Song of the Day 1/12: Hall & Oates, “Did It in a Minute”

Daryl Hall and John Oates reached the height of their Hall of Fame career in 1982, bookending the year with No. 1 singles — “I Can’t Go For That” in January, “Maneater” in December. Though it topped out at No. 9 in the weekly rankings, this song also made Billboard’s list of the year’s Top 100 singles. It’s a bit of a throwaway number, another mid-tempo rocker, but the jittery energy of the chorus overcomes the dated-sounding synths (why were musicians so enamored of them in the ’80s?) to give it a sense of urgency.

The song has an interesting family tree, stretching all the way back to Hank Ballard and the Midnighters.
According to Eric Carmen, who toured with Hall and Oates in the early ’80s, Hall told him the chorus was inspired by the repeated “did its” in the background vocals to Carmen’s 1977 hit “She Did It.”

Carmen was, in turn, inspired by the background “did its” in the Beach Boys’ 1968 throwback single “Do It Again,” which peaked at No. 20, making it their last Top 20 hit for five years.

According to both Brian Wilson and Mike Love, that song came together quickly in an impromptu session around the piano, though each remembers it being at the other’s house. They were consciously looking for a back-to-their-roots sound, and Love said one inspiration was Hank Ballard’s 1960 hit “Finger Poppin’ Time,” most obviously in the bridge. Readers of a certain age might recognize this No. 7 hit from 1960 from its use in the popular kids’ baseball movie “The Sandlot.”