The Rock and Roll Report Artist of The Week is Doobie Whitehorn
November 16, 2009 by
Shaz
Doobie
is the former Bass Player of 80’s bands Counterfeit and John Rundle
& The Maulers and also became half of the successful Fred &
Doobie project. He was then hand picked and persuaded by Midnight Oils
ex Manager and the Producer of The Jac Dalton Band to become their Lead
Guitarist and is a current member of the in demand Boris Loves to
Boogie playing over 200 shows a year.
Being talked into doing this album wasn’t hard (over a couple of
bourbons with a young metal band) and this seemed like a reasonable
request, but to make it a bit more challenging Doobie decided to play
everything himself and record it in his own studio while it was still
being built. The result will be his first Solo album and the first
released material with Doobie as the only musician.
Thanks should go to friends Rob Vorell from Derringers Music and
master musician Darren Mullan for their wisdom and support, Andy
Griffiths from Frets and Sticks Music and Daniel Hughes for use of
their personal kits and to Kaye and Jac Dalton for the loan of assorted
guitars and basses.
Today I would like thank Doobie Whitehorn for taking some time out to do this for us his Fans
Welcome Doobie and before we start I just wanted to say Welcome to The Rock and Roll Report,We Love Your Tunes.
Shaz: So your new Album “Touché” has just been released?
Doobie: Yeh, it’s my first ever Solo Album. I heard Mike
Oldfield’s “Tubular Bells” when I was a kid and just couldn’t believe
that one guy played every instrument on it so it was something I just
had to try one day. So you could say it’s been planned for a long time
and when the opportunity came up I grabbed it and just ran with it.
Shaz: Could you please list the instruments you ended up playing on “Touché”.
Doobie: All vocals, guitars, bass, drums, percussion, piano,
mandolin, banjo mandolin, piano accordion and used a keyboard for any
brass or stings that are on it.
Shaz: What can you tell me about your instruments? (i.e.,
Are you subject to brand loyalty or will you play with whatever’s
available? What made you choose the instruments you have now? Was it
cost or was it a style/mode /brand/color preference?
Doobie: My favourite guitar right now is a 1974 Gibson Marauder.
I’ve had this guitar for years but kind of rediscovered it after a bad
car smash (not my fault mind you) and it was comfortable to have around
my neck because it’s a reasonably light instrument. It has a unique
tone that’s different to any other Gibson and you can really get it to
bare it’s teeth and bite.
Shaz: What genre of music do you consider your work to be and who are your major influences?
Doobie: JustRock. The new Album ( Touché ) has a fairly broad
musical spectrum to it with influences probably from Zeppelin to The
Beatles to The Angels, all the stuff I grew up with, there’s even a
song on it called “Wind It Up” that feels to me like it has a Little
Feet style swing to it. I also spent allot of time listening to
different producers and their techniques as I was after a big fat
overproduced sound but with a 70’s & 80’s looseness to it so it
gave it a bit of life.
Shaz: Are you a member of any music organizations?
Doobie: Yeh a few little known ones like, The I want my life to
be fun if that’s ok with you Guild, The unofficial church of the sweaty
guitarist and The society for asking why it takes so long for agents
to pay the bands.
Shaz: Where have you performed? What are your favorite and least favorite venues? What are your touring and recording plans?
Doobie: I’ve played all over Australia in all sorts of venues
from pubs to concert venues but my favourite gigs are the unusual ones
that pop up. Like I got flown to Hamilton Island for 4 days to play
just one night on a big stage they’d set up on the beach with Pyro’s,
bonfires and limbo contests all around, it was very cool. As for
touring I’ll go anywhere anyone wants me, I love it. The recording
plans depend on how this Album goes, if it seems to be working and
people are liking the concept of this Album then I’ll get on with a
follow up otherwise I might just get together with some other Muso’s
and do another Band one. It’s pretty easy for me as I own a studio so I
can virtually do what I want when I want to.
Shaz: Who is it that sits down and writes your songs? Or is this a joint effort….
Doobie: This Album was all me but previous ones I’ve
collaborated on as well as helping other artists write for their
Albums. I’ve also written soundtracks for a few films and documentaries
but most of them have been solo efforts.
Shaz: Could you briefly describe the music-making process
Doobie: If only there was an easy recipe for this I’d bottle it
and be rich. Songs can come from anywhere, no-one really knows what
triggers the ideas. They can start with a riff, a lyric or even a drum
rhythm. For me the process after the initial song is written starts
with me programming a rough sequence on a keyboard so I can play with
the feel of the song a bit. Then I’ll go into the studio and record a
click track as a timing guide. I’ll then lay down a rhythm guitar and
guide vocal before the real fun starts. I pull the drum kit out and
bash away then play with some bass lines. After that it’s just a matter
of recording layer after layer of guitars, piano, mandolin or whatever
the song needs. The guide vocals are then replaced and harmonies put on
and the very last thing I record is any percussion like Tamborine or
Cowbell as these can be used to really lift parts of the songs that
seem to drag a little. Then you go and hire a psychiatrist to help you
get through the mental fatigue of trying to mix down a complete Album
and once that’s done take it away for mastering by someone with a fresh
set of ears and it’s complete.
Shaz: How has your music evolved since you first began playing music?
Doobie: Really it’s more than just your music that evolves. The
longer you do it the more contacts you make and the more you understand
the industry. You really want different parts of the industry to help
in different ways as your evolving as an artist. Starting out your
grasping for anything that will help propel you to some sort of stardom
without really understanding what your doing but that’s ok, it’s all
part of the learning curve and it works. You kind of need that so as
you progress as an artist you can take that experience and put yourself
in front of the right people at the right time to benefit the artist
you’ve become as well as trying to control the pace of your career as
much as you can so you can handle it and not burn out either mentally
or artistically.
Shaz: What has been your biggest challenge?
Doobie: The biggest challenge of my career and life happened
when only about a month short of finishing this Album I was in a near
fatal high speed head on crash. It wasn’t just the physical
rehabilitation but mentally getting back on track and getting motivated
to finish the project and build up the momentum again after it had been
literally stopped dead.
Shaz: Well we are all stoked you pulled through it and came out Rocking…..well done doll….
Shaz: So, how would playing in the Australia (where you are from) differ from playing somewhere like the USA ?
Doobie: The sheer size of the market there is huge compared to Australia.
Shaz: What are your thoughts on rock and roll, and how would you define it?
Doobie: It’s the most fun you can have while fondling a piece of
timber and knowing people pay to watch you do it and take photo’s. I
bet that statement comes back to bite me one day.
Shaz: Which of your songs are you most proud of and why?
Doobie: “The One” & “I’m Gone” because of their arrangements
and probably “Comfort Zone” because I took one verse and one chorus,
put a repetitive riff behind it and made it work as a song.
Shaz: What is life like as a musician in the age of the Internet?
Doobie: The good thing is it’s taken your audience from being
just the boys down at the local pub to a global marketplace and you can
network with other industry people worldwide. The bad thing is you need
to wade through all the crap out there to make that decent network of
people that can all work with and help each other.
Shaz: Whom and what inspires you, musically and otherwise?
Doobie: Anyone with talent whether it be natural or worked hard
to obtain, good people and people with the strength to overcome
adversity.
Thank you Doobie this has been so awesome and it always rocks to
catch up with you…….. We hope to see you Rocking It Live someday
soon!!!!
Hugs Shaz (On behalf of The Rock and Roll Report)