If you love "blue-eyed soul" then the Beacon Theatre has a night coming up you won't want to miss. Two of the most distinctive voices in soulful rock are going to perform together in September: Michael McDonald and Boz Scaggs.
Michael McDonald started performing with local groups in his home state of Missouri in the late 60s and once he gained a little notoriety, he moved to Los Angeles. Once he started doing back-up vocals for Steely Dan's Katy Lied in 1975, he gained major attention for his husky, raw voice. He joined them again in 1976 for The Royal Scam and performed on hits "Peg" and "I Got the News" on Aja. He also toured with them during the early 70s, playing keyboard and singing background vocals. When the Doobie Brother's lead singer, Tom Johnston, fell ill during a tour, they asked Michael to fill in. He became so popular that they asked him to stay on as permanent member. They created some award-winning, hitmaking material together: "Minute by Minute," "What a Fool Believes," "Takin' it to the Streets," "It Keeps you Runnin'" and "Little Darlin'". The catchy, lyrical masterpiece "What a Fool Believes" garnered them a Grammy for "Record of the Year" in 1978. During this time, McDonald was also playing piano and doing back-up vocals for recording sessions with musical artists Kenny Loggins, Christopher Cross, Toto and Bonnie Raitt. He went solo in the early 80s and had several hits, "I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)", #1 hit "On My Own" with Patti Labelle, and Grammy-winning "Yah Mo B There," a duet with James Ingram. In 2003, he earned two Grammy nominations for his album, Motown, a tribute to Motown songs, which his blues-soaked voice suited. He's performed many times with the Doobie Brothers since they disbanded in 1982 and in 2006 appeared on Steely Dan's tour as the opening act and as part of the band. He's done many wonderful collaborations and the upcoming one with Boz Scaggs should prove to be one to remember.
Learning to play the guitar at 12 years old and playing with Steve Miller's band in 1959, William Royce Scaggs, better known as Boz Scaggs, had an early love of music. When he was a little older, after short stints with rhythm and blues bands, he started touring solo in Sweden and released an unsuccessful album, Boz, then performed with some local bands in London. He found his niche again when he joined up with the fun-spirited Steve Miller band again in 1967, performing on their albums Children of the Future and Sailor. He got noticed and was snatched up by Atlantic Records in 1968. His first album with them, Boz Scaggs, had moderate success, as did his albums with Columbia Records. However, in 1976 he hit the winning formula with Silk Degrees. Guys who would later form Toto were his session musicians. The album reached #2 on US charts and #1 on 
several international charts. The album spawned the hits "Lido Shuffle," "Lowdown," and "What Can I Say". His following album, Down Two Then Left, did well, but wasn't as commercially successful as Silk Degrees. His 1980 release, Middle Man, had two hits, "JoJo" and "Breakdown Dead Ahead". In the early 80s, he also had hits "Miss Sun" and "Look What You've Done to Me" from the Urban Cowboy soundtrack. Boz took a hiatus from music and didn't have
another album until 1988, Other Roads. Touring sporadically since the late 80s and during the 90s, he opened a nightclub in San Francisco, Slim's, which he still co-owns. In 2003, he did an album of jazz standards, But Beautiful, that went straight to the top of the jazz charts. Though pretty much out of the music biz during the 2000's, he started touring again in 2008 and 2009. Thank goodness he will be gracing the stage of the Beacon on September 19 and what an epic night that will be: two powerful soul voices that have made an indelible stamp on music history. It promises to be a legendary night. For more info, go to: www.beacontheatre.com.
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