He might currently be embroiled in a legal battle with former musical partner Daryl Hall, but that isn’t stopping John Oates from releasing new material on his own. In fact, Get Your Smile On, his new single, was produced completely on his own, and all in GarageBand.
The musician says that he often uses Apple’s entry-level DAW to capture ideas, but that this is the first time he is actually releasing a “pure GarageBand production”.
“Get Your Smile On was yet another song that I wrote during the pandemic,” says Oates, “when I was trying my best to search for any positive vibe I could come up with. Since I had a lot of time on my hands, I began to write using GarageBand on my Mac. It’s usually how I start my song sketches, but it began to come together so well, I decided to really produce the track the way I would have in a professional, recording studio. I played all the instruments, programmed the keyboards and sang all the vocals as well.
“This is the first time I’m releasing a pure GarageBand production. I’m happy the way it came out and I hope it puts a smile on your face when you hear it.”
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All proceeds from the single will go to Teen Cancer America, the charity founded by The Who’s Roger Daltrey.
"John is a fantastic supporter of our charity and has given his time and talent to helping the young people with cancer that we serve,” says Daltrey. “Now he's featuring them on his latest video and donating the proceeds from the single to us. This means so much to me; thanks John, from the bottom of my heart.”
As well as releasing a series of standalone singles this year, Oates also featured on the US version of The Masked Singer. In fact, he was recently revealed to be Anteater. Yes, that’s Anteater - not Maneater.
Oates’ legal battle with Daryl Hall, meanwhile, relates to his plan to sell his share of the duo’s publishing rights to a company called Primary Wave. Hall argues that this is in violation of longstanding agreements between the two stars, and a judge has granted a temporary restraining order to stop the sale going ahead. The case is now set to enter arbitration.
