The Doobie Brothers (1977) Echoes of Love

Though it's a cover of a song written by Memphis Soul legend and Hi Records Producer Willie Mitchell, it was the Doobies who first did it and their version is pretty much definitive. They bring a smooth, Blue-eyed Soul classic bringing an incredibly sultry groove to what would have been more raw and funky had it been handed over to a Memphis act. The smooth jazzy song fitted well with the new McDonald era of the band. His lush keyboards and smoky falsetto support Pat Simmons on lead vocals. Simmons' laid back vocal fits the relaxed love song and gets to show off his soulful qualities.  While Jeff Baxter adds some traditional jazz guitar noodling to the song' coda along with some bright horns makes for a poppy feel. Bizarrely this wonderful soul number with a mainstream sound could only get to no 66, an odd occurrence of a quality song not becoming a hit particularly when it matches their hit the previous year Takin it to the Streets..