Feature Photo: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com
Have you heard David Lee Roth’s cover of the classic Tommy Tutone song “867-5309/Jenny”? The legendary Van Halen frontman released this song on his YouTube channel on June 5, 2024, without any information about the recording. I don’t know about you, but I like to know who plays on a record. Who’s the guitar player, who plays drums, who plays bass? I enjoy knowing that stuff. Yes, I know, in the end, it’s all about the song, but knowing who played on the record makes me enjoy the music a little more. Even on David Lee Roth’s website, there is no information on who played on this recording, where it was recorded, when it was recorded, or what he had for breakfast that morning. Is this surprising? Of course not; it’s David Lee Roth, and he’s done stuff like this multiple times throughout his career. And you know what? He has every right to do so because he’s David Lee Roth.
Trying to understand why he covered this classic MTV song is probably futile. David Lee Roth is regarded as one of the greatest frontmen in classic rock history. Yet, we can’t forget all the great songs he wrote with Eddie Van Halen. David Lee Roth is a true legend who has brought us great joy for so many years. Covering songs is nothing new for David Lee Roth. Van Halen started as a cover band.
There are many great bootleg recordings of the group playing covers in bars in L.A. Even during the Van Halen years, the group never hesitated to release cover songs on their albums. Some of their greatest recordings were cover songs. I love the cover of Linda Ronstadt’s hit “You’re No Good,” and the Kinks’ “You Really Got Me” was the song that helped break the band. Furthermore, once you tackle Roy Orbison’s “(Oh) Pretty Woman,” pretty much everything else is game. David Lee Roth had no hesitation in covering one of the most famous songs of the early MTV era because…he’s David Lee Roth.
The article’s central question in trying to make sense of David Lee Roth’s recording of the Tommy Tutone classic is not a question of why he would cover such a famous song because we know his history behind covering famous songs. The real question is why he released such a similar version of the song. In the past, David Lee Roth’s covers have always been dramatically different from the originals. Yes, of course, it helped to have Eddie Van Halen standing right next to him when he did, but even during his solo years when he covered songs such as “California Girls” and “Just a Gigolo,” he always made them his own. Not this time. This is a faithful recording of “867-5309/Jenny.” The only significant difference is that he changed the song’s title to “Jenny Jenny (That Telephone Song)” and added a harmonica solo at the end. Okay, if that’s the version he wanted to release, then so be it. Yet, as a fan of his music, I hoped for something more original in this remake.
The only sense I can make of this entire release is that the man is an artist who wants to release stuff. It’s in the blood. The ease of releasing anything you want without a record company’s approval or dealing with distribution lets an artist create what they want to record and release it to the world instantly. All the filters are gone. Is this a good thing? I guess that depends on what legacy means to an artist or their fans. Who am I to judge anybody? But I can ask the questions.
Read More: 10 Best Van Halen Songs With David Lee Roth
Updated August 24, 2026.
Trying To Make Sense Of David Lee Roth’s Cover Of 867-5309/Jenny article published on ClassicRockHistory.com © 2026
ClassicRockHistory.com claims ownership of all its original content and intellectual property under United States copyright laws and those of all other foreign countries. No one person, business, or organization is allowed to re-publish any of our original content anywhere on the web or in print without our permission. All photos used are either public domain Creative Commons photos or licensed officially from Shutterstock under license with ClassicRockHistory.com. All photo credits have been placed at the end of the article. Album Cover Photos are affiliate links and the property of Amazon and are stored on the Amazon server. Any theft of our content will be met with swift legal action against the infringing websites.
