Sammy Hagar says he appreciates his time working with Eddie Van Halen now more than ever.
Here’s an excerpt from Hagar’s Q&A interview with USA Today published (4/26):
“The peak of my musical life was Van Halen,” says Hagar of his 1985 to 1996 run in what is now dubbed Van Hagar. “My ego wants to say I was doing great as a solo artist. Well, yeah, I was doing fine, but Van Halen was some other thing man. It was a four-headed monster, and I miss Ed dearly.”
Question: Being estranged from Ed for all those years after you were dismissed from the band must have hurt.
Hagar: I cherish him more than ever. What happened with us at the end was such a shame. It’s what happens when alcohol and drugs are involved, and I’m going through a divorce. It’s such a shame. If Van Halen were still together today, we’d be headlining every one of these festivals all over the world. I miss his unique creativity. He’d play something and I’d go what, where the hell did that come from? He was so out of left field, so original, that creativity always lifted me.
Read the rest of Marco della Cava’s USA Today interview with Hagar HERE.
Watch Van Halen “Best Of Both Worlds” From Live Without A Net