Alex Van Halen Admits Van Halen Was “Not The Same” After David Lee Roth Left

In a new interview with Billboard to promote his forthcoming memoir, Brothers, Alex Van Halen reveals that he thinks Van Halen lost their “magic” when frontman David Lee Roth left the band in 1985. “What happened after Dave left is not the same band,” Alex said. “I’m not saying it was better or worse or any of that. The fact is Ed and I did our best work whenever we played. But the magic was in the first years, when we didn’t know what we were doing, when we were willing to try anything.” What Alex wasn’t willing to try was taking part in Sammy Hagar’s recent “Best of All Worlds” Van Halen-focused tour, which featured Joe Satriani on guitar, Michael Anthony on bass, and Jason Bonham on drums. “I’m not interested,” he said. “They’re not doing the band justice. They can do what they want to do. That’s not my business.” (Billboard)