Summer has finally poked through in Auckland after threatening to do so since as far back as September. Just in time, because this coming weekend the duo who have had more hit songs and albums than any other in music history are playing A Day On The Green. Hall & Oates are in New Zealand for two concerts, one in Napier at Church Road winery on Saturday night and then the following night in Auckland at Villa Maria.

Normally I work Sunday evenings (9pm-midnight on Newstalk ZB), but my love of Hall & Oates has allowed me the night off. So from now until Sunday, The Roxborogh Report will feature a different Hall & Oates song every day to highlight just how phenomenal these two were and indeed still are.

With the “still are” part in mind, today’s Hall & Oates song is infact “Hall & Train” with Daryl Hall singing with Train’s Pat Monahan on a recent and sensational re-working of the 1979 hit Wait For Me. The original was a pleasant pop song which while lyrically strong, lacked the knockout punch production-wise and structure-wise to be any more than the top 20 hit it was. This version changes all that in that it is that rarest of pop creatures: not just a remake superior to the original, but a remake featuring the original artist that is superior to the original.

The new arrangement remains faithful to the melody, but slows the tempo and subsequently makes for a much for soulful, almost gospel feel. Recorded on the must-watch monthy web-cast Live From Daryl’s House, here is Wait For Me.