Photo: David Gest & Associates (the band’s publicity agents) [Public domain]
We will always be in the camp that has enjoyed everything the Doobie Brothers have recorded throughout the years. Personally, I enjoy listening to the Stampede or Toulouse Street albums as much as I enjoy listening to Takin’ It To The Streets or Minute by Minute albums. All of these were great rock albums that defined the ultimate levels of musicianship, performance, and composition.
The Doobie Brothers released fourteen studio albums throughout their career. The first album was released on April 30th, 1971 entitled The Doobie Brothers. They followed that album up with Toulouse Street which was released a little over a year later in July of 1972. The band celebrated their first top 10 album in 1973 with the release of the great record The Captain and Me. Even more, success was waiting for the Doobie Brothers in 1974 when they released the album What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits. The album hit number four on the Billboard Hot 100 containing their number one single “Black Water.” Their next record entitled Stampede was released in 1975. That album also hit number four on the Billboard Top 100.
The Michael McDonald era began in 1976 when Michael McDonald joined the band for the release of their classic record Takin’ It To The Streets. The album would once again score the Doobie Brothers a top 10 record on the Billboard Hot 100 albums charts. The Doobie Brothers followed up their Takin’ It To The Streets album with the record Living On The Fault Line released during the summer of 1977. The album was not as successful as the previous one but still reached the top 10 just barely creeping in at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 album charts.
In 1978, The Doobie Brothers released the most successful album of their career. The album entitled Minute by Minute reached number one on the United States Billboard Hot 100 album charts. It was the band’s most successful record worldwide. Even though it was a tough record to follow up, the Doobie Brothers did a pretty decent job with that in 1980 when they released the album One Step Closer which reached all the way to number three on the Billboard Hot 100. It would be the last Doobie Brothers album released with Michael McDonald in the band.
Almost a decade went by until the Doobie Brothers released a new record. In 1989, The Doobie Brothers released the record Cycles. They returned once again two years later with the album Brotherhood. Another long stretch of time would pass by once again until the next Doobie Brothers record was released. At the turn of the 20th century, The Doobie Brothers released the album Sibling Rivalry. The ten-year period in between albums seemed to start being the norm for the Doobie Brothers as Sibling Rivalry was followed up ten years later in 2010 with the album World Gone Crazy. An album that many old-school Doobie Brothers fans were very happy with. As of this writing in 2020, World Gone Crazy is the last album of new material released by the Doobie Brothers. In 2014, the band released the album Southbound. However, it was an album of duets with mostly country artists filled with remakes of the Doobie Brothers classic.
# 10 – One Step Closer
We open up our top 10 Doobie Brothers albums list with the album One Step Closer. The album was released in the fall of 1980 and was recorded at Warner Brothers Studios in North Hollywood, California. It is the final album to feature Michael McDonald. The record did well commercially. One Step Closer reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 album charts. The album also yielded the hit single “Real Love,” which peaked at number five on the Billboard Top 100. The song featured lead vocals by Michael McDonald.
# 9 – Cycles
The Doobie Brothers’ album Cycles was actually the follow-up album to One Step Closer. The band did release a live album in between the two records entitled Farewell Tour. That album was released in 1983. Nonetheless, the album Cycles was a welcome return for fans of the Doobie Brothers. The album’s opening track “The Doctor” presented fans with that old-school Doobie Brothers sound.
# 8 – World Gone Crazy
The Doobie Brothers’ album World Gone Crazy was released in the fall of 2010. It took a long time for the band to release that album. Doobie Brother fans were very happy with it. It is essentially the last Doobie Brothers studio album of new material ever released. Hopefully, either current tour featuring Michael McDonald, Pat Simmons, and Tom Johnson will inspire the band to record some new material. If not, well, World Gone Crazy was a great way to end it. An awesome-sounding record of rocking tunes sounding like old vintage Doobie Brothers’ early 1970s.
# 7 – The Doobie Brothers
Continuing with our top 10 Doobie Brothers albums list we turn to the band’s debut album simply titled The Doobie Brothers. Released in 1971 the album kind of got lost in the shuffle among all the classic records released that year. 1971 was fueled by albums such as Led Zeppelin IV, Fragile by Yes, Who’s Next by The Who, The Rolling Stones’ Sticky Fingers, Jethro Tull’s Aqualung, and Elton John’s Madman Across the Water. The Doobie Brothers’ debut album did not chart that high and yielded no hit singles. Nonetheless, it was still a great record and defined a new sound that rock fans would soon fall in love with.
# 6 – Stampede
The Doobie Brothers released their great album entitled Stampede in 1975. The album was fueled by the great single “Take Me In You Arms (Rock Me A Little While).” One of our favorite Doobie Brothers albums and definitely our favorite Doobie Brothers album cover. Jeff Skunk Baxter lit it up on this record.
# 5 – Minute By Minute
While some old school Doobie Brothers fans may not have been happy with the sound of the band during this period, millions of other music fans fell in love with this album and the harmonies and lead vocals that Michael McDonald brought to the Doobie Brothers. There’s no denying the commercial success of this record. The album’s lead single “What A Fool Believes,” was a pure r&b rock gem. The song hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100. It also received two Grammy Awards for Song Of The Year and Record of the Year in 1980. Michael McDonald sang lead vocals on the track. Interestingly, one of the songs that it defeated in the Song of The Year category for the Grammy Award in 1980 was the album’s title track “Minute By Minute.”
# 4 – The Captain and Me
As we continue our top 10 Doobie Brothers albums article we are getting into some real classic Doobie Brothers records. The Captain and Me was one of those legendary Doobie Brothers albums. The album contained the big hits “Long Train Runnin,” and “China Grove.” These are two of the biggest Doobie Brothers songs ever released. When you think of old-school Doobie Brothers you think of these two songs. The album The Captain and Me was released in 1972
# 3 – What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits
We always loved the title of this great Doobie Brothers album Were Once Vices are Now Habits. The Doobie Brothers’ classic album Were Once Vices Are Now Habits was released in the winter of 1974. The album’s lead single “Another Park, Another Sunday,” was released in March of 74 That single was followed up with “Eyes of Silver,” in June of 74. However, it was the album’s third single entitled “Black Water,” which was not released until November of 1974 that became one of the biggest songs the band ever recorded. “Black Water,” would become the Doobie Brothers’ first number-one single. The success of the songs helped skyrocket album sales of the great album Were Once Vices Are Now Habits
# 2 – Takin’ It To The Streets
The first time I dropped a needle on this record back in 1976 I was blown away by the sound. of the album’s opening track “Wheels of Fortune,” stand as one of the best-sounding tracks on vinyl I have ever heard. However it wasn’t just the sound production that blew me away it was the groove, the spirit, the soul of this record. Continue on throughout the entire album. To any of those Doobie Brothers fans who say they did not like the Michael McDonald era, I encouraged them to take a listen to this record once again. This was a great one!
# 1 – Toulouse Street
We close out our top 10 Doobie Brothers albums article with the band’s second album released in 1972 entitled Toulouse Street. This legendary album opened up with one of the greatest Doobie Brothers songs of all time called “Listen To The Music.” the album also contain the great songs”Rockin’ Down the Highway,” and Jesus is Just Alright. These were all songs written by Patrick Simmons and Tom Johnston. This is vintage Doobie Brothers defining what they did best.
The Doobie Brothers Albums Discography (Studio albums)
This list does not include any of the live albums The Doobie Brothers released. It also does not include any box sets or greatest hits packages This is just a listing of the complete studio albums The Doobie Brothers released in chronological order.
The Doobie Brothers (1971)
Toulouse Street (1972)
The Captain and Me (1973)
What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits (1974)
Stampede (1975)
Takin’ It To The Streets (1976)
Livin’ On The Fault Line (1977)
Minute By Minute (1978)
One Step Closer (1980)
Cycles (1989)
Brotherhood (1991)
Sibling Rivalry (2001)
World Gone Crazy (2010)
Updated June 4, 2024
Top 10 Doobie Brothers Albums article published on Classic RockHistory.com© 2023
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![Rob De Luca of Spread Eagle, Sebastian Bach & UFO: 10 Albums That Changed My Life From humble East Coast origins to grandest stages worldwide, veteran bassist Rob De Luca has seen and done it all. De Luca first hit the local Boston rock and metal scene in the late 80s after meeting guitarist Paul DiBartolo, bonding over Van Halen before forming Bang. Regional success came quickly, but eventually, the members of Bang went their separate ways, with De Luca and drummer Tommi Gallo heading to NYC and hooking up with Ray West and, later, DiBartolo to form Spread Eagle. By 1990, Spread Eagle was on the fast track, with a contract through MCA Records and a self-titled debut album poised to crush skulls. But poor timing and MCA's sad indifference left Spead Eagle out in the cold despite being a hard-boiled answer to Guns N' Roses's West Coast sleaze. Spread Eagle's first chapter came to an end in '95. As for Rob De Luca, his nimble fingers and gift for melody and songwriting kept him moving forward. Soon, he found a gig with former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach and the legendary outfit UFO. And in 2010, after coupling up with Ray West and his cousin Rik De Luca, Spread Eagle retook flight. During a break from Spread Eagle's increasingly busy touring schedule, Rob De Luca dialed in with ClassicRockHistory.com to run through the ten albums that changed his life. But only after adding, "I made a playlist of these songs, including some I've written or co-written. Do you hear any of these albums' influence on me?" Listen here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3LWJuhDrE8JmzhsmTeIDUq 10) Gentlemen by Afghan Whigs (1993) Here's an entry that was so important to me. This may be the darkest break-up album of all time. Greg Dulli has been in many projects, but I feel Gentlemen is his zenith. Somewhat undefinable at times but always profound and honest. Listen to "Gentlemen," "Fountain and Fairfax," and "What Jail Is Like." 9) In on the Kill Taker by Fugazi (1993) By this time, I had been sucked in and spit out by the major-label record industry. Glam came and went; grunge was history, too. I was searching for new sounds. When I heard Fugazi's twin guitar approach, I knew this was what was missing. Fugazi may be considered a less polished sound than the albums above; however, once you "get it," it hits you like a ton of bricks, and there's no going back. From the moment I heard Fugazi, I went to every NYC show after. It's easily some of the best concerts of my life, and possibly my favorite bassist in Joe Lally. And their DIY ethics refused to charge us more than $5 a show! In on the Kill Taker is a powerful album demonstrated in songs such as "Smallpox Champion," "Great Cop," and "Public Witness Program." 8) Appetite for Destruction by Guns N' Roses (1987) I discovered many of these albums (sometimes long) after they were released. However, I was at the right place at the right time for this one. Steve Ostromogilsky had a Berklee College of Music lunch card and used to sneak out sandwiches for me. One day, he invited me to hang out at his place and listen to music. As we got off the train, he put Sony Walkman headphones on my ears and said, "Hey, check out this brand-new group." A song like "It's So Easy" was so different from the popular Sunset Strip sound at that time. Me and about 499 other informed rockers were lucky enough to see them on their first East Coast tour at the sold-out Paradise on Commonwealth Avenue, Boston (the same street Aerosmith started on). I saw Gn'R every tour after until I took a break when Buckethead joined. Gn'R is the band I've been lucky enough to see the most times live, almost 100! Everyone on this album is just stellar. Axl [Rose] had the tones, power, melodic sensibilities, and foresight to do what no other singer did then. Slash's playing was beyond memorable. Duff [McKagan] is one of the most underrated bassists in rock history, and learning his Appetite basslines is a masterclass. Steven [Adler] had the natural swing, and Izzy [Stradlin] was the secret weapon songwriter. Everything that's been heralded about this gem is deserved and true. Check out "It's So Easy," "Out Ta Get Me," and "Mr. Brownstone.' 7) Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd (1975) Another contender for my favorite album and band of all time. Using The Beatles machine (same recording studio, engineer, record label), Pink Floyd made what I feel is their strongest, most cohesive album (my second favorite of theirs would be Animals). This list mainly consists of bands with an instantly recognizable sound. Floyd is certainly no exception to that! This album included a solid handful of undeniable rock radio classics, bookended by two halves of the mind-blowing song "Shine on You Crazy Diamond.' That song was written about former band member and founder Syd Barrett. It would be hard to live in a world without this album. Check out "Welcome to The Machine," "Shine on You Crazy Diamond (parts 6-9),' or even better yet, listen to the whole thing in one sitting! 6) Decade by Neil Young (1977) About this time, I started playing guitar. As a beginner, it was comfortable jamming to this album because the chord changes were simple—a great "first ten years" retrospective of Neil's stunning, unique songwriting. Neil is a treasure who always writes from the heart and stands up for what's right. Check out "Southern Man," "A Man Needs a Maid," "Down by The River," and "After the Goldrush." 5) Highway to Hell by AC/DC (1979) When I heard this album, I was firmly "me." My life would be 100% focused on hard rock music forever. AC/DC are like air; they're ubiquitous. Everyone knows them and their incredible songs. However, as a young teen in Wilmington, Delaware, I only had WMMR 93.3 FM Philadelphia and a few friends to inform me about the world of Rock outside my bedroom. AC/DC had not gone mainstream, and their albums were available primarily in the USA as imports. To put things more in perspective, I only knew two people in the world who had heard of AC/DC. A friend had an import that we played in Steve Buckley's basement, which sounded ripping. When Highway to Hell was released, WMMR started spinning the title track, and I immediately bought the album, listening to it every single day after school. Then WMMR announced AC/DC was coming to the Spectrum in Philly, supporting Ted Nugent! I liked Ted but loved AC/DC, so my good friend Mick Cummins and I bought tickets, and he drove us up to the Spectrum (where we saw most of our concerts). Bon Scott was in fine form, and the band went over great. Although the crowd knew Ted better, Angus [Young] wouldn't let anyone upstage him. I'll never forget it! Unfortunately, Bon would be gone in 6 months. Check out "Walk All Over You," "Touch Too Much," "Shot Down in Flames," and "If You Want Blood (You Got It)." 4) Toys in the Attic by Aerosmith (1975) By the time I heard this, I was now in my teens. I had a childhood friend up the street, Jim Linberg (we're still good buddies). His older sister had a great album collection, including Toys in The Attic. Once I heard that groove, my taste changed. I lost interest in rock music that didn't have some sort of "swing" feel to it. I think Rocks is a slightly better Aerosmith album (and possibly my favorite album of all time), but both are perfect or very close. Check out "Uncle Salty," "Adam's Apple," "No More No More," "Round and Round," and "You See Me Crying." 3) Alive! by Kiss (1975) When I was still a little kid, I asked for Cheech and Chong's Up in Smoke album for Christmas. The entire family came over for an enormous feast, and I dropped the needle. When my mother heard the content, she turned off the album and said I had to exchange it. My mom was cool, but I was young and knew much more about life than she suspected. Anyway, the next day, she drove me back to the store. In the music section, promoted on an "endcap" was a Kiss Alive! display. I had never heard of Kiss, but that cover picture told me I had to have it! My first foray into hard rock. Check out “Strutter.” I went through my Kiss phase very quickly, I believe in a matter of months because I discovered the previous entry, Aerosmith's Toys in the Attic. 2) Honky Chateau by Elton John (1972) When I was a wee lad, my parents bought a used Volkswagen camper van from my uncle Ozzie. My favorite Elton John album is Yellow Brick Road, but Honky Chateau is great and easily one of his best. It sent me down a lifelong rabbit hole of loving everything about the 1970s partnership between Elton and lyricist Bernie Taupin. The simple beauty of voice, the master songwriting, the perfect backing band, the clear, unobtrusive recordings, and always Bernie's incredible lyrics. The day this album was released, Elton became an unstoppable force that conquered the music industry. Check out "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" and "Rocket Man." 1) Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles (1967) Another tape that was included in the VW Camper. The van had a bunch of music tapes, and one was Sgt Pepper. I was too young to understand the sophistication of the music, but that was one of the many skills of The Beatles. They attracted listeners at every level, even little kids. I still feel that immediate connection to Sgt Pepper; now, I hear so much more. It's an album that changed the world and the world of music. Check out "Lucy in The Sky with Diamonds," "A Day In The Life," and "Fixing a Hole."](http://www.classicrockhistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Shutterstock_1815495569-1-300x200.jpg)
these lists are reateded