The Radio.biz Music Blog – Entry #1
The other day, I was driving home from work, listening to one of my radio stations, and The Doobie Brothers’ song “It Keeps You Runnin’” came on.
It reminded me of one of my core beliefs: Michael McDonald ruined The Doobie Brothers.
Let me explain.
Released in 1976, “Takin’ It To The Streets” was the sixth Doobie Brothers studio album. It was the first album to feature Michael McDonald, who was brought in by his old Steely Dan buddy, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, because the Doobie’s guitarist/lead vocalist, Tom Johnston, had stomach ulcers that took him off the road.
McDonald wasn’t sure about joining the band. He didn’t think he was a good fit; he did not think he was what they were looking for to fill Johnston’s shoes.
Nevertheless, he went into the studio with them to work on the next record. When they didn’t have enough songs, McDonald brought in some of his demos.
As it turned out, two of McDonald’s contributions – ”It Keeps You Runnin’” and “Takin’ It To The Streets” (apparently, Michael has a problem with the letter ‘g’) – ended up being the big hits from the record.
Now, don’t get me wrong. “It Keeps You Runnin’” and “Takin’ It to the Streets” are fine songs. They’re catchy. They’ve got great hooks. They’re easy to sing along to.
But they’re not Doobie Brothers songs.
As I listened to “It Keeps You Runnin’,” I really tried to hear all the elements of the song. The drums sound like they are from a Casio keyboard. I don’t hear any guitar. I don’t hear any bass. It sounds like one of those pre-set melodies from a keyboard.
But the song is fine. Michael McDonald is a brilliant songwriter. He’s an amazing musician and probably one of the most iconic voices in modern American music.
But he’s not a Doobie Brother.
Or at least, what we thought a Doobie Brother was supposed to be.
The Doobie Brothers’ eponymous debut was released in April of 1971 and failed to make much of a splash.
But their sophomore effort, 1972’s Toulouse Street, put them on the classic rock map with “Listen To The Music,” “Rockin’ Down The Highway,” (I guess they’ve never liked the letter ‘g’), and “Jesus Is Just Alright.” They followed that up in 1973 with The Captain and Me, which gave us “China Grove” and “Long Train Runnin’” (again, with dropping the ‘g!’ What gives???).
“Long Train Runnin’” would go on to become a college marching band staple.
If you tune in to any classic rock or classic hits radio station, anywhere in the country right now, and listen for at least a half an hour, you’ll probably hear one of those two songs.
And they were just getting started. In 1974, they gave us What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits. Two more hits. “Black Water” (their first #1) and my favorite Doobie Brothers song of all time, “Another Park, Another Sunday.”
In 1975, they released Stampede. Only one hit on this record, “Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me).” But, again, guitar-driven songs with great hooks and amazing harmonies that make you sing along. You feel like you’re at an outdoor amphitheater in the middle of July, out on the lawn with your best girl by your side, dancin’ (see what I did there?) to the music.
It was during the Stampede tour that Tom Johnston started having health issues.
Enter Michael McDonald.
Throughout the end of the 70s and entering the 80s, they would have more hits, “What A Fool Believes” (another #1), “Minute By Minute,” and “Real Love.”
But it wasn’t the same band. They were more keyboard-based. More R&B. Less guitar. No guitar solos.
It was Michael McDonald’s band now. And that’s fine. Those Michael McDonald songs are great. He’s great. The performance is great.
But it’s not Tom Johnston’s Doobie Brothers. Johnston worked on solo projects with The Tom Johnston Band and later a band called Border Patrol that would include fellow Doobie Patrick Simmons for a short time. He would return to The Doobie Brothers in the late 80s, but it had all changed. The Doobies had changed. Popular music had changed. The world had changed.
In my alternate reality. Tom Johnston doesn’t have stomach ulcers. The Doobie Brothers continue makin’ memorable classic rock radio staples throughout the 70s and into the 80s.
And, Michael McDonald puts a band together. Let’s call them The Michael McDonald Band. And they single-handedly start the Adult Contemporary radio format.
If only…
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