TACOMA, Wash. — It was the drummer with the non-Filipino name, Bradley Edwards, who came up with the tagline for his band, The Little Donuts.
"We are the Northwest's premiere all-Filipino Hall & Oates cover band," he said. "I'm not gonna say we're the best in the world. But in the Northwest, it's safe to say we are better than all other Hall & Oates cover bands that are Filipino."
They are delivery truck drivers, barbers, tech guys, and store managers who share more than heritage. They also share a love for the Philadelphia duo who ruled the Top 40 in the '70s and '80s- Daryl Hall and John Oates.
"We have a lot of respect for them," said keyboardist Dean Sayson. "Just the catalog of songs that they have. But still staying true to their Philadelphia blue-eyed soul sound."
They call themselves The Little Donuts thanks to a Spanish snack called Filipinos, which guitarist Reylan Fernandez described as, "if you took a Hostess donut and cut it in half."
The Little Donuts started as a joke, Edwards said, when they were looking for a way to raise money for a party. The members all play in different bands and they discussed doing punk rock covers but settled on Hall & Oates "because everyone likes Hall & Oates."
At rehearsals, they discuss set lists.
"We always play 'Rich Girl' first," Lino Fernandez said. "Do you guys want to do that?"
"'Rich Girl' sets the tone. I would say yeah," said Sayson.
A few nights later when the Little Donuts took the stage at the Spanish Ballroom inside McMenamin's Elks Temple, the set list also included "Maneater," "Private Eyes," "I Can't Go For That," "Kiss On My List," "Sara Smile," and "One On One"
"If you come to one of our shows it's always going to be a blast," Sayson said.
"Every time we play I think audiences just have fun," said Edwards. "They don't realize how many songs that Hall & Oates wrote because they span so many decades."
'You know really it's just fun," added Reylan Fernandez. "And it's not worth doing if it's not fun."
After an eleven-song set, The Little Donuts left the stage to cries for more. They have a lot more songs they could learn. After all, Hall & Oates had 33 singles reach the Billboard Hot 100.
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