Audio CD review:
The Doobie Brothers - Long Train Runnin': 1970-2000

The Doobie Brothers - Long Train Runnin': 1970-2000

Band: The Doobie Brothers Title: Long Train Runnin': 1970-2000 Rating: Release Date: 1999-09-28 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Nobody - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 2: Slippery St. Paul - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 3: Listen to the Music - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 4: Rockin' Down the Highway - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 5: Toulouse Street - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 6: Cottonmouth - The Doobie Brothers, Seals, James 7: Jesus Is Just Alright - The Doobie Brothers, Reynolds, Arthur 8: White Sun - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 9: Natural Thing - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 10: Long Train Runnin' - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 11: China Grove - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 12: Dark Eyed Cajun Woman - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 13: Clear as the Driven Snow - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 14: South City Midnight Lady - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 15: You Just Can't Stop It - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 16: Spirit - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 17: Pursuit on 53rd St. - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 18: Black Water - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 19: Eyes of Silver - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 20: Down in the Track - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 21: Another Park, Another Sunday - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 22: Sweet Maxine - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 23: Neal's Fandango - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 24: Music Man - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 25: Slack Key Soquel Rag - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 26: Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me) - The Doobie Brothers, Dozier, Lamont 27: Texas Lullaby - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 28: I Cheat the Hangman - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 29: Wheels of Fortune - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 30: Losin' End - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal 31: Takin' It to the Streets - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Michael [ 32: It Keeps You Runnin' - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Michael [ 33: Echoes of Love - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 34: Nothin' But a Heartache - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal 35: Chinatown - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 36: There's a Light - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Michael [ 37: Little Darling (I Need You) - The Doobie Brothers, Holland, Brian 38: You Belong to Me - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Michael [ 39: Open Your Eyes - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal 40: Minute by Minute - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Michael [ 41: Dependin' on You - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 42: Don't Stop to Watch the Wheels - The Doobie Brothers, Baxter, Jeffrey 43: What a Fool Believes - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Michael [ 44: Here to Love You - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal 45: Dedicate This Heart - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal 46: Real Love - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Michael [ 47: No Stoppin' Us Now - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Michael [ 48: One Step Closer - The Doobie Brothers, Knudsen, Keith 49: Keep This Train A-Rollin' - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal 50: One by One - The Doobie Brothers, LaKind, Bobby 51: Wynken, Blynken and Nod - The Doobie Brothers, Field, Eugene 52: The Doctor - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 53: South of the Border - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 54: Time Is Here and Gone - The Doobie Brothers, LaKind, Bobby 55: Need a Little Taste of Love - The Doobie Brothers, Isley, Marvin 56: Dangerous - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 57: Excited - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 58: This Train I'm On - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 59: Rollin' On - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 60: Little Bitty Pretty One - The Doobie Brothers, Byrd, Robert 61: Daughters of the Sea - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 62: Armadillo Death Chant - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 63: Osborne (Long Train Runnin') - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 64: Four Days Gone - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 65: Spiel - The Doobie Brothers, Hartman, John 66: Lovin' My Way Back Home - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 67: Pat's Song - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 68: Blue Jay - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 69: Peace in the Valley - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 70: Mambo Waltz - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 71: Outside of Barstow - The Doobie Brothers, Johnston, Tom [2] 72: Argentine Grape (Sweet Maxine) - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 73: Shuffle (Double Dealin' Four Flusher) - The Doobie Brothers, Simmons, Patrick 74: Takin' It to the Streets - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal 75: We Would Sail Away (St. Paul) - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal 76: Jesus Is Just Alright - The Doobie Brothers, Reynolds, Arthur 77: Olana - The Doobie Brothers, McDonald, Micheal

A great overview of a great band Concerts were less a hodge-podge of available acts 'cause promoters had become savy to the ever growing fanbase(s) with similar "vibes". While living in the Bay area during the turn of the decades (69-71) there was a fashionable shift in the music scene brought about partly by the so-called "end of the hippie era" and growing social consciousness that (rightly) put those "dazed and confused" years behind. Example: you'd be hard pressed to find a concert billing that paired, say, 'The Moody Blues' with 'Steppenwolf', or 'Black Sabbath' with 'Donovan'. Out of this music schism people flocked to their favorites and fiercly tribalized behind the sounds that best exemplified their inner state. It was this enviorment that gave birth to the Doobie Brothers, who over several years capitalized on the "good vibe" manifesto challenged by the scenes more politically conscious and/or progressive contemporaries. Having seen them gigging around the Bay in those early 70's I was well aware of that part of their popularity. I fell away from their music as the 80's approached but heard snippets over the airwaves time and again. I was a little concerned as I considered this box if the later stuff would interest me (ie disc 3). Though the Doobies "sound" had morphed somewhat (line-up changes included) I can still see their appeal. There is a consistancy throughout which still harkens back to what I liked way back then. None of their appeal has diminished with me, I STILL find the music uplifting, propulsive, and a darn fine listen. This is a box set worthy of its subject. Four cds stuffed with music covering a solid representation of the 'DB' sound. A nice fat booklet full of info, all housed in a hefty long box. I won't quibble about the inclusion/exclusion factor, each to his own. The music is all Doobies and the "vibe" is what made/makes them so popular, still. All in all a great box set!. Who is this for? The 4th disc, with the rarities, is definitely for the hardcore fan. The first 3 discs are sort of a "best-of" collection, with a little too much stuff (and not necessarily the best-chosen songs) for the casual fan. I own pretty much everything else by the Doobies, so I would have liked to have been able to just get the rarities. I guess that kind of thing wouldn't be expected to sell well enough on its own, though. (BTW, disc 3 also features a couple of "rarities" as well: "Wynken, Blynken & Nod," which was the only decent track on a various-artists kids' songs LP, and the awesomely fun, brand-new cover of "Little Bitty Pretty One. ") Since my interest lies in the rarities, I haven't concerned myself with the other tracks (except for the fact that this set frustratingly misses the opportunity to restore "Neal's Fandango" to the full length version that was on the original STAMPEDE LP but not the CD). The rarities are often fascinating, and worthwhile beyond their historical interest. Between Disc 4 here and the various unauthorized editions of a set of early demos that exist (EXCITEMENT, ON OUR WAY UP, etc. ), it's clear that the Doobies' debut album did not include the best material they had available. Songs like "Four Days Gone" and "Bluejay" are not just good by reject standards -- they're good, period. Another interesting rarity is the studio version of "Olana. " I would have thought the band was breaking up before this would have been recorded. It falls short of the FAREWELL TOUR version (where's that keyboard riff that drives the chorus?), but it almost makes it possible to imagine the Doobies continuing post-Pat Simmons. (Note that I say "almost. ") My only issue with what is and isn't included on the rarities disc is that the so-called "unissued live version" of "Jesus Is Just Alright" is actually the version from the FAREWELL TOUR album. . Nice box set for the critical underdogs of rock This collection gathers up a healthy sampling of their singles, best album tracks and rarities in a four disc set. Although they never garnered the critical praise of The Band, Mott the Hopple, CCR there were few bands that could hold a candle to the hit making strength of The Doobie Brothers. While I would have paired back the selections from the band's weakest albums (including the awful "One Step Closer") (hence 4 stars), this collection doesn't skimp on the band's worthwhile output from their peak years. Sound quality is exceptional with a crisp detailed sound not heard before. Since fans will probably be familair with the bulk of the tracks here I'm only going to focus on the fourth disc with the bonus tracks. We get a number of good demos including Pat Simmons' "Daughters of the Sea","Four Days Gone", "Pat's Song"; Tom Johnston's "Osborne" (an early version of "Long Train Runnin'), "Lovin' My Way Back Home", "Peace in the Valley" all of which are strong tunes. "Bluejay" is also quite good and with "Peace in the Valley" one of the highlights here. It's a pity these songs never showed up on an album before now. "Armadillo Death Chang" is interesting as well--Johnston appears to have had a problem with song titles much like George Harrison in many cases as the title has absolutely nothing to do with this rockin' tune. "Outside of Barstow" is a demo with just Johnston and his guitar and, again, is a terrific little song that should have been revisited. "Spiel" is a John Hartman composition (the only solo composing credit the drummer received)that's really more of a joke track. I haven't listened to "Olana" in a while but this studio version of the Michael McDonald track is better than the live version from the 1983 final tour recording. The rest of the material was released in one form or another and these are either demos or alternate versions of the final tracks. We also get demos for "Sweet Maxine", "Shuffle" two demos from Michael McDonald "Takin' It To The Streets", "We Would Sail Away" both of which are strong demos. A Live version of "Jesus is Just Alright" from the live album sessions in 1982. The booklet has lots of rare photos, interviews and features the band discussing the changes over the years. If you purchased the most recent greatest hits release (2001)the text and photos from the booklet are the same. I was disappointed that there wasn't a DVD (much like the recent Pretenders set) as these guys in their prime were a powerhouse on stage. The four stars reflects the fact that the there could have been more previously unreleased material. I was hoping that the four tracks that Tom Johnston completed for "Livin' On The Fault Line" but withdrawn from the album would have been included but no such luck. . Great for work... There isnt a ton of gold to mine (even Michael Macdonalds 'You belong to me' is already on their expanded 20 track Greatest Hits. I found this at a wherehouse club for $38. ) I am a big fan of box sets and always ready to listen and learn. Its a good overview including the Michael Mcdonald songs from the 1976 Takin' It To The Streets album and a healthy sampling from Minute By Minute and One Step Closer. . Missing track But overall a great selection of all their classics and more. Just a quick complaint about a great box set of Doobie magic,one of my fave tracks "Without You" ain't on it, was so disappointed!. You can see a complete list of all The Doobie Brothers discography, or go back to the The Doobie Brothers tabs