Review and images by: Craig Hunter Ross
Few relationships can boast a forty plus year run. Sadly, rare these days are the marriages or friendships that span more than four decades, let alone a successful band. But, the bond between brothers is powerful be they blood brothers, or in this case, The Doobie Brothers.
One of the nation’s stalwart summer tour favorites, The Doobie Brothers brought their extensive catalog of hits to the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts in Vienna, Virginia, for an evening of feel good rock and roll that spans generations of fans.
While the line-up has seen as many changes (long gone are the likes of Michael McDonald and Jeff “Skunk” Baxter) as the average professional sports team over the past forty years, founding members Tom Johnston and Patrick Simmons, along with John McFee, (a Doobie since 1979) keep that long Doobie Brothers train running with some fantastic players by their side.
A well paced show that exploded right off the bat with the popular Doobies cover of the Art Reynolds Singers number “Jesus is Just Alright” was bookended by another hit also from the 1972 album Toulouse Street, a final encore of “Listen to the Music” with hit after hit and jam after jam in between.
Fans were even treated to an onstage jam session during the band’s version of the Sonny Boy Williamson song “Don’t Start me Talkin”, when they were joined by guitar builder Paul Reed Smith himself, who quickly demonstrated he not only makes a mean guitar, he plays a mean one too.
So, while some of the faces of The Doobie Brothers may be new, and some may change from year to year, on thing remains a constant. Their fans will always be there to “Listen to the Music”.
GALLERY
