Music Blog

Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em

Nancy's Notes 🖊️🎶

Written for Glyn’s Mixed Music Bag #8 February Monthly Challenge
where we’re asked to write about a song by any group or solo singer
beginning with the letter C or D.

Formed in San Jose, California in 1970, The Doobie Brothers are known for their vocal harmonies and their flexibility in performing across numerous genres. Active for 50+ years, with their greatest success during the 1970s, the group is still performing and touring today.

So, what’s up with their name? Well, it’s really not that hard to figure out but the story goes that during the formative days while the group was trying to come up with a name, the guy who lived next door and hung out with them said “Since you’re always smoking pot, why not just call yourselves ‘The Doobie Brothers’?” The band members couldn’t deny that was true but thought the name was “really dumb”; they decided to go with it just until they came up with a better name but they never did.

The Doobie Brothers improved their playing by performing live all over Northern California in 1970. They attracted a particularly strong following among local chapters of the Hells Angels and got a recurring gig at one of the bikers’ favorite venues, the Chateau Liberté in the Santa Cruz mountains, playing there through the summer of 1970. A set of demos, which showcased dual lead electric guitars, three-part harmonies and some wicked drumming, caught the ear of the Warner Brothers’ staff and eventually earned the group a contract before the year was out.

Breakthrough success came to The Doobies after the 1972 release of their album “Toulouse Street” which contained the hits “Listen To The Music” and “Jesus Is Just Alright”. A string of hits followed, including “Long Train Runnin’” and “China Grove’.

“Listen To The Music” was written by lead singer and guitarist Tom Johnston and was the Doobie Brothers’ first big hit. Upon the release of the single, Cash Box said that it’s “the group’s mellowest rockin’ mood yet, one that could see them through to chart territory with AM play.” The staff of Billboard consider it the Doobie Brothers’ best song, saying that it “ranks high in the pantheon of rock n’ roll feel-good hits” and should “get your foot tapping and bring a bit of a smile to your face.”

“Listen To The Music” remains a staple of adult contemporary and classic rock radio. The band uses it as an encore song during live shows. The Doobie Brothers were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall Of Fame in 2004 and the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in 2020. The group has sold more than 40 million records worldwide.

Let’s listen to some Doobie Brothers; smoke ’em if you got ‘em.

This is “Listen To The Music” by The Doobie Brothers

LYRICS

Don’t you feel it growing, day by day
People getting ready for the news
Some are happy, some are sad
Whoa, gotta let the music play


What the people need is a way to make ’em smile
It ain’t so hard to do if you know how
Gotta get a message, get it on through
Oh, now momma don’t you ask me why

Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
All the time

Well I know, you know baby, everything I say
Meet me in the country for a day
We’ll be happy, and we’ll dance
Oh, we’re gonna dance our blues away

And if I’m feeling good to you and you’re feeling good to me
There ain’t nothing we can’t do or say
Feeling good, feeling fine
Oh, baby, let the music play

Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
All the time

Like a lazy flowing river
Surrounding castles in the sky
And the crowd is growing bigger
Listening for the happy sounds
And I got to let them fly

Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
All the time

Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
All the time

Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
Whoa, oh listen to the music
All the time

Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Tom Johnston
Listen to the Music lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc

Mixed Music Bag 2024 – week 8 – Caravan

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27 thoughts on “Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em”

  9. A great choice for Glyn’s theme. I’d have gone with China Grove – those twin guitars have never been bettered – but anything from the time before Michael McDonald turned them into a yacht rock band is fine by me 😊

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    1. China Grove was whispering in my ear the whole time; it’s a really great song. I opted to go with Listen To The Music bc it was their first hit. No reason China Grove can’t still be posted by me or some one else. Lisa added Black Water to this post. I think in the future I’m not going to print the lyrics; that would leave more room for videos. Thanks for your input, Clive.

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      Reply

  10. I am a Doobie Brothers fan, but I think the years that Michael McDonald played with them brought a whole new dimension to their music. I know some Doobies fans didn’t like how he altered their sound with songs like “What a Fool Believes,” “Taking It to the Streets,” “Minute by Minute,” “It Keeps You Runnin’,” and “I Keep Forgetting,” but I think those bluesy, smooth jazzy, and pop rock sounds were great.

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