Doobie Brothers Drummer Michael Hossack Dies at 65

Doobie Brothers drummer Michael Hossack, who played on such hits as “Listen to the Music,” “China Grove” and “Blackwater,” has died at the age of 65. Hossack, who had been battling cancer, passed away on Monday (March 12) at his home in Dubois, Wyoming.

Hossack joined The Doobie Brothers in 1971, becoming the second drummer in the group’s two-drummer lineup. He left the band in 1973 to form the band, Bonaroo, and went on to open his own recording studio. In 1987, Hossack re-joined The Doobie Brothers for a series of benefit concerts for Vietnam War veterans. He also contributed to the group’s recent albums, Cycles, Brotherhood and World Gone Crazy.

Doobie Brothers co-founder Tom Johnston praised Hossack as “an incredible musician.” He went on say, “Mike has always been a part of my musical life and the life of The Doobie Brothers. The last few years, he was brave and determined to keep on playing in the face of ill health, and I will always admire him for that.”

The Doobie Brothers’ Patrick Simmons, whose friendship with Hossack spanned 43 years, added, “We shared some wonderful adventures together, times I will never forget. Thanks for all those wonderful memories, Mike, and all the great music. We love you.”

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Eddie Van Halen Talks Smithsonian, Michael Jackson

Earlier this year, a replica of Eddie Van Halen’s “Frankenstein” guitar was donated to The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The guitar god recently talked to Smithsonian Magazine about how the guitar initially came about.

“The original Frankenstein was a result of me tinkering and experimenting with different elements of electric guitars that I liked,” he said. “I created an instrument that wasn’t offered as an ‘off the rack’ guitar by any manufacturer at the time.”

Although Van Halen still has the first Frankenstein guitar, he doesn’t tour with it anymore.

“I retired it from regular use. It took so much abuse from endless touring and recording; I wanted to pay some respect to it and let it survive and not let it get destroyed completely,” he said. “At the same time it became something so well known beyond my wildest dreams that it’s value made it a target for theft and I wanted to protect it. I still play it every now and then. It’s priceless to me.”

While the guitarist didn’t talk about Van Halen’s upcoming tour or album plans, he did discuss his favorite artistic collaboration.

“Michael Jackson’s ‘Beat It’ is a stand out for me,” he said. “Quincy Jones called me up and asked me to play on it. When I got there it took me 15 minutes to rearrange the song and I played two solos and told them they could pick the one they liked best. Then Michael walked in and said, ‘Wow! I really like that high fast stuff you do.’ It was a lot of fun to do. It’s crazy that something could take such a short amount of time and can grow into something beyond anything you could ever imagine.”

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