Two of the authors of the title track from the Doobies’ One Step Closer album have reunited musically, and the result is a highly acclaimed new album. Carlene Carter, country music “royalty” (daughter of June Carter and Country Music Hall Of Fame artist Carl Smith, stepdaughter of Johnny Cash) and Grammy nominated artist in her own right has just released the album Stronger, her first album in thirteen years - and it was produced by the Doobie Brothers’ own John McFee. Also appearing on the album is Doobies keyboardist Guy Allison, while John produced, engineered, and played most of the instruments on the record himself.

The songs on the album were largely written in the aftermath of a series of emotionally challenging events in Carlene’s life, which may be one of the reasons for the depth of response the product is generating from both general public and critics alike. Within an eight month period a few years back, Carlene lost her mother June, her long time companion Howie Epstein (bass player of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers), her stepfather Johnny Cash, and her sister Rosie.

A good example of the reaction the record is getting would be these comments from two songwriters whose work surely ranks among the best writing of the past half century:

• “I couldn’t let a day go by without writing a note about C.C.’s record. It is astounding.” Elvis Costello
• “A staggering achievement by one of the great voices and fearless hearts of country rock.” Bernie Taupin

A sampling of critics’ comments:

• “…has the kick and luster of Carter’s best songs from the ’80s and ’90s. It’s an ironically joyous, even witty CD, filled with the kind of rollicking roots rock that extends the great American legacy that lives in Carter’s genes.” New York Daily News
• “Carter sounds as strong as she’s ever been—stronger… A magnificent, and welcome, return” Harp Magazine
• “While definitely among Carter’s best work, it may well stand as one of the best albums of this year.” Country Standard Time
• “The album title says it best. Carlene Carter’s musicianship is stronger than ever.” Pop Matters
• This is what you want playing when the open road lies ahead and the top is down. Betcha this is the comeback story of the year.” Midwest Record
• “…there’s not a dud note in earshot here, whether she’s essaying high-stepping, Burrito-esque hillbilly rockers or more traditional-toned pieces in mandolin, dobro and autoharp. Comeback of the year, no contest.” The Independent (London, England)

You can give the entire album a listen for free by clicking here for Carlene’s record company’s (Yep Roc Records) web site where they have a streaming audio player of the album - check it out. You can purchase the album at Amazon, iTunes Music Store, and other major music retailers.

Tom Johnston’s daughter Lara Johnston will be featured in a new MTV reality TV show entitled Rock The Cradle. The show is centered around a competition that will pit the children of eight famous musicians against one another for a chance at stardom. In addition to Lara, the show will feature:

• Jesse Money, daughter of Eddie Money
• Jesse Blaze Snider, son of Dee Snider of Twisted Sister
• A’keiba Burrell-Hammer, M.C. Hammer’s daughter
• Landon Brown, son of Bobby Brown
• Lil Al B Sure, R&B singer Al B Sure’s son
• Crosby Loggins, Kenny Loggin’s son
• Chloe Rose Lattanzi, Olivia Newton John’s daughter
• Lucy Walsh, daughter of the Eagles‘ Joe Walsh

Check MTV for air times and be sure to vote for Lara!

Las Vegas, NV - In an odd and unfortunate bit of news, it is being reported that a con artist sporting a gray beard has been falsely claiming to be Michael Hossack of the Doobie Brothers, taking money from fans as an entrance fee in a fake car giveaway contest.

As of this writing, he is still at large, so if you see this man, please call the police (click the accompanying photograph or here to see a larger version.)

UPDATE: April 2, 2008 - An outpouring of responses from fans has resulted in a more recent photo (taken on March 29) showing that “Fake Mike” may have visited a barber. From the accounts in the comments section of this story, it seems as though “Fake Mike” has been busy almost every day conning people! There have been no arrests that we are aware of as of this writing.

FURTHER UPDATE: April 20, 2008 - Here is specific contact information for the LVMPD. This is the contact info for the detective who is handling this case:

Detective Jon Zeh
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
Tourist Safety Unit
(702) 828-2816
Email: (J4506Z@lvmpd.com)

Breaking News: Doobie Brothers announce co-headlining tour with Chicago

Two of America’s longest running and most respected classic rock bands join forces for 2008 summer tour. Please note that The Official Doobie Brothers Website is the first to announce these dates, and that tickets may not be on sale at this time.

View the Doobie Brothers / Chicago Summer 2008 Tour Dates here…

The Doobie Brothers would like to wish all the fans a Happy New Year for 2008! The band has a lot of exciting things in the works right now, here’s a quick run down:

• The band is finalizing their tour schedule for 2008, which will include a US summer tour with Chicago (about 25 shows.)
• The Doobie Brothers have also been working on new material in the studio with longtime producer Ted Templeman (who produced 12 of the Doobies’ classic albums) for the first time since the One Step Closer album in 1980!

More news to come…

30 years later, his aim is still true - that’s right, we’re talking about the very talented and generous of spirit Mr. Elvis Costello. It’s hard for some of us to believe, but it was 30 years ago that Elvis made his debut album, My Aim Is True, and was propelled into superstar status in the music scene by this classic recording. One of the better kept secrets of rock and roll is that among the musicians backing Elvis up on this album, designated “Album of the Year” by Rolling Stone magazine, was none other than the Doobie Brothers’ own John McFee.

Yes, that’s John’s lead guitar and pedal steel work on such classics as Alison, The Angels Wanna Wear My Red Shoes, Miracle Man, Waiting For The End Of The World, and the entire original album. For the first time ever, the musicians who played on the My Aim Is True sessions performed the entire album publicly with Elvis - and then the music continued with a number of solo acoustic numbers by Mr. Costello, and the band came back to join Elvis for what would normally pass for another show’s worth of material (including out-takes from the My Aim Is True sessions and two of Elvis’ favorite Clover songs). Former Marin County group Clover members Sean Hopper (keyboardist from Huey Lewis and the News), John Ciambotti (bass player on Grammy award winning albums by John Prine and Lucinda Williams), and John McFee were joined by drummer Pete Thomas (of Elvis’ Attractions and Imposters fame). This alone would be enough to make it a special occasion, but the fact that the shows were benefit performances for a very worthy cause made it even more memorable.

The sold out shows took place at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, and the proceeds are going towards the Richard de Lone Special Housing Project, an organization founded by Elvis’ long time friend and sometimes keyboard player, Austin de Lone. The organization is named for Austin’s son Richard, and is a resource for those who, like young Richard, suffer from Prader-Willi syndrome. For more information please visit their web site. Austin, along with “Dieselbilly” guitarist Bill Kirchen (Commander Cody And His Lost Planet Airmen) performed an opening set for the evening, and also joined Elvis and Clover for several numbers - including the evening’s finale song, My Aim Is True producer Nick Lowe’s What’s So Funny ’bout Peace, Love and Understanding.

The event was a great success, and was recorded as well, so those of you who were unable to attend may be able to listen to the music soon. This is what San Francisco’s premier music critic Joel Selvin had to say about it all after attending the show: “Every so often, once every 10 or 15 years maybe, there’s a nightclub show as special as the Elvis Costello performance Thursday at the Great American Music Hall. Maybe not even that often.” Enough said…

2007 has been a great year for us. We performed over 80 concerts, co-headlining with Lynyrd Skynyrd, Steve Miller and Peter Frampton. This was fun for all involved. We are also planning some co-headlining tours for the summer of 2008 with some great artists, and will be announcing those dates in the near future.

Our annual Benefit Concert for the National Veterans Foundation at BR Cohn Winery was a blast! We were honored to perform with Huey Lewis and the News, Tower of Power, Lydia Pense & Cold Blood, Three Dog Night, Los Lobos, Canned Heat, Taj Mahal, and Civil Twilight (with The Lara Johnston Band and Pat Simmons, Junior opening the show.) Check out the cool photo gallery on the BR Cohn website.

As the Band finishes up the last few shows of the year, we are beginning to look at songwriting and recording a new album for everyone’s enjoyment! Also, Pat Simmons and Bruce Cohn are working on a DVD retrospective project of the band’s wild and crazy history from 1970 to the present. Watch this space for more news on those items soon!

The Simmons family made a visit to the set during the recent filming of “The Pirates Of The Caribbean - At World’s End“. This came at the invitation of their old friend, Lee Arenburg, who has a feature roll as Pintel in the pirate saga. Lee and his lovely girlfriend Katie gave us the royal treatment. We were introduced to Lee’s partner in the film Mackenzie Crook, who plays Ragetti, and Marty Klebba another unforgettable character. Such nice guys and so much talent. It was an amazing experience we will never forget. We’ve already seen the movie twice and loved it! Thanks Lee. Thanks to Cris Simmons (my wife) for taking the snapshot. Oh yeah, I just found out, Lee and Katie are expecting their first child. What a wonderful surprise! Congratulations to the Arenberg family from all your Doobie Uncles!

Left to right in the photo: Mackenzie Crook, Pat Simmons Jr., Marty Klebba, Lee Arenberg, and the other Pat

The Doobies appeared on the May 23rd edition of Rockline. Check your local participating radio stations or Rockline for more information.

Doobies drummer Ed Toth, also known for his stellar drumming with multi-platinum group Vertical Horizon, and his numerous production and studio credits, has launched a new website, EdToth.com.

Ed’s awesomely designed website includes a comprehensive bio, discography, and is up-to-date with his latest projects.

Check it out!