Van Halen Bassist Michael Anthony Regrets Having Unresolved Issues With Eddie Van Halen Prior to His Death

Michael Anthony has some regrets when it comes to the way he left things with former bandmate Eddie Van Halen before the lead guitarist’s death in October at the age of 65 following a long battle with cancer. The former bassist and vocalist for Van Halen from 1974 to 2006 opened up about his relationship with the late rocker and their unresolved issues during the Jan. 8 episode of Talkin’ Rock with Meltdown.

“We actually hadn’t spoken and unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to,” Anthony said of the final months before Van Halen’s death. “It bothers me because we had some issues that were never resolved.” The musician isn’t trying to hold onto his sadness about what could have been, however. “But, I mean, what can you do?” he added. “It was on the track of a reunion, which I’m really sad that it never happened. But life … the show goes on.”

Anthony explained that Van Halen wasn’t open about just how sick he was during his cancer battle, calling him “very private” about the status of his health: “We all knew he was ill, but it was a real shock to all of us.” he shared. Following Van Halen’s death, Anthony paid tribute to his former bandmate on Instagram, writing alongside a photo of the music legend, “No words…Heartbroken. My love to the family.”

Van Halen was able to reconcile with Sammy Hagar, who replaced original Van Halen lead singer David Lee Roth in 1985, and performed with the band until 1996. Hagar shared how he had reconnected with Van Halen on Howard Stern’s SiriusXM radio show shortly after the musician’s death. “I would love you to share that Eddie and I had been texting, and it’s been a love fest since we started communicating earlier this year,” Hagar said in a letter that Stern read on air. “We both agreed not to tell anyone because of all the rumors it would stir up about a reunion, et cetera, and we both knew that wasn’t going to happen. But he also didn’t want anyone to know about his health.”

“He stopped responding to me a month ago, and I figured it wasn’t good,” Hagar’s note continued of how Van Halen’s health had declined before his death. “I reached out one more time last week and when he didn’t respond, I figured it was a matter of time, but it came way too soon.”