TIL the Hall & Oates song “I Can’t Go For That” is not about a relationship between two lovers, but about the way the music industry treats artists. John Oates said that the song is really about “not being pushed around by big labels, managers, & agents”.

“I’m not gonna write you a love song”

nonspecifique

Same is true for “Maneater”, which Oates said is actually about the greed and avarice present in 1980’s New York City.

oceanicplatform

They also never wanted to be referred to as just “Hall & Oates” according to Wikipedia: The duo never liked to be referred to as “Hall & Oates”. In an interview with Esquire, Oates said, “There isn’t one album that says Hall and Oates. It’s always Daryl Hall and John Oates, from the very beginning. People never note that. The idea of ‘Hall and Oates’, this two-headed monster, this thing, is not anything we’ve ever wanted or liked.”[8] In a 2015 interview, Oates noted that “it’s a horrible name” and that “it was a totally conscious decision” not to be known as “Hall & Oates”. “We didn’t want to be the Everly Brothers, or Loggins & Messina, or whatever.”[9]FaptasticMrFox

Also the influence for Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean bass line

FiveStriper

I think you can appreciate songs more when you know their background. The song “How Long” by Ace is about one of the band members who was thinking about leaving the band, rather than a partner.

Fakename998