Sammy Hagar has announced a special tribute tour for Van Halen, which he says is open to all musicians who want to join him on stage.
Hagar, who was a member of Van Halen from 1985 to 1996 and again from 2003 to 2005, revealed his plans for the Best of All Worlds tour during his appearance on The Howard Stern Show on SiriusXM on Tuesday.
He said he wants to celebrate the legacy of Van Halen, especially the late guitarist Eddie Van Halen, who passed away in October 2020 after a long battle with cancer.
"We're gonna invite every musician in every town. First of all, whenever you play, if there's a guitar player in town, no matter what city it is, they come out to see Joe [Satriani], just like they used to for Eddie [Van Halen]. So if we've got other guitar players, we'll get them involved, other singers, get them involved. If Alex Van Halen wants to jump up, if David Lee Roth wants to come out and join us, come on... You are welcome. This is about Van Halen," Hagar said.
Hagar also expressed his hope that Alex Van Halen, the brother of Eddie and the original drummer of Van Halen, would join him on the tour. He said he has been trying to contact Alex for years, but has not received any response.
"I reach out to Al about once a month for about five years now, and he doesn't get back to me… I call, I leave a voice message, I send a text and I send an E-mail. All three things. 'Al, give me a call.'
"Al's favorite line to me was always, every time he wanted to get back together, he would say, 'You know, Sam, we ain't getting any younger.' So I'd say, 'Hey, Al, we ain't getting any younger. Give me a call. Let me know. What do you wanna do? Come on over. Let's get together. Mike [Anthony] and I'll meet you somewhere,'" Hagar said.
Hagar will be joined by his longtime friends and collaborators Joe Satriani, Michael Anthony and Jason Bonham on the tour. Satriani is a renowned guitarist who has played with Hagar in the supergroup Chickenfoot, along with Anthony and Chad Smith. Anthony is the original bassist of Van Halen, who was replaced by Eddie's son Wolfgang in 2006. Bonham is the son of the late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, and is also a member of Hagar's band The Circle.
He said he wants to play songs from both the David Lee Roth era and the Sammy Hagar era of Van Halen, as well as some of his solo hits and Chickenfoot songs.
Hagar said he is doing this tour as a tribute to Eddie Van Halen, who he called "the greatest guitar player that ever lived."
"I want to honor him, I want to respect him, I want to play his music, I want to sing his songs, I want to do it right," Hagar said.
[Source: Classic Hits Today]