NASHVILLE, Tenn. – John Oates says he’s starting "Part Three" of his life with the release of a new album that explores his old passion for the blues and roots music.
It’s a different kind of place for the 62-year-old, who first found fame in the 1970s and `80s as half of the iconic pop duo Hall & Oates. For instance, he recently signed on for a couple of shows with The Avett Brothers – as the opening act.
"Getting to open for them is kind of a strange place to be but I think it’s amazing," Oates said. "They’re big fans of Hall & Oates. I think I just have a great opportunity to reach a new set of people that don’t know much about me. So I think that’s really cool."
Oates recently talked with The Associated Press about the album "Mississippi Mile," released last week, hanging with Sam Bush and Jerry Douglas, and the Americana movement:
AP: You’ve recorded some classic songs that aren’t immediately recognizable because of the different approaches you’ve taken. How did you come up with the idea for the album?
Oates: It started out with the song "All Shook Up." I don’t know what happened. I was sitting around practicing and I started playing "All Shook Up" in a minor key – it was originally in a major key – in kind of a Delta blues style. I thought, "Wow, that’s cool." I just liked the sound. This is a song I sang when I was a kid. Then I thought, "Well, what about some other songs I listened to when I was a kid?" (Those are) the songs and the artists that meant a lot to me and really formed my musical background, which a lot of people don’t know about. I was very much into the American folk scene and the blues thing that was happening in the early `60s.
AP: What caused you to return to those early influences?
Oates: With Hall & Oates, honestly, after years and years of playing the same material, it’s easy to coast. I can coast through a show. Not that I don’t care, but I can just do it. I don’t like to feel like that because I still play with passion, but there was something else I needed to go to, another level that I felt I could personally go to. The guys down here, playing with Sam Bush and Jerry Douglas, introduced me to that level and I said, "You know, if I’m going to enter that world I need to step it up." And it was a real challenge for me, and I like a challenge, so I went for it.
AP: Which do you enjoy more – your time at the top of the charts or this new phase?
Oates: This is much more satisfying because I’m doing everything on my own terms. When we had our success – we had a bit of success in the `70s – but when we made that big run in the `80s, it was too intense to enjoy. I couldn’t step back from it. There was nothing to step back from. It was a constant barrage of commitment and stuff. Personally, I’ve never really wanted to be a rock star. That wasn’t my motivation in life. It kind of happened.
AP: Do you still listen to pop music?
Oates: My son is 15 and he listens to a lot of Top 40 radio, so I get a lot of that in the truck. The Katy Perry stuff, those are great songs. The Cee Lo (Green) stuff, those are great pop songs. I don’t care what era you live in, those are great pop songs. I appreciate that. … But at the same time I have a greater appreciation for what’s going on with the Americana movement because there’s an authenticity and an organic thing that’s happening with a whole movement of young people, jumping on to The Avett Brothers and Mumford & Sons. There’s something authentic and unique about what they’re doing.
AP: No interview with John Oates would be complete without a question about Hall & Oates. What’s the status of the duo?
Oates: We do about 30-35 shows a year. We do it when we want. We have a great kind of corporate and private business we developed over the years and then we play public shows as well. Our mantra is fun and interesting. If we think it’s fun and interesting, then we’re interested. If it’s not, then we don’t do it.
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