In total, the duo had 34 singles chart hits on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, seven RIAA platinum albums, and six RIAA gold albums. Because of that chart success, Billboard Magazine named them the most successful duo of the rock era, surpassing even The Everly Brothers. In 2003, they were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. They were also placed #15 on the Billboard Magazine list of the 100 greatest artists of all time and the #1 duo, while VH1 placed the duo as #99 on their list of the 100 greatest artists of all time.
From their first hit in 1974 onwards, Daryl Hall and John Oates' smooth, catchy take on Philly soul brought them commercial success— including six number one singles and six platinum albums as referred to before. Hall & Oates' music was well-constructed and produced; at their best, their songs were filled with strong hooks and melodies that adhered to soul traditions without being a slave to them by incorporating elements of arena rock and new wave.
Daryl Hall, born on October 11, 1946, began performing professionally while he was a student at Temple University. In 1966, he recorded a single with Kenny Gamble and the Romeos; the group featured Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and Thom Bell, who would all become the architects of Philly soul. During this time, Hall frequently appeared on sessions for Gamble and Huff. In 1967, Hall met John Oates, a fellow Temple University student. Oates was leading his own soul band at the time. The two students realized they had similar tastes and began performing together in an array of R&B and doo wop groups. By 1968, the duo had parted ways, as Oates transferred schools and Hall formed the soft rock band Gulliver; the group released one album on Elektra in the late '60s before disbanding.
After Gulliver's breakup, Hall concentrated on session work again, appearing as a backup vocalist for The Stylistics, The Delfonics, and The Intruders, among others. Oates returned to Philadelphia in 1969, and he and Hall began writing folk-oriented songs and performing together. Eventually they came to the attention of Tommy Mottola, who quickly became their manager, securing the duo a contract with Atlantic Records. On their first records — Whole Oates (1972), Abandoned Luncheonette (1973), War Babies (1974) — the duo were establishing their sound, working with producers like Arif Mardin and Todd Rundgren and removing much of their folk influences. At the beginning of 1974, the duo relocated from Philadelphia to New York. During this period, they only managed one hit — the number 60 "She's Gone" in the spring of 1974.
After they moved to RCA in 1975, the duo landed on its successful mixture of soul, pop, and rock, scoring a Top Ten single with "Sara Smile." The success of "Sara Smile" prompted the re-release of "She's Gone," which rocketed into the Top Ten as well. Released in the summer of 1976, Bigger than the Both of Us was only moderately successful upon its release. The record took off in early 1977, when "Rich Girl" became the duo's first number one single.
Although they had several minor hits between 1977 and 1980, the albums Hall & Oates released at the end of the decade were not as successful as their mid-'70s records. Nevertheless, they were more adventurous, incorporating more rock elements into their blue-eyed soul. The combination would finally pay off in late 1980, when the duo released the self-produced Voices, the album that marked the beginning of Hall & Oates' greatest commercial and artistic success. The first single from Voices, a cover of Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling," reached number 12, yet it was the second single, "Kiss on My List" that confirmed their commercial potential by becoming the duo's second number one single; its follow-up, "You Make My Dreams" hit number five. They quickly released Private Eyes in the summer of 1981; the record featured two number one hits, "Private Eyes" and "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)," as well as the Top Ten hit "Did It in a Minute." "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)" also spent a week at the top of the R&B charts — a rare accomplishment for a white act. H20 followed in 1982 and it proved more successful than their two previous albums, selling over two million copies and launching their biggest hit single, "Maneater," as well as the Top Ten hits "One on One" and "Family Man." The following year, the duo released a greatest-hits compilation, Rock 'N Soul, Pt. 1, that featured two new Top Ten hits — the number two "Say It Isn't So" and "Adult Education."
In April of 1984, the Recording Industry Association of America announced that Hall & Oates had surpassed Everly Brothers as the most successful duo in rock history, earning a total of 19 gold and platinum awards. Released in October of 1984, Big Bam Boom expanded their number of gold and platinum awards, selling over two million copies and launching four Top 40 singles, including the number one "Out of Touch." Following their contract-fulfilling gold album Live at the Apollo with David Ruffin & Eddie Kendrick, Hall & Oates went on hiatus. After the lukewarm reception for Daryl Hall's 1986 solo album, Three Hearts in the Happy Ending Machine, the duo regrouped to release 1988's Ooh Yeah!, their first record for Arista. The first single, "Everything Your Heart Desires," went to number three and helped propel the album to platinum status.
However, none of the album's other singles broke the Top 20, indicating that the era of chart dominance had ended. Change of Season, released in 1990, confirmed that fact. Although the record went gold, it only featured one Top 40 hit — the number 11 single, "So Close." The duo mounted a comeback in 1997 with Marigold Sky, but it was only partially successful; far better was 2003's Do It for Love and the following year soul covers record Our Kind of Soul.
Throw The Roses Away
Hall & Oates Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What our hearts have denied
And all the sweet memories
Won't bring the love back to life
And the more that we try
The more it's gonna make you see
No words, hope, anything
Will bring back life to your dream
Oh baby, baby how to say
The love just won't work
Just for once in my life
Do I wanna go with what's right
It's gone; we've got to move on
You know that's the truth - so do I
Sad bouquets we save
Won't make up one sweet day
Throw the roses away
Don't need them anymore
Cause they just make you cry
If you let it go, let it go,
Let it go baby
You'll get some peace of mind
Only lonely for now
But you'll come back from the pain
Though I don't know if I'll ever find
Someone like you again
Sad bouquets we save
Won't make up one sweet day
Throw the roses away
Words in my mind
Talk about you to me all the time
Oh why should just a rose
Have such a sad hold
Over our lives
Sad bouquets we save
Won't make up one sweet day
Throw the roses away
Don't need them anymore
Cause they just mak eyou cry
If you let it go, let it go,
Let it go baby
You'll get some peace of mind
Only lonely for now
But you'll come back from the pain
Though I don't know if I'll ever find
Someone like you again
"Throw The Roses Away" is a song about letting go of a failed romantic relationship and moving on. The lyrics explain that words won't be able to change the denial that is in our hearts, and reminiscing about the good times won't bring the love back to life. The more we try to make things work, the more it will make us realize that it is not meant to be. It takes time to come to this realization, but sometimes we have to let go of what we want and go with what is right. The decision may be difficult, but it is necessary to move forward and find peace. We shouldn't hold on to the past with flowers and memories because it will only make us cry. Instead, we should let it go and find some peace of mind. We may feel lonely at first, but eventually, we will come back from the pain. Even though we may never find someone like our ex-partner again, it's essential to keep moving forward.
Line by Line Meaning
Words can never change
No matter what we say, the past cannot be altered
What our hearts have denied
The love that once existed is gone now
And all the sweet memories
Recollections of the happy times don't change the current situation
Won't bring the love back to life
The love that once existed cannot come back
And the more that we try
No matter how much we attempt to rekindle things, it won't happen
The more it's gonna make you see
It just reminds you of what you've lost
No words, hope, anything
Nothing can restore what has been lost
Will bring back life to your dream
There's no such hope of reviving the lost past
All night it took me to learn
It was a hard lesson for me to learn and it took me a long time to learn it
Oh baby, baby how to say
It was difficult for me to express myself
The love just won't work
The love doesn't exist anymore
Just for once in my life
At least once in my life
Do I wanna go with what's right
I've chosen to do the right thing
It's gone; we've got to move on
The love is over and we have to move forward
You know that's the truth - so do I
I know that this is the truth, and so do you
Sad bouquets we save
The memories that we hold onto are only bringing us sadness
Won't make up one sweet day
Those memories won't bring back the happy times
Throw the roses away
We should forget those memories and move forward
Don't need them anymore
Those memories are not helping us in any way
Cause they just make you cry
Those memories are only bringing us more pain
If you let it go, let it go,
If we let go of the past,
Let it go baby
The pain will eventually recede
You'll get some peace of mind
We will finally find peace
Only lonely for now
We might feel lonely for some time
But you'll come back from the pain
But we will come out of the pain
Though I don't know if I'll ever find
Even though we might not find
Someone like you again
Someone like you again
Words in my mind
I keep thinking of you
Talk about you to me all the time
Your memories are always with me
Oh why should just a rose
Why does a mere rose
Have such a sad hold
Have such a sad impact on us
Over our lives
And impact our lives this much
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ALAN EDWARD GORRIE, DARYL DAVID HALL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Nancyjean24
Daryl Hall can hypnotize you on note number one. What a unique tone he has. Nobody in the world sounds like him.
Califabulous
Nancyjean24 Well said, and in helluva sexy package
Nancyjean24
@Califabulous As in most handsome man on the planet? Yeah,you could say that. :0)
Gloria Busana
Sono d'accordo 💓
Lila Muzik
Love Marigold Sky. Filled with some of their best music they've ever done.
Debra Derr
Daryl has a heaven sent presence, no doubt about it. He presents his soul to his listeners and it feels like he is singing directly to you with some devine message. 💘
Sharron Arturi
Ooh no don’t throw those roses away ❤💐🥀💕 soulful 🎉🌺🌸🎶 song
Califabulous
What a great song. Should have released it as a single. No one but Daryl could sing this and make me cry 😢
Candy Eckhardt
No one could ever sing like Daryl. No one!
Olga Palmero
This song brings me back to a certain place and time . .memories that will always be memories! One of their best albums and one of my favorite songs!!! Forever love Hall and Oates music!!!