Sammy Hagar Explains Why Eddie Van Halen Envied Him

It is pretty standard for certain band members to gel more with each other. However, sometimes, this relationship significantly impacts the band dynamics. In this case, Sammy Hagar’s close relationship with Michael Anthony had upset Eddie Van Halen, the details of which Hagar recently shared with Guitar World.

“Mikey is like my brother from another mother,” explained Hagar before getting into how his dynamic with Eddie Van Halen took shape. “So much so that Eddie would get all jealous back in the early Van Halen days. Because Mike and I would get into these soulful conversations for hours, Eddie would be on the outside looking in.”

He continued, “And this was when we were all getting along great, not towards the end, when our marriage fell apart. But even in the early days, Eddie would say, ‘Hey, I want to hang out like you and Mike do.’ And I was like, ‘Cool, man. Let’s do it. So, what’s the problem?’”

The dynamics in the old days in Van Halen were as follows, “The way it was in Van Halen was Eddie and Alex would get together and do their family thing. And Mike and I would always be the ones that would get tacos and margaritas and talk about life when we were on the road. And in the end, when we were arguing, and Van Halen was falling apart, me and Mike had our plane because they were trying to keep Eddie and me apart.”

“I guess Mike and I are cut from the same cloth,” concluded the Red Rocker, and finally reflected on how the guitar icon would react. “Eddie hated it, would get mad on stage, and called it stupid, but we had our inside lingo and were always very close.”

The close proximity Hagar shared with Anthony caused Eddie to dismiss their relationship as ‘stupid’ rather than seeing it as a bonus. By the end, the band dynamics were completely shattered, and most personal relationships entered a downward spiral, specifically between Eddie and Sammy. Thus, the other band members were trying to keep them apart from each other.