A Chat With: Pennsylvania Native And Rock Legend John Oates Excited To Tour After Pandemic Pause
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- John Oates is ready to get back on the road.
The Pennsylvania native sat down with Jessica Kartalija to discuss the most exciting parts of Hall and Oates getting back to touring.
Q: What are you looking forward to most about being back on tour and seeing the audience in front of you?
A: I think that's what we're looking forward to, actually reconnecting with an audience that really needs and loves to see live music again.
Q: You travel all over the world performing, when you come back to Philly, what is that feeling like?
A: That feeling of being home in Philadelphia is something, whenever you return to where your childhood influences were, and there are so many meaningful things about Philadelphia. The radio we listened to as kids, where we lived downtown, this tiny little street called Quintz Street. Darryl and I shared a house there.
Those memories, those are the real heart and soul of my Philadelphia experience.
Q: You were a wrestler for a time at Temple. A lot of people don't know that.
A: A brief time. When I went to Temple, I was on the freshman wrestling team. I actually wrestled one match, and I got tired of losing weight, that's a big thing when you are a wrestler.
Q: At what point, John, did you realize that music was your passion, "This is what I am great at and this is what I am going to do for the rest of my life?"
A: When I was a little kid. I am one of the very fortunate people, I have never had a job. The closest thing I had to a job is teaching guitar lessons. I've never looked back. I guess at some point if people started booing, I may have reconsidered.
Q: Philly has great musical talent. What do you attribute this to?
A: That combination of classical European influence combined with the influx of people from the deep south created this soulful combination that is very unique in America, and that's why Philadelphia sounds the way it sounds.
One of the great things about growing up in Philadelphia in the 60's was this incredible mixture of amazing music that was all happening at the same time. I would go to the uptown theater on north broad street and see some of the greatest soul acts in the world. I saw Stevie wonder play fingertips when he was 12 years old, the temptations, Otis Redding, James Brown. At the same time, the Philadelphia folk festival had just started.
What better place for a young musician to absorb all this incredible music?
Q: What's still on your to-do list?
A: Get through this tour is on my immediate to do list.
In terms of me, I'm very happy, I have a great wife and son, and we have a good life and were very blessed with that. I want to continue that and make music for the rest of my life.
