Although Sammy Hagar has had nothing but nice things to say about his former Van Halen bandmates since the death of Eddie Van Halen, the honeymoon is apparently over.
In a new interview, the singer-guitarist accuses his former band of trying to “bury” his 11-year tenure with the group after original frontman David Lee Roth rejoined. “It seems like since Van Halen did the Roth reunion that they tried to really bury the Van Hagar era,” Hagar tells Ultimate Classic Rock. “They wouldn’t remaster it; they wouldn’t allow it to be in movies. They wouldn’t allow it to be licensed for video games and commercials.”
That’s unfortunate because Hagar’s time with Van Halen represented “the biggest peak of my career,” he adds. “All number one albums,” he says. “Fifty million records. I don’t care how proud I am of my own stuff, I can’t ignore that.”
Are you on team Van Halen, or team Van Hagar?