Daryl Hall Says He Was Asked to Replace David Lee Roth in Van Halen

"[Eddie] was half joking, but I think he was serious. I really do believe he was serious."

Photo (Hall): Matthew Becker

BY Calum SlingerlandPublished Mar 14, 2022

In the beginning, there was Van Halen, and upon the 1984 exit of vocalist David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar's arrival as new lead vocalist ushered in the group's "Van Hagar" era. It turns out that the world very nearly had "Van Hall-en," had Daryl Hall not turned down an invitation to join the California rockers.

Hall, who is of course one half of beloved rock 'n soul duo Hall & Oates, confirmed this month that he was indeed considered as a replacement for Diamond Dave, recalling to New York's Q104.3 how he was approached by Eddie Van Halen himself with the proposition.

"I knew those guys really well. We actually shared some people — crew, and things like that," Hall explained, "And Eddie came to a show with Valerie [Bertinelli, his wife at the time]. This goes back, you know? And David had just left the band. And Eddie said, 'Do you want to join Van Halen, man?' He was half joking, but I think he was serious. I really do believe he was serious. And I took it seriously. I went, 'Meh, I think not. I think I've got my own shit going on.'"

While "Van Hall-en" ultimately never came to fruition, Hall's influence found its way to the late guitar god's group via 1980 single "Kiss on My List," telling the station, "That is what [Eddie] always told me. That inspired 'Jump.'"

You can hear Hall's complete interview below. Next month, the artist will deliver compilation BeforeAfter, collecting studio recordings, live versions, and collaborations with Todd Rundgren and Eurythmics' Dave Stewart. That release arrives April 1 via Legacy Recordings.



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