VAN HALEN's MICHAEL ANTHONY: "I Would Like To See A Reunion With SAMMY Or DAVE"

VAN HALEN bassist Michael Anthony "would really like to see if we could pull it off, a reunion with [former VH frontmen] Dave [Lee Roth] and Sammy [Hagar]," the bassist told Nashville's The Tennessean daily newspaper last week. ''The whole thing is really frustrating,'' Anthony added. ''You know, unfortunately, some things that seem like they should be so easy to fix become kind of difficult.

''Of course, it would be great to do something again with Sammy or Dave or both of them. … Maybe just kind of put a cap or a final ending on this whole era.''

In the same paper, Roth himself addressed the recent rumors of a rift between him and Hagar during the pair's ongoing US tour, which hit Nashville's AmSouth Amphitheatre on Saturday.

The following are select comments from Roth as published in the August 2nd edition of The Tennessean:

On whether he's been "talking" to Sammy before or during the tour:

Dave Lee Roth: "Can you define talk? Because we're not 'not talking.' (Laughs) There's a rivalry that from my position is no more than some friendly head-butting for your listening and dancing pleasure. It's a constant build-up for a fight that never really happens. The worst you ever see out here are some threatening slaps, followed by cheers, group therapy and an elaborate reunion tour and a commemorative T-shirt. Sammy and I get along fine, but there is a competitive mix-it-up that the audience needs to get right in the middle of."

On whether he would still be willing to rejoin VAN HALEN:

Dave Lee Roth: "At some point down the line, if they're prepared to do the exact right thing, but there's an incredible high arch of excellence and not terms of perfection. There's a Japanese term called wabi-sabi, not wasabi, but wabi-sabi. It means an appreciation for the imperfect, the less than precision. The cowboy boots that you never polish because it's bad luck. That is completely wabi-sabi. VAN HALEN is that."

"I'm about right here, right now. What the Van Halens are about is wasted time. If you think one second isn't valuable, then ask the little girl who just missed getting a gold medal at the Olympics by one second. If you think one month is not valuable to somebody, then ask the lady who just had a premature kid how valuable that month is. Eddie Van Halen and his sister have wasted years."

On who's winning the Undisputed Heavyweight Champs of Rock and Roll fight between Sammy and Dave:

Dave Lee Roth: "In terms of the whole celebrity-boxing thing, I think I saved Sam from having to do that for a living. Besides, he outweighs me by, what? Thirty kilos?"