John Oates will release a new solo album titled Reunion on May 17. He’s previewing the LP with the contemplative title track, which you can hear below.
“The idea for writing a song about a ‘Reunion’ came to me when I began to think about the true definition of the word,” Oates said in a statement. “It came together when my 100-year-old father told me that he was making ready to be together with my mother, who had passed away some time ago. I wanted to write about the idea of reconnecting with the most essential part of our soul and our spirit.”
He continued: “I brought the idea to a co-writing session with a newfound friend, A.J. Croce, a man with songwriting in his DNA and who is both an amazing piano player and someone who I sensed would relate to this idea. The song flowed out in a few hours. Then I took it home and translated it into a style that I could perform on guitar. We recorded it in Nashville with some of my best friends and were able to capture the truth as I envisioned it to be. I hope it means as much to you as it does to me, and if that is so, then this is my personal definition of a ‘hit.’”
Reunion marks Oates’ first solo studio album since 2018’s Arkansas. He’ll support the LP with a U.S. tour. You can see the full list of dates below.
No ‘Reunion’ for Hall & Oates Yet
Despite the name of his new album, Oates has not yet reunited with his longtime songwriting partner, Daryl Hall. The singer filed a temporary restraining order against Oates in November, claiming Oates sought to sell his portion of Hall & Oates’ joint venture to the company Primary Wave, which would violate the terms of their previous business agreement.
Oates said in January that he couldn’t share details about the case but predicted “things will work itself out and time will tell.” He added: “You can’t ignore the fact that the Hall & Oates catalog of hits and the 50-year career will always trump almost anything that Daryl does on his own or I do on my own. Which is OK, because I’m very proud of that music. I’m really proud of what Daryl and I created together.”
John Oates 2024 TourApril 4 – Huntington, NY @ The ParamountApril 5 – Pittsburgh, PA @ The Palace TheatreApril 6 – West Chester, PA @ Knauer PACApril 9 – Rocky Mount, VA @ Harvester Performance CenterApril 10 – Bristol, TN @ Paramount Center for the ArtsApril 12 – Cornelius, NC @ Cain Center for The ArtsApril 13 – Atlanta, GA @ Buckhead TheatreApril 18 – Columbia, TN @ Columbia State Community CollegeApril 28 – Corona, CA @ Dos Lagos AmphitheaterMay 2-3 – Phoenix, AZ @ Musical Instrument MuseumMay 7 – St. Louis, MO @ City WineryMay 8 – Chicago, IL @ City WineryJune 7-8 – Cedaredge, CO @ Grand Mesa Songwriter FestivalJune 25 – Cincinnati, OH @ Memorial HallJune 26 – Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre + BallroomJune 27 – Rochester, NY @ Rochester International Jazz FestivalAugust 15 – Cape May, NJ @ Cape May Convention HallAugust 17 – Philadelphia, PA @ Philadelphia Folk FestivalAugust 22 – Newton, NJ @ The Newtown TheaterAugust 24 – Beverly, MA @ The CabotAugust 25 – Nantucket, MA @ Dreamland
