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Alex Van Halen has revealed why a planned Van Halen tour in 2022 failed to materialize, blaming singer David Lee Roth’s refusal to pay tribute to late guitarist Eddie Van Halen.
Eddie Van Halen, one of the most celebrated guitar players in history, died in 2020 at the age of 65 after being diagnosed with throat cancer.
Speaking to Rolling Stone, drummer Alex Van Halen said the remaining members of the band began rehearsals for the 2022 tour, which would have featured Joe Satriani on guitar.
However, things turned sour when Roth refused to dedicate part of the gig to showing old footage of Eddie Van Halen playing guitar.
“The thing that broke the camel’s back, and I can be honest about this now, was I said, ‘Dave, at some point, we have to have a very overt – not a bowing – but an acknowledgment of Ed in the gig,” recalled Alex Van Halen.
He took spoke to Queen guitarist about how they celebrated the life of late frontman Freddie Mercury.
“If you look at how Queen does it, they show old footage.’ And the moment I said we gotta acknowledge Ed, Dave f***in’ popped a fuse.… The vitriol that came out was unbelievable,” said Van Halen.
Van Halen claimed that Roth’s refusal to spend any time celebrating his late brother brought tour plans to an end.
“I’m from the street,” he continued. “‘You talk to me like that, motherf***er, I’m gonna beat your f***ing brains out. You got it?’ And I mean that. And that’s how it ended.”
“It’s just, my God. It’s like I didn’t know him anymore. I have nothing but the utmost respect for his work ethic and all that. But, Dave, you gotta work as a community, motherf***er. It’s not you alone anymore.”
The Independent has approached David Lee Roth for comment.
Elsewhere in the interview, Van Halen revealed the singer he hopes might sing on unreleased and unfinished Van Halen music, saying: “Ideally, it’d be Robert Plant.”
The drummer said there is a large amount of unreleased music in the Van Halen vaults, but very little of it is finished.
“They’re all little pieces,” said the drummer. “A bunch of licks don’t make a song.”
Van Halen also said he wants to produce a biopic about his band’s rise to fame, although fans shouldn’t expect to see it in cinemas too soon. “It’s just a long-term plan,” he said. “I mean, to put things in perspective, the Queen movie took 30 years to make.”
