Eddie Van Halen to rehab; David Lee Roth boycotting ceremony

Eddie Van Halen won't be attending the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Monday after all. He released a statement today announcing he is going into rehab.
In a note addressed to fans he stated: "I have always and will always feel a responsibility to give you my best. At the moment I do not feel that I can give you my best. That's why I have decided to enter a rehabilitation facility to work on myself, so that in the future I can deliver the 110% that I feel I owe you and want to give you."
Alcohol has been cited as Eddie's addiction.

Meanwhile, David Lee Roth has decided to boycott the event because he is not being allowed to perform. After Eddie and Alex Van Halen chose not to attend, the Rock Hall didn't want David Lee Roth, Michael Anthony and Sammy Hagar to be the only ones performing VH songs, so they brought in Velvet Revolver to do the honors. Roth isn't happy about the situation:

"I don't make speeches for a living; I sing and dance for my dinner," Roth said, adding that the decision to skip the event "rips my heart out."

Roth said he had been preparing since December for the chance to perform for the industry elite and the audience watching on VH1 Classics.

"It's just not an option for me to go and watch some other band — who are only performing because they have some new record coming out — do our music," Roth said. "I have nothing against Velvet Revolver — I'm not familiar with their music — but that was my 3 minutes and 22 seconds up there."

Music industry critic, Bob Lefsetz believes this is the last nail in the coffin for the Rock Hall, "When you don't even let the INDUCTEES perform." He continues, "Let every table at the Waldorf-Astoria be adorned with a bowl of brown M&M’s.  And when it comes time for Van Halen to be inducted, let everybody THROW THEM AT THE DAIS!"

A reunited Van Halen was going to be the highlight of the 2007 ceremony. It's too bad that it probably won't happen now, but who knows -- things could change over the weekend.

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