Minute by Minute (The Doobie Brothers song)

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"Minute by Minute"
The doobie brothers-minute by minute s.jpg
Single by the Doobie Brothers
from the album Minute by Minute
B-side "Sweet Feelin'"
ReleasedApril 25, 1979
Recorded1978
Studio Warner Bros. Studios, North Hollywood, CA
Genre Pop rock, soft rock, R&B
Length3:26
Label Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s) Michael McDonald, Lester Abrams
Producer(s) Ted Templeman
The Doobie Brothers singles chronology
"What a Fool Believes"
(1979)		"Minute by Minute"
(1979)		"Dependin' on You"
(1979)
Music video
"Minute by Minute" on YouTube

"Minute by Minute" is a song written by Michael McDonald and Lester Abrams originally released by the Doobie Brothers on their 1978 album Minute by Minute . The single was released in April 1979, and reached number 14 on June 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. [1] It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Song of the Year, but lost out to the Doobie Brothers' own "What a Fool Believes". "Minute by Minute" did win a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance By A Duo, Group Or Chorus at the 22nd Annual Grammy Awards. [2]

Contents

Lyrics and music

AllMusic critic Matthew Greenwald describes "Minute by Minute" as one of the songs that reflects the Doobie Brothers' transformation to "a light, soul-oriented outfit." [3] Keyboards are more prominent in the song than in some of the Doobie Brothers' earlier hits. [4] [5] Greenwald praises the "simple and literate" lyrics and notes possible influence from Booker T. & the M.G.'s in the music. [3] In their book Inside the Hits, authors Wayne Wadhams, David Nathan, and Susan Lindsay describe the tempo as a "medium shuffle". [6] AXS contributor Bill Craig describes the song as a soulful, mid-tempo, piano-driven song that he compares to Motown songs. [7] Most of "Minute by Minute" is in the key of C major, but the bridge is in E minor and the last refrains are in G major. [6]

Reception

The New Rolling Stone Album Guide praises McDonald's "suave vocal mastery" on the song. [8] Billboard described the vocal performance as "soulful." [9] Billboard described the song as an "amalgam of rock and jazz styles with swaying rhythms and catchy melodies." [9] Cash Box said that it utilizes the band's "identifiable bass -conga rhythm sound" and has a "nice organ-guitar fade-in." [10] Record World called it a "solid group effort with strong blues flavor." [11] Spin 's Rich Stim describes the sound of the song as "phlegmatic". [12] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Michael Gallucci rated "Minute by Minute" as the Doobie Brothers 7th greatest song, calling it "laid-back, blue-eyed soul at its best" and praising McDonald's vocal and organ performances. [13]

"Minute by Minute" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Song of the Year but lost to the Doobie Brothers' prior single, "What a Fool Believes". [14] Co-writer Michael McDonald was surprised by the song's success after a friend had told him that the song "just doesn't have it." [15] Craig rated it as the Doobie Brothers' 6th greatest song. [7]

Chart performance

In the US, "Minute by Minute" was the follow-up single to their number 1 hit "What a Fool Believes". "Minute by Minute" did not repeat its predecessor's success, but reached the Top 20, peaking at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. [1] It also reached number 74 on Billboard's R&B singles chart [1] as well as number 13 on the Adult Contemporary chart. [16]

The song also had some chart success outside the US, reaching number 34 in New Zealand and 47 in the UK. [17] [18]

Chart history

The Doobie Brothers
Chart (1979)Peak
position
Canada RPM Top Singles17
New Zealand [19] 34
UK Singles (Official Charts Company) [20] 47
US Billboard Hot 100 [21] 14
US Billboard Adult Contemporary 13
US Billboard R&B 74
US Cash Box Top 100 [22] 13
Peabo Bryson
Chart (1980)Peak
position
US Billboard R&B 12

Personnel

Additional Personnel

Production

Other appearances

"Minute by Minute" has appeared on a number of Doobie Brothers' compilation albums since its initial release. It was included on Best of the Doobies, Vol. 2 in 1981, Greatest Hits in 2001 and The Very Best of the Doobie Brothers in 2007. [3] It has also appeared on a number of live albums, including Farewell Tour in 1983, The Best of the Doobie Brothers Live in 1999 and Live at the Greek Theatre 1982 in 2011. [3] On July 30, 1979, the Doobie Brothers performed "Minute by Minute" on the Dinah! show. [24]

Cover versions

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Minute by Minute singles: Charts and Awards". AllMusic . Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  2. ↑ https://www.grammy.com/artists/doobie-brothers/16310
  3. 1 2 3 4 Greenwald, M. "Minute by Minute". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  4. ↑ Rideout, E. (2010). Keyboard Presents: Classic Rock. Hal Leonard. p.  96. ISBN   978-0-87930-952-7.
  5. ↑ Grien, P. (July 14, 1979). "Talent in Action: Doobie Brothers, Roger Voudouris". p. 27. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  6. 1 2 Wadhams, W.; Nathan, D. & Lindsay, S.G. (2001). Inside the Hits. Berklee Press. pp. 23, 399–400. ISBN   978-0-634-01430-7.
  7. 1 2 Craig, Bill. "Top 10 best The Doobie Brothers songs". AXS. Retrieved 2017-05-14.
  8. ↑ Sisario, B.; et al. (2004). Brackett, N.; Hoard, C.D. (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon and Schuster. pp.  253–254. ISBN   978-0-7432-0169-8.
  9. 1 2 "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. May 12, 1979. p. 79. Retrieved 2020-07-08.
  10. ↑ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. May 12, 1979. p. 17. Retrieved 2022-01-01.
  11. ↑ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. May 12, 1979. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-02-11.
  12. ↑ Stim, R. (September 1989). "The Doobie Brothers: Cycles". Spin . p. 90. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  13. ↑ Gallucci, Michael (February 12, 2013). "Top 10 Doobie Brothers songs". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 2022-06-15.
  14. ↑ "Grammy Awards 1980". Awards and Shows. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  15. ↑ Morse, T. (1998). Classic rock stories: the stories behind the greatest songs of all time. MacMillan. p. 20. ISBN   978-0-312-18067-6.
  16. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 75.
  17. ↑ "The Doobie Brothers – Minute by Minute". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  18. ↑ "Doobie Brothers". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  19. ↑ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 1979-05-15. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  20. ↑ "Official Charts". Official Charts . 14 July 1979. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  21. ↑ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN   0-89820-089-X
  22. ↑ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending June 23, 1979". Archived from the original on 2011-02-05. Retrieved 2018-04-03. Cash Box magazine.
  23. 1 2 3 "Keith Knudsen of The Doobie Brothers: Prepared, Perfect". October 8, 2010.
  24. ↑ Bego, M. (2005). Jackson Browne: His Life and Music. Citadel Press. pp. 112–113. ISBN   978-0-8065-2642-3.
  25. 1 2 "Helen Reddy–Reddy". Billboard . June 2, 1979. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  26. ↑ Donovan, C. "Reddy". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  27. ↑ Planer, L. "Anthology". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  28. ↑ "allmusic". AllMusic .
  29. ↑ Grey, H. (October 1994). "Currents". JazzTimes . p. 50. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
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