Mike Post recently appeared on ‘The Hustle’ podcast and talked about 1998’s ‘Van Halen III.’ The producer explained how he convinced Alex Van Halen to step aside during its production:
“So, really early on, Al came in, you know, and we started to… And he just wasn’t Al. He just wasn’t… He wasn’t playing like Al. So, you know, Ed [said], ‘I don’t know what to do. It’s my brother. It’s my brother.’ And I said, ‘Well, what do you want to do?’”
The drummer was going through a divorce from his wife of 13 years, Kelly Carter, at the time. So, Post continued:
“He said, ‘Well, I want him to think about himself and his family and to get straight and figure things out and get his divorce finished, but I don’t, you know, I oughtta play drums.’ I said, ‘Okay, no problem. I’ll get it done.’ He goes, ‘Hey, you gotta be careful,’ you know, ‘Al’s, he’s no pushover.’ I said, ‘Oh, I know.’ I said, ‘No problem… no problem. So far, we’ve had a very good relationship.’”
Post Used Alex’s Soft Spot For His Brother
Van Halen’s first record since 1995’s ‘Balance’ intended to focus on Eddie Van Halen during his recovery from drug and alcohol abuse. The ‘Van Halen III’ producer referred to this point when he asked Alex to stay behind:
“I said, ‘Al, you’re in the middle of a divorce. You’re really f*cked up and you’re not playing like Alex. I mean, you are not playing like you. And my job is to get your little brother to do a record sober and to facilitate that. So, you gotta sit down and concentrate on yourself and concentrate on your divorce and concentrate on getting rid of all the substance abuse.’”
The drummer didn’t react well at first. So, the chat between the two went on:
“And, man, he just went, ‘Goddamn it. What?’ I said, ‘Don’t get mad. Calm down. Stay calm.’ You know, ‘I don’t mean disrespect. I just mean that you don’t want to stop your little brother from doing something that’s very different for him. He’s had tremendous struggles, and he’s your little brother, goddamn it! Be a big brother here. Put yourself second and let this kid do what he wants to do. He’s earned it.’”
Post’s words finally convinced Alex:
“And he went, ‘Okay, you’re right.’ And I said, ‘God, you’re just a stud, man. You’re a fucking stud.’”
‘Van Halen III’ turned out to be more of Eddie’s solo project than a group record. Still, it went Gold in the US after its debut.