Art teacher Todd Little has recently been listening to “Black Water” by the Doobie Brothers.
“I don’t know if I could pinpoint one song, but it would be kind of an easy listening, soft rock kind of sound,” Little said. “For instance, what’s playing on my computer is the Doobie Brothers, ‘Black Water’. But it can be anything from Creedence Clearwater Revival or Van Morrison.”
The song “Black Water” is considered southern rock and folk music. It came out in 1974 as the final song on the Doobie Brother’s album “What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits.” Little is familiar with the works of the Doobie Brothers, having listened to them since a very young age.
“This is my roots. This is what I listened to as a youngster,” Little said. “Once I kind of found [this genre of music], I stayed with this.”
The lyrics tell a story of how a band from the bay area of California dreams of an imagined American South. A South where you can drift down the Mississippi River and listen to “some funky dixieland.”
Lead singer Patrick Simmons was a folk and bluegrass singer before becoming a member of the band. “Black Water” was his glamorized version of New Orleans and “Huckleberry Finn.”
“What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits” was released on February 1, 1974. A year later the album worked its way up to no. 4 on the album chart for the year 1975. It held many hits that are still played today, with “Black Water” being one of them.
“Black Water” can be found on Apple Music, Spotify, and Amazon Music.