Tag: John Oates

Daryl Hall and John Oates headlines the inaugural Hoagie Nation Festival May 27, 2017, in their hometown of Philadelphia. (Photo by Mike Morsch)

Daryl Hall and John Oates headlined the inaugural Hoagie Nation Festival May 27, 2017, in their hometown of Philadelphia.
(Photo by Mike Morsch)

Seeing Daryl Hall and John Oates headline the inaugural Hoagie Nation Festival in Philly May 27 reminded me of a portion of the last interview I did with Oates. It was about how each of their roles in the band had evolved throughout their careers.

There is a perspective out there – one with which I vehemently disagree – that Oates is some sort of second banana to Hall. There was even a short-lived television show called “Garfunkel and Oates” that is described as being about “two famous rock-and-roll second bananas.” (As an aside, Oates himself played a porn shop clerk in one episode and there was a hilarious off-color running joke on the show that referenced Oates’ famous 1970s mustache.)

In a dozen interviews over the past decade, I’ve talked to Oates about almost everything Hall & Oates and everything solo Oates. He’s what I’d describe as the perfect interview subject: articulate, has a detailed recollection about songs and events, is a good storyteller, never dodges a question, polite, gracious, media savvy and a genuinely nice guy. He’s the kind of guy you’d want to hang with and just listen to him tell stories. I consider myself lucky to have had him share many of those stories with me and I’ve included them in three volumes of The Vinyl Dialogues. (He’s also got a book out titled “Change of Seasons” which includes many more of those great stories.)

(Photo by Mike Morsch)

But the one subject I’d never broached with Oates – because I wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it and didn’t want to offend – was this “second banana” hooey. How did that perspective happen? Did it bother him?

In one interview I had with Daryl Hall, he had briefly mentioned that when the band started to hit really big in the early 1980s, “our roles within the band changed.” He didn’t elaborate and I didn’t pursue any further line of questioning. But in my interviews with both Hall and Oates, neither has shown anything but the utmost respect for the other.

So during my last interview with Oates, I felt comfortable enough – thanks in large part to him seemingly being comfortable with me and my questions over the years – to ask him about how his role in the band had evolved and if any of the second banana perspective had bothered him.

The short answer: It doesn’t.

What is comes down to was that many of the duo’s commercially successful songs – “Sara Smile,” “Rich Girl,” “Wait for Me,” “Kiss on My List,” “You Make My Dreams,” “Private Eyes,” “Maneater,” “One on One” – all feature Hall on the lead vocals.

John Oates and Charlie DeChant.
(Photo by Mike Morsch)

“It happened naturally,” said Oates. “In the very beginning, it was a much more equitable thing between Daryl and I in terms of who was singing lead. There were a few singles in the early days that were released with me singing lead that never caught on.” (If you want a couple of examples of H&O songs that should have been bigger hits with Oates singing lead, look no further than the “Abandoned Luncheonette” album and the Oates-penned songs “Had I Known You Better Then” and “Las Vegas Turnaround,” the latter of which they still play in many of their live shows to this day, although it wasn’t included Saturday night in the Hoagie Nation Festival setlist.)

It’s all about lack of ego, according to Oates.

“At that point, if I was ruled by ego, I might have said, ‘OK, I don’t want to be involved in something like this’ and I would have left,” said Oates. “But I always accepted that Daryl was such an exceptional singer and such a unique talent that it didn’t really surprise me, to be honest with you, when his voice cut the way it cut through the radio. It has a quality. It’s a natural gift that he happens to have that I evidently don’t. So be it.”

Oates said that he then became more involved in some of what he called “things that aren’t so flashy and glamorous that people don’t see” with the band. Things like the studio production, onstage lighting, sound staging and some of the other technical aspects of putting on live shows.

(Photo by Mike Morsch)

“I always viewed a partnership as a partnership. In any partnership, I don’t care if it’s marriage or a work partnership, you have to compromise on a lot of levels. So I’ve just accepted that. It was OK with me,” said Oates. “To be honest, I don’t need that in my life, that reaffirmation from the public. That doesn’t matter that much to me. So I guess in a way, it was really lucky that Daryl found me.”

Just to provide context, that last line was said by Oates with tongue firmly planted in cheek and with a chuckle.

But there isn’t any question – at least in my mind – that even though both Hall and Oates have pursued their solo projects over the past several years, they still like performing together. And that was evident at the Hoagie Nation Festival in their hometown.

“That’s the thing about Daryl and I that people really don’t understand or realize – that we are very unique people. We’ve grown up together from the time we were 18 years old. We’ve accepted each other’s idiosyncrasies, neuroses, good points and bad points. We don’t air dirty laundry and we learned how to deal with each other and how to make it work so that each of us feels satisfied and wants to continue doing it. It’s a very complex and subtle thing that is almost impossible to describe,” said Oates.

“The point is, we’ve really been sensitive to each other. We kind of inherently know what each person needs to keep this thing going and that’s why we’re still together.”

Hall & Oates concert delivers a few Philly surprises to the Philly faithful

By Mike Morsch

On July 11, 2016

In The Vinyl Dialogues Book

The big screen overlooks Daryl Hall and John Oates on July 10, 2016, at the BB&T Pavilion in Camden, N.J.
(Photo by Mike Morsch)

Daryl Hall and John Oates are very good in concert. But when they go off the script a little, they’re even better.

That’s what happened at the July 10 show at the BB&T Pavilion in Camden, N.J. Even though the venue is across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, this was clearly a Philly show with a Philly vibe by the Philly area natives.

And the evening featured a couple of really cool surprises for the Philly faithful, which Hall promised at the beginning of the show.

We know a Hall & Oates concert will include all the hits. And the setlist reflected that. H&O opened with “Maneater,” a No. 1 single in 1982, I think mostly to just get it out of the way. Although it’s a hugely popular song with the fans and gets everybody up on their feet right from the get-go, Oates is on the record in past interviews with me that he thinks he and Daryl – both members of the Songwriters Hall of Fame – have matured as songwriters since they wrote that tune.

The rest of the setlist included:
“Out of Touch” – No. 1 in 1984.
“Say It Isn’t So” – No. 2 in 1983.
“You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” – A Righteous Brothers cover that was No. 12 for Hall & Oates in 1980.
“Las Vegas Turnaround” – Not released as a single, but an Oates-penned song and fan favorite off the “Abandoned Luncheonette” album in 1973.
“She’s Gone” – No. 60 when first released as a single off “Abandoned Luncheonette,” but No. 7 when it was re-released in 1976.
“Sara Smile” – No. 4 in 1976.
“Wait for Me” – No. 18 in 1979.
“I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do)” – No. 1 in 1981.
“Rich Girl” – No. 1 in 1977.
“You Make My Dreams” – No. 5 in 1981.

The first encore included “Kiss on My List” and “Private Eyes,” both No. 1 singles in 1981.

(Photo by Mike Morsch)

But it was the second encore where the duo put everyone in a Philly mood.

“In the spirit of Daryl’s House, I’m going to bring out somebody who is a legend in Philadelphia,” said Hall. “I won’t give you a history lesson, but this man was the biggest star in the world. I’m talking about Chubby Checker.”

The 74-year-old Checker was raised in Philadelphia and had a smash single in 1960 with “The Twist,” which also turned into a dance style, one which I think I’ve done at every wedding I’ve ever attended.

Hall, Oates and their always-stellar band then opened the second encore with “The Twist” while Chubby and the rest of us twisted the night away like nobody was watching. Fortunately, I did not pull a hamstring or blow out a knee.

As much of a treat as it was to see Chubby, it was the second song of the second encore – and final song of the show – that sealed the Philly evening: A cover of “Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time),” a 1969 single by the Philadelphia group the Delfonics, produced by Thom Bell and released on the Philly Groove Records label. The song predates the creation of Philadelphia International Records, founded in 1971 by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, and is recognized as one of the early “Philly soul” singles. Gamble and Huff would further develop and popularize the sound of Philadelphia – with a huge contribution by Bell who had eventually joined them – throughout the 1970s.

(Photo by Mike Morsch)

According to the Hall & Oates camp, it was decided two days before the show that Chubby would come on and do “The Twist.” And “Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time)” had only been played a few times before by Hall & Oates in concert, that being at Madison Square Garden and again at a show in Reading, PA, both in February 2016. Hall and Oates just wanted to do it for the Philly crowd at this show. (Further research shows that Daryl and another Philly guy, Todd Rundgren, performed “Didn’t I” on episode 40 of “Live From Daryl’s House” in 2011.)

It was the first time I had heard them do that song in concert, and really, I think it should be included in every Hall & Oates concert. It was just that good.

The outdoor BB&T Pavilion was filled to capacity, with people seated on the lawn all the way up to the back wall, which is quite a long way from the stage. The weather cooperated for those exposed to the elements, which is something I suppose. But I prefer to stay a little closer to the action on the stage.

Joining Hall & Oates on this tour and adding to the soul quotient was Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue and Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings.

Chubby Checker joined Daryl Hall and John Oates on stage to perform “The Twist.”
(Photo by Mike Morsch)

Both were well-received by the Camden/Philly crowd and rightfully so. Trombone Shorty and his band are high energy and incredibly talented. And although Ms. Jones is battling a reoccurrence of pancreatic cancer that she thought she had beaten a few years ago, she showed tremendous heart and soul with her performance. “No matter how bad I feel, I just have to get on this stage. And I’m gonna give it all I’ve got.” The crowd recognized, respected and appreciated that effort.

Editor’s note: Interviews with Daryl and John about the music on and the making of the 1975 album “Daryl Hall & John Oates” – known as “The Silver Album” – will be featured in “The Vinyl Dialogues Volume III: Stacks of Wax,” due out this month. They reveal what song on that album almost became the theme song for what would become a mega movie of the 1970s; the stories behind the singles “Sara Smile” and “Camellia”; and the details surrounding the photo shoot and decision to use a “glam rock” photo of the two on the cover.

Hall & Oates frighteningly good at opening of new ‘Daryl’s House’

By Mike Morsch

On November 1, 2014

In The Vinyl Dialogues Book

Daryl Hall opened his new “Daryl’s House” – a music venue and restaurant in Pawling, N.Y. – on Halloween night. He was joined by longtime bandmate John Oates for a concert that was streamed online.
(Photo by Mike Morsch)

It was billed as “Hall-oween and Oates,” but thankfully, there was no soul version of “Monster Mash.”

That was never going to happen anyway. Daryl Hall and John Oates would never have a conversation about covering that song in one of their shows, even on Halloween. To do so would severely compromise the integrity of their H&OHQ – Hall & Oates Hipness Quotient.

No, this fright night performance on Oct. 31, 2014, was about something completely different. It christened the new “Daryl’s House” – a renovated music venue and restaurant – that used to be known as the Town Crier in Pawling, N.Y.

It’s the next step in the evolution of “Live From Daryl’s House,” an internet and cable show that Hall has hosted since 2007. Episodes for the show, which airs on the cable channel Palladia, will be filmed there without an audience, but at all other times, the venue’s bar, restaurant and stage will be open for business.

And true to innovative form, this show had something for everyone, even for those of us who couldn’t be there. Because actually, we could be there, right from the comfort of our own family rooms. Yahoo streamed the concert live – and free – online. It was a “Daryl’s House” show that came right to one’s house.

It was the first and only time that I’ve listened and watched an entire live concert from my recliner. Of course, I had the headphones on, and of course, I had the volume cranked.

Hall & Oates shows are tight and relatively predictable. There’s not as much between-song banter or storytelling like we get at a John Oates solo show. At a Hall & Oates show, we know we’re going to get the hits: “She’s Gone,” “Sara Smile,” “Rich Girl, “Maneater,” “Private Eyes,” “Kiss on My List.” We all love those songs. We all listen to those songs every time they’re on the radio. We all have those songs in our collections.

But we did get a few deeper album cuts in this 16-song set, most notably “Adult Education,” from the 1983 album “Rock ’n Soul Part I”; and “Back Together Again,” an Oates song, and “Do What You Want, Be What You Are,” both from the 1977 album “Bigger Than Both of Us.”

And even though we usually hear “She’s Gone” and “Las Vegas Turnaround” in an H&O show, I always want more from the 1973 album “Abandoned Luncheonette,” particularly Hall’s “When The Morning Comes” and Oates’ “Had I Known You Better Then.” I’m partial to that album because the making of it and the songs on it were discussed in length by both Daryl and John for “The Vinyl Dialogues.”

Everybody seemed happy – I know I was – with the show, but nobody more than Daryl.

“This is the way I hoped it would be,” he said toward the end of the performance. “This is a fantastic beginning to a real cool club. We got ourselves a clubhouse. That wouldn’t have happened without fan support, and that’s no joke.
If you haven’t watched it, check Yahoo for the replay. Put the headphones on, turn it up and enjoy the unique Halloween night gig at Daryl’s new house.

There’s no “Monster Mash,” which is a good thing, but this Hall & Oates show is guaranteed to be a “thriller” for you. (Insert appropriate groans here.)

You can go home again: John Oates shines solo at ST94

By Mike Morsch

On September 26, 2014

In The Vinyl Dialogues Book

John Oates, shown here at a 2104 summer Hall & Oates concert in Atlantic City, performed a solo gig at the Sellersville Theater Thursday, Sept. 25.
(Photo by Mike Morsch)

John Oates is comfortable coming home to Pennsylvania, especially when he performs solo gigs at the Sellersville Theater 1894.

As he is fond of saying when performing there, the theater holds a special place in his heart. It was where Oates, as a newly licensed driver in the mid-1960s, took a young lady from nearby Silverdale borough on his first car date to the venue to see a movie.

The locals will tell you that the intimate movie-theater-turned-concert venue has been the site of a lot of memorable moments ever since that Oates date.

And on Thursday night, Sept. 25, John Oates created another of those memories for himself. Six songs into his set, his drummer and bass player exited, leaving just Oates and his guitar on stage.

“I want to dedicate a song to my mom,” he said.

The Oates family is from North Wales, PA, in Montgomery County, the northwest suburbs of Philadelphia. A little further west in the county is where Daryl Hall grew up, just outside Pottstown, PA.

For years, at least at all the East Coast Hall & Oates shows that I’ve attended in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, John’s parents have been in the audience. They were there again in Sellersville Thursday evening.

Oates proceeded to relate a story about how when he was 5 or 6 years old, his mother had him perform at a local park, dressed to the nines in a red blazer. But the young Oates was more interested in getting some ice cream than he was in performing. In an effort to persuade her son to focus more on his song and less on the ice cream, Mrs. Oates insisted that the star of the show – a young Irish tenor by the name of Dennis Erickson – certainly was more interested in his music than he was ice cream and that John should be, too.

It was enough to do the trick, and John sang his song. It was the last time he sang that song until Thursday night.

The tune John dedicated to his mom was “Me and My Gal,” written in 1917 by George W. Meyer, Edgar Leslie and E. Ray Goetz. But it was Judy Garland and Gene Kelly who made it into a hit in the 1942 film of the same name.

And this is how music connects us. Not only did Oates create a special memory for himself and his mother, he created one for me as well.

Of the songs my mother used to sing to me as a toddler, the ones I remember are “Paper Doll” by the Mills Brothers. And “Me and My Gal” by Judy Garland and Gene Kelly.

But getting something special out of a John Oates solo concert isn’t at all unusual. As much as we all like the Hall & Oates concerts, they’re different than what Oates gives fans at a solo show. And different in this context is really good.

I love the Hall & Oates album “Abandoned Luncheonette” from 1973. In fact, interviews with Daryl and John about the making of that album were the inspiration for “The Vinyl Dialogues: Memorable albums of the 1970s as told by the artists.”

If you go to a Hall & Oates show, you’ll get “She’s Gone” and “Las Vegas Turnaround” off “Abandoned Luncheonette.” But if you go to a solo Oates show, you’ll get the Oates-penned “Had I Known You Better Then,” an absolutely great song and a personal favorite off that album.

Oates solo shows do feature H&O classics, like “Maneater,” “Out of Touch” and “You Make My Dreams Come True,” but they’re Oates versions of those songs, with Oates vocals, Oates interpretations, Oates arrangements and Oates tempos.

In addition to great storytelling to set up each song, the set list Thursday night featured “Camellia” (another personal H&O favorite), more recent solo efforts from Oates’ albums “Mississippi Mile” and “Good Road to Follow,” as well as performances of “It’s All Right” by Curtis Mayfield, “Come Back Baby” by Lightnin’ Hopkins, “Little Queenie” by Chuck Berry and “Deep River Blues” by Doc Watson.

Fortunately, there was a whole lot of good at this show that overshadowed a bit of the not-so-good.

We’ve all been to concerts and sat next to people who don’t know how to keep quiet during the performance. And Thursday night it was my turn to sit next to not one, but three of them.

Since it was on Oates’ home turf, in addition to his parents, he had a lot of friends and acquaintances in the audience, including a crowd from Temple University where he went to college. Part of this trip home for Oates includes his being presented – along with Brian Williams of NBC News and others – the Lew Klein Excellence in Media Award from the university. Klein is a Philadelphia-area philanthropist and former television executive who hired Dick Clark to host American Bandstand. The ceremony was scheduled for the night after this particular show.

So it was no surprise that the three women who sat next to me claimed to have some kind of connection to the star. As they took their seats 15 minutes before the show, one of the women announced, “Where are you John? Your high school sweetheart is here.”

Apparently, in his early years, Oates dated mostly jibber-jabberers who thought that rock shows were supposed to start 15 minutes earlier than the 8 p.m. time printed on the ticket. And this woman wouldn’t quit talking through the entire show. That not only shows a lack or respect for the artist, it’s rude to the people in the immediately vicinity who paid to hear John Oates perform.

I’m guessing one of the reasons that she’s not Mrs. John Oates today because she wouldn’t shut up long enough for him to propose to her back in the 1960s.

Nevertheless, it was the only glitch in an otherwise stellar performance by the bona fide Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and all-around nice guy.

I even called my mom on the way home after the show and we sang a line or two of “Me and My Gal” together over the phone.

Thanks to John Oates and his music, I was reminded of a cherished childhood memory of my own. And no amount of jibber-jabber can overshadow that.

Stories behind memorable albums of the 1970s as told by the artists

Tag: John Oates

Hall & Oates: First-hand perspective on how their roles evolved within the band

Hall & Oates concert delivers a few Philly surprises to the Philly faithful

Hall & Oates frighteningly good at opening of new ‘Daryl’s House’

You can go home again: John Oates shines solo at ST94