Michael McDonald (musician)

== The Doobie Brothers ==
[[File:Doobie Brothers 1976.JPG|thumb|300px|McDonald with the Doobie Brothers, 1976]]
McDonald was recruited by [[the Doobie Brothers]] in April 1975, initially as a temporary replacement for their lead vocalist [[Tom Johnston (musician)|Tom Johnston]] after he became ill during a national tour. McDonald's work with the band proved so successful that they decided to retain him as a full-time member.

As a member of the Doobie Brothers, McDonald sang lead vocals on some of the band's best-known songs, such as "[[Real Love (Doobie Brothers song)|Real Love]]", "[[Takin' It to the Streets (song)|Takin' It to the Streets]]", "[[Little Darling (I Need You)]]", "[[It Keeps You Runnin']]", "[[Minute by Minute (The Doobie Brothers song)|Minute by Minute]]", and "[[What a Fool Believes]]" (which became a number-one single in the U.S. and earned him a 1980 [[Grammy Award for Song of the Year]] along with co-writer [[Kenny Loggins]]). 

At the same time, McDonald appeared as a session vocalist and keyboardist for various artists, including [[Christopher Cross]], [[Stephen Bishop (singer)|Stephen Bishop]], [[Jack Jones (American singer)|Jack Jones]], [[Bonnie Raitt]], the band [[Toto (band)|Toto]], and Kenny Loggins. McDonald co-wrote "[[You Belong to Me (Carly Simon song)|You Belong to Me]]" with [[Carly Simon]], which is on the Doobie Brothers' studio album ''[[Livin' on the Fault Line]]'' (1977).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/michael-mcdonald-mn0000459616/credits |publisher=AllMusic|title=Michael McDonald: Credits|access-date=February 12, 2016}}</ref>

McDonald has reunited as a guest performer with the Doobie Brothers several times since the band's initial dissolution in 1982.<ref name=dan/> He reteamed with them for the track "Don't Say Goodbye" on the band's thirteenth studio album, ''[[World Gone Crazy (The Doobie Brothers album)|World Gone Crazy]]'' (2010).<ref>{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r1951702 |pure_url=yes}}|title=World Gone Crazy Overview|work=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=September 30, 2010}}</ref> In March 2014, he reunited with the band to record a new album featuring the greatest hits of their 40-plus-year career. This project was completed in conjunction with [[Sony Music Nashville]]. On the album, McDonald shares lead vocals with [[Sara Evans]] for "What a Fool Believes", the duo [[Love and Theft (duo)|Love and Theft]] for "Takin' It to the Streets", and [[Amanda Sudano|Amanda Sudano-Ramirez]] for "You Belong to Me." The album titled ''[[Southbound (The Doobie Brothers album)|Southbound]]'' was released on November 4, 2014, as the Doobie Brothers' fourteenth studio album.

On November 5, 2014, McDonald and the Doobie Brothers were featured musical guests on the 47th annual [[Country Music Association Awards]] to celebrate the release of ''Southbound.'' They were joined by [[Hunter Hayes]], [[Jennifer Nettles]], and [[Hillary Scott]] in their performance of "[[Listen to the Music]]". At the end of the awards ceremony, they were also joined by host [[Brad Paisley]] for "Takin' It to the Streets".