Sammy Hagar has revealed more details on how he renewed friendship with Eddie Van Halen in the months leading up to the legendary guitarist’s death.
“I reached out to Eddie because… George Lopez, the comedian, who I’ve known for a long time and who also is dear friends with Eddie, calls me up and says, ‘Sammy, I need you to call Eddie,” Sammy said in a new interview with Guy “Favazz” Favazza of the St. Louis, Missouri radio station KSHE 95. “I played golf with him. He’s not doing good,’ blah blah blah. And everyone knew Eddie wasn’t doing good. He said, ‘I just was with him, and he said he loves you and he’s so disappointed that you haven’t reached out to him.’
He continued: “I said, ‘I reached out to all these people. I reached out to Alex [Van Halen, Eddie‘s brother].’ I didn’t have Eddie‘s contact number. I reached out to all these people: ‘Tell Eddie I love him. I hope he’s doing well.’ So George says, ‘Here’s his number. Call him.’
“So I call him. And Eddie said — my favorite line from Eddie in a long time… He goes, ‘What took you so long?’ I go, ‘I reached out to Al. I reached out to everybody.’ He’s going, ‘You didn’t call me.’ And I said, ‘Oh, man. Ed, I love you.’ And it was just one big love fest from then on. That was back in the beginning of the year, before COVID. So, yeah, we’ve been texting and talking about Wolfie [Eddie‘s son Wolfgang Van Halen] and his new record, and about us and the things we did and how great the stuff is.”
Sammy also says that he was comforted by the fact that he made peace with Eddie before the influential rocker’s death.
“Yeah, it’s really a sad thing. It was a tough one. But if I wouldn’t have contacted Ed and we buried the hatchet like that and became friends again, I’m not sure how I could have taken it. It would have been devastating.”
When asked if former VAN HALEN bassist Michael Anthony had also reached out to Eddie prior to the guitarist’s death, Sammy responded: “You’d have to ask Mike that. I don’t think so. But Ed told me a million times, ‘Give Mike my love,’ or something. But I’m not sure they communicated. I don’t think so. It’s probably not my place [to say].”
Eddie died on October 6 at St. John’s Hospital in Santa Monica, California, after long battle with cancer. “Alex was by his side, as were Eddie‘s wife, Janie, and son, Wolfgang.
