In the late 70s Doobies fans were split who to follow of their front men, while newer fans may have been more open to Michael McDonald incarnation that churned out smooth, gospel Blue Eyed Soul, a lot of their fans were drawn to the heavy rock and RnB that the original era was built on until Tom Johnson left. So fans loyal to him may have been disappointed by the mid tempo disco flavoured yacht rock he produced on his solo debut.
Though it had elements of soul it was far more tamer and lush then the raw fuel injected raves of early 70s Doobie Brothers though I like some of the tracks such as Reaching Out.
It has an angelic chorus and organ work mixed with Tom Johnston soulful vocals, punchy horns and a smooth disco flavour. While I like the chorus melody it's the former Doobies exquisite rhythm guitar playing that is best slightly buried in the mix below the yacht rock layers this is his best solo gem. Ironically the smooth disco soul isn't too far from what the Doobie were doing at the same time yet this features at its core Johnsons' patented RnB approach.
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