10 Greatest Unsung Heroes In Rock And Roll

10. John Oates - Hall and Oates

In the world of rock and roll, you tend to not hear much from duos anymore. Although there might be a songwriting team behind the scenes of a full band, there isn't really a band that's known for just two songwriters outside of the Everly Brothers. Hell, even when we got one with Hall and Oates, it almost felt like the entire appeal of John Oates began and ended at his amazing mustache.

In fact, John almost seems to be aware of his place in the history of the band, calling himself one of the most highly paid background singers in the world. When you look at the kind of stuff that he's written behind the scenes though, Daryl Hall wouldn't stand a chance without him, being just the right guy to bounce ideas off of when they were writing their first big hits. Although Daryl would end up singing them a lot of the time, John brought a ton of soul into the mix, like when he came in with the skeleton of what would eventually become She's Gone.

Ever since the glory days of the '80s though, John has been the much more rootsy player of the two, turning towards the folksy side of the spectrum and always making sure that there's a song in the middle of the recording instead of just a bunch of fluff. Outside of the tons of '80s production across their back catalog, John Oates was always the one keeping things organic across those classic tunes.