Private Eyes (song)

Last updated
"Private Eyes"
Private Eyes side label US vinyl.jpg
Side-A label of the US 7-inch vinyl single
Single by Daryl Hall & John Oates
from the album Private Eyes
B-side
  • "Tell Me What You Want" (US, Canada, UK, South Africa, Spain)
  • "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)" (Italy, Bolivia)
  • "Head Above Water" (Italy promo single)
ReleasedAugust 1981
Studio Electric Lady, New York City
Genre
Length3:29(album version)
3:09 (UK Mix)
Label RCA Records
Songwriter(s) Warren Pash, Sara Allen, Janna Allen, and Daryl Hall.
Producer(s) Daryl Hall, John Oates, Neil Kernon
Daryl Hall & John Oates singles chronology
"You Make My Dreams"
(1981)
"Private Eyes"
(1981)
"I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)"
(1981)
Music video
"Private Eyes" on YouTube

"Private Eyes" is a 1981 single by American duo Daryl Hall & John Oates and the title track from their album of the same name. The song was number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts for two weeks, from November 7 through November 20, 1981. This single was the band's third of six number one hits (the first two being "Rich Girl" and "Kiss on My List"), and their second number one hit of the 1980s. It was succeeded in the number one position by Olivia Newton-John's "Physical," which was coincidentally succeeded by another single from Hall & Oates, "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)".

Contents

Background and writing

The tune for "Private Eyes" was written by Warren Pash [3] and Janna Allen, with arrangement and chords by Daryl Hall. In an interview with American Songwriter, Daryl Hall states: "That's a real Janna Allen (co-writer and sister of Sara Allen) song. Janna, and I, and Warren Pash wrote that. Warren and Janna wrote most of the song, and I took it and changed it around – changed the chords. Sandy (Sara Allen) and I wrote the lyrics. It's a real family song, the Allen sisters and me." [4]

The single carries a similar rhythm to the duo's number one hit from earlier that year, "Kiss on My List," with the difference being a handclap chorus that has made the song an audience-participation favorite at live Hall and Oates shows. It was one of the duo's first songs to appear in heavy rotation on MTV.

Record World called it a "perfectly-crafted title cut" from the album. [5]

Music video

The music video features the band dressed as stereotypical film-noir style, trenchcoat-wearing private detectives.

It was the first to feature the backup band of guitarist G. E. Smith, bassist Tom "T-Bone" Wolk, drummer Mickey Curry, and saxophonist/keyboardist Charles DeChant.

Personnel

Chart performance

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada) [13] Gold50,000^
United States (RIAA) [14] Gold1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hall & Oates</span> American pop rock duo

Daryl Hall and John Oates, commonly known as Hall & Oates, were an American pop rock duo formed in Philadelphia in 1970. Daryl Hall was generally the lead vocalist; John Oates primarily played the electric guitar and provided backing vocals. The two wrote most of the songs they performed, either separately or in collaboration. They achieved their greatest fame from the mid-1970s to the late 1980s with a fusion of rock and roll, soul music, and rhythm and blues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daryl Hall</span> American musician and lead vocalist of Hall & Oates (born 1946)

Daryl Franklin Hohl, known professionally as Daryl Hall, is an American rock, R&B and soul singer and musician, best known as the co-founder and principal lead vocalist of Hall & Oates, with guitarist and songwriter John Oates. Outside of his work in Hall & Oates, he has also released five solo albums, including the 1980 progressive rock collaboration with guitarist Robert Fripp titled Sacred Songs and the 1986 album Three Hearts in the Happy Ending Machine, which provided his best selling single, "Dreamtime", that peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100. He has also collaborated on numerous works by other artists, such as Fripp's 1979 release Exposure, and Dusty Springfield's 1995 album A Very Fine Love, which produced a UK Top 40 hit with "Wherever Would I Be". Since late 2007, he has hosted the streaming television series Live from Daryl's House, in which he performs alongside other artists, doing a mix of songs from each's catalog. The show has been rebroadcast on a number of cable and satellite channels as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kiss on My List</span> 1981 single by Hall & Oates

"Kiss on My List" is a song by American duo Hall & Oates. It was written by Daryl Hall and Janna Allen, and produced by Hall and John Oates. It was the third single release from their ninth studio album, Voices (1980), and became their second US Billboard Hot 100 number-one single. It spent three weeks at the top spot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maneater (Hall & Oates song)</span> 1982 single by Daryl Hall & John Oates

"Maneater" is a song by American duo Hall & Oates, featured on their eleventh studio album, H2O (1982). It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on December 18, 1982. It remained in the top spot for four weeks, longer than any of the duo's five other number-one hits, including "Kiss on My List", which remained in the top spot for three weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Out of Touch</span> 1984 single by Daryl Hall & John Oates

"Out of Touch" is a song by American duo Daryl Hall & John Oates from their twelfth studio album Big Bam Boom (1984). The song was released as the lead single from Big Bam Boom on Thursday, October 4, 1984, by RCA Records. This song was their last Billboard Hot 100 number-one single, topping the chart for two weeks in December 1984. It also became the duo's fourteenth consecutive top 40 hit since 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)</span> 1981 single by Daryl Hall & John Oates

"I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)" is a song by American duo Hall & Oates. Written by Daryl Hall, John Oates and Sara Allen, the song was released as the second single from their tenth studio album, Private Eyes (1981). The song became the fourth number one hit single of their career on the Billboard Hot 100. It features Charles DeChant on saxophone.

<i>Private Eyes</i> (Hall & Oates album) 1981 studio album by Hall & Oates

Private Eyes is the tenth studio album by American pop rock duo Hall & Oates, released on September 1, 1981, by RCA Records. The album includes two number-one singles—the title track and "I Can't Go for That ", as well as the top-10 single "Did It in a Minute". "I Can't Go for That " also spent a week at the top of the R&B chart.

Janna Allen was an American songwriter. She is best known as a co-writer of some of the biggest hits recorded by Hall & Oates, in collaboration variously with Daryl Hall, John Oates and her sister Sara Allen, who was Hall's longtime girlfriend and the person for whom the duo's hit song "Sara Smile" was written.

<i>Big Bam Boom</i> 1984 studio album by Hall & Oates

Big Bam Boom is the twelfth studio album by American duo Daryl Hall & John Oates, released by RCA Records on October 12, 1984. It marked the end of one of the most successful album runs by a duo of the 1980s. RCA issued a remastered version in July 2004 with four bonus tracks. The lead single "Out of Touch" was a #1 pop hit, and charted in several other areas. Another song taken from the album, the Daryl Hall and Janna Allen-penned "Method of Modern Love" reached a high point of #5, and "Some Things Are Better Left Unsaid," reached #18.

<i>Rock n Soul Part 1</i> 1983 greatest hits album by Hall & Oates

Rock 'n Soul Part 1 is a greatest hits album by American musical duo Hall & Oates, credited as "Daryl Hall John Oates" on the album cover. Released by RCA Records on October 18, 1983, the album featured mostly hit singles recorded by the duo and released by RCA, along with one single from the duo's period with Atlantic Records and two previously unreleased songs recorded earlier in the year: "Say It Isn't So" and "Adult Education".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Say It Isn't So (Hall & Oates song)</span> 1983 single by Hall & Oates

"Say It Isn't So" is a song performed by American pop rock duo Daryl Hall & John Oates, and written by Daryl Hall. It was released by RCA Records in October 1983 as the first of two new singles from their compilation album Rock 'n Soul Part 1, released that same year. The song was remixed as a "special extended dance mix" by John "Jellybean" Benitez, which topped Billboard magazine's Hot Dance Club Play chart. The song peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks, behind coincidentally "Say Say Say" by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">One on One (song)</span> 1983 single by Daryl Hall & John Oates

"One on One" is a song performed by American duo Daryl Hall & John Oates. Written by member Daryl Hall, the song was released as the second single from their eleventh studio album H2O in January 1983. Backed by minimalistic, synthesizer-based production, the song's lyrics incorporate various sports metaphors to describe seduction. Daryl Hall performs lead vocals, while John Oates provides backing harmony vocals. It peaked at number seven on the United States Billboard Hot 100, becoming one of three top ten singles from H2O.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sara Smile</span> 1975 single by Hall & Oates

"Sara Smile" is a song written and recorded by the American musical duo Hall & Oates. It was released as the third single from their album Daryl Hall & John Oates. The song was the group's first top 40 and first top ten hit in the US, reaching number four on the Billboard Hot 100.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Family Man (Mike Oldfield song)</span> 1982 single by Mike Oldfield

"Family Man" is a pop rock song written by Mike Oldfield, Tim Cross, Rick Fenn, Mike Frye, Morris Pert, and Maggie Reilly. It became a hit song in 1982 for Mike Oldfield with Maggie Reilly as the vocalist. Hall & Oates achieved success a year later with their cover version. In 2009, Maggie Reilly recorded another version of the song for her solo studio album Looking Back Moving Forward.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">She's Gone (Hall & Oates song)</span> 1973 single by Hall & Oates

"She's Gone" is a song written and originally performed by the American duo Daryl Hall and John Oates. The soul ballad is included on their 1973 album, Abandoned Luncheonette.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Make My Dreams</span> 1981 single by Hall & Oates

"You Make My Dreams" is a song by American duo Daryl Hall & John Oates, taken from their ninth studio album, Voices (1980). The song reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1981. The track received 154,000 digital sales between 2008 and 2009 according to Nielsen SoundScan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everything Your Heart Desires</span> 1988 single by Hall & Oates

"Everything Your Heart Desires" is a song by American duo Hall & Oates, released as the lead single from their thirteenth studio album, Ooh Yeah! (1988). The song peaked at number three in the United States. It was their sixteenth and last Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 song. The 45 version was later included on their greatest hits album Playlist: The Very Best of (2008) while the video mix was included on VH1 Behind the Music: The Daryl Hall and John Oates Collection (2002) and on the box set Do What You Want, Be What You Are: The Music of Daryl Hall & John Oates (2009).

<i>Voices</i> (Hall & Oates album) 1980 studio album by Hall & Oates

Voices is the ninth studio album by American pop rock duo Daryl Hall & John Oates. The album was released on July 29, 1980, by RCA Records. It spent 100 weeks on the Billboard 200, peaking at number 17. In 2020, the album was ranked number 80 on The Greatest 80 Albums of 1980 by Rolling Stone magazine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Did It in a Minute</span> 1982 single by Hall & Oates

"Did It in a Minute" is a song performed by American duo Hall & Oates. Written by Daryl Hall with Sara and Janna Allen, the song was released as the third of four singles from the duo's tenth studio album Private Eyes in March 1982. Daryl Hall performs lead vocals, while John Oates provides backing harmony vocals.

<i>Looking Back – The Best of Daryl Hall + John Oates</i> 1991 compilation album by Daryl Hall and John Oates

Looking Back – The Best of Daryl Hall + John Oates is a compilation album by American pop rock duo Daryl Hall and John Oates. It was released in 1991. It contains tracks from ten Hall & Oates albums spanning 1973's Abandoned Luncheonette to 1990's Change of Season.

References

  1. Breihan, Tom (May 20, 2020). "The Number Ones: Hall & Oates' "Private Eyes"". Stereogum . Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  2. Smith, Troy L. (13 May 2021). "Every No. 1 song of the 1980s ranked from worst to best". Cleveland.com . Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  3. "SOCAN Awards Gala: A Night To Remember". FYI Music News, June 23, 2015
  4. Sharp, Ken (2009-01-23). "HALL AND OATES: Soul Survivors « American Songwriter". Americansongwriter.com. Retrieved 2016-10-23.
  5. "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. August 22, 1981. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
  6. "Daryl Hall & John Oates – Private Eyes". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
  7. "Daryl Hall & John Oates: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
  8. "Daryl Hall John Oates Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
  9. "Daryl Hall John Oates Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  10. "Daryl Hall John Oates Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  11. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2012-10-20.
  12. "Top 100 Hits of 1982/Top 100 Songs of 1982". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-23.
  13. "Canadian single certifications – Hall & Oates – Private Eyes". Music Canada . Retrieved August 3, 2023.
  14. "American single certifications – Hall & Oates – Private Eyes". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved August 3, 2023.