Does the "Eat 'Em and Smile" Reunion talk say anything about the future of Van Halen?

[Never was]

I struggle seeing Hagar return due to Wolfgang, management, it being personal, plus losing his voice badly the past year (he is 67 so not knocking him for that).
Roth and Van Halen are a huge pain in each others ass and a clash of epic egos but never really was that personal.
The simple truth is likely we will see. Clearly Roth did had issues (medical/personal whatever) on ADKOT tour and in 2014. He should up in 2015 not having his shit together and Eddie was clearly frustrated. Dave however did get his shit together and delivered a better than expected tour. So now Wolfgang has his thing, Dave is in LA which is a good sign, and Eddie seems content watching as proud dad what Wolfgang does. So Van Halen is likely a big we will see which is probably the most frustrating answer for fans. Optimistically Wolf does his thing, Eddie releases his book next summer, and then they see if Roth will play by their rules and record a new record in 2017. Worse case Wolf does his thing and Eddie just piddles around eventually doing dome instrumental music. I don't think Eddie ever records with another vocalist or tours with Hagar. I'm sure they will fan the Van Hagar flames and Dave is out, we hate each other story line since it simply works for them getting fans riled up more so than we do not know and I;m watching my kid do his thing so frankly don't really care now.

[DONNIEP]

I think the key to making a Van Slappy reunion tour profitable would be in the promotion. That's why they'd have to have Mike back for the tour. They didn't need to do any promotion in '07 cause Dave returning was a huge deal. Now, meh, not so much. But if they trot Sam out for a tour they'd have to hype the shit out of it. They'd get the buzz just from the fact that it was all four guys, sure, but they'd still need to hype it to get the word out to all the soccer moms who love that shit.

Of course, there's always gonna be a good size crowd who shows up for most of the big name shows that roll through town. You put Van Halen up on the marquee and people are gonna show up, regardless of whether it's Dave or Sam singing/screeching on stage. I'd bet money most of the people at the shows I went to would have showed up if it was Sam up there. And for a lot of the slightly younger than us crowd, Van Hagar is what they know and remember, which sucks for them cause we all know there ain't no comparison.

But if they brought Sam and Mike back, hyped the shit out of it, maybe actually had a serious stage show (the last one was a huge improvement and step in the right direction), then I can see it making money. I can see them following the same model as with Dave - do a tour, do a record and then another tour.

Anyways, this is all just speculation. Whatever those guys do, whether it's with Dave or Sam or with somebody else, their time is running out. So unless they pull off something big, like a new record with Dave or bringing back Sam and Mike, they're gonna have a tough time selling tickets in two or three years when they finally decide to come out of hibernation.

[chuckjitsu]

I could definitely see Hagar being back in. Why? Because I read an interview with Al during their 2004 "love fest" tour with Sam where he strongly channeled his inner Taylor Swift- "we will never, ever, ever get back together with Dave" so people should "get over" the notion of Dave ever fronting the band again. Flash forward two years and Dave is back in. Ed runs the fucking show, so if he wants Sam back in, Sam will be back in. Sam is loyal to Mike, so I'm not sure he would do anything without Mike and I don't think Ed would jettison his kid just to make Sam happy, so who compromises? IMO, Ed holds all the cards here, so I'm doubting it would be him, unless WVH somehow convinces him to do it.

I agree with Terry. As inferior as that VH version is, I think a reconstituted Van Hagar would sell pretty well on tour and probably do as well as or close to as well as the last couple of Dave tours. There's no accounting for taste, so I'm sure there would be many who would willingly look toward the sky and gladly allow themselves to be covered with a yellowish-orange shower of Velveeta.

[Va Beach VH Fan]

I struggle seeing Hagar return due to Wolfgang, management, it being personal, plus losing his voice badly the past year (he is 67 so not knocking him for that).

Bette is 68.....

And I'll repeat, and am willing to put a $100 wager on it towards Roth Army upgrades, that there is no way on The Invisible Man™ green earth that Bette returns without Mike.....

[cadaverdog]

Roth and Van Halen are a huge pain in each others ass and a clash of epic egos but never really was that personal.

It wasn't? Maybe you should watch this and tell me it's not that personal.

[Va Beach VH Fan]

It wasn't? Maybe you should watch this and tell me it's not that personal.

Not to mention going on tour with separate buses, separate dressing rooms and hardly speaking unless they're on stage...

[vandeleur]

Sounds like they are married

[DONNIEP]

Sounds like they are married

If I could get that kind of deal I'd consider getting married again.

[DONNIEP]

Bette is 68.....

And I'll repeat, and am willing to put a $100 wager on it towards Roth Army upgrades, that there is no way on The Invisible Man™ green earth that Bette returns without Mike.....

Yep, no way in hell Sam is gonna front that band without Mike. And I don't think Mike coming back would be much of a deal breaker. At some point Wolf is gonna get kinda bored with being daddy's crutch. Or he's just gonna want to do his own thing, whatever that is.

And no matter what Ed has said about Mike or what Sam's said about Ed, it would be just like it was on these tours with Roth - Ed and Al would hide out in their buses and wouldn't say jack shit on stage, especially Ed. He'd give Sam the fake hug every nite and people would cheer like a bunch of idiots and the reviewers would write about how they really seem to have buried the hatchet and appreciate each other and all the ridiculous shit they did while Dave was up there. And it would be just as true as it was with Dave - in other words complete horse shit.

Unless Ed suddenly comes down with a terminal case of loyalty, he's going to tour with whoever can put asses in the seats. Period. As recently as this last tour he was still deriding Dave's contribution to the band - "For whatever reason" people want to hear Dave singing the songs. And when he's being interviewed in the middle of the next tour with Sam, he'll make the same derisive and/or indifferent comments about Sam. Why? Because Ed cannot stand the fact that him and Al and Ed and Wolf can't go on tour without Sam or Dave. They just can't do it alone and nobody gives two shits about them unless they have one of the two guys they hate the most out there singing the songs.

[vandeleur]

On wolfs Twitter he is constantly updating pics of him on the studio working on his album , when that's finished he is gonna surely want to tour it , he has loads of pals he can call on to help him tour it.

I think for the foreseeable future you have as much chance of seeing wolf tour with them as you have with Dave.

[DONNIEP]

Hey Mike and Sam, what do you guys think about the news that David Lee Roth might reunite with his Eat Em And Smile band mates?

[twonabomber]

Mike's wig is starting to look like the late Jim Traficant's wig!

[vandeleur]

I wanna grab that fucking chin wig on Hagar and swing him about with it ,smelly twat.

[Von Halen]

I think people are using the term "reunite" loosely, when it comes to whatever is or isn't going to happen with the EEAS band.

[DONNIEP]

I wanna grab that fucking chin wig on Hagar and swing him about with it ,smelly twat.

I know, right? His wife must be a saint.

[DONNIEP]

I think people are using the term "reunite" loosely, when it comes to whatever is or isn't going to happen with the EEAS band.

It's called rumor mongering, lol. The chances of Dave actually agreeing to any sort of reunion are pretty slim.

[DONNIEP]

Mike's wig is starting to look like the late Jim Traficant's wig!

I don't know, I think it looks pretty good. It's damn sure better than Dave and his Chrome Dome. And I don't think it's a wig - he swims in that thing and it looks like plugs to me. If I was Dave I'd be on the phone with Mike trying to find out who his hair guy is.

[Von Halen]

Not to mention going on tour with separate buses, separate dressing rooms and hardly speaking unless they're on stage...

They wouldn't have to do that with Hagar. Say what you want about Hagar, but he's much more happy go lucky than other people.

[vandeleur]

It's called rumor mongering, lol. The chances of Dave actually agreeing to any sort of reunion are pretty slim.

I just think he was happy to meet up with people who weren't miserable bastards and wanted to talk to him

[Von Halen]

It's called rumor mongering, lol. The chances of Dave actually agreeing to any sort of reunion are pretty slim.

Oh, I think they may play a show similar to what they tried to do recently, but I don't think there is any way anything more than that will transpire. If it is more than that, I doubt it will very many shows. The song selection would have to be done very carefully. The thought of the way Dave would sound on some of those songs, scares me.

[DONNIEP]

They wouldn't have to do that with Hagar. Say what you want about Hagar, but he's much more happy go lucky than other people.

Oh that can't be true. The fact that he likes to party, laugh, have fun, act goofy, and treats his band mates well can't possibly mean he might actually be a shit ton more fun to hang out with compared to OBC and Spock.

[Von Halen]

I just think he was happy to meet up with people who weren't miserable bastards and wanted to talk to him

When you say "people", you mean his peers, right? Because I can promise you, Dave ain't looking for the average Joe to talk to him.

I still love how people think the on stage and in front of the camera "Diamond Dave", is really David Lee Roth.

[DONNIEP]

Oh, I think they may play a show similar to what they tried to do recently, but I don't think there is any way anything more than that will transpire. If it is more than that, I doubt it will very many shows. The song selection would have to be done very carefully. The thought of the way Dave would sound on some of those songs, scares me.

Oh I could see Dave doing a show. But even a limited tour? I don't know. Dave seems to be about as motivated as Ed when it comes to actually doing anything. And like you said - he's gonna have a tough time pulling off a lot of those songs. But who knows, maybe he's actually working on his voice instead of going to Ninja College or running around Japan wearing a wrasslin mask.

[DONNIEP]

When you say "people", you mean his peers, right? Because I can promise you, Dave ain't looking for the average Joe to talk to him.

I still love how people think the on stage and in front of the camera "Diamond Dave", is really David Lee Roth.

Yeah, one thing Sam has right is when he says Dave ain't the happy party guy he likes people to believe he is. Seems to me he's more like Ed - he'd rather sit alone in a room and brood.

[vandeleur]

When you say "people", you mean his peers, right? Because I can promise you, Dave ain't looking for the average Joe to talk to him.

I still love how people think the on stage and in front of the camera "Diamond Dave", is really David Lee Roth.

People meAnt the eat em guys , the pic of him with them looked like they were all cool .

[vandeleur]

Yeah, one thing Sam has right is when he says Dave ain't the happy party guy he likes people to believe he is. Seems to me he's more like Ed - he'd rather sit alone in a room and brood.

I can imagine that davey boy can party , as long as he was the absolute centre of attention.
Dave tuning up .... Me me me me

[DONNIEP]

I can imagine that davey boy can party , as long as he was the absolute centre of attention.
Dave tuning up .... Me me me me

Maybe 30 years ago. Today? Yeah I don't think so.

[vandeleur]

Maybe 30 years ago. Today? Yeah I don't think so.

Please don't tell me as you get older you lose the ability to party ... I am sorry Donnie I really am

[Von Halen]

Oh that can't be true. The fact that he likes to party, laugh, have fun, act goofy, and treats his band mates well can't possibly mean he might actually be a shit ton more fun to hang out with compared to OBC and Spock.

I don't know who "OBC" is, and don't get the Spock reference, even though I know who he is.

We were back stage at one of the Dave and Sam shows, and my Wife was sitting at a picnic table by herself while I was over on Dave's side of the back stage area, trying to act cool and talking to Ray and some of the crew. I go back to where she was sitting and as I walk up, I just about shit myself. Clichegar was sitting at the picnic table talking to her! Now, I'm not sure if it was my big DLR laminate, because she had one on too, or if it was my "Are you fucking crazy?" comment, but as soon as I got to the table, Hagar says he's gotta go get ready to go on and gets up and leaves. I asked my Wife how the fuck that happened, and she said he saw her sitting there by herself and just came and sat down and started talking to her. She said she told him we knew Ray and were with those guys, and he was totally cool about it, and then they just bullshitted for awhile. She always busted my balls after that, because Clichegar was much more down to earth than Dave.

That's also the first night I met Mona, Hagar's bass player. I was busting her chops about being in Hagar's band, and she said something to me about how she'd bust me and DLR in the mouth! She was fucking funny, and very cool.

I gotta say, I was at many shows on that tour, in several different States, and the Hagar side of the back stage area was always more party, while Dave's was always more business. Take that however you want, and spin it to whatever suits your opinion of both Dave and Sam, but that's just the way it was.

[Von Halen]

People meAnt the eat em guys , the pic of him with them looked like they were all cool .

I agree. That picture made it look like no matter what, they were going to have a great fucking time. It's a shame that show didn't happen on that night.

[vandeleur]

So many jokes I will shut da fuck up . Vonzie I love you

[DONNIEP]

Ed: OBC - Old Bitter Cunt
Al: Spock, cause he reminds me of Spock

[vandeleur]

Spock , really ?

[DONNIEP]

Spock , really ?

Well he used to look like Mike Damone. But over the years he has definitely taken on more of a Spockish appearance.

[Von Halen]

Well he used to look like Mike Damone. But over the years he has definitely taken on more of a Spockish appearance.

Who's Mike Damone?

Fuck, you guys and your obscure references.

[vandeleur]

He does have a bit of a look of him , he was never the looker of the band it's fair to say.

[twonabomber]

Who's Mike Damone?

Fuck, you guys and your obscure references.

[Von Halen]

Fast Times!

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Who's Mike Damone?

Fuck, you guys and your obscure references.

Damn Von, I gotta put you down one notch for that one...

[DONNIEP]

Who's Mike Damone?

Fuck, you guys and your obscure references.

Jesus Christ, Rip Von Winkel - I am going to buy you a VCR!!