Roth says Van Halen reunion inevitable

PITTSBURGH, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Rock 'n' roll frontman turned DJ David Lee Roth says a Van Halen reunion is inevitable.

"I talked to the drummer about a week ago," Roth said of Alex Van Halen to the Pittsburgh Tribune Review. "And I think, eventually, the inevitable will happen."

He hinted the reunion would happen sooner than later, saying: "It definitely won't be rockers with walkers."

Roth was a founding member of the band with brothers Alex and Eddie Van Halen and bassist Michael Anthony. After a string of hits, he was replaced by Sammy Hagar in 1985 and Hagar left in 1996 to be briefly replaced by Gary Cherone.

Roth reunited with his bandmates to record a retrospective four years later, but Eddie Van Halen was diagnosed with cancer right around that time and the promise of a tour and new music never materialized.

Roth embarked on a new career Tuesday, as one of Howard Stern's replacements handing East Coast duties for CBS Radio's new "Free FM" format out of New York.