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Pop Rock Nation

Tag: Daryl Hall

  • Hall and Oates meet Rumer…

    Hall and Oates meet Rumer…

    I just rediscovered the magic of Hall and Oates as they meet a British-Pakistani singer named Rumer…

    The other day, I got an email from the Majestic Theatre alerting me that Daryl Hall and John Oates would be performing in San Antonio on February 24, 2014. I like Hall and Oates. I grew up in the 70s and 80s and their music was all over the place when I was coming along. However, I also know that these two guys have been around a long while and I wasn’t sure how they were holding up to the inevitable effects of aging.

    My good friend George told me that Daryl Hall has a series on YouTube called Live From Daryl’s House, which often features him, John Oates, and their band playing music with different artists. As I was watching clips from Halls’ series, I came across a clip featuring a singer named Rumer. I had never heard of her. In fact, I actually wondered if maybe she was Demi Moore’s daughter, Rumer Willis. But then I did some research and found out that Rumer is actually a British-Pakistani singer Sarah Joyce. Born in 1979, she is old enough to remember Hall and Oates, though she would have been a youngun when they were at the height of their popularity.

    In any case, I was a little nervous about listening to what she did with Hall and Oates’ hit, “I Can’t Go For That”. That song was never among my favorites by Hall and Oates anyway. But I was curious, so I played it and…

    all I can say is, “Wow!” I actually love this remake of “I Can’t Go For That”. I love that the arrangement is updated to sound exotic and sexy. Rumer has a sublime voice that seems custom made for music to chill out by. That voice is silky smooth and sensual.

    I was surprised to read that some people compared Rumer’s vocals to Karen Carpenter’s. Frankly, I don’t hear it. I love Karen Carpenter’s music and her voice was amazing. To me, Rumer’s voice has a sexiness and warmth that Karen Carpenter’s voice lacked. It’s like a puff of intoxicating perfume that subtly reaches the senses until you’re pulled in to its magic. I was not a fan of “I Can’t Go For That” the way it was originally released to the masses, but I could totally get into Rumer’s remake, sung with Daryl Hall.

    Rumer also covered Hall and Oates’ sweet classic, “Sara Smile”. I never thought of this song as one that would lend itself well to feminine vocals, but she does great with it…

    I like the way this song is stripped down and made into something new, featuring Rumer’s gorgeous vocals. If I were going to compare with Karen Carpenter, maybe I could more on this song than on “I Can’t Go For That”, but I still think her voice is unique and stands on its own. I have always loved “Sara Smile” and would probably prefer the original to this remake, but I think Rumer did a fine job with it. Listening to this makes me want to check out her music. And I love the way the band is into it, too…

    I was not familiar with “Be Thankful For What You Got”, but since I liked Rumer’s other work with Daryl Hall, I decided to listen…

    This is a very soulful number and again, Rumer and Daryl Hall knock it out of the park. Hall and Oates meet Rumer… and make magic! And now, onto the next order of business.

    Why I am writing on Thursday instead of Friday…

    Tomorrow, my husband Bill and I are going to attempt to take a military hop somewhere in the world. I have a feeling we’ll end up going to Germany, but we could go somewhere else. The nature of military hops is unpredictable. That’s what makes them both fun and frustrating. The upshot of this development is that it’s unlikely I will be able to do much writing for the next couple of weeks. Of course, if we don’t get a hop anywhere, I could be back to work next week. But the odds are good that I will be somewhat incommunicado, as least as far as blogging goes. I expect to be back around January 23 or thereabouts…

    Until then, see you later!

  • Shoulda Been a Hit: Daryl Hall’s “Someone Like You”

    daryk

    After an amazing run of success in the early Eighties, Daryl Hall & John Oates took a well-deserved break. While Oates tried his hand at producing (particularly Icehouse’s Top 10 hit “Electric Blue”), Daryl worked on and released his second solo album, 1986‘s “Three Hearts in the Happy Ending Machine”. The album paired Daryl with Eurythmic Dave Stewart and found him joined by guests like Joni Mitchell. “Three Hearts” was a mildly successful album, spawning the Top 10 hit “Dreamtime” (YouTube the trippy video if you feel so inclined), but it was something of a letdown sales-wise after H2O’s track record of the previous six years.

    That’s not to say that “Three Hearts” was a bad album. Qualitatively, it was as good as anything Hall & Oates released during their “hit” period, and Stewart gave Hall a more punchy, slightly avant-garde dance rock sound. However, given Hall’s penchant for soulful vocals, it makes perfect sense that “Three Hearts”’  best song is a ballad. “Someone Like You” may have only peaked at #57 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart, but it stands as one of the best vocal performances of Hall’s entire career.

    The song itself is a rock steady swaying groover with hints of Motown in both the rhythm and the background vocals, embellished with the airy synthesizers that were a hallmark of the era. However, you’re not exactly paying attention to the background arrangement during this song. Hall’s vocals are alternately forceful and pleading as he laments the loss of a love and hopes that he finds someone exactly like her the next time around. A guitar solo in the song’s bridge matches the intensity of Hall’s vocal, and the song ends with Hall begging “please send me down somebody to love” with an urgency that will bring tears to your eyes.

    Not quite sure why this song wasn’t bigger than it was…perhaps because it was the third single from the underperforming “Three Hearts”, it wasn’t given the proper promotional push. If you manage to get your paws on a copy of “Three Hearts”, however (it’s been out of print for some time), it’s worth it for this show-stopping performance alone. (Note: “Someone Like You” is also available on Hall & Oates “Ballads Collection”).

  • The Legend of Oates’ Mustache

    John Oates' MoustacheThis was too good to pass up…

    I recently came across an article on billboard.com that says that there is a cartoon in the works called “J-Stache”. This animated series will focus on the adventures of one of the great mustachioed men of our time, John Oates. Oates will be a mild-mannered (wait for it) FAMILY MAN (that’s a Hall & Oates song, people) who turns into a crime-fighting superhero when his mustache attracts him back to being a rock star.

    Said mustache will be voiced by Dave Atell, meaning that this will automatically be the funniest thing Atell has ever been in.

    The coolest thing about this is that Oates is totally co-signing it! He’s got a fantastic sense of humor about it, although I guess I would too if a cartoon about my facial hair was going to potentially make me a shitload of money.

    According to the article, the pilot episode will focus on Oates trying to open a wing of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (an institution that H2O are curiously not members of) dedicated to mustachioed musicians and joining forces with David Crosby and Tom Selleck.

    One word=awesome. I’m so there, it’s not even funny.

    Daryl Hall’s perfectly coiffed tresses had no comment.