On the “Remembering Ace Frehley” special episode of “The David Ellefson Show”,  former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson was asked by co-host Joshua Toomey if the recent deaths of Ozzy Osbourne and Ace Frehley make him want to pick up the phone and call Dave Mustaine after not being in touch with the MEGADETH leader for nearly four and a half years. Ellefson responded: “I had someone say that to me after I finished playing at the Ozzy gig (at ‘Back To The Beginning’ in early July), just saying, ‘Dude, let’s just get over it.’

“The problem of it is me and Dave were always together as a band,” Ellefson explained. “We never just hung out just as buddies not in the band. It was always sort of angled with us being in the band together.

“Look, he’s got his own incarnation of MEGADETH, he’s got his own record, he’s got his new music. I’m not part of that. I think he made it really clear in his press statement, he doesn’t wanna play music with me again. And whether that was just a kneejerk anger statement or it was true, I don’t know. But, look, I would take his call.”

Circling back to the original question, Ellefson said: “I don’t know. It didn’t feel like suddenly it was the moment to do (try to reach out to Dave). But I don’t know. There is something to be said for that, because, look, none of us get out of here alive, as the saying goes. And our time is limited. There’s only so many miles on the road for all of us.

“For sure it would be nice if things between me and Dave and me and MEGADETH, as just an entity, didn’t end on a sour note,” Ellefson added. “I think that’s what (MEGADETH‘s) farewell statement (announcing a final album and accompanying world tour) has sort of raised all those questions. Which is why I said right away, I said, look, I would be open to being part of it, if for nothing else to just sort of close the circle, close the gap. And it all ends with us, if not being best of friends, ’cause we don’t have to go there. But at least just sort of closing the gap and closing the circle. ‘Cause look at what happened. I mean, KISS played (their final shows in December 2023), and, look, would it have been appropriate for Ace to come out and play with them one last time? I mean, why not? But I think in Gene (Simmons) and Paul‘s (Stanley) mind, as a band guy myself, it’s, like, ‘Well, he’s not part of the band. He’s just not part of the act. He’s not part of the show. Where do we squeeze that in?’ Yet they certainly could have, if they wanted to.”

Reiterating that he doesn’t have to be buddies with Mustaine in order for them to share the stage together, Ellefson said: “I mean, let’s face it, when you go to the family reunion, you don’t go ’cause you like everybody. You’re, like, ‘Ah, Uncle Joe, Aunt Sally, oh God, these people. I gotta be around them again.’ You don’t go because it’s all fun and games. You go because at one point those will be the last memories you have. And it is a bloodline.

“You see (members of) THE EAGLES feuding with each other, you see these guys, and it’s, like, how much hate can you have towards someone and just be that fucking miserable?” Ellefson added. “And fans don’t wanna see it. They don’t wanna see it. I don’t wanna see it. I was sad when I would see KISS arguing about stuff. I get it, having been in a band my whole career. But we don’t wanna see our heroes argue. And I think that was probably some of the hardest parts, probably when Dave and I were in a lawsuit, ’cause we’re dissolving business matters and trying to get things settled properly that was fair for both of us. And we had to walk through that process for that to happen. And it sucks, because it makes headlines and those aren’t the headlines you want. And I don’t want those headlines with Dave. Those were not the headlines that I am ever proud of in my life. Now, I had to do it — I had to go through the process to have it land where it needed to, for business matters — but no one wants to see their heroes at war.”