Voices (Hall & Oates album)

Voices
Studio album by
Daryl Hall & John Oates
ReleasedJuly 29, 1980 (1980-07-29)
RecordedNovember 1979–April 1980
Studios
Genres
Length43:55
LabelRCA Victor
Producers
Daryl Hall & John Oates chronology
X-Static
(1979)		 Voices
(1980)		 Private Eyes
(1981)
Singles from Voices
  1. "How Does It Feel to Be Back"
    Released: July 1980
  2. "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'"
    Released: September 27, 1980
  3. "Kiss on My List"
    Released: November 1980
  4. "You Make My Dreams"
    Released: April 1981

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.

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStarStarHalf star
The Rolling Stone Album GuideStarStarHalf star
Rolling Stone(favorable)

Background

The album slowly became a massive hit, spinning off four singles into the top 40 of the American pop charts: "How Does It Feel to Be Back" (number 30 in summer, 1980), a cover of The Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" (number 12 in fall, 1980), "Kiss on My List" (number 1 for three weeks in spring, 1981), and "You Make My Dreams" (number 5 in summer, 1981). "Everytime You Go Away" was not released as a single but was covered by Paul Young in 1985, when it went to number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on July 27, 1985.

Voices was the first album that Hall & Oates produced by themselves, working in conjunction with renowned engineer Neil Kernon.

Composition

Voices has been described as a pop, blue-eyed soul, new wave and power pop album, with elements of avant-garde.

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."How Does It Feel to Be Back"John Oates4:35
2."Big Kids"
3:40
3."United State"
  • Hall
  • Oates
3:08
4."Hard to Be in Love with You"
3:38
5."Kiss on My List"
4:25
6."Gotta Lotta Nerve (Perfect Perfect)"
3:37
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'"
4:37
8."You Make My Dreams"
  • Hall
  • Oates
  • S. Allen
3:10
9."Everytime You Go Away"Hall5:23
10."Africa"Oates3:39
11."Diddy Doo Wop (I Hear the Voices)"
  • Hall
  • Oates
3:43
Total length:43:55
Japanese release bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
12."Kiss on My List" (remix version)
  • Hall
  • J. Allen
5:41
13."Everytime You Go Away" (remix version)Hall5:06
Total length:54:55

Personnel

Hall & Oates in a publicity photo for Voices, 1980

The Band

Additional musicians

  • Jeff Southworth – guitar solo (5)
  • Ralph Schuckett – organ (9)
  • Mike Klvana – synthesizers (10), equipment technician

Technical

Charts and certifications

The album debuted at number 75 on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart the week of August 16, 1980 as the highest debut of the week. After ten months since its debut on the chart, it peaked at number 17 on June 13, 1981, making it their highest-charting album since 1975 when Daryl Hall & John Oates also peaked at number 17. It remained on the chart for one hundred weeks, more than any other album by the duo. It was certified gold by the RIAA on May 6, 1981, for shipments of 500,000 units, and reached platinum status on January 22, 1982, denoting shipments of one million.

Weekly charts

Chart (1980–1981) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) 19
US Billboard 20017

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada) Gold 50,000^
United States (RIAA) Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Singles

Release dateTitle Hot 100 UK singles
July 1980"How Does It Feel to Be Back" 30 –
September 1980"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" 12 55
November 1980"Kiss on My List" 1 33
April 1981"You Make My Dreams" 5 –

Bibliography

References

  1. ↑ Oates, John (2017). "I Hear The Voices". Change of Seasons: A Memoir.
  2. 1 2 "The 80 Greatest Albums of 1980". Rolling Stone. November 11, 2020.
  3. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Daryl Hall & John Oates: Voices". AllMusic. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
  4. ↑ Berger, Arion (2004). "Daryl Hall & John Oates". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon and Schuster. pp. 358. ISBN 0743201698.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "20 of the Best New Wave Albums by Rock/Pop Artists". PopMatters. June 19, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Top LPs & Tape". Billboard – August 16, 1980. August 16, 1980. p. 70. Retrieved September 3, 2017. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  7. 1 2 3 "Daryl Hall John Oates Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
  8. 1 2 "Daryl Hall & John Oates – Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  9. 1 2 "American album certifications – Hall & Oates – Voices". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  10. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  11. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Hall & Oates – Voices". Music Canada. Retrieved August 24, 2017.