Sara Smile (3:10)

“Sara Smile” is a song written and recorded by the American musical duo Hall & Oates. It was released as the first single from their album Daryl Hall & John Oates in 1976. The song was the group’s first Top 10 hit in the US, reaching number four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Thirty-three years later, country music singer Jimmy Wayne released a cover version as a single, with backing vocals from the duo.

“Sara Smile” was the first single release from Hall & Oates’ 1976 self-titled album for RCA Records. Co-written by both halves of the duo, it was their breakthrough single, with a #4 peak on the Billboard Hot 100 charts in 1976. It was written about Hall’s girlfriend, Sara Allen.

Nathan Brackett and Christian Hoard, in the Rolling Stone album guide, referred to the song as a “love bead ballad” and Steve Pond of the Los Angeles Times cited it as an example of the duo’s R&B influences. Because of its chart success, “Sara Smile” prompted a re-release of the duo’s previous single, “She’s Gone.”

“Sara Smile” was the duo’s first Top Ten hit, reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked at #23 on Hot Soul Singles (now Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs) and #18 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks charts. The song also earned a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).