When Eddie Van Halen passed away in Oct., it hit the rock community hard — including his former bandmates. During a recent visit to the Talkin’ Rock With Meltdown podcast, former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony divulged that he and EVH had unresolved issues when he died. “We actually hadn’t spoken [for many years], and unfortunately, we didn’t get a chance to,” he revealed. “And, you know, it kind of bothers me, because we had some issues that were never resolved. But, I mean, what can you do? We were on track [for] a reunion, which I’m really sad that it never happened. But, you know, life and the show goes on.” Van Halen’s manager Irving Azoff also mentioned that the classic lineup almost reunited in 2019 for a stadium tour; however, it didn’t happen because of Eddie’s health...
Sammy Hagar’s birthday bash always takes place in Cabo San Lucas around this time. This year, obviously, due to the pandemic, that changed. Hagar and his band, the Circle, are performing on Catalina Island off the coast of California (and home of the Catalina Wine Mixer). Former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony is in Hagar’s band (following his own departure from the band), so when the news of Eddie Van Halen’s death hit, they were obviously together. The two paid their respects to Van Halen on social media, but they’ve since recorded a video honoring their former bandmate. In it, Hagar says that hearing about his former bandmate’s death — who he had just started talking to again earlier this year after years of acrimony — hit him like a “freakin’ Mack Truck” and said that perfo...