Best of The Doobies

Best of The Doobies
Greatest hits album by the Doobie Brothers
Released	October 29, 1976
Recorded	1972–1976[1]
Genre	Rock, pop
Length	45:08
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Ted Templeman[2]
The Doobie Brothers chronology
Takin' It to the Streets (1976) Best of The Doobies (1976) Livin' on the Fault Line (1977)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Christgau's Record Guide	B+[4]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[5]
The Great Rock Discography	8/10[6]
MusicHound Rock	3.5/5[7]
Rolling Stone	[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[9]

Best of The Doobies is the first greatest hits album by the Doobie Brothers. The album has material from Toulouse Street through Takin' It to the Streets, and is also a diamond record. The album was released by Warner Bros. Records on October 29, 1976, and has been re-released numerous times.

Track listing

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Original album	Length
1.	"China Grove"	Tom Johnston	The Captain and Me	3:14
2.	"Long Train Runnin'"	Johnston	The Captain and Me	3:23
3.	"Takin' It to the Streets"	Michael McDonald	Takin' It to the Streets	3:36
4.	"Listen to the Music"	Johnston	Toulouse Street	3:49
5.	"Black Water"	Patrick Simmons	What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits	4:14
6.	"Rockin' Down the Highway"	Johnston	Toulouse Street	3:19

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Original album	Length
7.	"Jesus Is Just Alright"	Arthur Reid Reynolds	Toulouse Street	4:30
8.	"It Keeps You Runnin'"	McDonald	Takin' It to the Streets	4:20
9.	"South City Midnight Lady"	Simmons	The Captain and Me	5:27
10.	"Take Me in Your Arms"	(Holland-Dozier-Holland)	Stampede	3:39
11.	"Without You"	John Hartman, Michael Hossack, Johnston, Tiran Porter, Simmons[nb 1]	The Captain and Me	4:58

Personnel

The Doobie Brothers

• Tom Johnston – lead (1–2, 4, 6, 10–11) and backing vocals, guitars, harmonica (2)
• Patrick Simmons – lead (4–5, 7, 9) and backing vocals, guitars, banjo (4), ARP synthesizer (9)
• Jeff "Skunk" Baxter – guitars, pedal steel guitar (9)
• Michael McDonald – lead (3, 8) and backing vocals, keyboards, synthesizer (8)
• Tiran Porter – backing vocals, bass guitar
• John Hartman – drums, percussion
• Michael Hossack – drums, percussion
• Keith Knudsen – backing vocals, drums, percussion

Additional personnel

• Bill Payne – piano (1, 6, 9–10), organ (7, 11)
• Jesse Butler – organ (3)
• Malcolm Cecil – ARP synthesizer programming (9)
• Robert Margouleff – ARP synthesizer programming (9)
• Ted Templeman – backing vocals (11), percussion
• Bobby LaKind – congas (3)
• Milt Holland – vibraphone (5)
• Bobbye Hall – congas (10)
• The Memphis Horns – horns (3)
• Novi Novog – viola (5)
• Sherlie Matthews – backing vocals (10)
• Venetta Fields – backing vocals (10)
• Jessie Smith – backing vocals (10)
• Nick DeCaro – string arrangement (9)
• Paul Riser – string and horn arrangements (10)

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for Best of The Doobies Chart (1976–1977) Peak position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[10] 42 Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[11] 3 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[12] 13 US Billboard 200[13] 5

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for Best of The Doobies Chart (1977) Position Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[14] 32 US Billboard 200[15] 30

Certifications

Certifications for Best of The Doobies

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[16]	3× Platinum	210,000^^
Canada (Music Canada)[17]	2× Platinum	200,000^^
United States (RIAA)[18]	10× Platinum	10,000,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

• List of best-selling albums in the United States

Notes

1. On both the original album (The Captain and Me) and this compilation, this song is credited to "The Doobie Brothers", rather than to individual band members, even though the band's lineup had changed in between the releases. The live album Rockin' Down the Highway: The Wildlife Concert credits the song to Johnston only.

References

1. Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Best of the Doobies > Overview". Allmusic Guide. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
2. Best of the Doobies Warner Bros. Records #3112-2 CD reissue
3. Allmusic review
4. Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: D". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved February 24, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
5. Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0857125958.
6. Strong, Martin Charles (2002). "The Doobie Brothers". The Great Rock Discography. The National Academies. ISBN 1-84195-312-1.
7. "The Doobie Brothers - Best of the Doobies". Retrieved November 28, 2019.
8. "Best of the Doobies". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2009-05-25. Retrieved 2019-09-11.
9. Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 253. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
10. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 92. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
11. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 5154a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
12. "Charts.nz – The Doobie Brothers – Best of the Doobies". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
13. "The Doobie Brothers Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
14. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 5558". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
15. "Top US Billboard 200 Albums - Year-end 1977". BestSellingAlbums.org. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
16. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1996 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
17. "Canadian album certifications – The Doobies – Best of The Doobies". Music Canada. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
18. "American album certifications – The Doobies – Best of The Doobies". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 28, 2021.