Thirty years after Van Halen released the single “Don’t Tell Me (What Love Can Do)”, Sammy Hagar says he’s ready to bring it back to the fans.
In a post to social media yesterday (January 9th), Hagar said he will add the lead single from Van Halen’s 1995 album Balance to the setlist for the upcoming Best Of All Worlds Tour residency in Las Vegas. The shows will be held at Dolby Live at Park MGM in Las Vegas, Nevada from April 30th through May 17th, 2025.
“Singing this song was always difficult,” said Hagar. “I wrote the lyrics about Kurt Cobain’s death. I wanted the chorus to say ‘I wanna tell you what love can do’, but Bruce Fairbank, Ed and Al wanted to make it more dark and negative. Technically it’s a brutal song to sing. I painted myself in a corner, but we will be doing it at the residency in Vegas. I’m going to add it to the show. Today marks the 30th anniversary of ‘Don’t Tell Me What Love Can Do’!”
Released on January 9th, 1995, “Don’t Tell Me (What Love Can Do)” was one of four singles from Balance. It reached number one on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart, where it stayed for three weeks.
Hagar also shared a live performance of the song performed during the ’95 Balance tour:
“Don’t Tell Me (What Love Can Do)” Official Video