Ugly band breakups are one of the saddest parts of the history of classic rock — along with death, and old age. Below are the 10 Ugliest Band Breakups In Rock History:
Sammy Hagar (Van Halen)
In 1985 Hagar takes the place of David Lee Roth in Van Halen. The first work with the band is 5150 and this is accompanied by another solo album, I NEVER SAID GOODBYE of 1987. When he separated from the group in 1996 – following internal conflicts – MARCHING TO MARS (1997) was released, an album that sold in a considerable way allowing him to restart his solo career.
The Beatles
Many consider that John Lennon’s partner was the main culprit in the Beatles’ breakup. … Ono always wanted to be where Lennon was and vice versa. Hence, the artist became part of the group’s day-to-day life and had her disagreements, especially with Paul McCartney and George Harrison. The first recognized that he was forced to give a more intellectual tone to his lyrics when she was present since it intimidated him. The second, according to John, went even further: he insulted Yoko to the face, which almost caused Lennon and Harrison to come to blows. Ringo Starr also did not quite agree with the omnipresence of Yoko Ono. “She is not a Beatle, John, and she never will be,” he told Lennon on one occasion when he claimed that his partner wanted to be “one of us.” For all this, it is not surprising that there has been much talk of the portion of guilt that Ono could have at the end of the Beatles.
The Allman Brothers
Before the separation, they released a double live album, Wipe The Windows, Check The Oil, Dollar Gas (1976) that includes their greatest hits. Years later, Gregg Allman summoned Phil Walden to rebuild the group. But Chuck Leavell and Lamar Williams did not agree to it. Eventually, the Allmans reunited, with Dan Toler on the second guitar, David “Rook” Goldflies on bass, and Tom Dowd on the producer. Hence came the album Enlightened rouges (1979). Betts took on the role of leader and songwriter. After two unsuccessful albums, The Allman Brothers finally separated in January 1982.
The Eagles
The Eagles needed the eighties to be a decade of rest and separation. They needed to stop seeing each other for a while. Ten years would be fine. By 1993 rumors were growing and there was a feeling among fans that the miracle could really happen. Finally, in 1994 they all reappeared together. “By the way, we never really parted. We’ve just taken 14 years of vacation,” said Glenn Frey with a laugh.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUIO4QTB2VM
John Fogerty (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
When the remaining members recorded Mardi Grass (1972) it was an instant failure and showed that the figure of John Fogerty in the Creedence Clearwater Revival was fundamental and that without his work this band would not have achieved so many successes and popularity. The tours continued with some success and thus they published Live in Europe (1974), which included performances carried out in 1971 by the old continent. The album was released when the band was already disbanded by Fantasy Records after the Creedence disbanded in the summer of 1972. John Fogerty rejected several proposals from his former colleagues to meet again and take a tour under the name Creedence Clearwater Revival.
Dennis DeYoung (Styx)
Everything showed that unlike most bands in the seventies, Styx would be successful in the 80’s, but the musicians decide to separate, releasing a double live album beforehand. Styx did nothing else for the rest of the decade. The band starts to transform again, and Chuck says goodbye along with Dennis. The replacements are Glen Burtnik (on bass) and Lawrence Gowan (keyboard).
Pink Floyd
The main reason for Pink Floyd’s breakup was the lack of communication and misunderstanding that the band members had within themselves. Roger Waters started recording his individual albums and wanted to leave the band, and when he called everyone to tell them that Roger thought it was the end of Pink Floyd. But the rest of the members thought that they could carry on the legacy that they all created together. And when Waters saw the band working and performing in an original way, he was shocked. So, he decided to file a lawsuit against members of his own gang.
Ozzy Osbourne (Black Sabbath)
It is no longer any secret that BLACK SABBATH was not in its prime when they kicked off their tour to present the album “Never Say Die!” in the summer of 1978. In addition to being hooked on alcohol and cocaine, the members of the band presented an album that they were not proud of and that was not well received by their fans. When BLACK SABBATH came home they sought comfort by raising their bet on drug and alcohol abuse. Not just “Never Say Die!” was a disappointment, its predecessor, “Technical Ecstasy” (1976), was also a failure, something especially hard for the vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. Osbourne’s firing didn’t come out of anywhere. In 1978, BLACK SABBATH rented a house in Los Angeles to begin writing the sequel to “Never Say Die!” They turned the garage of the house into a recording studio. But as soon as they started creating music, Ozzy suddenly disappeared. For six weeks, no one knew where he was. With Ozzy missing in action, the rest of the gang found themselves weak. They could have written the album without him, and in fact, that’s what Geezer Butler, who had stopped using drugs in 1976, wanted to do. But Iommi used Ozzy’s absence as an excuse to get drunk and high, and drummer Bill Ward just didn’t need an excuse – just like Ozzy, he was drunk all the time.
Guns N’ Roses
The events of the tour with Metallica were the daily life of Guns N ‘Roses in those years. Slash has acknowledged in a large number of interviews over the years that the reasons for leaving the group were “the matter of the delays in starting the concerts in a systematic way and without any reason”, the legal battle That Axl Rose started against his groupmates for taking ownership of all the rights to the ‘Guns N’ Roses’ brand when they still belonged to the group and the bad atmosphere that all this entailed.
David Lee Roth (Van Halen)
In 1974, as Eddie Van Halen hated singing and just wanted to focus on playing the electric guitar, he offered David Lee Roth to join his band as a vocalist, who immediately accepted. The group, which had Alex Van Halen on drums, would be completed with the arrival of bassist Michael Anthony. Mammoth’s name, in any case, had to be changed, as another band was also using it, so David Lee Roth suggested baptizing the group with the Van Halen brothers’ last name. After successful tours, Van Halen would become the highest-paid group in history when they charged for a single performance at the 1983 US Festival one and a half million dollars per hour and a half of concert. David Lee Roth, while still a member of Van Halen, would release his EP “Crazy from the heat” in 1985, his solo debut that would have an excellent reception thanks to the covers of the songs “Just a gigoló” and “California Girls”, an original Beach Boys song that would reach the top 3 of the United States popularity charts. Tired of the creative and personal differences with Eddie Van Halen and after realizing that he could succeed as a solo artist, David Lee Roth decided to leave Van Halen in April 1985.