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Hall & Oates Are Happy You Are Callin' Oates
By
Jen Carlson
Published Dec 25, 2011
Modified Dec 25, 2011
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Dec 25, 2011
Modified Dec 25, 2011
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Last week we were very happy when The Internet delivered Callin' Oates, a hotline that allows you to get your Hall & Oates fix 24/7 by simply callingl 719-26-OATES. After that you'll be prompted to press 1 for "One On One," 2 for "Rich Girl," 3 for "Maneater," and 4 for "Private Eyes." Phone battery dead? No problem, someone put the experience on YouTube:
Word of the secret sonic nostalgia number spread fast, and its creator was discovered soon after. Michael Selvidge, a newcomer to Twilio's communications department, started the whole thing—and the company has documented its viral success here. But with so much attention, and a website and Twitter account attached to the project, it couldn't last long, right? You know, copyrights and stuff! Well, Merry Christmas one and all, TMZ says that Hall & Oates have no plan on stopping the fun. A rep for the group told the site that "they're thrilled so many people are calling the number and listening to their music... 'We had nothing to do with it and we're still trying to to process what the company's intentions are. But we're always happy when people are interested in our music.'"
Fun fact: Daryl Hall now lives in upstate New York, where he films Live From Daryl's House, but he used to live in this writer's hometown, where he drove a red sports car with the novelty plate: "HALL." That was probably around the time the duo recorded this:
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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