50 Daryl Hall & John Oates Songs You Better Have…Or Else
“One on One”
(1981, #7 pop)
Writer: Daryl Hall
Producer: Daryl Hall, John Oates, Bob Clearmountain
from the album H2O
Put aside the sports connection and you can thoroughly appreciate “One on One” for what it really is. The slow jam aesthetic usually showcased in the art of Smokey Robinson and Frankie Beverly is strongly executed. Thanks to H&O’s production and Bob Clearmountain’s co-production, this comes off as sounding like the doo wop of the future. With minimalist instrumentation, Hall’s passionate pleas and a dreamy chorus (“One on one/I wanna play my game tonight”), the song became an enduring r&b classic (No. 8, r&b) and adult contemporary favorite (no. 4, AC). Its reign on urban adult radio continues to this very day where it is probably the most requested.
