An Evening of Holiday & Hits, December 19th
Singer/songwriter Michael McDonald has one of the most
recognized voices in popular music. He is widely regarded as one of the
greatest of America’s blue-eyed soul men. With a distinctively soulful sound, he
has won five Grammys. On December 19th, he will be taking it to the
stage with hits and holiday favorites at The Thrasher-Horne Center.
Steely Dan
In the 1970s, McDonald
became a background singer and keyboardist on the Steely Dan albums Katy
Lied, Aja,
The Royal Scam and
Gaucho. He also toured with the band.
Throughout his career, he has continued to work on projects with Donald Fagen
and Walter Becker of Steely Dan.
The Doobie Brothers
In seven years with the Doobie Brothers, McDonald
recorded several big hits including It
Keeps You Runnin’, Takin' It to the Streets, and What a Fool Believes, for which he and co-writer Kenny Loggins were
awarded a Grammy. Since embarking on a solo career in the 1980s, he has
continued to work occasionally with The Doobie Brothers. The band’s 2014
country album, Southbound, features
McDonald on several songs.
Going Solo
McDonald’s first solo album, If That's What It Takes, was released in 1982.
Since then, he has recorded many more albums in an astonishing variety of musical
genres. His albums include Sweet Freedom,
Take It To Heart, In The Spirit, and Blue Obsession.
McDonald is a remarkably versatile musician, and he has collaborated
with a wide range of artists including Aretha Franklin, Van Halen, The Winans,
and many others. He recorded On My Own
as a duet with Patti LaBelle. That song made it to the top of the charts in
1986. He teamed up with James Ingram on Ya
Mo B There, another hit. Yet another hit was You Belong to Me which he co-wrote with Carly Simon.
In 1999, McDonald recorded Eyes of a Child, a comedic ballad for the movie South Park:
Bigger, Longer & Uncut. He was nominated for two Grammys in 2003 for
his album Motown, which was a tribute to the Motown sound. In 2006, he
toured with Steely Dan. In 2008, he released Soul Speak, an album of
soul-inspired songs ranging from Dionne Warwick's Walk On By to Stevie Wonder's Living
For The City.
The Voice
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| The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) recently presented Michael McDonald with a special Gold & Platinum Award celebrating more than 26 million RIAA album and song certifications. |
In an interview with The Chicago Tribune, McDonald
said he developed his vocal style in part to preserve his voice. "I played
so many clubs growing up, and back in that period, in the '60s, we'd play like
four, five sets a night. During those years, what I really learned to do was
preserve my voice, and part of that morphed into the style of singing that I do
today.”
Jonathan Wingate of Performing Musician also asked
McDonald about his unique style. “Like most singers, I started out emulating my
favorite vocalists before eventually developing my own style. I like people
that kind of haphazardly develop a whole new style of music, like the Beatles
and the Stones. So many musicians really just started off with the most
innocent of motives to play Chuck Berry or Smokey Robinson songs and they get
it wrong, but in a delightful way. You discover what it is you have to offer by
trying to be someone else,” he said
“I was always trying to be Ray Charles from the time I
was way too young. My voice had just broken, and I couldn’t wait to sound like
I was 40 years old and black,” McDonald continued. “The older I got, the more I
liked the sound of my voice. I talked to Ray a few years before he passed away
and he mentioned that he sang all of his stuff in the same keys that he sang when
he was in his 20s, and that was inspiring to me.”
Parodies, Impersonations, and Yacht Rock
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| From left, Michael McDonald, Justin Timberlake, Jimmy Fallon. |
McDonald has been impersonated and depicted in parody
many times and he takes it all in stride. He joined Jimmy Fallon and Justin
Timberlake for a hilarious rendition of Row, Row, Row Your Boat on Late Night.
Fallon and Timberlake had white, combed-back wigs and goatees to match
McDonald's.
A fictionalized version of McDonald is prominently
featured in episodes of Yacht Rock, a
YouTube parody series. McDonald gets a kick out of it all. "It definitely
made me laugh, and the first time I saw it, I thought it was hysterical,"
McDonald said of the shows.
Doctor Michael McDonald
At the Berklee College of Music’s 2011 commencement,
McDonald was presented with an honorary Doctor of Music degree. After the
commencement, he said, "To be among this graduating class, to see these
kids, and to perform last night with such brilliant young musicians who have
such finesse beyond their years is one of the most inspirational moments of my
entire career. I want to thank Berklee for inspiring me in a way that I think
will last me the rest of my life."
Charitable Endeavors
Michael McDonald has lent
his talents and energies to a long list of charitable causes throughout his
career, and he has contributed an overwhelming amount to numerous benevolent
enterprises. In 2005, McDonald was honored with the prestigious ASCAP Harry
Chapin Humanitarian Award for both his musical career and his charitable
endeavors. McDonald continues his fundraising efforts actively working with World
Hunger Year’s Artists Against Hunger & Poverty program.
This Christmas
In 2009, McDonald released This Christmas, his third holiday album.
The collection includes White Christmas,
I’ll be Home for Christmas, and other
traditional songs as well as a few songs that are less familiar.
Join Michael McDonald for This Christmas: An Evening of Holiday & Hits this December. Tickets are on sale now! A
limited number of VIP packages are available, including a Meet & Greet with
Michael, an intimate pre-show performance, a great seat, and much more.
Spread the word about one of Northeast Florida’s best
kept secrets! Tell your family and friends about the Thrasher-Horne Center.
Share this article with them. They will appreciate learning about what they
have been missing. We appreciate you taking the time to visit us. If you have a
comment about this article, leave it in the comment section below.
In this article, I’ve written about some of the
highlights of Michael McDonald’s illustrious career as a singer and songwriter.
He will be performing hits and holiday classics at The Thrasher-Horne Center on
December 19th. It promises to be a holiday event that the whole
family will enjoy. Tell your friends and Google Plus this post. Tickets are on sale now on the Thrasher-Horne Center’s website.
This is going to be a great show to take in during the holiday season!
ReplyDeleteI clearly remember Michael McDonald's days with the Doobie Brothers - still listen to his music today. This is going to be a great concert and it will be during the holidays as well - perfect.
ReplyDeleteI knew Micheal McDonald was a singing sensation, I just never realized how diverse his background in the industry really was.
ReplyDeleteMichael McDonald has an unique and memorable voice - should be a fantastic show.
ReplyDelete