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CBS News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBS News
The Doobie Brothers on songwriting
In a Nashville rehearsal studio, the Doobie Brothers are getting ready for another summer tour, playing "Long Train Runnin'." More than 50 years in, and 48 million albums sold, they still want to be sure they sound sharp, even on hits they've played thousands of times. It was 1973, when co-founder Tom Johnston wrote down words for a riff they'd been jamming to for years in bars and clubs. Down around the corner Half a mile from here See them long trains runnin' And you watch 'em disappear Without love Where would you be now? (Without lo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-ve) How long did it take for him to come up with the words? "I would like to say it was a labor of love, but it wasn't; it was about 20 minutes in the bathroom using the tile to sing with," Johnston said. The Doobie Brothers in rehearsal for their latest tour, which was launched this week. CBS News Which tells us something when it comes to the Doobie Brothers' songwriting: As much as their hits are a triumph of technique and theory (as Michael McDonald shared with "Sunday Morning" a few years back, detailing the writing of "Takin' It to the Streets"), sometimes, says Patrick Simmons (who wrote the band's first #1 hit, "Black Water"), it's a lot less complicated. "Accidents happened," Simmons laughed. "A lot of things kind of fall out of the sky and hit you on the head, you know?" The Doobie Brothers sing "Long Train Runnin'": But you can't argue with their methods. This week, Johnston, McDonald and Simmons will be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. John McFee has been a member of the Doobies for the last 38 years. Asked about Johnston, McDonald and Simmons' songwriting, McFee laughed, "There's a reason for the Songwriters Hall of Fame induction. I'm a writer, and I've had songs nominated for Grammys. I'm a member of the band. I'm not included in the Songwriters Hall of Fame induction. That's how good these guys are!" The Doobie Brothers: John McFee, Michael McDonald, Tom Johnston and Patrick Simmons. CBS News The Doobie members are joining such legendary songwriting teams as Lennon and McCartney, John and Taupin, and Holland-Dozier-Holland. "I think we all feel honored by it," said Johnston. "When we started doing this many years ago, nobody was thinking about anything like that." Does recognition like this matter? "To be in the company of those people," said McDonald, "is what matters. To think that you would ever, you know, be counted among them in any category is just too much to wish for." The Songwriters Hall of Fame is a long way from the house on 12th Street in San Jose, California, where Simmons and Johnston started the band. "When we started out doing this, we were just trying to pay rent and put gas in your Volkswagen and get around, you know?" said Johnston. At biker bars like the Chateau Liberté, they honed their hard-driving Southern rock sound … a style that softened when Johnston left the band in the late '70s, and McDonald joined, bringing with him a more mellow feel that propelled the band to their multi-platinum selling album "Minute By Minute" in 1978. "What a Fool Believes," from the Doobie Brothers' album "Minute By Minute": If the changes in personnel, sound and style created strains and rifts among some of the Doobies as younger men, a historic 50th anniversary tour in 2021, when these four united to play together for the first time, seemed to melt them away. Simmons said, "Michael came to do a few shows with us, and stuck around!" I asked, "Somebody told me … 'They're getting along as well as ever. They're enjoying being together as much as they ever have.'" "I think they said they were getting along in age or something!" Simmons laughed. McFee said, "We all appreciate it more as time goes by, how lucky we are and all the good things that are a part of the band, you know?" "And you suddenly realize, 'I just gotta keep doing this as long as I can keep doing this,'" McDonald added. Because it's still the most joyful thing you can do? "Absolutely," Johnston said. "And it's that hour or two hours that we get on stage where we actually feel like we're in our 20s again," McDonald said. "The rest of the day, we pretty much feel 75!" That feeling sparked a new studio album, "Walk This Road," and another Doobies milestone: Simmons, Johnston and McDonald all recording together in the studio for the first time ever. McDonald said, "Originally it was kind of like, 'Hey, you guys are doing this first album together in a long time. You've been together over the years, 50 years. And you've walked this road together, you know? Let's write a song about that.'" 'We've all made mistakes," Simmons laughed. "We all have things that we wish we'd made some different choices at times. And the choices we made, and you look back on that, and you go, 'Oh gosh, hopefully I learned something!'" Redemption, unity, cohesion – not just good themes, but Hall-of-Fame-worthy ones, relevant for the Doobie Brothers, and for all of us. McDonald said, "We all live on this one tiny, little blue ball. We're all walking down the same road. Just by virtue of that, you know? And we're gonna have to learn to get along with each other and listen to each other, you know?" Simmons, 76 years young remarked, "This could be the start of something really great!" Worth a chuckle perhaps – as the Doobie Brothers ponder more than 50 years together. Asked how long this will go on, McDonald replied, "That's anybody's guess." "We're a Seventies band in a whole different sense now!" laughed McFee. To hear the title track "Walk This Road" by the Doobie Brothers (featuring Mavis Staples), click on the video player below: For more info: Story produced by Gabriel Falcon. Editor: Joseph Frandino. See also:
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
50 years on, the Doobie Brothers are more harmony than testosterone
These days, the Doobie Brothers are much more relaxed and open when heading to the recording than in the band's heyday in the 1970s and early 1980s. "Anything goes, we don't really have any presuppositions entrenched," singer and keyboardist Michael McDonald tells dpa in London. "We might have done that more like in the old days when we all suffered from more testosterone than we do now," he says with grin. A milestone in the band's long history "Walk This Road" is the name of the new Doobie Brothers album, a work marking a milestone in their history. After more than 50 years of music making, it is namely the first record which has been jointly recorded as a band by Tom Johnston (76), Pat Simmons (76), John McFee (74) and Michael McDonald (73). There were the occasional guest appearances and tours, but never - until now - were the four Doobie veterans together in a studio as full-fledged band members. Amid the differing musical ideas of guitarist and singer Johnston and the later band member McDonald, the two men never worked together for any length of time. Johnston stood for classic rock'n'roll, blues and boogie and for such hits as "Long Train Runnin'." Later, McDonald helped the band achieve megahits such as "What A Fool Believes" with his style of soulful pop and R&B sounds. The many musical sides of the Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers now agree that their versatility is one of their strengths. This was in evidence during the recently concluded tour marking the band's 50th anniversary, during which Michael McDonald returned as a firm member. "We can present all eras of the band. That's pretty cool. Because it gives you a variety," a jubilant Johnston said. "There's really no downside to any of this." The same thing can be said about the new album, although the members mostly wrote the songs separately with successful producer John Shanks (Bon Jovi, Take That). "We're shooting for the songs that work best for the band and that we think the band can express and represent as the Doobie Brothers," said McDonald. The method worked perfectly for the new LP. Highlights include the rousing Southern rocker "Angels & Mercy" sung by Simmons and the soulful "Learn To Let Go" featuring McDonald's uniquely unmistakable voice which still sounds powerful and warm at the age of 73. A stroke of fate as source of inspiration McDonald had written some of the songs years before in an attempt to come to terms with a stroke of fate, the death of his friend and Doobies drummer Keith Knudsen in 2005. "It rattled the hell out of me," the singer recalled. "It was a big loss for me, the family, and the whole band." And so he began to write. The best example for the harmony that today defines the Doobie Brothers is, by the way, the good-natured title song with soul legend Mavis Staples - with Tom Johnston, Pat Simmons and Michael McDonald all singing along, together. The different styles harmonise as well with each other as do the band members. "Walk This Road" combines the qualities of such different album classics as "The Captain And Me" and "Minute By Minute" seemingly effortlessly. A wonderful late work by the Doobie Brothers.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
PSP: Lancaster County man admits to shaking baby ‘pretty hard' when angry
LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) — A baby was hospitalized at Penn State Hershey with a severe brain injury, and a man is facing charges, State Police say. The charges filed by State Police at Lancaster show, Michael McDonald, 30, of Willow Street, allegedly admitted to shaking the two-month-old baby when he would get frustrated. McDonald, when questioned, told Troopers that there were two different times he shook the baby. One instance was weeks prior, and the other was the day of the baby being taken to the hospital. The charges state McDonald allegedly admitted to giving the baby 'pretty hard' shakes four to five times during each incident. Harrisburg woman allegedly stole $23.5K from man in immigration scheme The investigation began May 25 after Troopers said they got a report that the baby fell off a bed, and was unconscious at a home in Providence Township. The baby was rushed to Lancaster General Health before being transferred to Hershey Medical Center. State Police said McDonald first claimed the baby's injuries were from falling off a bed. He told Troopers he soothed the baby, then put them in a baby swing, and later realized the infant was unresponsive. Doctors told Troopers the baby was suffering from 'a severe brain injury that will likely cause permanent, lasting impairment,' the charges state. Furthermore, doctors said injuries were indicative of abusive head trauma that did not match up to the story of the baby falling off a bed. The baby had 'retinal hemorrhaging and posterior rib fractures,' according to the charges. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now After Troopers were told that by the doctors, McDonald was questioned again and allegedly admitted to shaking the baby, Troopers said. McDonald faces felony charges of aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children. He was placed in Lancaster County Prison with bail set at $150,000 by Magisterial District Judge William Mankin II. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 10. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Cision Canada
05-05-2025
- Cision Canada
Bruce Trail Conservancy celebrates a new hiking experience in Caledon East with the opening of Meltwater Moraine
DUNDAS, ON, May 5, 2025 /CNW/ - The Bruce Trail Conservancy (BTC) is thrilled to celebrate the creation of Meltwater Moraine, a newly protected natural area that preserves 137 acres in the Town of Caledon and secures 640 metres of the Bruce Trail Optimum Route. This new addition to the Bruce Trail conservation corridor protects sensitive escarpment habitats and unique geological features within the provincially significant Mono Mills-Caledon Meltwater Channels Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI). Generously funded by BTC donors, the securement of Meltwater Moraine preserves the eastern boundary of the Paris Moraine, a rolling line of hills created at the leading edge of glacial ice as it pushed northwest out of the Lake Ontario Basin roughly 12,000 years ago. In addition to this special formation, Meltwater Moraine boasts four acres of forested land, three ponds, a small creek, and farmland which has been part of the community's agricultural heritage for over two centuries. The new Bruce Trail reroute spans a total of 4 kilometres and removes 3.3 kilometres of the Main Trail from the high-traffic areas of Airport Road and Escarpment Side Road. In addition to blazing this new section of Main Trail, Trail Development and Maintenance volunteers from the Caledon Hills Bruce Trail Club have extended the Songbird Side Trail, which leads to the Songbird Nature Reserve, secured by the BTC in 2012. "The creation of Meltwater Moraine is bringing the Bruce Trail off the road and into nature," said Michael McDonald, Chief Executive Officer of the Bruce Trail Conservancy. "With the Trail rerouted here, we are significantly improving the Bruce Trail experience in Caledon, making it safer and more connected to the unique geology, flora and fauna that motivate us to explore and protect these special places." The opening of the Bruce Trail at Meltwater Moraine was celebrated on Sunday, May 4, 2025, with over 70 volunteers, donors, special guests, and members of the greater Caledon Hills community in attendance. BTC staff ecologists led guests on a 3km hike, sharing information about the landscape and species at risk found on the property, such as Butternut and Bobolink. The event concluded with thanks to the supporters and volunteers who helped bring this land into the BTC's ribbon of wilderness. "The addition of Meltwater Moraine to our conservation corridor is a big win for nature, continuity of the Bruce Trail, and the growing community of Caledon," said Marsha Russell, Vice President of Fund Development. "This is just one more example of what is possible when we work together in service of the environment and the community." For over 60 years the Bruce Trail Conservancy has been the only charitable organization working to preserve sensitive Escarpment lands, while making them accessible for the people of Ontario by way of the Bruce Trail. Currently, only 71.9% of the Bruce Trail is on permanently protected land. The BTC forecasts that it will take approximately $109 million to completely secure the Bruce Trail. As this important work continues, the BTC is incredibly grateful to the landowners in the Caledon area and across the Niagara Escarpment who graciously allow the Trail to cross their property. Without handshake agreements with generous landowners, the continuity of the Bruce Trail would be in jeopardy. About the Bruce Trail Conservancy The Bruce Trail Conservancy is one of Ontario's largest land trusts that secures, protects and restores the vulnerable habitat and biodiversity of the UNESCO Niagara Escarpment World Biosphere. For more than 60 years we have responsibly connected people to nature through the Bruce Trail. We are a member-driven, volunteer-based, charitable organization governed by a 19-member Board of Directors. Working with each of the nine Bruce Trail Clubs, we are committed to caring for the Bruce Trail and to preserving land along its route. The Bruce Trail Conservancy is a leading Canadian environmental charity and has been named one of the Top 100 Charities in Canada by Charity Intelligence. Bruce Trail Conservancy staff members and ecologists are available for interviews upon request.
New York Times
10-04-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Canceled Humanities Grants to Help Pay for Trump's ‘Garden of Heroes'
The National Endowment for the Humanities intends to redirect some of its funding to build President Trump's proposed National Garden of American Heroes, as part of a reorientation toward the president's priorities of celebrating patriotic history, according to three people who attended a meeting on Wednesday where the plans were discussed. Last week, the agency, the main federal funder of the humanities, abruptly canceled more than 85 percent of its existing grants, which support museums, historical sites and scholarly and community projects across the country. The moves outraged supporters of the humanities, and stirred speculation about whether the agency would survive. At the meeting on Wednesday, the agency's acting chair, Michael McDonald, told its 24-member advisory council that the endowment would pivot to supporting the White House's agenda, according to the three attendees, who were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to describe a confidential meeting. In particular, they were told, the agency would support Mr. Trump's planned patriotic sculpture garden and the broader celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence on July 4, 2026. Mr. Trump first proposed the sculpture garden in July 2020, shortly after delivering a fiery political speech at Mount Rushmore in which he decried the vandalism of statues across the country during racial justice protests set off by the murder of George Floyd. 'Our nation is witnessing a merciless campaign to wipe out our history, defame our heroes, erase our values and indoctrinate our children,' Mr. Trump said. In an executive order, he directed the construction of a National Garden of American Heroes, to be built 'on a site of natural beauty that enables visitors to enjoy nature, walk among the statues, and be inspired to learn about great figures of America's history.' All would be depicted in a 'realistic' fashion, with no abstract or modernist sculpture allowed. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
