Doobie Brothers have staying power
” and “Black Water.” Along the way, as they competed with revolving-door bands like Chicago for the most personnel changes, singers like Michael McDonald came and went, turning the band toward radio-friendly, blue-eyed soul and pop-funk with hits like “Takin’ it to the Streets” and “What a Fool Believes.”
But Simmons — who penned the band’s first No. 1 hit, “Black Water,” in 1975 — never took a break, cementing his spot in Doobies lore as the only founding member to stay in the band from the beginning to the present. During that stretch, they sold more than 50 million albums.
Before the Doobies roll through Guerneville next weekend for the Russian River Jazz and Blues Festival, Simmons took time out to chat about the Deep South, Ernest Hemingway and one of the late Norton Buffalo’s last harmonica recordings:
Q: What was on your mind when you started recording “World Gone Crazy”?
A: Well, it had been over 10 years since we’d been in the studio, and everybody was thinking it would be nice to have a producer this time. Last time we did a record, we decided we’d produce it ourselves. It was OK, but it’s so difficult to do that. You have so many cooks because the whole band becomes the producer.
Q: And that can be a mess, right?
A: Even though it’s the writer’s song, it still becomes a band project and everbody wants to be involved. We have some guys who are really, their expertise lies in technical abilities and other guys who are players. You have all these different viewpoints coming into play and it can be confusing as far as direction.
Q: And that’s where Ted Templeman (who produced all the Doobies albums in the ’70s) came in?
A: Exactly. He’s a good song guy. He was able to look at our songs and help us make decisions on which might be the ones to work on and also how to approach them.
Q: How did New Orleans and Katrina inspire the title track?
A: Well, it was Tom’s song and he wrote it from the standpoint of a guy who’s struggling in an urban environment. It could be anywhere, but I think in his mind it was New Orleans. It’s written about a struggle, a guy trying to make ends meet and how his world around him keeps challenging him all the time.
Q: Has that region always had a big influence on you?
A: That area — the Gulf — has always been a huge influence on all of us. I always say we’re a blues-based rock band. I’m a little more of a traditional guy — a folk blues player. All the original guys I grew up listening to were artists from the Deep South — Gary Davis, Mississippi John Hurt, Lightning Hopkins. And when we finally started touring and made it down there, I recognized that’s where my heart was at.
Q: You’ve got Michael McDonald and Willie Nelson on the new album, but I’m also looking forward to hearing what I’m guessing is one of Norton Buffalo’s last recorded sessions.
A: It may have been. I called him up — it was before he knew he was sick — while we were working on the song “Don’t Say Goodbye,” which was loosely based on an Ernest Hemingway story. We gave him a huge canvas to paint on that tune. He exchanges licks with John McFee, but then we just let him go ’til the track ran out. It was some of the best playing I ever heard him do. It was really cool.
Q: When you look back on your Doobies career, why do you think you were the only one who never left?
A: (laughter) How can they miss me when I won’t go away? Well, you know I guess it was one of those fate kind of things. It was just fated to be that way. I’ve always known that we had a great band. When I met Tommy — the first time I ever heard him play, I thought there’s a guy that has some talent. Then when we started playing and recording, I knew we really had something. That was certainly a reason to stay put.
Bay Area freelancer John Beck writes about entertainment for The Press Democrat. You can reach him at 280-8014, john@ sideshowvideo.com and follow on Twitter @becksay.
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