Jump, a song by Van Halen, became their most popular hit and will go down in music history with its name inscribed in gold letters. Each member offered their vocal or musical talents to this four-minute lively composition. However, Eddie Van Halen claimed that they stole a section of the song from the pop rock group Hall & Oates, therefore “Jump” has elements of another band in its sound.
The song “Kiss on My List,” which was included on the band’s ninth album, “Voices,” was written by Daryl Hall and Hall & Oates co-writer Janna Allen before “Jump” found its audience. It was a hit single that peaked well on the US chart. They originally wrote the song for Janna Allen, who wanted to start her music career. Janna Allen is the sister of Hall’s longterm lover Sara Allen.
Later, the band’s manager discovered the demo tape Hall had made as a reference for Janna, and he persuaded the members to finish the song on their own. The back vocals and instrumentation were later added once the production crew decided that this demo version was suitable without the need for a second take. Daryl Hall has said that following the song’s debut, Van Halen was so moved by it that they appropriated a section of it for their song “Jump.”
In a 2006 interview with Mix magazine, Hall said that he thought it was common for artists to borrow elements from the compositions of other groups. He said that Eddie Van Halen once admitted to stealing the synthesizer elements from their song “Kiss on My List” to use in “Jump.” The singer said that this is something that many artists do, and he had no issues with Eddie’s actions.
The following is what Daryl Hall stated in reference to artists ripping off other bands’ songwriting:
“That’s okay; it’s something we all do. Eddie Van Halen told me that he copied the synth part from ‘Kiss on My List’ and used it in ‘Jump.’ I don’t have a problem with that at all.”
Listen to the song below: