Daryl Hall insists he’ll never work with John Oates again after ‘ultimate betrayal’
Don't hold your breath for a Hall & Oates reunion.
American rock star Daryl Hall has revealed that he has no plans to ever work with former musical partner John Oates again – branding their rift a result of ‘the ultimate betrayal.’
The duo rose to fame in the 1970s and 80s as Hall & Oates with hit singles Rich Girl, Kiss on my List, Private Eyes and I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do).
In 2014, they were recognised for their contribution to rock as inductees of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The pair were working on an album together as recently as January 2020, but this ultimately came to naught. Soon after, it was announced that they had officially split after 50 years of making music together.
A Hall & Oates reunion now seems more unlikely than ever, with Hall filing a lawsuit against his former partner in 2023 to prevent him from selling the publishing rights to their music.
In a new interview, he has revealed that things are now ‘too far gone’ for the band to ever reunite.
Hall & Oates were prolific stars of 1980s rock (Picture: Shutterstock)Speaking to The Sunday Times on the odds of a Hall & Oates reunion, Hall said: ‘That ship has gone to the bottom of the ocean. I’ve had a lot of surprises in my life, disappointments, betrayals, so I’m kind of used to it.’
While he was unable to talk about details of the dispute due to the ongoing lawsuit, he described Oates’ attempt to sell his share of their jointly-owned company as ‘the ultimate betrayal.’
He continued: ‘I’ve been involved with some pretty shady characters over the years. That’s where the problems start.’
Hall has described his partner’s decision to sell up as ‘the ultimate betrayal’ (Picture: Shutterstock)Elsewhere in the interview, Hall admitted that he felt his songwriting hasn’t received the recognition it so deserved over the years.
‘The songs with his [Oates’] lead vocal are the songs he wrote, and all the other ones, which is about 90 per cent, are the ones I wrote,’ he revealed.
‘It was very frustrating,’ he added.
After years of creative differences, Oates wanted out (Picture: Shutterstock)Meanwhile, his bandmate has previously said that the creative differences between himself and Hall were ‘ruining his life.’
In May last year, he told Good Morning America: ‘Daryl has always wanted to be his own man. [I wanted] to give him the opportunity to do that. If I sell my half, he can do what he wants.’
Speaking on the fallout which preceded the lawsuit, he added: ‘It was kinda ruining my life, to be honest with you. I wasn’t happy. I just [stepped] aside. People do it all the time.
‘You look at all the artists who are selling all their catalogues. It’s pretty common. It’s not that big a deal. But Daryl didn’t like the idea that I would sell to a certain third party.’
A judge honoured Hall’s request to temporarily block Oates from selling his portion of the company in 2023, prolonging conflict between the former bandmates.
The band are never ever getting back together (Picture: Shutterstock) Comment nowWhat’s your favourite Hall & Oates album?Comment NowThe duo last collaborated on new music in 2006 for their studio album Home for Christmas.
They attempted to launch a comeback in 2020, but plans for their 19th album fell apart when longtime keyboardist Eliot Lewis left the band.
Even prior to the band’s collapse and their feud, relations between Hall & Oates had been fraught with tension, with Oates telling Variety Magazine that they only ever met up to perform together.
Hall & Oates confirmed that they had officially split last year, with Oates claiming: ‘We didn’t write songs together, we didn’t do anything together except perform live shows.’
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