Editing The Doobie Brothers (section)

===Michael McDonald years===
Under contract to release another album in 1976, the Doobies were at a crossroads. Their primary songwriter and singer remained unavailable, so they turned to McDonald and Porter for material to supplement that of Simmons. The resulting LP, ''[[Takin' It to the Streets (The Doobie Brothers album)|Takin' It to the Streets]]'', debuted a radical change in their sound. Their electric guitar-based rock and roll gave way to a more [[soft rock]] and [[blue-eyed soul]] sound, emphasizing keyboards and horns and subtler, more [[Syncopation|syncopated]] rhythms. Baxter contributed [[jazz]]-inflected guitar stylings reminiscent of Steely Dan, along with unusual, complex harmony and longer, more developed melody. Above all, McDonald's voice became the band's new signature sound. ''Takin' It to the Streets'' featured McDonald's [[Takin' It to the Streets (song)|title track]] and "[[It Keeps You Runnin']]", both hits. (A second version of "It Keeps You Runnin'", performed by [[Carly Simon]], appeared on her album ''[[Another Passenger]]'', with the Doobies backing her.) Bassist Porter wrote and sang "For Someone Special" as a tribute to the absent Johnston. A greatest hits compilation, ''[[Best of the Doobies]]'', followed before year's end. (In 1996, the [[Recording Industry Association of America]] certified ''Best of the Doobies'' "Diamond" for sales in excess of 10 million units.)

Their new sound was further refined, and McDonald's dominant role cemented with 1977's ''[[Livin' on the Fault Line]]''. It featured a cover of the Motown classic "[[Little Darling (I Need You)]]" and "[[Echoes of Love (The Doobie Brothers song)|Echoes of Love]]", which had been written by Willie Mitchell for, but not recorded by, [[Al Green]]. Mitchell (then of the Memphis Horns) and Earl Randle had both worked with Green a good bit. Simmons added some music and lyrics, co-writing the finished version with Mitchell and Randle; the song was later covered not just by [[the Pointer Sisters]] but by [[Lyn Paul]], the ex-[[New Seekers]] vocalist. The album also featured the song "[[You Belong to Me (Carly Simon song)|You Belong to Me]]" (co-written by McDonald and Carly Simon, who had a hit with her own version of the tune). To help promote ''Fault Line'', the band performed live on the [[PBS]] show [[Soundstage (TV program)|''Soundstage'']]. Baxter used an early type of [[guitar synthesizer]] (made by [[Roland Corporation|Roland]]) on many of the tracks (especially the title track and "China Grove").

[[File:Doobie Brothers 1976.JPG|thumb|upright=1.3|The Doobie Brothers in 1976: Back row L-R: Baxter, Knudsen, Johnston, Hartman, Simmons.  Front row L-R: Porter, McDonald]]

Both ''Streets'' and ''Fault Line'' reflected Johnston's diminished role in the group following his illness. Restored to fitness and briefly back in the fold, he contributed one original song to ''Streets'' ("Turn It Loose"), and also sang a verse on Simmons' tune "Wheels of Fortune". He also made live appearances with the band in 1976 (documented in a concert filmed that year at the [[Winterland Ballroom|Winterland]] in San Francisco, excerpts of which appear occasionally on [[VH1 Classic]]) but was sidelined once again that fall due to exhaustion. None of Johnston's songs appeared on ''Fault Line'', though he had written and the band had recorded five of his compositions for the album. Regardless, he received credit for guitars and vocals and was pictured on the album's inner sleeve band photo. He soon left the band he co-founded, embarking on a solo career that eventually yielded one modestly successful 1979 Warner Brothers album, ''Everything You've Heard is True'', which featured the single "Savannah Nights", and the less successful album ''Still Feels Good'' in 1981.

During this period of transition, the band also elevated former roadie [[Bobby LaKind]] to onstage backup vocalist and percussionist. In the studio, LaKind first contributed percussion to ''Streets'' but had been a member of the band's lighting crew since 1974. Additionally, in January 1978, the band appeared as themselves in two episodes of the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] sitcom ''[[What's Happening!!]]'',<ref name= "whatshapp">{{cite episode|title=Doobie or Not Doobie (Parts 1)|series=What's Happening!!| series-link= What's Happening!!|credits=Sally Wade (writer); Mark Warren (director)|network=[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]|airdate=January 28, 1978|season=2|number=16}}<br />{{cite episode|title=Doobie or Not Doobie (Parts 2)|series=What's Happening!!| series-link= What's Happening!!|credits=Sally Wade (writer); Mark Warren (director)|network=[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]|airdate=February 4, 1978|season=2|number=17}}</ref> performing "Little Darlin' (I Need You)", "[[Black Water (song)|Black Water]]", "[[Takin' It to the Streets (song)|Takin' It to the Streets]]", and "[[Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)|Take Me in Your Arms]]". Performances were done live (versus [[lip synching]] to a pre-recorded track), with some [[overdubs]] added in [[post production]], notably during Baxter's solo on "Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me a Little While)," which was lifted from the album version.

After almost a decade on the road, and with seven albums to their credit, the Doobies' profile was substantially elevated by the success of their next album, 1978's ''[[Minute by Minute]]''. It spent five weeks atop the charts and dominated several radio formats for the better part of two years. McDonald's song "[[What a Fool Believes]]", written with [[Kenny Loggins]], was the band's second No. 1 single and earned the songwriting duo (along with producer Ted Templeman) a [[Grammy Award]] for [[Grammy Award for Record of the Year|Record of the Year]].<ref name=grammy80>{{cite web|title=Grammy Awards 1980| url= http://www.awardsandshows.com/features/grammy-awards-1980-228.html| website= AwardsandShows.com | access-date=February 16, 2012}}</ref> The album won a Grammy for [[Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals|Pop Vocal Performance by a Group]] and was nominated for [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year|Album of the Year]].<ref name=grammy80/><ref>{{cite web|title=Minute by Minute GRAMMY Awards |url= http://www.allmusic.com/album/minute-by-minute-r6197/charts-awards/grammy|publisher=[[AllMusic]] |access-date= February 16, 2012}}</ref> Both "What a Fool Believes" and [[Minute by Minute (The Doobie Brothers song)|the title track]] were nominated for [[Grammy Award for Song of the Year|Song of the Year]], with "What a Fool Believes" winning the award. Among the other memorable songs on the album are "Here to Love You", "Dependin' On You" (co-written by McDonald and Simmons), "Steamer Lane Breakdown" (a Simmons bluegrass instrumental) and McDonald's "How Do the Fools Survive?" (co-written by [[Carole Bayer Sager]]). [[Nicolette Larson]] and departed former bandleader Johnston contributed guest vocals on the album.

''Minute by Minute''{{'}}s triumph was bittersweet because it coincided with the near dissolution of the band. The pressure of touring while recording and releasing an album each year had worn the members down. Baxter and McDonald had been in creative conflict for some time. McDonald desired a direct, soulful and polished rock/R&B sound, while Baxter insisted on embellishing guitar parts in an increasingly [[avant-garde]] style. (Both McDonald and Baxter elaborated on the matter in the documentary series ''[[Behind the Music]]'', which aired on [[VH1]] in February 2001.) Just as ''Minute by Minute''{{'}}s success became apparent, Hartman, Baxter, and LaKind left the band. A two-song set on the January 27, 1979, broadcast of ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' (with guest host [[Michael Palin]]) marked the final television appearance of this lineup, and a brief tour of Japan marked the band's last live performances in this configuration (Hartman subsequently joined Johnston's touring band in 1979 and taped an appearance with him that aired on ''Soundstage'' in 1980).

Looking to capitalize on the momentum provided by the success of "Minute by Minute", the remaining Doobies (Simmons, Knudsen, McDonald and Porter) decided to embark on a national tour with a reconstituted lineup. In 1979 Hartman was replaced by session drummer [[Chet McCracken]] and Baxter by multi-instrumental string player [[John McFee]] (late of [[Huey Lewis]]'s early band [[Clover (band)|Clover]]); [[Cornelius Bumpus]] (who had been part of a recent reunion of [[Moby Grape]]) was also recruited to add vocals, keyboards, saxophones, and flute to the lineup. This lineup toured throughout 1979, including stops at [[Madison Square Garden]] and New York City's [[Battery Park]] for the [[No Nukes]] benefit shows with like-minded artists such as [[Bonnie Raitt]], [[Crosby, Stills & Nash]], [[James Taylor]], [[Carly Simon]], [[Jackson Browne]], [[Bruce Springsteen]] and [[John Hall (musician)|John Hall]].

1980 marked LaKind's return to the lineup as a full-time member and the Doobies' ninth studio album, ''[[One Step Closer (The Doobie Brothers album)|One Step Closer]]''. The LP featured the hit title track and the Top 10 hit "Real Love" (not to be confused with the [[John Lennon]] composition) but did not dominate the charts and the radio as ''Minute by Minute'' had, largely due to an oversaturation of the "McDonald sound" by many other artists (such as [[Robbie Dupree]]'s hit "[[Steal Away (Robbie Dupree song)|Steal Away]]", which copied the "McDonald sound" nearly note for note) on the radio at the time—not to mention McDonald's numerous guest vocal appearances on hits by other artists, such as [[Kenny Loggins]], [[Christopher Cross]], [[Lauren Wood]] and [[Nicolette Larson]]. The album itself was also noticeably weaker musically than the previous three with the band sounding tired and seemingly devolving to little more than McDonald's "backup band" (according to contemporary sources). "Ted and Michael became one faction against Pat and the rest of us", Porter said in an interview.<ref>{{cite web|title=Hide Doobie Brother Guitarist Recalls Santa Cruz Days|url=http://www.santacruz.com/ae/articles/2012/05/22/doobie_brother_guitarist_recalls_santa_cruz_days|publisher=[[Santa Cruz Weekly]]|access-date=May 23, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140101222215/http://www.santacruz.com/ae/articles/2012/05/22/doobie_brother_guitarist_recalls_santa_cruz_days|archive-date=January 1, 2014}}</ref> Long frustrated with the realities of relentless touring and yearning for a stable home life, as well as battling an admitted cocaine problem, Porter left the band after the recording of ''Closer''. Session bassist [[Willie Weeks]] joined the band and the Doobies continued touring throughout 1980 and 1981 (post-Doobies, Weeks has performed with the [[Gregg Allman]] Band, [[Eric Clapton]], and many others).{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}
[[File:Doobie-Brothers.gif|thumb|left|Backstage at the Greek Theater in Berkeley, California in 1982.  This would be the farewell concert for the band's original run, and featured a one-off return of founding vocalist Tom Johnston (far right).]]
Also, during the 1981 tour, veteran session drummer [[Andy Newmark]] stepped in briefly for Knudsen, who was then in rehab. And by the end of 1981, even Simmons had left the band. Now with no remaining original members and a "leader" in McDonald who was ready for a solo career, the group elected instead to disband after a rehearsal without Simmons, according to an interview with McDonald for ''Listen to the Music'', the Doobie Brothers' official video history/documentary released in 1989. He went on to say that by that point they could not have gotten further away from the Doobies sound if they had tried. Simmons, already at work on his first solo album, ''Arcade'', rejoined for a 1982 farewell tour on the condition that this truly would be the end of the Doobie Brothers. At their last concert at the [[Greek Theatre (Berkeley)|Greek Theatre]] in [[Berkeley, California]], on September 11, 1982, they were joined onstage by founding member Tom Johnston for what was presumed to be the final rendition of his staple, "China Grove". Former members Porter, Hossack and Hartman subsequently took the stage for an extended version of "Listen to the Music". Knudsen sang lead vocals while Johnston, Simmons and McFee traded licks on guitar. The live album ''[[Farewell Tour (album)|Farewell Tour]]'' was released in 1983 and the Greek Theatre concert was released in 2011 as ''Live at the Greek Theatre 1982''.