H2O (Hall & Oates album)
1982 studio album by Hall & Oates
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
H2O is the eleventh studio album by American pop rock duo Daryl Hall & John Oates,[a] released by RCA Records on October 4, 1982. It peaked at number three on the Billboard 200, making it the duo's highest-charting album, and has been certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) with sales of over two million copies. The album title is a play on the chemical formula for water, where "H" is for Hall and "O" is for Oates. It features three US top-10 singles, including "Maneater", the most successful single of their career, spending four weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The album marks the first appearance for longtime bassist and musical director Tom "T-Bone" Wolk.
| H2O | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 12, 1982 | |||
| Recorded | 1981–1982 | |||
| Studio | Electric Lady Studios (New York City) | |||
| Genres | [1] | |||
| Length | 47:08 | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Producers | ||||
| Daryl Hall & John Oates chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Alternative cover | ||||
 | ||||
| Singles from H2O | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide |  [2] |
| Robert Christgau | B−[3] |
Commercial performance
The album debuted at number 42 on the Billboard 200 the week of October 30, 1982, as the highest debut of the week;[5] 11 weeks later, it peaked at number three on the chart on January 15, 1983; the album spent 68 weeks on the chart.[6] By December 1982, the album sold one million copies and it was certified platinum on December 16, 1982; it was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on April 1, 1985, denoting shipments in excess of two million copies.[7]
The album received considerable success overseas. In the UK, H2O opened at number 31 on its album chart on 23 October 1982, peaking at number 24 the following week.[8][9] The album remained on the chart for 35 weeks and was certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on March 29, 1983, for shipments of 100,000.[9][10]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Maneater" | 4:33 | |
| 2. | "Crime Pays" |
| 4:31 |
| 3. | "Art of Heartbreak" |
| 3:43 |
| 4. | "One on One" | Hall | 4:17 |
| 5. | "Open All Night" |
| 4:35 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Family Man" |
| 3:25 |
| 7. | "Italian Girls" | Oates | 3:17 |
| 8. | "Guessing Games" |
| 3:15 |
| 9. | "Delayed Reaction" |
| 3:59 |
| 10. | "At Tension" | Oates | 6:16 |
| 11. | "Go Solo" | Hall | 4:35 |
| Total length: | 47:08 | ||
Personnel
- Daryl Hall – lead vocals (1–6, 8, 9, 11), backing vocals, piano, keyboards, synthesizers (Yamaha CP-30, Prophet-5, E-mu Emulator), guitar, Little Italy mandolinos
- John Oates – lead vocals (7, 10), backing vocals, guitar, 12-string guitar, electric piano, CompuRhythm drums, Linn LM-1, Little Italy mandolinos
- Larry Fast – synthesizer programming
- G.E. Smith – lead guitars
- Tom "T-Bone" Wolk – bass, Little Italy mandolinos
- Mickey Curry – drums, percussion
- Charlie "Mr. Casual" DeChant – saxophone
Production
- Produced by Daryl Hall, John Oates, and Neil Kernon
- Engineered by Neil Kernon
- Mixed by Hugh Padgham
- Assistant engineers – Bruce Buchhalter, Michael Somers-Abbott, Barry Harris
- Mastered by Bob Ludwig at Masterdisk (New York, NY)
- Art direction – Geoffrey Kent and Mick Haggerty
- Design – Mick Haggerty
- Cover photography – Hiro
- Inner sleeve photography – Larry Williams
- Equipment technician – Mike Klvana
- Management and direction – Tommy Mottola
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[26] | Platinum | 50,000^ |
| Canada (Music Canada)[27] | 3× Platinum | 300,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[10] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[7] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||