Me And Mr. Hall

Written for Glyn’s Mixed Music Bag #16, where we are asked
to write about a song by a group or solo singer
beginning with the letter G or H.

Besides my husband, during my lifetime I’ve been madly in love with three other men: ​George Harrison, Daryl Hall and Rick Springfield. They were all so very talented, gorgeous and sexy! I would cut out their pictures from music magazines, make scrapbooks, hang posters in my bedroom and mail them letters. My missives were never answered but I’m sure that’s only because they were so busy making music. I would imagine myself as Mrs. Harrison or Hall or Springfield, which got weird because by the time Daryl Hall and Rick Springfield were dominating the billboard charts I had been married for about 10 years! Things could have gotten strained between me and my husband during that time but they didn’t because he’s a very understanding, realistic man and didn’t feel threatened at all. It also didn’t hurt that I had about as much chance of meeting Daryl or Rick as I did winning the Miss Universe pageant.

Well, dear George has passed away but Daryl and Rick are very much alive and I bet they’re kicking themselves for not answering my letters seeing as how I’m now such a bigshot storyteller, poet and music blogger! I saw Rick recently on TV and I must say I was shocked; maybe it was the lighting but he really hasn’t aged well and someone should gift him with a jar of Crepe Erase. But Daryl is another story; he still sounds fantastic, looks gorgeous and is one big hunk of burning love. And what’s more …. Daryl’s Garage where he does live shows and podcasts is 90 minutes from where I live and his house in Connecticut is only one hour away. (We stalkers fans have to stay on top of things like that!) I just might get my “I ❤️ Daryl Hall Tank Top” autographed after all!

Since the letters for Glyn’s April MMB are G and H, I immediately wrote about George Harrison last week. Unfortunately, Rick Springfield is out of luck and will have to wait another 6 months before I can write about him. But no worries! You can all breathe a sigh of relief because today is all about Daryl Hall (and some other guy named John Oates).

Did you know that Daryl Hall & John Oates are the number-one selling duo in music history? They’re bigger than Simon & Garfunkel, Sonny & Cher, Ike & Tina Turner, Sam & Dave, The Righteous Brothers, Loggins & Messina and The Everly Brothers. (The statistics are impressive and are readily available on Wiki, if you’re interested.) During their time together (starting in 1970), they released 18 studio albums and 63 singles. They also broke up their act and got back together numerous times until October 2022 when they officially called it quits; sadly, they are currently in the middle of an ugly legal battle. But what sweet music they made together!

When the original version of this song first came out, I was a newlywed and I thought this was possibly the sexiest, most titillating and steamy subject for a song I’d ever heard. It’s the story of an affair between a married man and his equally married lover who meet every day at the same café where they hold hands and whisper sweet words of love. They know their affair is wrong but it’s much too strong to stop.

Some of you may recall that I wrote about this song a while back for Jim Adams’ Song Lyric Sunday; it’s just so nice, I had to feature it twice! You may also remember that the original singer of this song is a guy named Billy Paul who recorded his song in 1972. So why feature a cover of someone else’s song and not an original Hall & Oates song? Because it’s a great song and after all these years, I still “have a thing going on” for Daryl Hall.

For all the obvious reasons, here is my pick of the day by Hall & Oates …. from 2003 it’s “Me And Mrs. Jones”.

Well, no offense John Oates, but three’s a crowd and for me there’s only room for Daryl. He’s certainly come a long way and still has plenty of mileage left in a career that’s taken him from the streets of Philly to the halls of R&R in Cleveland. And the best is yet to come …. especially for me. My hubby, who isn’t the least bit threatened by the likes of Daryl Hall, is taking me to see him live, up-close and personal at the Mohegan Sun arena in July! Now, I just need to find that old tank top …. and you better believe I will wear it!

Thanks to Glyn for another great Mixed Music Bag and thank you for stopping by.

See you on the flip side. 😎

PS: I almost forgot! For all you purists reading this right now, I simply could not leave without playing one Hall & Oates original; after all, they are the #1 selling duo in music history! This song debuted on the Billboard Top 40 on February 5, 1977 at #38 and by the end of March it had become Hall & Oates’ first of six #1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100. At the end of 1977, Billboard ranked it as the 23rd biggest hit of the year. From the album Bigger Than Both Of Us, here is Hall & Oates’ first #1 hit, “Rich Girl”.

Mixed Music Bag – week 16 – Heavy Metal Kids?

All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephant’s Trunk and The Rhythm Section and is not for use by anyone without permission. NAR©2017-present.