Genre: rock
Rating: 4 stars ****
Title: The Doobie Brothers
Company: Warner Brothers
Catalog: BS
1919
Year: 1972
Country/State: San Jose, California
Grade (cover/record): VG+ / VG+
Comments: --
Available: 1
GEMM catalog ID: 5735
Price: $15.00
Growing up in the mid-1970s, of course I'm a big Doobie Brothers fan. That said, I always thought 1971's "The Doobie Brothers" represented their first recordings. It wasn't until some 28 years after their original release, that I even became aware of the fact some of the band's pre-Doobie Brothers demos had been releases. It then took me a couple of years to stumble across a copy of the LP.
So here's the background on this one ... In 1969 drummer John Hartman relocated to Los Angeles for was was originally intended as a job with a reunited Moby Grape. The Moby Grape job didn't pan out, but Grape guitarist Skip Spence subsequently introduced Hartman to singer/guitarist Tom Johnston. The two found common ground and decided to form a band recruiting bassist Greg Murphy and Spence. As Pud, they went though a number of line-ups, but by 1970 had stabalized as a quartet showcasing
bassist Dave Shogrun and singer/guitarist Patrick Simmons. The group's club and bar gigs began attracting a local following throughout Northern California (including a sizable Hells Angels contingent). They also decided on a name change, eventually deciding on 'The Doobie Brothers' which was an apparent nod to one of their preferred sources of entertainment.
band signing with Warner Brothers
left to right: Simmons - Hartman - Johnston - Shogren
Co-produced by Lenny Warnoker and Ted Templeman, 1971's "The Doobie Brothers" served as the band's debut, though they'd previously recorded considerable material that Warner Brothers management inexplicably elected to shelve (much of it appeared on the 1980 "Introducing the Doobie Brothers" set). With Johnston and Simmons responsible for all of the material, the collection may come as somewhat of a surprise to anyone raised on the band's mid-1970s top-40 hits. Powered by Johnston's instantly recognizable slurred voice, tracks like 'Nobody', 'Feelin' Down Farther' and the rocker 'Beehive State' weren't all that different from the forthcoming hits. Melodies that climbed into your head and wouldn't let go; surprisingly sweet harmony vocals, and a pounding rhythm section in the form of Hartman and Shogren were all in ample supply. On the other hand, tracks like 'Slippery St. Paul', 'It Won't Be Right' and '' featured a largely acoustic sound (with an emphasis on Simmons wonderful finger picking) that would large disappear with the following albums. The relatively simple arrangements and production caught me off guard the first couple of times I heard the LP, but I'll readily admit that it's something that's grown on me over the years. Here The Doobies were a band enjoying the chance they'd been given willing to take a chance with material that wasn't overly radio friendly, rather than a band anxious to hold on to their commercial breakthroughs. Plenty of highlights including Greenwood Creek', and the pretty ballads 'Travelin' Man' (bet they didn't play that one in front of a Hells Angels crowd), and 'Closer Every Day'. Warner Brothers tapped the album for a series of three singles, though none did much commercially:
- 1971's 'Nobody' b/w 'Slippery St. Paul' (Warner Brothers catalog number 7495)
- 1971's 'Travelin' Man' b/w 'Feelin; Down Farther' (Warner Brothers catalog number 7527)
- 1971's 'Beehive State' b/w 'Closer Every Day' (Warner Brothers catalog number 7544)
In spite of the fact it's been released a couple of times, this one remains largely unknown, including amongst many Doobie fans. Not exactly rare, but not one you run into everyday.
"The Doobie Brothers" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Nobody (Tom Johnston ) - 3:42
2.) Slippery St. Paul (Pat Simmons) - 2:14
3.) Greenwood Creek (Tom Johnston ) - 3:04
4.) It Won't Be Right (Tom Johnston ) - 2:38
5.) Travelin' Man (Tom Johnston ) - 4:25
(side
2)
1.) Feelin' Down Farther (Tom Johnston ) - 4:20
2.) The Master (Tom Johnston ) - 3:30
3.) Growin' a Little Each Day (Tom Johnston - Pat Simmons) - 3:20
4.) Beehive State (Randy Newman) - 2:42
5.) Closer Every Day (Pat Simmons) - 4:19
6.) Chicago (adapted by Pat Simmons) - 1:40
