You Should Go For Hall And Oates (Yes Can Do)

By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Aug 31, 2012 4:00PM

My brother was talking to my sister-in-law about going to see Hall & Oates at Ravinia tomorrow night and she was teasing him mercilessly about it. She stopped and then asked what exactly they sang, and as he listed off "Maneater," "Private Eyes," "Out of Touch," and "You Make My Dreams Come True," she was ready to buy tickets and go along with him.

The point here is that any band that's been putting out albums since 1972—I know, I bet you thought they were just some '80s soft rock band, right?—is going to come with a bit of cultural preconception. It's unavoidable. So I can totally understand why some folks might view the duo as out of touch (pun not intended) and miss the fact that they've never stopped making vital music. In the '70s they trafficed in everything from hard rock to sassy Philly soul, and in the '80s they adapted their sound to modern pop tastes without ever loosing the R&B groove, though it may have been buried deeply in the songs at the time.

In recent years Daryl Hall has proved the group's catalog holds strong as he's gone head to head with some of the biggest names in music on his Live At Daryl's House series,often actually blowing the other musicians away or proving just how deeply the group's DNA runs through even thoroughly modern acts like Chromeo.

We're looking forward to seeing them deliver that one two punch of amazing vocals and indelible melodies for ourselves tomorrow night.

Hall & Oates play tomorrow, September 1, at Ravinia, 200 Ravinia Park Rd, Highland, at 7:30 p.m., lawn tickets SOLD OUT, reserved seating $80, all ages