Doobie Brothers interview excerpt
 

From an interview I did with Tom Johnston and Pat Simmons of The Doobie Brothers...

Cris Cohen: I was talking to a young up-and-coming musician, you might know, named Huey Lewis.

Tom Johnston of The Doobie Brothers: [laughs] Up and coming.

Cris Cohen: He’s a kid, but I think he's got some chops. I asked him, what makes The Doobie Brothers so good. He said, “They are a great band, because like all great bands, they are greater than the sum of their parts. Not to denigrate their musicianship, because they're all great musicians, but they make each other better.” That makes me wonder, can you see that in musicians as you're looking for new ones to join? Or is it just kind of Kismet? Is it fate?

Tom Johnston: It's kind of organic most of the time, to be honest with you. When Keith (Knudsen) passed away, which was a big deal for us, when Mike (Hossack) passed away, which was a big deal for us -- those are two of the main drummers in the band… and John Hartman -- we actually did a tryout of drummers, because it does make a big difference. Because Mike Hossack did a lot of our early studio work. John played too. But Mike was the forefront drummer for a lot of the… I don't want to just say singles, but also for a lot of the deep cuts. He was a studio-quality drummer. Then Keith came along and he took up the same position. And he sang, which added another element.