Doobie Brothers 7-Pack

Lessons

• Lesson 1: Listen To The Music

  Listen To The Music was the song that launched the Doobie Brothers into the national and international spotlight. It was released in 1972 on their second album Toulouse Street and featured one of Tom Johnston's signature opening guitar riffs- a syncopated hammer-on into an E major/A major cycle. The chord progression mostly stays in the key of E, using barre chords and partial barre chords but the main challenge is getting the opening strumming pattern just right.

• Lesson 2: China Grove

  China Grove is one of Tom Johnston's signature sound songs. It is just a simple, but driving power chord based riff, combined with a few guitar fills and inspired vocals from Tom, with Pat Simmons and Tiran Porter adding great backing parts and harmony. The song was released in 1973 on the 3rd Doobie Brothers album, The Captain And Me. This lesson goes over the main rhythm guitar parts with a few lead fills thrown in.

• Lesson 3: Long Train Runnin'

  Long Train Runnin' is a classic Tom Johnston riff-based tune which was released on the 3rd Doobie Brothers album, The Captain And Me in 1973. The simple chord progression revolves around 2-note hammer-ons and pull-offs above a barre chord, with a syncopated strumming pattern.

• Lesson 4: South City Midnight Lady

  The Doobie Brothers were a band with a couple of different personalities and sounds. Tom Johnston's hard rockers were balanced with Pat Simmons softer, country-rock tunes. South City Midnight Lady is one of his best from a guitar player's point of view as it features a free-form accompaniment style that is part strumming and part fingerpicking.

• Lesson 5: Black Water

  This fingerpicking song by Pat Simmons shows off even another dimension in the Doobie Brothers sound - a bluesy, southern feel. It is a simple chord progression done in Double Dropped D Tuning but includes some snappy syncopated picking as well. The lesson covers all the accompaniment guitar parts.

• Lesson 6: Chicago

  Chicago is a country blues tunes that Pat Simmons learned as a young musician in Northern California in the mid 1960s from a local performer named Billy Dean, who was also referenced in a Hot Tuna song on their album Burgers. It is a modified 12-bar blues tune played in a Travis style in the key of A. It found a home as the last track on the 1st Doobie Brothers album in 1971.

• Lesson 7: Busted Down Around O'Connelly Corners (The Ivory Salamander)

  Today we look at a fingerpicking piece you may have heard but might not be able to place. It is a song written by another student of Neil's guitar teacher Alan Beilharz, Jim Page. You'll have to watch it for more of that story. It is called Busted Down Around O'Connelly Corners and appeared on the 3rd Doobie album, The Captain And Me. It was originally called The Ivory Salamander and features a couple of intermediate licks over an alternating bass pattern using standard chords.