"As a vocalist, every word I sing in the Van Halen songbook, I wrote. I wrote every line, every melody, every harmony stack. For better or worse, if you're singing it – Roth was bringing it": David Lee Roth has clarified his creative role in Van Halen

David Lee Roth performs at the 2026 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival - Weekend 1 - Day 1 on April 10, 2026 in Indio, California. (Photo by Christopher Polk/Billboard via Getty Images).

It might be more than a decade since David Lee Roth played his last gig with Van Halen, but it seems that the singer is still keen to remind everyone just how big his creative role in the band actually was.

Speaking to Rolling Stone after a surprise appearance at Coachella last weekend – he joined Teddy Swims during his set to sing (what else?) Jump – Roth was seemingly in vibrant form, and quickly turned to the subject of his former band. Specifically, he wanted to talk about the depth and quality of Van Halen’s back catalogue.