www.newsleader.com
by Bill Kramer
One of the most enduring bands in American rock’n’roll will pay a visit to the Valley next week when The Doobie Brothers take the stage Aug. 20 at the Rockingham County Fair in Harrisonburg.
Since 1970, the Doobies have survived numerous personnel changes, an almost five-year hiatus, radical stylistic musical mutations, and the ever-changing musical tastes in our country to emerge as strong a band as ever.
Fans can certainly expect to hear old favorites, such as the group’s first real hit, the infectious good-time rocker “Listen to the Music,” as well as “Rockin’ Down the Highway,” “Long Train Runnin,'” “Black Water,” “Take Me In Your Arms,” and “Takin’ It To the Streets,” just to name a few.
But don’t get the idea this is purely a Top 40 nostalgia act, as the Doobies are putting the finishing touches on a new studio album.
As Pat Simmons, the only original member to remain in the band, told blogger Mary Colurso of the Birmingham News in June, they’ve still got some creative juice left.
“It’s pretty close to finished,” he said. “There will be 12 or 13 tracks, produced by Ted Templeman. He’s our old producer and the one who signed us to Warner Brothers [the band’s first major record deal]. There’s no working title, but we’ll put it out next year, in the spring.”
A surprise track on the new CD is an unlikely collaboration with country music legend Willie Nelson, titled “I Know We Won.” In the same interview, Simmons explained the song’s genesis.
“Willie actually came up with that line,” he said. “I’d been working on a song about growing up in the Santa Clara Valley, which was kind of an idyllic experience for me as a kid. We used to climb a tree in the orchard — Big Oak, we used to call it. The first verse talks about that, and Willie kind of plugged into that, the idea that ‘if life is a game, I know we won’. Willie is a hook-meister.”
The group has a broad spectrum of fans, such as those from the days when AM and FM radio airplay gave wide exposure to hit recordings. But aside from those legions, the group has always had a connection to motorcycle enthusiasts, often playing to large gatherings of bikers and even having a logo similar to Harley-Davidson’s. Many of the band members share an affinity for getting out on the road on their bikes with their families.
The present configuration of the group includes eight members, many of whom have played in the band for decades. They still feature the poly-rhythmic, layered sound with the trademark multiple percussionists. The good news for today’s audience is they’re able to cover all the stylistic bases that the group’s collective members have contributed to its sound over the years.
Although former Steely Dan contributors Jeff “Skunk” Baxter with his sinuous guitar stylings, and Michael McDonald, the blue-eyed soul crooner, are no longer in the band, today’s Doobies have incorporated the jazz and Motown influences of that era seamlessly into their prior rock/ country/pop sensibilities. This progression offers a complete overview of the group’s musical heritage, giving fans a full reading of its trademark good-time groove while continuing to explore new artistic avenues.