“They had spoken to me also. Who knows what was going on in their minds?” Michael Anthony says he and ex-Metallica bassist Jason Newsted were both approached for the failed Van Halen tribute

In what was a real bolt from the blue, former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted revealed back in 2022 that he’d been approached for a Van Halen reunion tour with Joe Satriani slated to play electric guitar.

Satch was, of course, widely regarded as a suitable choice to fill the late Eddie Van Halen’s sizable shoes, and there’s huge excitement around the upcoming The Best Of All Worlds tour he’s to be a part of.

However, at the time, there was skepticism that the rest of the band wouldn’t want long-time bassist Michael Anthony, or at least Wolfgang Van Halen, involved.

Probed about Newsted’s claims in a fresh interview with Ultimate Guitar, Anthony says he was indeed in the frame for what proved to be a failed reunion attempt.

“It was really interesting because I had not even heard about [Newsted] until I heard about it in the press,” he says. “And it was right around that time that I actually had gotten a call from Alex [Van Halen] and Dave [Lee Roth] about doing a reunion.

“So I don't know what was going on there. But I thought it was actually pretty interesting. Who knows what was going on in their minds when they were trying to put something together.

“All I know is that they had spoken to me also,” he concludes. “But things kind of fell apart before they were even able to be put together.”

The Best Of All Worlds tour, spearheaded by Sammy Hagar with Joe Satriani, Anthony and Jason Bonham, has since unofficially taken on the Van Halen-reviving mantel. While the absence of David Lee Roth is a noticable, the assembled band will play many Roth-era hits.

Satch hasn’t taken the responsibility of playing Eddie Van Halen's guitar parts lightly. He’s worked with 3rd Power Amps for a custom tube amp, designed to replicate Eddie’s 1986 tone. He’s also given his pedalboard a major, Eddie-inspired revamp, and made many modifications to an EVH Eruption Strat.

Meanwhile, Anthony has talked about his hopes of Wolfgang Van Halen doing something with what he says is a vast archive of never-before-heard Van Halen songs. Earlier this year, he also hinted at a new band he's involved with, featuring Bon Jovi guitarist Phil X, Aerosmith live drummer John Douglas, and a vocalist whose identity was kept secret.