Daryl Hall and John Oates have made music separately, but they are by far best known as a duo. Hall & Oates charted six platinum albums and as many number one singles during their peak in the mid-1970s and ‘80s.

The two met in 1967 as students at Philadelphia’s Temple University. Hall was performing with Kenny Gamble and the Romeos, and Oates was leading a soul band. Upon realizing their similar musical tastes, the two began to perform together, but by 1968, Oates had transferred to another school and Hall had formed the band Gulliver.

Gulliver broke up after only one release, and Hall began singing backup for a few doo-wop and soul bands of the era. When Oates went back to Philadelphia the following year, he and Hall got together again to write and perform folk songs. The duo signed with Atlantic Records and gained manager Tommy Mottola. Hall & Oates released three albums while trying to find their sound, and the single “She’s Gone” went to number 60 on the charts in 1974.
Hall & Oates switched to RCA in 1975 and worked out their sound, a mix of rock, pop, and soul. Their single “Sara Smile” reached the Top Ten, prompting the re-release of “She’s Gone,” which followed suit. The album “Bigger than the Both of Us” did moderately well upon its release in 1976, but when the single “Rich Girl” went to number one in early 1977, it bolstered the album’s success.

Several minor hits followed over the next few years, but it wasn’t until 1980’s “Voices” that Hall & Oates found their biggest commercial success. The album’s second single, “Kiss on My List”, became the duo’s second number one hit, and the follow-up, “You Make My Dreams”, went to number five. Hall & Oates concert tickets were at a premium as the duo enjoyed a hot streak that continued with the 1981 release “Private Eyes” and the 1982 work “H2O,” which was their best-selling album to date. “H2O” went double platinum and spawned the duo’s biggest hit, “Maneater.” A greatest hits album came out the following year.
In 1984, the Recording Industry Association of America found that Hall & Oates surpassed the Everly Brothers as the most successful duo in the history of rock music. Hall & Oates totaled 19 platinum and gold awards to that point, and 1984’s “Big Bam Boom” added to the tally, reaching double platinum and including the number one hit “Out of Touch.”

After releasing a live album, the duo went on hiatus. They then released “Ooh Yeah!” on Arista in 1988. It went platinum, but Hall & Oates’ dominance on the charts was tapering. The duo’s last release came in 1997, but their work is often sampled, and the two stay on the radar in other ways. In 2006, they made a cameo appearance on TV’s Will and Grace.