Download Instrumental Every hit song has that mysterious “groove” that launches it into success on the charts. The groove here is the interplay between the drums and the piano (drums providing just a good steady beat – no fancy fills – I like that). Keyboardist Michael McDonald was a master of the “groove”, and he brought that talent to The Doobie Brothers in 1976. Their sound changed considerably after he joined the band – much to the better, I must say.
McDonald wrote “What a Fool Believes” with the help of Kenny Loggins, a long-time friend. I don’t know if the lyrics draw from a personal experience that Michael had somewhere along the line, but I would guess that had to be the case. In the song, two former lovers happen to meet in a restaurant. He’s ready to restart the relationship but she, unfortunately, is not so eager. He pretty much makes a fool of himself over the main entrée, and when she excuses herself to leave he just doesn’t get the message. He faces the sad reality that she has moved on – he hasn’t.
Now, on that happy note, we’ll move on too. There were two members of the original Doobie Brothers who didn’t appreciate the softer sound that McDonald brought to the group. That’s fairly evident in the video below. Jeff Baxter, lead guitarist, actually sits during the performance – ever seen a lead guitar player SIT? The smirk on his face about halfway through the video is fairly indicative of his displeasure with not playing the hard rock biker tunes he was used to. But it was all money in the bank, Jeff… money in the bank.
Stageworthy Backing Tracks by Dave Zobrist 