David Lee Roth thinks he might have endured a bout with the novel coronavirus before his tour with Kiss was put on hold due to the pandemic.

Whatever it was, the Van Halen frontman got through it. But he's not willing to tempt fate again.

"Man, they gave me enough prednisone to put boots on the moon!" Roth told the New York Times of the treatment he received for his illness. "We left a trail of groupies, rubble and incandescent reviews. But I don't want to go back through it."

When Roth announced his solo comeback last summer, he said he was forming his own band, in part, because he was unsure if Van Halen would tour again. He later noted that "singing and dancing is a perishable skill," and despite his dedication to staying fit, there will come a time when he can't perform up to his high standards.

The singer's suspicion that he might be closing in on his last ride has made the pandemic cancellations and nationwide spikes in COVID cases all the more frustrating. Instead of simply doing what had to be done, the 50 states went in wildly different directions in terms of their pandemic response.

"I sure wish our country had taken a Marine Corps approach to COVID. Instead of [creating] a divide, good or bad, right or reasonable, wrong or otherwise," Roth said.

In addition to being in a high risk category for COVID, the singer revealed that he's been recovering from spinal fusion in his lower back.

He added that Eddie Van Halen has given no indication that he wants to get the band back together after his recent health issues. Van Halen's best option to experience the band's music live is seeing Roth on tour, whenever that's possible again.

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Alex Lencina

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