Jason Bonham had to exit Sammy Hagar's "The Best Of All Worlds" tour due to an undisclosed family matter. Kenny Aronoff, a former bandmate of Hagar in Chickenfoot, covered for Bonham on Tuesday (August 27) in Cincinnati and last night (August 28) in Nashville. Two shows remain on the summer run. It's unclear whether Aronoff will finish out the tour on drums or if Jason Bonham … [Read more...]
Michael Anthony
Hagar Reveals Next Van Halen Re-Issue, Says New Music From Best Of All Worlds Band Is Coming
Sammy Hagar dropped a few reveals during a recent interview, starting with the next Van Halen album to receive the re-issue treatment. It'll be the final album he recorded with the band - 1995's Balance. “It's next. Balance is next,” Hagar said during an appearance on the Bogus Otis podcast. Hagar didn’t give the release date or what bonus content will be included, but a … [Read more...]
Van Halen’s ‘Dreams’ Video: The Blue Angels Collaboration Story
Thirty-eight summers ago, Van Halen's latest single "Dreams" reached all-new heights thanks to an unexpected collaboration with the U.S. Navy Blue Angels. A recent online article from the website Simple Flying tells the story behind how this collaboration came to be. Below is an excerpt from an article written by Simple Flying's Mike Scanlon: Shortly after [Van … [Read more...]
Hootie Guitarist Mark Bryan Highlights Edward Van Halen’s Overlooked Talent
Hootie & The Blowfish guitarist Mark Bryan says he's a "gigantic" Van Halen fan and praises Edward Van Halen's ability to come up with undeniable riffs. "I wanna say this because everybody puts him on the top with the guitar playing [makes fingers on the fretboard impression] and he is but he's also one of the all-time greatest riff masters," Bryan said during a recent … [Read more...]
Michael Anthony Reflects On Missed Opportunities Of 2004 Van Halen Tour
Michael Anthony looks back on Van Halen's 2004 tour as one of those "what could have been" experiences. During a recent interview with Ultimate Guitar's Greg Prato, Anthony discussed the troubled Van Halen tour that took place 20 summers ago. It launched on June 11th, 2004, and lasted 80s shows until the plug was pulled. Here is the article Prato originally posted to … [Read more...]
Hagar Discusses Tour, Van Halen Re-Issues & Unreleased Tracks On Trunk Nation
Sammy Hagar says he and Michael Anthony are determined to keep Van Halen "live and alive" with this summer's Best Of All Worlds tour. At a time when many legacy artists are under fire for using pre-recorded tracks, what you hear from Hagar and his band is all live. "I can't tell you how perfect this lineup is, how much fun we're havin', and how it's live," said Hagar during … [Read more...]
Did Van Halen Have Enough Material For A Follow-Up To ‘Van Halen III’?
Van Halen recorded music for a follow-up to their 1998 album Van Halen III. But was there enough material recorded for a full album? "There were a few things," Anthony recently told Ultimate Guitar's Greg Prato. "There were a couple of songs that actually Gary [Cherone] had written lyrics and he had a melody for. And there was music written, too, that hadn't really been … [Read more...]
Hagar: There’s Enough Vault Material For A New Van Halen Record
Sammy Hagar believes there's "a ton" of unreleased material in the 5150 vaults. Enough to turn into a new Van Halen record. During a recent appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation" , Hagar said he'd be more than happy to help go through the tapes left behind by Edward Van Halen. Getting Alex Van Halen to invite Hagar into those vaults, however, is the biggest hurdle. "I … [Read more...]
Best Of All Worlds Tour Launches: Video & Setlist! [UPDATED]
The wait is over. Sammy Hagar's Best of All Worlds Tour kicked off last night (7/13) at the iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach, FLorida! Hagar kicked off the evening alongside guitarist Joe Satriani, bassist Michael Anthony, drummer Jason Bonham, and multi-instrumentalist Rai Thistlethwayte with "Good Enough", the opening track from his very first album with … [Read more...]
Sunset Strip Veteran Shares Front-Row Tales Of Van Halen’s Rise
Former Sunset Strip veteran musician Loren Molinare recently appeared on Final Resonance TV’s Van Halen Stories Podcast to discuss his front-row seat to the rise of Van Halen as the guitarist/vocalist for Detroit Rockers The Dogs. During the mid to late 1970s, The Dogs opened for Van Halen often, including a gig at The Pasadena Civic Auditorium, just after Van Halen signed … [Read more...]
Shinedown’s Berry Kerch On ’04 Van Halen Tour: “As Much As They Hated Each Other They Were So Sweet To All Of Us”
Shinedown drummer Berry Kerch says the 2004 Van Halen tour was a love/hate fest. While Kerch received nothing but love from Edward Van Halen, Sammy Hagar wasn't so fortunate. During his recent appearance on The Paltrocast, Kerch talked about his experience as part of the Van Halen '04 tour, which featured the return of Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony to the lineup. While … [Read more...]
Hagar: 90 Percent Of Rehearsed Songs Are From Van Halen
As the Best Of All Worlds summer tour nears, Sammy Hagar says he and his bandmates have rehearsed over 30 songs so far with 90 percent of them coming from the Van Halen catalog. Hagar, who spoke with Ultimate Classic Rock just days away from the tour opener, is pulling out all the stops for Van Halen fans and that goes beyond the setlist. "We've got a big production," … [Read more...]