It’s a sold-out house at New Brunswick’s State Theatre New Jersey this Saturday, July 8, 2023 evening as fans ready themselves for a 50th Anniversary Tour concert by The Doobie Brothers. With nearly 50 million records sold, the band’s 14 studio albums, 16 Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 hits, and four Grammy awards helped to catapult The Doobie Brothers into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020.
The crowd shouts “Doobies!” as guitarists Patrick Simmons and John McFee, keyboardist Michael McDonald, bassist John Cowan, saxophonist Marc Russo, drummer Ed Toth, and percussionist Marc Quiñones take their places on stage.
Opening with “Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me A Little While),” John Cowan, Patrick Simmons, and Michael McDonald alternate singing lead on this Holland/Dozier/Holland classic. Marc Russo’s saxophone wails and Patrick Simmons sings prior to shredding a guitar solo to the song’s infectious rhythm.
The crowd erupts into cheers as band members swap instruments and immediately launch into “Here to Love You,” a funky cut from the group’s 1978 Grammy-winning album, Minute by Minute. Drums, congas, and four-part background harmonies compliment Michael McDonald’s passionate vocal and Marc Russo plays up and down the scale on a soulful tenor sax solo under flashing lights.
“Dependin’ On You,” another track from Minute by Minute, spotlights Patrick Simmons’ homespun vocal, and the audience joins him in singing along on the song’s upbeat “Darlin’, you’re always there at my rescue” refrain. Four-part harmonies abound and Simmons’ guitar solo has fans roaring before Simmons, McFee, and Russo perform downstage together.
Bassist John Cowan handles the lead on the lively 1972 Doobie hit, “Rockin’ Down the Highway,” as music lovers clap along to the happy beat. Then, John McFee switches over from electric to pedal steel guitar for the appealing country-rocker, “Neal’s Fandango.”
Simmons greets the audience exclaiming, “This is a beautiful theater!” Contrasting the historic venue with large amphitheaters the group often plays, Simmons notes, “It’s so cool that we can see you guys! Thank you for being here!” before adding, “Now, I’m gonna hand it over to Michael McDonald.”
McDonald’s smoky voice serenades the audience on “You Belong to Me,” a tune he composed in 1977 with singer/songwriter Carly Simon.
McDonald switches over from keyboard to mandolin and Simmons and McFee play acoustic guitars on the folksy instrumental piece, “Slack Key Soquel Rag,” which ends in heavenly harmonics from the string trio.
McFee plays steel pedal, McDonald plays mandolin and keyboard, and Simmons plays acoustic guitar and sings lead on “South City Midnight Lady.” Marc Russo scores with an alto sax solo on this country-rocker and Simmons picks out an acoustic guitar solo which inspires a fan in the crowd to call out, “Play it, Pat!”
The crowd hoots and hollers, and Simmons says, “Welcome to our 50th Anniversary Tour,” joking, “We’ve been doing it for two years now — we’ve been milking it! ” Recalling, “We started out as a basement band — we never even made it to the garage,” Simmons adds, “Thank you for the great gift you’ve given us by voting us into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame!”
The crowd stands and cheers, and Simmons introduces his stagemates pointing out long-time Doobie John McFee along with returning member Michael McDonald. The crowd roars, and McDonald explains that although Doobies founder Tom Johnston is not with the tour right now, he expresses his hope that Johnston will be soon be back with the group. McDonald also introduces founding member Simmons who announces, “Now, we’re going to play a psychedelic relic.” Launching into “Clear as the Driven Snow,” Simmons accompanies himself on acoustic guitar on this folk-rocking number which shifts meter in the middle of the arrangement.
Cheers emanate as McDonald plays the keyboard intro to the group’s 1977 Top 40 hit, “It Keeps You Runnin’.” Music lovers bop their heads and tap along to the song’s R&B rhythm as McDonald and Co. sing, “It keeps you runnin’, yeah, it keeps you runnin’,” in tight four-part harmony.
Simmons warns, “We’re gonna get a little funky here!” and fingerpicks his electric guitar as he sings the R&B rocker, “Eyes of Silver.” McDonald plays the organ before switching over to clavinet and Marc Russo twirls his horn and dances in a circle following a dazzling off-the-horn bebop-inspired solo.
Simmons announces, “Michael McDonald is going to do a song from the ‘60s for you.” Here, McDonald is featured on a number from his 2003 solo album, Motown — “I Heard it Through the Grapevine.” On this funky rendition, McDonald’s soulful lead is supported with three-part vocal harmonies and by Marc Russo who, at times, makes his saxophone sound like a French horn.
Simmons reveals, “This is a new song from our latest album, Liberté.” Launching into “Better Days,” Simmons passionately sings, “These are the better days,” as he’s accompanied by driving drums and percussion on this modern Doobies’ rocker.
The audience hoots and hollers for the slow and funky 1980 Doobies’ hit, “Real Love” where McDonald sings around the melody. Then, on 1979’s Grammy-winning “Minute by Minute,” McDonald soulfully croons, “Minute by minute by minute by minute/I keep holding on” and McFee plays an electric guitar solo where he tastefully bends his notes to the crowd’s delight.
The sound of Simmons’ distorted guitar introduces “Without You.” Singing, “I get a feelin’, lost without you baby,” Simmons’ vocal rocks as McDonald plays organ and McFee aces a guitar solo on this up tempo rocker.
Music lovers stand, dance, and sing along to the group’s 1972 effort, “Jesus is Just Alright.” Lights swirl and flash over the crowd as Simmons cries out his vocal and then walks across the stage as he solos making his electric guitar sing.
Following a standing ovation, drums kick in and McDonald plays the piano introduction to “What a Fool Believes,” the group’s 1980 Grammy-winning Song of the Year and Record of the Year. McDonald soulfully improvises on the “He came from somewhere back in her long ago” verse before he’s accompanied by four-part harmony on the “What a fool believes he sees” chorus.
The crowd roars when they recognize the guitar intro to the band’s 1973 Top 10 hit, “Long Train Runnin’.” Backed by the sturdy percussion section, the audience sings along with Simmons on the song’s “Without love/Where would you be now” refrain. McFee plays a harmonica solo and Russo plays an arpeggiated sax solo before concertgoers stand, dance, and clap on an extended ending where Simmons shines on a guitar solo, Ed Toth and Marc Quiñones are featured on a percussion duet, and Simmons and bassist John Cowan duet on their instruments together.
Music lovers continue to stand and move to the music as the band segues into the 1973 hit, “China Grove.” Cowan and Simmons share the lead vocal before the audience sings along on the “Well, you’re talkin’ ‘bout China Grove/Oh, China Grove” chorus of this upbeat rocker.
At the conclusion, concertgoers cheer on their feet as Simmons says, “Thank you so much, New Jersey!” and the band takes leave of the stage.
The crowd continues to hoot and holler and the group retakes the stage to play “Black Water.” Due to an acoustic guitar malfunction, however, Simmons suggests, “We’ll skip ahead and come back to this one.” Here, McDonald and Russo launch into a bluesy keyboard/sax duet where they dazzle the crowd with their impressions of Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind,” Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” and Paul Simon’s “Still Crazy After All These Years,” before playing a boogie-woogie segment which morphs into the introduction to The Doobie Brothers’ 1976 hit, “Takin’ It to the Streets.”
On this number, McDonald and the band have concertgoers on their feet dancing as the arrangement builds in tempo and intensity. With his spot-on vocal and flying fingers, McDonald impresses with his talent while Russo stands at the edge of the stage playing directly to fans who sing along on the song’s catchy “Takin’ it to the streets” refrain.
The party continues as Cowan handles the lead on the group’s 1972 smash, “Listen to the Music.”
Simmons invites the crowd to “Sing it with us!” and the packed house sounds like a choir as they all sing together on the famous “Woah oh, listen to the music” refrain which leaves Simmons grinning from ear to ear.
Grabbing his acoustic guitar, Simmons exclaims, “I think we got it working!” Fans call out, “We love you!” as Simmons starts to perform the group’s 1975 #1 single, “Black Water. “The audience stands while singing along on the song’s “Old black water, keep on rollin’/Mississippi moon won’t you keep on shining on me” chorus before Simmons switches the lyric to “New Jersey moon, won’t you keep on shining on me” to avid audience applause. McFee and Simmons trade off playing fiddle and guitar and McDonald joins in on mandolin as the audience sings along on the “I’d like to hear some funky Dixieland/Pretty mama, come and take me by the hand” coda. The entire band clearly enjoys seeing and hearing the audience performing for them in this beautiful and historic performance space.
Simmons exclaims, “Thank you all for being such a great audience!” before The Doobies finish up the night with a cover version of Steely Dan’s “Pretzel Logic.”
As audience members make their way out of the State Theatre auditorium, music lovers comment on tonight’s performance. Declares Susan from Point Pleasant, “The Doobie Brothers didn’t disappoint tonight — they sounded great! It’s hard to believe they’ve been around for fifty years — they still have that passion and energy that have always characterized their music.”
Rick from Matawan agrees, noting, “They’ve still got it, and I especially loved seeing Michael McDonald back with the band. Hearing that authentic Doobie sound again brought me back to the days of my youth.”
William from Rockville Centre, NY declares, “This was one amazing show!” and Ellen from East Brunswick concurs, recalling, “I first saw them in Princeton back in 1976 and they were just as good — if not better — tonight!” Whereas Bill from Wall suggests, “It was a really great show, but Tom Johnston was missed — I hope he’ll recover soon,” Sharon from West Orange declares, “It was a fun evening filled with the best music anyone could ever ask for!”
Jane from Matawan recalls, “I’ve seen The Doobies several times and they’re always great, but it was especially satisfying seeing them here at the State Theatre. It’s so intimate here — I really felt like the band and the audience shared a real sense of community which made the entire evening that much more enjoyable.” Lastly, Carmen from Brooklyn summarizes his experience enjoying The Doobie Brothers 50th Anniversary Concert at STNJ in a single word: “EPIC!”
To learn more about The Doobie Brothers, please go to thedoobiebrothers.com. For info on future great performances at State Theatre New Jersey — including The Beach Boys on July 29; Lyle Lovett and his Large Band on August 4; and the Rock ‘N Roll Doo Wop Spectacular starring Chubby Checker, The Duprees, and more on October 14 — please go to stnj.org.
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