"Abandoned Luncheonette" is the second studio album by the American pop music duo Hall & Oates, released in 1973, which combines folk, Philly soul, and acoustic soul. It is the most commercially successful of their first three albums of the duo's Atlantic Records period. Twenty-nine years after its release, the album was certified platinum (over one million copies sold) by the Recording Industry Association of America. Critically acclaimed, Rolling Stone and Allmusic both gave it a 5/5.
Notable songs
The most well-known track from the album is "She's Gone." Daryl Hall, according to some reports,has called it the best song he and John Oates wrote together. Both performers were undergoing romantic problems at the time the song was written; a 1985 article in Rolling Stone said the song was about Hall's divorce from wife Bryna Lublin.
While "She's Gone" did not become a hit when first released as a single, the song gained momentum from two later covers, one by Lou Rawls, and one by Tavares. After the latter cover topped the Billboard R&B chart in 1974, the original was re-released and became a Top 10 pop hit in 1976, reaching #7, while the album reached #33. This song was included in Hall & Oates's 1983 greatest hits compilation Rock and Soul as well as in numerous other compilations. Another song from the album, "Las Vegas Turnaround (The Stewardess Song)," although written by Oates, draws its inspiration from Hall's then-girlfriend and future songwriting collaborator Sara Allen, much as the later "Sara Smile" would.
Album cover
The diner on the album cover was formerly the Rosedale Diner, located in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. When it went out of business, its structure was dumped in a small wooded area located along Route 724 in Kenilworth, PA, at the entrance of Towpath Park in East Coventry Township, where the photo on the linked page was taken. Stripped by souvenir-hunters, the structure remained in place until about 1983, when Ridge Fire Company, along with the owner, burned what was left to clear the land.
Track listing
Side One
"When the Morning Comes" (Daryl Hall) – 3:12
"Had I Known You Better Then" (John Oates) – 3:22
"Las Vegas Turnaround (The Stewardess Song)" (Oates) – 2:57
"She's Gone" (Hall, Oates) – 5:15
"I'm Just a Kid (Don't Make Me Feel Like a Man)" (Oates) – 3:20
Side Two
"Abandoned Luncheonette" (Hall) – 3:55
"Lady Rain" (Hall, Oates) – 4:26
"Laughing Boy" (Hall) – 3:20
"Everytime I Look At You" (Hall) – 7:04
Personnel
Daryl Hall – mandolin, acoustic piano, electric piano, keyboards, vocals
John Oates – acoustic guitar, wah-wah guitar, electric guitar, vocals
Christopher Bond – mellotron, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, synthesizer, howling guitar
Hugh McCracken – electric guitar
Steve "Fontz" Gelfand – bass
Bernard Purdie – drums
Ralph MacDonald – percussion
Joe Farrell – oboe, tenor saxophone
Jerry Ricks – acoustic guitar
Rick Marotta – drums, percussion
Steven "Sticks Douglas" Moore – drums, percussion (vocals)
Gordon Edwards – bass
Pancho Morales – conga
Pat Rebillot – organ
Richard Tee – acoustic piano
Gloria Agostini – harp
John Blair – Vitar electric violin
Marvin Stamm- flugelhorn
Larry Packer – fiddle
Marc Horowitz – banjo
Arif Mardin – bass vocal, horn & string arrangements
Daryl Hall, John Oates, Franklin Hohl, Kathy Mae Hohl, Ronald & Donald Wanner, Christian Bond, Sandy Allen, Greg Fulginiti, and Arif Mardin – Humanity Chorus on "Abandoned Luncheonette"
Production
Produced By Arif Mardin; production assistant: Christopher Bond
Recording & Engineering: Alan Ade, Jimmy Douglass, Lewis Hahn, Joel Kerr, Gene Paul
Mixing: Christopher Bond, Jimmy Douglass
Mastered By Stephen Innocenzi
Daryl Hall & John Oates - Abandoned Luncheonette
UK Atlantic K 40534 stereo (1974)
Album produced by Arif Mardin.
The vinyl record has remained in excellent condition.
Audio quality is very clear and strong throughout.
Both record centre labels are clean and unmarked.
The album cover is in excellent condition, displaying only minimal signs of wear.