Michael McDonald's Wide Open Streaming on NPR Music's First Listen
By: Caryn Robbins Sep. 07, 2017
NPR Music's "First Listen" is exclusively streaming the new album Wide Open from Michael McDonald. The new LP marks his first new music in nearly a decade and is out September 15 via BMG. The record features special guests including Warren Haynes, Robben Ford, Marcus Miller and Branford Marsalis. View the album trailer a https://youtu.be/KOlnGSsD4jk. ListenHERE via NPR Music who describes "there's a profound sense of hindsight to Wide Open that moves with a tenderness that comes from age and newfound wonderment, even if McDonald's voice hasn't aged a day."
McDonald also recently celebrated the release of Wide Open with a performance for PBS' "Soundstage," scheduled to air this fall. He will kick off the second leg of his U.S. tour including dates at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, ACL Live in Austin and the closing set at the Treftles Stage at the Kaaboo Festival on release day. See below for a complete list of tour dates.
Wide Open follows a trio of albums of R&B and soul covers McDonald recorded for the fabled Motown label, the most recent being 2008's Soul Speak. Wide Open is McDonald's first album of original material in 17 years, comprised largely of material written over a number of years in-between projects and recorded in his Nashville studio with drummer Shannon Forrest (Faith Hill, Blake Shelton, Tim McGraw, Toto) and an extensive cast of Nashville session musicians.
McDonald also recently collaborated with bassist Thundercat and Kenny Loggins on the hit single "Show You The Way" which the trio performed on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." Watch/share the performance of the track from Thundercat's critically acclaimed new album Drunk at https://youtu.be/x8AgdI4eyFc. McDonald joined Thunrdercat during a surprise guest appearance at this year's Coachella, as well; the Los Angeles Times hailed McDonald's surprise appearance as one of the "10 best performances" at the festival, praising "McDonald's silky keys over Thundercat's undulating bass," while The Guardian called it "a perfect moment in a set that contained slick highs" and Billboard noted, "Who thought that in 2017 65-year old Doobie Brothers singer Michael McDonald would bring down the house at Coachella?" Watch/share the performance via Pitchfork at http://bit.ly/2pt2ito.
In addition to his work with Thundercat, McDonald was also recently joined by Solange Knowles, Allen Stone, Lawrence and members of Snarky Puppy and Vulfpeck during his set at the Okeechobee Music Fest.
With a career that encompasses five Grammys, numerous chart successes and personal and professional accolades, as well as collaborations with some of the world's most prominent artists, Michael McDonald remains an enduring force in popular music. Hailing from St. Louis, McDonald arrived in Los Angeles in the early 1970s, honing his talents as a studio musician before becoming an integral part of Steely Dan. In the mid-'70s McDonald was invited to join the Doobie Brothers as the band redefined their sound with McDonald serving as singer, keyboardist and songwriter on such Top 40 singles as "Takin' It To The Streets," "It Keeps You Runnin'," "Minute By Minute" and "What A Fool Believes." Throughout the '80s and '90s McDonald's solo career took off with a string of hits including "I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)," "Sweet Freedom," "On My Own" (with Patti LaBelle) and the Grammy-winning James Ingram duet "Yah Mo B There," plus he co-wrote the Van Halen hit "I'll Wait." McDonald has performed with a who's-who of critically acclaimed artists across a number of genres, including Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Elton John, Joni Mitchell, Vince Gill and Grizzly Bear.
MICHAEL MCDONALD LIVE
| September 15 |
Del Mar, CA
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Kaaboo
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| October 12 |
Carmel, IN
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The Palladium
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| October 13 |
Northfield, OH
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Hard Rock Live
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| October 15 |
New London, CT
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Garde Arts Center
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| October 17 |
Portland, ME
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State Theatre
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| October 19 |
Englewood, NJ
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Bergen Performing Arts Center
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| October 21 |
Clearwater, FL
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Clearwater Jazz Holiday at Coachman Park
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| October 22 |
Atlanta, GA
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Atlanta Symphony Hall
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| October 24 |
Durham, NC
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Durham Performing Arts Center
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| October 26 |
Lynn, MA
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Lynn Veteran's Memorial Auditorium
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| October 27 |
Philadelphia, PA
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Merriam Theatre
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| October 28 |
Washington, DC
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Warner Theatre
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| October 30 |
Nashville, TN
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Ryman Auditorium
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| November 2 |
Minneapolis, MN
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State Theatre
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| November 3 |
St. Louis, MO
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Peabody Opera House
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| November 4 |
Memphis, TN
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Orpheum Theatre
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| November 6 |
Austin, TX
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ACL Live at the Moody Theater
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| November 7 |
Fort Worth, TX
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Bass Performance Hall
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| November 16 |
Oakland, CA
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Fox Theater
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| November 17 |
Los Angeles, CA
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Orpheum Theatre
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| November 18 |
Rancho Cucamonga, CA
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Lewis Family Playhouse
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