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Sammy Hagar might have reconnected with Eddie Van Halen last year before the guitarist's death, but that doesn't mean he's forgotten why they lost touch.
When Hagar parted with Van Halen for the second and final time in 2005, he says his frustration with his old bandmates didn't end. The band carried on as if his tenure never happened and seemed to actively quash any prior association with Hagar.
"It seems like since Van Halen did the [David Lee] Roth reunion that they tried to really bury the Van Hagar-era," Hagar told Ultimate Classic Rock. "They wouldn't remaster [those albums], they wouldn't allow [the songs] to be in movies. They wouldn't allow it to be licensed for video games and commercials."
He acknowledges that the conduct makes a modicum of sense — Van Halen never performed Hagar-era material with Roth on vocals — but Hagar felt it went beyond business, especially when you consider his era in the band was its most commercially successful. Furthermore, it's not like Alex Van Halen and Eddie weren't involved in those albums.
"It's such great material," Hagar added. "All No. 1 albums. You know, 50 million records [sold]."
Hagar has fronted numerous bands since leaving Van Halen, but songs from that era have always shown up in his setlist. He says the payoff from the audience never ceases to amaze him, and he's happy to keep those songs alive.
"Every time we play that stuff, the audience goes crazy," Hagar said. "We added 'Good Enough' to the show, we added 'Humans Being' from Twister. We've added some really deep tracks recently and, man, it doesn't matter which song your play — it ain't just the hits. They're not just 'Why Can't This Be Love.' You play 'Humans Being' and the place goes f---in' nuts. They know every word. So we're going, 'Man, this stuff is golden.' It's never gonna dies, and we're not gonna let it."
Sammy Hagar & The Circle will be heading to Las Vegas later this fall for a residency at the Strat Hotel & Casino, with shows from October 29 - November 6.