Eddie Van Halen Almost Asked This Famous Musician To Be In Van Halen

Eddie Van Halen almost asked former Deep Purple bassist and vocalist Glenn Hughes to be a part of Van Halen in the 1980s. According to Consequence of Sound, Hughes reflected on the "hypothetical" invitation in a recent podcast, stating that the two had discussed the proposition on the side as friends nearly 40 years ago.

“Well, Eddie was newly sober at that time… And we spoke about it. I had no idea. Eddie had been a friend of mine from the beginning.” Vocalist David Lee Roth left Van Halen in 1985, leaving an open spot in the band of which Hughes was a fine candidate. Though he was certainly qualified to fill the position, Hughes cited his lack of sobriety as a reason for being passed over for the gig, even though he was already "recording vocals for a Black Sabbath album" when Roth exited Van Halen.

“Look… Would it have worked? I’m not sure. Unless I was completely sober — and I’ve been sober now for 24 years. Yeah, it would have been interesting, wouldn’t it? You never know.” Eddie went on to ask Sammy Hagar to join Van Halen as the band's lead singer. Hagar stayed with the band for 11 years before leaving to pursue a solo career. Hughes left Black Sabbath in 1986 and went on to join Trapeze as their lead singer from 1991 to 1994.