 00:40:55,800 --> 00:40:58,879 Speaker 1: that that's better. That's that's going to last longer. Now, 902 00:40:59,000 --> 00:41:01,880 Speaker 1: should be noted that Sammy Hagar he sold like a 903 00:41:01,960 --> 00:41:06,400 Speaker 1: share of his tequila company, the Kabbo Wabbo Tequila uh company, 904 00:41:06,600 --> 00:41:09,200 Speaker 1: for like eighty million dollars. Like he made a ton 905 00:41:09,239 --> 00:41:12,040 Speaker 1: of money from his tequila company. So like the Cobba 906 00:41:12,080 --> 00:41:15,120 Speaker 1: Wabbo tattoo, Eddie Van Halen, you maybe pay some respect 907 00:41:15,200 --> 00:41:18,879 Speaker 1: to that, to the Kabbo wob because Sammy Hagar made 908 00:41:18,880 --> 00:41:21,320 Speaker 1: that happen Jimmy Buffett style. But yeah, this tour was 909 00:41:21,360 --> 00:41:23,840 Speaker 1: a disaster, and I think again, like I think Alex 910 00:41:23,880 --> 00:41:26,719 Speaker 1: van Halen was still holding out hope that like, oh 911 00:41:26,760 --> 00:41:29,279 Speaker 1: maybe we can salvage the album. Oh yeah, I mean 912 00:41:29,320 --> 00:41:31,239 Speaker 1: they were barely talking to each other. Sammy and the 913 00:41:31,280 --> 00:41:35,040 Speaker 1: Van Halen's had separate jets, separate hotels, separate limos, even 914 00:41:35,080 --> 00:41:38,040 Speaker 1: separate security. I mean, it was just completely that they 915 00:41:38,040 --> 00:41:40,400 Speaker 1: were They were not on speaking terms at this point, 916 00:41:40,400 --> 00:41:43,560 Speaker 1: and Sammy just went down to uh down the Cabo 917 00:41:43,719 --> 00:41:48,000 Speaker 1: to become a liquor baron basically and make his music 918 00:41:48,040 --> 00:41:52,280 Speaker 1: with the robber Rita's Yes, a tequila magnate. Now, another 919 00:41:52,320 --> 00:41:54,359 Speaker 1: notable thing about the two thousand four tour is that 920 00:41:54,440 --> 00:41:58,360 Speaker 1: it was the final tour with Michael Anthony, who, again 921 00:41:58,840 --> 00:42:01,399 Speaker 1: we've barely talked about Michael Anthony in our van Halen 922 00:42:01,400 --> 00:42:04,919 Speaker 1: episodes because he has rivals with no one. He's he's 923 00:42:04,960 --> 00:42:07,880 Speaker 1: a nice guy. He's like the nicest guy in Van Halen, 924 00:42:07,960 --> 00:42:10,480 Speaker 1: and yet he got treated very poorly by the van 925 00:42:10,520 --> 00:42:12,080 Speaker 1: Halen brothers. I don't think there's any other way to 926 00:42:12,120 --> 00:42:14,160 Speaker 1: put it, and he ends up getting kicked out of 927 00:42:14,200 --> 00:42:16,960 Speaker 1: the band in favor of Wolfgang and evan Halen's son, 928 00:42:17,040 --> 00:42:19,200 Speaker 1: who joins the band on the two thousand seven tour 929 00:42:19,239 --> 00:42:20,840 Speaker 1: that they ended up doing with David E. Roth and 930 00:42:20,880 --> 00:42:23,879 Speaker 1: Wolfgang van Halen. He's like, what like thirteen fourteen years 931 00:42:23,880 --> 00:42:27,480 Speaker 1: old at this time, so talented kid, but somewhat of 932 00:42:27,520 --> 00:42:30,600 Speaker 1: an insult to Michael Anthony. A charter member of this band, 933 00:42:30,719 --> 00:42:33,200 Speaker 1: someone who I don't think anyone would call a bass 934 00:42:33,200 --> 00:42:36,719 Speaker 1: playing virtuoso, but his vocal is backing vocals on Van 935 00:42:36,760 --> 00:42:38,720 Speaker 1: Halen songs are such a signature part of their sound, 936 00:42:38,920 --> 00:42:41,280 Speaker 1: and also just his presence on stage. He's always smiling 937 00:42:41,560 --> 00:42:44,960 Speaker 1: playing the Jack Daniels bass. For as much darkness and 938 00:42:45,040 --> 00:42:46,960 Speaker 1: rancor that has existed in this band, it seems like 939 00:42:47,000 --> 00:42:49,839 Speaker 1: Michael Anthony in a way is like the most sort 940 00:42:49,880 --> 00:42:52,399 Speaker 1: of genuinely party hardy guy in the band. Like he's 941 00:42:52,440 --> 00:42:53,759 Speaker 1: the one that you would want to hang out with 942 00:42:53,840 --> 00:42:56,319 Speaker 1: the most, I would think. But and evan Halen like 943 00:42:56,400 --> 00:42:59,120 Speaker 1: really like went after him in interviews like and kind 944 00:42:59,120 --> 00:43:01,680 Speaker 1: of took away any recognition that he might have had 945 00:43:01,680 --> 00:43:04,280 Speaker 1: from people. Like he talked about how like he basically 946 00:43:04,320 --> 00:43:06,840 Speaker 1: would either like tell Michael Anthony want to play or 947 00:43:06,880 --> 00:43:09,640 Speaker 1: like play bass himself on a lot of songs. And 948 00:43:09,680 --> 00:43:11,880 Speaker 1: he even like said that like, you know those backing 949 00:43:11,960 --> 00:43:14,600 Speaker 1: vocals you're on Van Halen records, it's like I'm singing 950 00:43:14,600 --> 00:43:16,719 Speaker 1: to like that's as much me as him. So like 951 00:43:16,760 --> 00:43:19,359 Speaker 1: even like the backing vocal thing, he couldn't let Michael 952 00:43:19,400 --> 00:43:22,000 Speaker 1: Anthony have that, He said, he sounds like a piccolo. 953 00:43:22,160 --> 00:43:24,319 Speaker 1: It's so sad to me. Yeah exactly. He said he's 954 00:43:24,360 --> 00:43:26,600 Speaker 1: got a high voice, basically saying that, like he has 955 00:43:26,640 --> 00:43:28,960 Speaker 1: like a piccolo like voice, and I'm like the conductor 956 00:43:29,000 --> 00:43:31,560 Speaker 1: who's like using his voice in a very specific way 957 00:43:31,560 --> 00:43:33,040 Speaker 1: because that's all it can do. But it's like he's 958 00:43:33,080 --> 00:43:34,960 Speaker 1: not really a great singer, Like I'm as good of 959 00:43:35,000 --> 00:43:37,239 Speaker 1: a singer as him. It's like, Eddie, come on, man, 960 00:43:37,320 --> 00:43:39,839 Speaker 1: like you already have the name in the band and 961 00:43:39,880 --> 00:43:42,319 Speaker 1: you're a guitar playing genius. We all recognize that. Let 962 00:43:42,360 --> 00:43:46,239 Speaker 1: Michael Anthony have his backing vocal, DAP have his one thing. Yeah, 963 00:43:46,320 --> 00:43:49,480 Speaker 1: I mean, and you really you wonder what actually started 964 00:43:49,520 --> 00:43:53,040 Speaker 1: this between them, because apparently it was that Eddie was 965 00:43:53,080 --> 00:43:56,240 Speaker 1: mad that he was stayed friends with Sammy after the split, 966 00:43:56,400 --> 00:43:59,200 Speaker 1: which is really weird. Like when they were going on 967 00:43:59,200 --> 00:44:01,840 Speaker 1: there two thousand a reunion tour with Sammy, they didn't 968 00:44:01,840 --> 00:44:04,239 Speaker 1: want Michael back in the band, and it was part 969 00:44:04,239 --> 00:44:06,799 Speaker 1: of Sammy's conditions for joinings. We gotta got Mike Anthony back. 970 00:44:07,000 --> 00:44:09,200 Speaker 1: But it makes no sense, like if you're gonna bring 971 00:44:09,719 --> 00:44:12,959 Speaker 1: Sammy back, why are you still mad at this guy 972 00:44:13,080 --> 00:44:14,960 Speaker 1: for being friends with Sammy? I don't know, it's just 973 00:44:15,160 --> 00:44:17,560 Speaker 1: it's the whole like Van Halen Brothers almost like mafia 974 00:44:17,680 --> 00:44:20,120 Speaker 1: style US and them like you're on the outside kind 975 00:44:20,120 --> 00:44:22,960 Speaker 1: of thing. But I think with Michael was really cruel, 976 00:44:23,000 --> 00:44:25,359 Speaker 1: and all those interviews that Eddie gave where he said, 977 00:44:25,400 --> 00:44:28,000 Speaker 1: like Michael would would bring a cam qorder over and 978 00:44:28,200 --> 00:44:30,520 Speaker 1: film Eddie playing bass parts so that he could go 979 00:44:30,560 --> 00:44:33,040 Speaker 1: home on work on him like a bass tutorial privately 980 00:44:33,600 --> 00:44:36,960 Speaker 1: is sad and Sammy took a lot of offense to 981 00:44:37,000 --> 00:44:40,160 Speaker 1: that too, and he went on his Facebook page and 982 00:44:40,239 --> 00:44:42,560 Speaker 1: had some video I think right after when Eddie's interviews 983 00:44:42,560 --> 00:44:45,239 Speaker 1: where he was slacking off Michael basically saying like that's 984 00:44:45,400 --> 00:44:48,440 Speaker 1: the biggest load of horseshit ever. And also Michael is 985 00:44:48,440 --> 00:44:50,120 Speaker 1: a great guy, which I don't think I've ever heard 986 00:44:50,120 --> 00:44:53,960 Speaker 1: anyone say anything bad about Michael. Throut the entire Van 987 00:44:54,000 --> 00:44:57,000 Speaker 1: Halen saga which is filled with bad behavior, and you 988 00:44:57,080 --> 00:44:59,440 Speaker 1: go back to when he joined the band. David Lee 989 00:44:59,480 --> 00:45:01,360 Speaker 1: Roth joined the band because he rented them a p 990 00:45:01,560 --> 00:45:04,439 Speaker 1: A set. Michael Anthony joined the band because he gave 991 00:45:04,520 --> 00:45:06,279 Speaker 1: them a p A set one night when their p 992 00:45:06,400 --> 00:45:08,600 Speaker 1: A broke down. I think that just shows like what 993 00:45:08,640 --> 00:45:10,759 Speaker 1: a good heart this guy has. And this, you know, 994 00:45:10,800 --> 00:45:14,040 Speaker 1: in a group that you know isn't really known for 995 00:45:14,040 --> 00:45:17,120 Speaker 1: for showing a hell of a lot of loyalty. Uh yeah, 996 00:45:17,280 --> 00:45:19,600 Speaker 1: A big fan of Michael Anthony. He didn't deserve any 997 00:45:19,600 --> 00:45:21,600 Speaker 1: of that. Yeah, And the biggest bummer for fans is 998 00:45:21,640 --> 00:45:24,680 Speaker 1: that they were robbed of like a genuine Van Halen reunion, 999 00:45:24,719 --> 00:45:26,520 Speaker 1: Like when David Lee Roth came back in the band 1000 00:45:26,640 --> 00:45:28,920 Speaker 1: Wolfgang was the bass player, and you know, look, I 1001 00:45:28,960 --> 00:45:32,799 Speaker 1: can appreciate Eddie van Helen loving his son, wanting to 1002 00:45:32,840 --> 00:45:34,960 Speaker 1: play with his son, and I'm sure it was great 1003 00:45:35,080 --> 00:45:36,839 Speaker 1: for the van Halen brothers to have like the next 1004 00:45:36,880 --> 00:45:39,600 Speaker 1: generation playing in the band in much the same way 1005 00:45:39,600 --> 00:45:41,799 Speaker 1: that like their own father, Jan van Halen would play 1006 00:45:41,880 --> 00:45:43,840 Speaker 1: with his kids. And it was like, Okay, we're passing 1007 00:45:44,120 --> 00:45:47,360 Speaker 1: on this heritage to the next generation. But like you 1008 00:45:47,480 --> 00:45:50,520 Speaker 1: reconcile with Sammy Hagar for a while and Michael Anthony 1009 00:45:50,600 --> 00:45:52,719 Speaker 1: was there and it was great. Then you finally get 1010 00:45:52,800 --> 00:45:54,719 Speaker 1: David the Roth back in the band, but it's like, oh, 1011 00:45:54,760 --> 00:45:56,440 Speaker 1: it's still not a full fledged reunion. We're not going 1012 00:45:56,520 --> 00:45:59,000 Speaker 1: to see the four guys that we remember from the 1013 00:45:59,040 --> 00:46:02,319 Speaker 1: late seventies. And early eighties because this kid is there 1014 00:46:02,840 --> 00:46:05,400 Speaker 1: and it's just so sad that like they couldn't really 1015 00:46:06,040 --> 00:46:08,840 Speaker 1: do that calculus in their head that would say, like, Okay, well, 1016 00:46:08,880 --> 00:46:11,920 Speaker 1: Wolfgang is young, He's gonna have other opportunities. Let's at 1017 00:46:11,960 --> 00:46:14,600 Speaker 1: least do one tour where it's like the four original members. 1018 00:46:14,600 --> 00:46:16,520 Speaker 1: Like how amazing would that have been. It sounds like 1019 00:46:16,560 --> 00:46:18,880 Speaker 1: too that like that might have been in the works, 1020 00:46:18,920 --> 00:46:21,000 Speaker 1: like towards the end of Eddie Van Hillen's life, Like 1021 00:46:21,080 --> 00:46:23,600 Speaker 1: I think there were rumors in that they were going 1022 00:46:23,680 --> 00:46:26,640 Speaker 1: to maybe do a tour with Michael Anthony and then 1023 00:46:26,880 --> 00:46:29,000 Speaker 1: of course Eddie van Hillen got sick and they couldn't 1024 00:46:29,000 --> 00:46:31,239 Speaker 1: make it happen. Yeah, they might confirm that. He said 1025 00:46:31,239 --> 00:46:33,239 Speaker 1: that Irving as Off called and tried to gauge his 1026 00:46:33,280 --> 00:46:35,480 Speaker 1: interest in doing a big summer tour, but yeah, Eddie, 1027 00:46:35,600 --> 00:46:37,920 Speaker 1: Eddie's health was on with the client then and it 1028 00:46:37,920 --> 00:46:40,759 Speaker 1: it never happened. But that reunion was so close that 1029 00:46:40,760 --> 00:46:43,120 Speaker 1: would have been incredible. So I mean, if the Van 1030 00:46:43,200 --> 00:46:46,040 Speaker 1: Hillen brothers are on the outs with with Michael Anthony, 1031 00:46:46,080 --> 00:46:47,719 Speaker 1: the nicest man in rock, you know that it was 1032 00:46:47,719 --> 00:46:50,000 Speaker 1: going to be a hard road for them to reconcile 1033 00:46:50,040 --> 00:46:53,520 Speaker 1: with Sammy Hagar, especially after that two thousand four reunion tour, 1034 00:46:53,840 --> 00:46:56,360 Speaker 1: and of course then they subsequently get back together with 1035 00:46:56,440 --> 00:46:58,680 Speaker 1: David E. Roth And it just seems like really up 1036 00:46:58,760 --> 00:47:01,960 Speaker 1: until shortly before Van Halen died, that there was a 1037 00:47:01,960 --> 00:47:04,560 Speaker 1: fair amount of rancor between Sammy Hagar and the Van 1038 00:47:04,600 --> 00:47:07,479 Speaker 1: Halen camp. Yeah, especially when the Roth album A Different 1039 00:47:07,560 --> 00:47:09,360 Speaker 1: Kind of Truth came out. He gave an interview and 1040 00:47:09,440 --> 00:47:12,319 Speaker 1: Rolling Stone where he basically said that Edie couldn't write 1041 00:47:12,360 --> 00:47:15,000 Speaker 1: songs anymore. He was using old demos from the seventies 1042 00:47:15,040 --> 00:47:17,680 Speaker 1: and eighties. Uh for this new album. He said, well, 1043 00:47:17,680 --> 00:47:20,320 Speaker 1: those aren't really songs. And he said, it was always 1044 00:47:20,320 --> 00:47:22,080 Speaker 1: really easy for me to write songs with ed He 1045 00:47:22,120 --> 00:47:23,960 Speaker 1: had all these parts, and I had all these ideas. 1046 00:47:24,040 --> 00:47:26,080 Speaker 1: But it wasn't like he wrote instrumentals and I just 1047 00:47:26,160 --> 00:47:28,440 Speaker 1: had the right lyrics over him, he said, like Sammy said, 1048 00:47:28,520 --> 00:47:30,600 Speaker 1: I was an integral part to the writing process in 1049 00:47:30,640 --> 00:47:34,319 Speaker 1: the later years of of Van Hagar too, so uh. 1050 00:47:34,360 --> 00:47:36,759 Speaker 1: And obviously Eddie was not happy to hear that he 1051 00:47:36,760 --> 00:47:40,480 Speaker 1: could no longer write songs. Uh. So they fought in 1052 00:47:40,480 --> 00:47:46,279 Speaker 1: interviews for the next few years until until and that 1053 00:47:46,360 --> 00:47:49,879 Speaker 1: was the year that Prince died, Bowie died, Glenn Fry died, 1054 00:47:50,280 --> 00:47:53,759 Speaker 1: and um, and Sammy said, you know, I really don't 1055 00:47:53,760 --> 00:47:55,719 Speaker 1: want to carry this around with me anymore. So he 1056 00:47:55,760 --> 00:47:58,680 Speaker 1: started sort of tentatively reaching out to try to repair 1057 00:47:58,680 --> 00:48:01,839 Speaker 1: his relationship. I guess, like he tweeted at Eddie van 1058 00:48:01,880 --> 00:48:05,760 Speaker 1: Halen like happy Birthday, and Eddie wrote back, thanks, Sammy, 1059 00:48:05,840 --> 00:48:08,600 Speaker 1: hope you're well too, you know, not exactly overflowing with 1060 00:48:08,640 --> 00:48:12,719 Speaker 1: warmth there, cordial. It's cordial, you know. And I guess 1061 00:48:12,760 --> 00:48:14,920 Speaker 1: Sammy he went on Oprah that summer and he was 1062 00:48:15,000 --> 00:48:18,040 Speaker 1: like talking again about like he wants to patch things 1063 00:48:18,080 --> 00:48:19,920 Speaker 1: up with Eddie van Helen and he wants to be 1064 00:48:19,960 --> 00:48:22,040 Speaker 1: friends and not even almost kind of putting like the 1065 00:48:22,040 --> 00:48:24,719 Speaker 1: personal relationship first. Really like in the way he was 1066 00:48:24,719 --> 00:48:26,919 Speaker 1: talking about it, clearly I think he would have loved 1067 00:48:26,960 --> 00:48:30,319 Speaker 1: to have done more musically with Eddie van Halen. But again, 1068 00:48:30,360 --> 00:48:33,440 Speaker 1: these guys were actually like bros for like a decade, 1069 00:48:33,440 --> 00:48:34,919 Speaker 1: like when they were together. It wasn't like the David 1070 00:48:35,000 --> 00:48:36,800 Speaker 1: Lee Roth thing, which which was purely just kind of 1071 00:48:36,800 --> 00:48:40,040 Speaker 1: like a business relationship. Like I think he felt like, oh, 1072 00:48:40,040 --> 00:48:42,200 Speaker 1: this was a guy I was actually once pretty close 1073 00:48:42,239 --> 00:48:44,759 Speaker 1: to and now, you know, we've had all this bad 1074 00:48:44,760 --> 00:48:47,600 Speaker 1: blood for a while. And after Eddie van Halen died, 1075 00:48:47,640 --> 00:48:49,800 Speaker 1: Sammy Hagar talked about how in the final months of 1076 00:48:49,840 --> 00:48:51,839 Speaker 1: Edie van Halen's life that they were texting each other 1077 00:48:52,200 --> 00:48:54,920 Speaker 1: on a weekly basis, and it sounds like like towards 1078 00:48:54,960 --> 00:48:57,560 Speaker 1: the end that they were finally able to kind of 1079 00:48:57,680 --> 00:49:00,279 Speaker 1: achieve some measure of reconciliation. It sounds like, you know, 1080 00:49:00,320 --> 00:49:02,560 Speaker 1: they weren't as close as they maybe had once been, 1081 00:49:03,000 --> 00:49:05,400 Speaker 1: but they could you know, text regularly the way you 1082 00:49:05,400 --> 00:49:08,120 Speaker 1: went with an old friend and reconnect and and hopefully 1083 00:49:08,160 --> 00:49:09,839 Speaker 1: you know, tell each other what they meant to each other, 1084 00:49:10,400 --> 00:49:12,880 Speaker 1: you know before Eddie passed. Yeah, that's really wonderful that 1085 00:49:12,920 --> 00:49:15,040 Speaker 1: they had that. We're gonna take a quick break and 1086 00:49:15,160 --> 00:49:16,840 Speaker 1: get a word from our sponsor before we get to 1087 00:49:16,920 --> 00:49:27,920 Speaker 1: more rivals. All right, Well now, which is part of 1088 00:49:27,920 --> 00:49:29,719 Speaker 1: the episode where we give the pro side of each 1089 00:49:29,760 --> 00:49:32,839 Speaker 1: part of the rivalry. Let's talk about Sammy Hagar first. Um, 1090 00:49:32,880 --> 00:49:35,560 Speaker 1: you know I said this before I interviewed Sammy Hagar one. 1091 00:49:35,560 --> 00:49:37,480 Speaker 1: So this is like in two thousand eleven, and I 1092 00:49:37,480 --> 00:49:39,600 Speaker 1: thought he was like a really nice, gregarious guy, and 1093 00:49:39,640 --> 00:49:43,000 Speaker 1: it seems like, anecdotally that for the people who know him, 1094 00:49:43,040 --> 00:49:46,440 Speaker 1: like that's a common takeaway with Sammy Hagar. He's just 1095 00:49:46,480 --> 00:49:49,759 Speaker 1: like this big puppy who wears swift flops and drinks tequila, 1096 00:49:50,000 --> 00:49:53,919 Speaker 1: you know, like the Spuds Mackenzie of singers, and uh, 1097 00:49:54,200 --> 00:49:55,880 Speaker 1: you know, as a singer and songwriter, he is the 1098 00:49:55,920 --> 00:49:59,279 Speaker 1: opposite of like a subtle and artful artist. But he 1099 00:49:59,320 --> 00:50:01,640 Speaker 1: does get the I'm done And you can't discount how 1100 00:50:01,680 --> 00:50:04,480 Speaker 1: difficult it was to follow someone like David Lee Roth 1101 00:50:04,560 --> 00:50:06,680 Speaker 1: and how Sammy pulled it off. I mean, just look 1102 00:50:06,719 --> 00:50:09,560 Speaker 1: at the guy who followed Sammy Hagar, Gary Sharon. I 1103 00:50:09,560 --> 00:50:11,759 Speaker 1: mean they crashed into the side of a mountain with 1104 00:50:11,840 --> 00:50:14,200 Speaker 1: Van Halen three, So I mean, I think that speaks 1105 00:50:14,200 --> 00:50:16,960 Speaker 1: to how difficult it was for Sammy Hagar to pull 1106 00:50:17,000 --> 00:50:19,319 Speaker 1: that off. So I feel like when people talk about 1107 00:50:19,360 --> 00:50:21,600 Speaker 1: Van Hagar and they talk about them being this kind 1108 00:50:21,600 --> 00:50:25,359 Speaker 1: of lame, synthy, power ballady adult contemporary band, Hagar ends 1109 00:50:25,400 --> 00:50:28,440 Speaker 1: up being the scapegoat, which I don't think it's totally fair. 1110 00:50:28,480 --> 00:50:31,680 Speaker 1: I mean, obviously, I think his vocal style suited that 1111 00:50:31,760 --> 00:50:34,440 Speaker 1: kind of music more than the party jams of the 1112 00:50:34,520 --> 00:50:37,160 Speaker 1: David Lee Roth era. But again, like this was music 1113 00:50:37,200 --> 00:50:39,279 Speaker 1: that Eddie van Halen was writing, and I think it 1114 00:50:39,320 --> 00:50:41,160 Speaker 1: was a direction that he wanted to go into. So 1115 00:50:41,200 --> 00:50:43,839 Speaker 1: if you don't like those Van Hagar records, Eddie van 1116 00:50:43,840 --> 00:50:46,160 Speaker 1: Halen must bear the brunt of that responsibility as much 1117 00:50:46,160 --> 00:50:48,560 Speaker 1: as Sammy Hagar. But it must be said, just for 1118 00:50:48,600 --> 00:50:50,640 Speaker 1: the record, that the four albums that they made together 1119 00:50:50,760 --> 00:50:53,560 Speaker 1: all debuted at number one, and they were able to 1120 00:50:53,600 --> 00:50:57,040 Speaker 1: be successful in an era where many bands of their 1121 00:50:57,080 --> 00:51:00,720 Speaker 1: generation had either faded away or broken up. So Sammy 1122 00:51:00,760 --> 00:51:03,439 Speaker 1: Hagar really gave this band a new lease on life 1123 00:51:03,440 --> 00:51:06,239 Speaker 1: and extended their career, maybe even doubled their career, you know, 1124 00:51:06,280 --> 00:51:09,040 Speaker 1: because he was able to make that transition so successfully. Yeah, 1125 00:51:09,040 --> 00:51:11,560 Speaker 1: I mean it was that definitely the toughest time in 1126 00:51:11,560 --> 00:51:13,440 Speaker 1: a band's life when they're sort of too young to 1127 00:51:13,440 --> 00:51:16,040 Speaker 1: be classic or a legacy band, but too old to 1128 00:51:16,080 --> 00:51:18,319 Speaker 1: be cutting edge. And like you said, yeah, I think 1129 00:51:18,320 --> 00:51:20,560 Speaker 1: that it gave a built in excuse for Eddie to 1130 00:51:20,600 --> 00:51:23,160 Speaker 1: sort of rebuild the sound from the ground up. And 1131 00:51:23,200 --> 00:51:25,440 Speaker 1: now you've got songs like Don't Tell Me in Pleasure 1132 00:51:25,440 --> 00:51:28,439 Speaker 1: Dome and seven Seal that you know, it's interesting, even 1133 00:51:28,440 --> 00:51:31,319 Speaker 1: if I prefer the earlier Rath stuff. I definitely really 1134 00:51:31,360 --> 00:51:35,080 Speaker 1: appreciate stuff like, you know, even right now. I really 1135 00:51:35,080 --> 00:51:37,480 Speaker 1: like the sort of the more almost prog rocky journey 1136 00:51:37,480 --> 00:51:39,080 Speaker 1: style stuff that they did do. I don't like it 1137 00:51:39,120 --> 00:51:41,319 Speaker 1: as much as Roth, but it definitely it's It's something 1138 00:51:41,360 --> 00:51:44,640 Speaker 1: that I'm grateful exists. And I do feel bad for him, 1139 00:51:44,680 --> 00:51:47,160 Speaker 1: just as like nobody ever likes the replacement dude, and 1140 00:51:47,239 --> 00:51:50,279 Speaker 1: especially as somebody's amiables him and as talented as him too. 1141 00:51:50,280 --> 00:51:52,360 Speaker 1: I mean, I think that his voice and his musical 1142 00:51:52,400 --> 00:51:54,359 Speaker 1: skills were a real asset to the group. Now, if 1143 00:51:54,360 --> 00:51:56,600 Speaker 1: we go over to the pro Van Halen's side, I mean, 1144 00:51:56,760 --> 00:51:59,200 Speaker 1: look in terms of his relationship with Sammy Hagar. Deep 1145 00:51:59,200 --> 00:52:01,520 Speaker 1: down he must have known that the David Lee Rothiers 1146 00:52:01,560 --> 00:52:04,040 Speaker 1: were more popular. I mean, Van Halen has two Diamond 1147 00:52:04,080 --> 00:52:06,440 Speaker 1: selling records and they're both from the Roth era, the 1148 00:52:06,440 --> 00:52:09,960 Speaker 1: self titled debut in you know. And while Dan Hagar 1149 00:52:10,040 --> 00:52:12,560 Speaker 1: did have those four consecutive number one records, the David 1150 00:52:12,600 --> 00:52:16,399 Speaker 1: the Rothiers they sold a lot more albums overall. So 1151 00:52:16,800 --> 00:52:20,000 Speaker 1: when it came time when the possibility to reunite with 1152 00:52:20,080 --> 00:52:22,560 Speaker 1: David Lee Roth arose, and really when they were at 1153 00:52:22,560 --> 00:52:24,520 Speaker 1: the point where they weren't making hits anymore, and they 1154 00:52:24,640 --> 00:52:26,400 Speaker 1: kind of transitioned into that era where they were just 1155 00:52:26,400 --> 00:52:28,880 Speaker 1: going to be a nostalgia act. It made obvious sense 1156 00:52:29,280 --> 00:52:32,160 Speaker 1: to stick with David the Rother over Sammy Hagar. And again, also, 1157 00:52:32,200 --> 00:52:35,480 Speaker 1: I don't think Sammy Hagar helped himself by not singing 1158 00:52:35,520 --> 00:52:38,239 Speaker 1: those David the Roth hits earlier in their career. I 1159 00:52:38,280 --> 00:52:40,600 Speaker 1: think that if he could have put his own stamp 1160 00:52:40,640 --> 00:52:43,120 Speaker 1: on those songs and at least convinced part of their 1161 00:52:43,120 --> 00:52:45,320 Speaker 1: fan base that like, oh yeah, he can sing jump 1162 00:52:45,440 --> 00:52:47,640 Speaker 1: better than David the Roth, or he can sing unchained 1163 00:52:47,640 --> 00:52:49,080 Speaker 1: better than David the Roth, I think it would have 1164 00:52:49,120 --> 00:52:51,640 Speaker 1: been harder for Van Halen to pivot back to them. 1165 00:52:51,760 --> 00:52:54,560 Speaker 1: But because he didn't sing those songs, it almost created 1166 00:52:54,560 --> 00:52:58,200 Speaker 1: a scarcity effect where after ten years of hearing you 1167 00:52:58,200 --> 00:53:00,839 Speaker 1: know best of both worlds and you know when it's 1168 00:53:00,880 --> 00:53:03,200 Speaker 1: love and all these power ballots people were just hungry 1169 00:53:03,239 --> 00:53:05,759 Speaker 1: for like the Van Hellen of old and David Lee 1170 00:53:05,800 --> 00:53:07,920 Speaker 1: Roth was ready to step in. So I think when 1171 00:53:07,920 --> 00:53:10,600 Speaker 1: you look at this band overall, Sammy Hagar he deserves 1172 00:53:10,640 --> 00:53:13,719 Speaker 1: some credit for helping shepherd Van Halen into this new era. 1173 00:53:13,800 --> 00:53:16,200 Speaker 1: But again This is ultimately Eddie Van Halen's band, and 1174 00:53:16,239 --> 00:53:19,319 Speaker 1: he knew that Sammy Hagar would work for that late 1175 00:53:19,320 --> 00:53:21,919 Speaker 1: eighties early nineties era, and then he also knew when 1176 00:53:21,920 --> 00:53:23,719 Speaker 1: to go back to the original guy when it was 1177 00:53:23,760 --> 00:53:26,239 Speaker 1: advantageous to do that. Yeah, I mean, the fact that 1178 00:53:26,280 --> 00:53:28,680 Speaker 1: he was able just through sheer force of will to 1179 00:53:28,719 --> 00:53:31,440 Speaker 1: push the band through the split with their lead singer 1180 00:53:31,840 --> 00:53:34,680 Speaker 1: is amazing enough. But then also doing doing that while 1181 00:53:34,760 --> 00:53:38,000 Speaker 1: navigating the tremendous musical shift of the late elies in 1182 00:53:38,040 --> 00:53:41,839 Speaker 1: early nineties, that was all Eddie's doing, And I uh, yeah, 1183 00:53:42,040 --> 00:53:44,920 Speaker 1: I think that's really where his uh he shines in 1184 00:53:44,960 --> 00:53:47,280 Speaker 1: the Van Hagar Eras that you said, it basically doubled 1185 00:53:47,280 --> 00:53:49,239 Speaker 1: the band's career by doing that, by creating a whole 1186 00:53:49,239 --> 00:53:51,439 Speaker 1: new sound. So if you look at these two together again, 1187 00:53:51,480 --> 00:53:53,760 Speaker 1: I think we've hit upon this that ed Evan Helen 1188 00:53:53,760 --> 00:53:56,080 Speaker 1: was able to strike gold again with a much different 1189 00:53:56,440 --> 00:53:59,000 Speaker 1: lead singer. And you know, as much as you know 1190 00:53:59,040 --> 00:54:01,520 Speaker 1: people want to compare Sammy Hagar to David the Roth, 1191 00:54:01,600 --> 00:54:03,359 Speaker 1: I actually think it's a good thing that they hired 1192 00:54:03,400 --> 00:54:05,920 Speaker 1: a guy much different than David the Roth. If they 1193 00:54:05,960 --> 00:54:10,040 Speaker 1: had hired another like motor Mouth, like crazy showman type singer. 1194 00:54:10,280 --> 00:54:12,799 Speaker 1: They would have inevitably fallen short of David Lee Roth. 1195 00:54:13,200 --> 00:54:15,360 Speaker 1: But with a guy like Sammy Hagar, there's really no 1196 00:54:15,520 --> 00:54:17,799 Speaker 1: point in comparing him to Davidle Roth because they're doing 1197 00:54:17,840 --> 00:54:20,840 Speaker 1: two completely different things and it allowed Van Halen to 1198 00:54:21,040 --> 00:54:23,360 Speaker 1: really become a different band. Like when I listened to 1199 00:54:23,440 --> 00:54:25,440 Speaker 1: Van Halen, I really do think of them as two 1200 00:54:25,480 --> 00:54:28,400 Speaker 1: different bands, and I think the Roth era it's the 1201 00:54:28,440 --> 00:54:31,400 Speaker 1: one I prefer. But there's certain attributes to the Hagar 1202 00:54:31,480 --> 00:54:34,520 Speaker 1: era that don't exist in the Roth era. And I'll 1203 00:54:34,560 --> 00:54:36,600 Speaker 1: say I have a lot of guilty pleasures in the 1204 00:54:36,680 --> 00:54:39,520 Speaker 1: Van Hagar era that I still turn to when I 1205 00:54:39,560 --> 00:54:45,200 Speaker 1: am looking for inspirational synth rock power, balady goodness. Oh yeah, 1206 00:54:45,239 --> 00:54:47,759 Speaker 1: I mean Dreams is like, you know, I feel like 1207 00:54:47,800 --> 00:54:49,200 Speaker 1: everything I hear that, I feel like I'm in like 1208 00:54:49,239 --> 00:54:51,840 Speaker 1: an eighties movie with like a like a montage of 1209 00:54:51,920 --> 00:54:56,520 Speaker 1: like working out and like moving towards something. It's definitely Yeah. Now, again, 1210 00:54:56,520 --> 00:54:59,800 Speaker 1: two different bands. Vastly prefer the Roth, but Van Hagar 1211 00:55:00,000 --> 00:55:02,919 Speaker 1: has some great moments too. So this concludes our Van 1212 00:55:02,960 --> 00:55:05,759 Speaker 1: Halen series. We've talked about the Van Halens with David 1213 00:55:05,800 --> 00:55:08,520 Speaker 1: Lee Roth. We talked about the Van Halens with Sammy Hagar. 1214 00:55:08,920 --> 00:55:11,160 Speaker 1: At the end, you might just be thinking, why can't 1215 00:55:11,200 --> 00:55:14,080 Speaker 1: this be love between all these people? But I think 1216 00:55:14,160 --> 00:55:15,600 Speaker 1: by the end it was. Would you say it was 1217 00:55:15,640 --> 00:55:18,759 Speaker 1: a dream it was or multiple dreams because those two 1218 00:55:18,840 --> 00:55:21,520 Speaker 1: different bands, I think it is safe to say that. 1219 00:55:21,600 --> 00:55:24,520 Speaker 1: So thank you all for listening to this episode. We 1220 00:55:24,520 --> 00:55:26,920 Speaker 1: will be back with more beefs and feuds and long 1221 00:55:26,960 --> 00:55:35,560 Speaker 1: swimming resentments next week. Rivals is a production of I 1222 00:55:35,680 --> 00:55:38,760 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. The executive producers are Shawn Titone and Noel Brown. 1223 00:55:38,880 --> 00:55:42,239 Speaker 1: The supervising producers are Taylor Kin and Tristan McNeil. The 1224 00:55:42,280 --> 00:55:45,160 Speaker 1: producer is Joel hat Stat. I'm Jordan's run Talk and 1225 00:55:45,200 --> 00:55:47,200 Speaker 1: I'm Stephen Hyden. If you like what you heard, please 1226 00:55:47,200 --> 00:55:49,520 Speaker 1: subscribe and leave us a review. For more podcast for 1227 00:55:49,640 --> 00:55:53,080 Speaker 1: my heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 1228 00:55:53,280 --> 00:55:55,000 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.