Disappointed Sammy Total Concert Eddie Van Halen Never Realized

Sammy Totaling And Michael Anthony (Instagram @stenkhagar)

Sammymen again considered the all-star tribute concert proposal for Eddie Van Halen, saying he was "very disappointed" because the event never materialized.

No progress has been reported regarding a possible tribute to Van Halen show since April 2022 when former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted told The Palm Beach Post he was approached by drummer Alex Van Halen about six months earlier about playing bass for the project.

Newsted told the Florida newspaper he agreed to go to California to play alongside Alex and legendary guitarist Joe Satriani and see if it felt right, but he finally realized that it was impossible to be fair to Van Halen's legacy.

"How come?" said Jason. "No one can beat him, so how do you show his honor? I don't want this to be seen as a confiscation of money. And then everything failed."

Asked in a new interview with the podcast "Rock Of Nations With Dave Kinden And Shane McAchern" whether Van Halen's tribute concert will happen, this is what happens.

"As far as respect concerns, I am very disappointed with the way they are. I have handled everything, including when I left the band, what they did, and that. I didn't know the function in the band... When I was in the band for the first nine years, we got along like brothers who liked to fight. We were happy together and a big family. A lot of things go wrong. Drugs and alcohol are bad things if they turn bad, and things will never be the same again. And they don't do anything for Eddie Van Halen, the greatest guitar player in the world, the greatest rock musician, I've said... It's bad, but it's not my job."

Referring to his band, The Circle, where he joined former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, Sammy said they were doing their job as musicians and former Van Halen members.

"I'm going to do this as long as I can. I don't know how much longer I can sing those songs and sing my own songs and come out and jump on stage and do great performances," Sammy said.

"So as long as I can do it, I have to keep doing it. But in my opinion, we continue to add more Van Halen songs to the concert location; that's what we do. How come we sing Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love. We present Van Halen's song pretty good."