Daryl Hall‘s currently touring with Elvis Costello in support of D, his first solo album since 2011. The set list includes his current hit, “Can’t Say No to You,” solo songs and many of the classic hits he scored with John Oates. While Daryl says he doesn’t really have a hard-and-fast set list, there are a few songs he knows he has to give fans every night.
“I mean, I can’t imagine not playing ‘Sara Smile’ on a show,” he tells ABC Audio. “I mean, it’s one of those things: people just expect it and I want to play it. I mean, it’s coming from my desire as well. And [“I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do)”] is another one that I always play. They’re the ones that I think are, like, required. And then everything else, I just kind of go for it!”
As for “Can’t Say No to You,” it was the first song that Daryl and producer Dave Stewart of Eurythmics recorded together at Stewart’s studio in the Bahamas.
“There was something about the enthusiasm of us working together, and it was that environment … it’s kind of a really feel good, summery [vibe]… all those good things,” he says. “And it kind of set the tone for the album.”
“I’m very, very happy that traditional radio is diggin’ on the song,” he adds. “And that just makes me feel good.”
Daryl says at first, he “wasn’t sure” if the double bill with Elvis Costello — with whom he collaborated in 1984 — would work, given their different fan bases. But now, he says, “People are digging it … so far, it’s been great!”
As he notes, “We certainly come from the same era. And Elvis is a great songwriter. I think [artists] like that — that’s where we come together.”
Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.