PHILADELPHIA - Mention the 1980s mega-duo Hall and Oates and most people will say Daryl Hall - the one with shaggy blond hair who sang most of their hits - was the star.

        Even his partner.

        “My personality, my voice tends to get overshadowed by Daryl's,” John Oates says. “I don't think that's an overstatement.”

John Oates performs in Hershey, Pa. earlier this month. (Associated Press photo) | ZOOM |

        But now fans have a chance to hear Mr. Oates on his first solo album, Phunk Shui.

        “I think this is a chance for me to step out,” says Mr. Oates, 53.

        The album, a mix of funk and rock, is something of a departure from the pop sound that made Hall and Oates so commercially successful. And the optimistic lyrics suggest that Mr. Oates has found contentment - in both his personal life and his music.

        The album's title refers to feng shui, the Chinese art of designing a house in accordance with nature's forces; its tone is one “of balance, of self-discovery, of doing things the right way,” Mr. Oates says.

        David Chackler, chief executive officer of Zephyr Media, which released the album Tuesday, says: “Everybody was really blown away by it. After 30 years the silent one speaks.”

        Of course Mr. Oates has never been silent, not since he began his career as a solo singer-songwriter in his teens. He met Mr. Hall when both were students at Temple University in the late 1960s and after they teamed up, the two spent the 1970s releasing a series of albums working on a sound that blended folk, soul and other influences.

        “The well we all drew from was the tradition of doo-wop music, jazz and church music, the background of Philadelphia music,” says Mr. Hall, 52. “What we wanted to add was the singer-songwriter American thing.”

        During their early years they scored some big hits, including “Sara Smile,” “She's Gone” and “Rich Girl.”

        But they really exploded in the '80s when, after tweaking their sound to give it more pop flair, Hall and Oates released several platinum and gold albums and top 10 hits including “Kiss on My List,” “I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)” and “Maneater.”

        “We were in sync with the '80s,” says Mr. Oates. “Our music was perfectly aligned with the music of the time.”

        “The term "blue-eyed soul' wasn't in popular use, but Hall and Oates conveyed what that was supposed to mean,” says Todd Rundgren, who produced their 1974 album War Babies.

        “For the time they were successful they managed to not sound like anyone else,” Mr. Rundgren adds. “When disco came along they didn't start doing disco.”

        But as they grew more successful, Mr. Hall became the main attraction.

        “When we first started out we were two singer-songwriters sharing a stage,” says Mr. Oates. “As the years went on, Daryl began singing the hits. The hits became the songs of Hall and Oates, the sound of Hall and Oates.”

        The twosome faded toward the end of the '80s and into the '90s, as their brand of pop was replaced by grunge and then teen acts. They kept performing, but slowed the pace and recorded less.

        Recently, they've enjoyed a bit of a renaissance. They've been featured on VH1's Behind the Music and Bravo's Musicians, and the duo's “Do It For Love” is in the adult-contemporary top 10. They also finished recording a new album, the first in several years, and will be touring throughout the summer and fall.

        “After all the work in the '70s and '80s and the constant touring, I needed time to regroup and start a family,” Mr. Oates says. “Basically I redid my whole life.”

        He married in 1994 and now lives in Woody Creek, Colo., a small town outside Aspen, with his wife and 6-year-old son. Only after he made those personal changes did he feel ready to do the solo project.

        “I worked so hard with Daryl that when I had time off, I wanted to be home,” he says. “Finally I said, "If I don't do this, I'll regret it.' ”

        Mr. Hall, who has released several solo albums himself, thinks the Oates solo debut was long overdue.

        Still, Mr. Oates says: “I have limited expectations commercially. I know how tough it is on radio.”

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