Hall & Oates Enter Hall of Fame, Strike Blow for Philly Musicians

Hall & Oates entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Thursday night, flying their Philly flag high:

Daryl Hall, of Hall & Oates, noted unhappily that they were the first Philadelphia act in the Hall of Fame, citing Todd Rundgren, the Stylistics and Chubby Checker as omissions. In a video-clip interview, Mr. Oates described himself as “the most underrated and highly paid backup singer in the history of music.”

No, Oates! There is no Hall & Oates without Oates!

Anyway, the duo’s Philly allegiance extended to the man who gave their introduction: Questlove.

“The Silver album cover taught me something: that those two guys make beautiful women,” he joked. “They single-handedly reinvented the Carlton Dance for black people in the ‘hood. Hall and Oates will cure any known illness.”

He also paid homage to H&O’s longevity and popularity, both of which he attributed to one thing they learned back in Philadelphia: the power of music to transcend genres, eras and, most importantly, race.

“I’m gonna list all the duos in the rock era that were more popular than Hall and Oates … okay, I’m done,” he said, throwing in a brief pause for comedic effect. “They crossed all the boundaries, because that is what great music does.”