Was Michael Anthony Fired or Did He Quit Van Halen?
Side one to the story:
In a recent interview with RollingStone.com, Eddie Van Halen was asked if he had heard Chickenfoot, which in addition to Anthony, includes former Van Halen singer Sammy Hagar.
"I'm too busy doing my own thing," Van Halen said, who then added, "The funny thing is that everyone who quits the band always claims they got fired by me. Hey, I'm not the bad guy here.
"When Hagar left the band, Mike went with him," Van Halen continued. "Then when we get back together with Dave [Lee Roth], and all of a sudden, he wants back in. It's like, 'No, dude, you quit the band.' So my son became the bass player. But we didn't give Mike the boot to have my son play."
Side Two:
Michael Anthony, speaking to MusicRadar.com, challenged Van Halen's version of events. "Why would I have quit Van Halen? It never happened," he said. "And what's weird is, he was being asked about Chickenfoot, whether he had heard us or not, and suddenly he launches into this thing about me quitting the group. What does one thing even have to do with the other?"
"I never 'quit.' I never once said, 'I'm out of here.' It never happened. That's the weird thing right now, for Eddie to be trying to paint himself as 'not the bad guy.'"
"Ultimately, all's well that ends well," he said. "I just find it odd that I'm put into a situation where I'm forced to defend myself. Everything is great in my world and I couldn't be happier with the group I'm in. But I don't want people to think I quit Van Halen, because I didn't. It never happened."
BnR side:
The story is probably somewhere in the middle here. Anthony was probably pissed at the way Hagar exited the band since they are best friends. Eddie was probably eager to get Wolfie out on tour so they could spend time together. Anthony gets kicked to the curb. Shame because the Van Halen shows lacked Anthony's power bass and power backing vocals. Wolfie isn't ready for the big time yet.
In a recent interview with RollingStone.com, Eddie Van Halen was asked if he had heard Chickenfoot, which in addition to Anthony, includes former Van Halen singer Sammy Hagar.
"I'm too busy doing my own thing," Van Halen said, who then added, "The funny thing is that everyone who quits the band always claims they got fired by me. Hey, I'm not the bad guy here.
"When Hagar left the band, Mike went with him," Van Halen continued. "Then when we get back together with Dave [Lee Roth], and all of a sudden, he wants back in. It's like, 'No, dude, you quit the band.' So my son became the bass player. But we didn't give Mike the boot to have my son play."
Side Two:
Michael Anthony, speaking to MusicRadar.com, challenged Van Halen's version of events. "Why would I have quit Van Halen? It never happened," he said. "And what's weird is, he was being asked about Chickenfoot, whether he had heard us or not, and suddenly he launches into this thing about me quitting the group. What does one thing even have to do with the other?"
"I never 'quit.' I never once said, 'I'm out of here.' It never happened. That's the weird thing right now, for Eddie to be trying to paint himself as 'not the bad guy.'"
"Ultimately, all's well that ends well," he said. "I just find it odd that I'm put into a situation where I'm forced to defend myself. Everything is great in my world and I couldn't be happier with the group I'm in. But I don't want people to think I quit Van Halen, because I didn't. It never happened."
BnR side:
The story is probably somewhere in the middle here. Anthony was probably pissed at the way Hagar exited the band since they are best friends. Eddie was probably eager to get Wolfie out on tour so they could spend time together. Anthony gets kicked to the curb. Shame because the Van Halen shows lacked Anthony's power bass and power backing vocals. Wolfie isn't ready for the big time yet.
Michael Anthony is one of the best bassist in rock history! He is also one of the best background vocalist...as a matter of fact is the best. Van Halen really made a bad choice getting rid of him for an elementary Wolfie. It's common Sense.
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DAVID LEE ROTH is Van Halen....
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I agree with this comment!
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I wholeheartedly believe Michael Anthony's version of the story. Eddie Van Halen is a great guitarist and all, but he is also a tempermental asshole who eventually pisses off bandmates who don't share his last name. Just look at his track record of lead singers who came and went because they couldn't put up with his bullshit anymore.
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Outside of Van Halen (the group) each member had his own side project. I remember when M.A. said he hasn't heard from "the brothers" in over a year. If they wanted M.A. back, why didn't they call him when they were ready to start things up again? I think Eddie is mad at Michael for being friends with Sammy!
Hence the no call from the brothers. In comes Wolfie.
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