Thursday August 12, 2021 “Long Train Runnin” Doobie Brothers
Doobie Brothers guitarist, lead singer/songwriter Tom Johnston said about this song, which they played live for three years before recording it, that: "Generally I write the music first, and sometimes I have a devil of a time getting the words. We played 'Long Train Runnin'' for three years before it got recorded, and it got called several different names, and most of the time I would make up the words as we were playing the song.”
“It got called 'Osborne,' it got called 'Parliament,' it got called a lot of things. It was just anything to put down on the set list so we'd know what song it was, but it didn't have any words - I would just make up the words as we played the song.”
This was the first single from the band’s third album, The Captain and Me. Their first album stiffed, but their second one, Toulouse Street had two hits, ”Listen to the Music” and “Jesus Is Just Alright” so there was a lot of anticipation for their next one and when today’s song was released from The Captain and Me, radio stations quickly put it into heavy rotation.
The Doobies are not actually brothers from the same mother but then aren’t we all brothers (and sisters) in spirit?
Stay safe and well...and I am just not certain how the train theme fits with the refrain “without love, where would you be now…”, but really, do we care.