Van Halen’s Sammy Hagar On The Band’s Split And Missing Eddie Van Halen

Former Van Halen singer Sammy Hagar recently claimed that he misses the late singer, Eddie Van Halen, who founded the rock band alongside his brother and their friend. Hagar joined Van Halen after the lead singer, David Lee Roth, left the group in 1985. This was the same year the band was created by Eddie, Alex, and Michael Anthony.

Hagar told USA Today that he regrets the band split in 1996, after working together for a little over a decade, because the break up was messy, and Hagar considers it “a shame.” However, years after the split, the band collaborated with Hagar in 2003, touring and releasing music together.

What caused the messy Van Halen breakup?

The rock group broke up due to drug issues and personal fallouts among the members. “What happened with us at the end is just such a shame. It’s what happens when alcohol and drugs are involved and I’m going through a divorce, and man, it’s such a shame,” Hagar shared.

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Hagar admitted that despite them not being together anymore, he “cherishes them more than ever” and wishes they could get back together. However, now that Eddie has passed, the band seems as good as done.

Eddie Van Halen was the thin thread holding the band

After the band resolved their differences in 2003, they hit the ground running again and wowed fans with their music and performance. Also, the group welcomed Wolfgang Van Halen, Eddie’s son, and his ex-wife Valerie Bertinelli, however, their newly formed union was short-lived as Eddie died of throat cancer in 2020.

“You can’t have Van Halen without Eddie Van Halen,” Wolfgang said to Howard Stern a month after Eddie’s death.

Hagar speaks about missing Eddie

Hagar is reminiscing about the relationship he had with Eddie and how the band became popular. “I miss Ed dearly. If Van Halen were still together today, we would be headlining every one of these fricking festivals all over the world,” Hagar said nostalgically.

Regardless of the group’s fails, Van Halen has a record as one of the top 20 best-selling artists of all time. They were also inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. According to Rolling Stone magazine, Eddie takes the eighth spot on the top 100 guitarists of all time.