Sammy Hagar on Alex Van Halen Schism: ‘I Want to Be Friends’

Sammy Hagar shed light on the schism between him and Alex Van Halen, telling Rolling Stone that he “want[s] to be friends” with his former bandmate even if they don’t play music together again.

“It’s on my bucket list that I will not take this to my grave, and I don’t want Al taking it to his grave,” the Red Rocker said. “I’ve put the olive branch out there many times, and I just put it out again to Irving Azoff.”

Hagar acknowledged that reuniting with Van Halen on a musical level is most likely out of the question, but he still wants to mend their personal relationship. “I want to be friends, though,” he said. “I don’t want to play in a band with Al. I’m not asking for that. I can see that he’s not capable of doing that. If he was, I’d be happy to play with him, but it’s not what I’m looking for. I just want to be friends again.”

READ MORE: All 48 Sammy Hagar-Era Van Halen Songs Ranked Worst to Best

Sammy Hagar Says He ‘Owns’ the ‘Van Hagar’ Catalog Now

Hagar previously told UCR that his attempts to reconnect with Alex ahead of the Van Halen-focused Best of All Worlds Tour were unsuccessful, as he got “no response” from the drummer. Van Halen himself told Billboard last month, around the release of his memoir Brothers, that he was “not interested” in the trek, and he thought Hagar and bandmate Michael Anthony were “not doing the band justice.”

Brothers also omits Hagar’s tenure with Van Halen, focusing almost exclusively on the band’s first David Lee Roth era. When asked about this decision, Hagar sounded more sorrowful and empathetic than bitter.

“It’s sad,” he said. “I haven’t read the whole book, but I’ve seen all the excerpts, and I heard some of the interviews. It breaks my heart, because if I think what Alex is going through, losing his brother, never played with anybody else in his life, and then his health … When I saw how rickety he is, I realized, ‘No wonder he’s not answering my call when I say, “Do you want to go out and play with us?”‘ He can’t.

“That breaks my heart, because I can only put myself in those shoes and say, ‘What if I couldn’t sing and perform anymore?'” Hagar continued. “The thing that I did my whole life, the thing I devoted my life to, the thing that made me rich and famous and gave me the most beautiful life on the planet, and all of a sudden I can’t do that anymore? I would feel like I was robbing the fans, to start with. When you put yourself in his shoes, I’m saying, ‘Okay, I feel sorry for him.'”

On the other hand, Hagar said his omission from Brothers only solidified his feeling that he’s the rightful steward of the “Van Hagar” catalog. “Why he left me out, I would like to hear him explain that someday, because I don’t get it completely,” he said. “I know that he’s bitter about some things, whatever that is … It’s like, ‘If you don’t want that era, that even gives me more justification to say I own it then,’ because no one else can do it, and he can’t do it even without me. It makes it easier for Mike and I. We’re sitting there going, ‘Okay, I guess we own this,’ and we have the obligation to bring this to the fans to keep this music alive, keep it live and alive.”

Despite being left out of Brothers, Hagar said he respected Van Halen’s work, and wondered if there is more to come. “I want to give him some more credit about that book. The way he wrote it is soulful and touching,” he said. “I mean, about their childhood. It’s like a love letter to his brother, and that’s touching to me. I want to give him some love for that. I understand he probably couldn’t have done the whole era in one book. It would’ve been the Bible, the dictionary, so maybe he’s got plans for a Volume 2. Who knows?”