Here’s wishing a Happy Birthday to longtime Doobie Brothers member John McFee, who turned 74 on Monday, September 9.
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The Bay-area native first joined the veteran rockers in 1979, in time to appear on the group’s hit 1980 album, One Step Closer. He stayed with The Doobies until their 1982 breakup, then rejoined the group for a 1987 reunion tour.
From 1983 to 1991, McFee was a member of country-rock act Southern Pacific, which featured longtime Doobie Brothers drummer Keith Knudsen. Ex-Creedence Clearwater Revival bassist Stu Cook also played in the group from 1986 to 1991.
McFee returned as a full-time member of The Doobie Brothers in 1993 and has been with them ever since. In 2020, McFee was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the group.
[RELATED: Doobie Brothers Celebrate Over 50 Years in Music With Special Pine Knob Concert]
Among the instruments John has played on various Doobies tracks are guitar, mandolin, banjo, violin, cello, pedal-steel guitar, and harmonica.
Prior to joining the Doobie Brothers, McFee established himself as a prolific session musician, and also was a member of the band Clover alongside Huey Lewis. Throughout his long career, John has contributed his talents to noteworthy recordings by a variety of well-known artists. In honor of his birthday, here are four memorable songs by various music stars that feature McVie:
“Wild Night” – Van Morrison (1971)
“Wild Night” is one of Van Morrison’s biggest hits and most enduring tunes. The upbeat R&B-flavored song appeared on Morrison’s fifth studio album, Tupelo Honey, which was released in 1971. McFee added some tastefully twangy pedal-steel guitar to the track. He’s also featured on the album’s beloved title track.
“Wild Night” peaked at No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“Pride of Cucamonga” – Grateful Dead (1974)
McFee also contributed his pedal-steel talents to “Pride of Cucamonga,” a song from the Grateful Dead’s 1974 album From the Mars Hotel. The country-flavored tune was co-written by Dead bassist Phil Lesh, who also sang lead vocals.
In a June 2024 episode of the Good Ol’ Grateful Deadcast podcast, McFee recalled with fondness his experience contributing to the track.
“It was definitely an honor for me to get invited to be part of that world,” he shared. “My main recollection is they were so nice to me. They were really supportive. I think Phil had a vision of the general feel that he was looking for from the steel [guitar], but they really just gave me the freedom to try to find my way through it in my own fashion, which is really cool. [It] says a lot about the spirit of their approach to life.”
“Dance, Dance, Dance” – Steve Miller Band (1976)
In 1976, McFee played a deft dobro solo on “Dance, Dance, Dance,” a song by another legendary Bay-area group, the Steve Miller Band. The catchy country-influenced tune appeared on the group’s hit album Fly Like an Eagle, which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200.
“Alison” – Elvis Costello (1977)
When Elvis Costello recorded his acclaimed 1977 debut album, My Aim Is True, he hadn’t started working with his longtime backing band The Attractions. Producer Nick Lowe hired Clover to record the album with him. McFee is featured on guitar throughout the record, including playing the memorably melodic R&B-infused solo and riffs on Elvis’ classic song “Alison.”
In a 2019 interview with the Band to Fans YouTube channel, McFee shared that My Aim Is True was basically recorded live in the studio.
Recalling his instinctual approach to playing on the track, John said, “[Elvis] would sing a line [and] I would play a lick. I was responding. It was a conversation. That’s part of music.”
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