Takin' It to the Streets (with Love and Theft)

This song was written by Doobie Brothers keyboard player and lead singer Michael McDonald, who joined the group when Doobie guitarist Tom Johnson fell ill in 1975. The words were partly inspired by a college essay McDonald's sister Maureen wrote, hence the line, "Take this message to my brother." The song is written from the perspective of someone growing up amid poverty and despair in the inner city, addressed to an audience that has no idea what it's like to live there ("you don't know my kind in your world"). McDonald fleshed out the lyric after a conversation with Maureen where they talked about how society was letting poor people fall through the cracks.

The chorus is almost a chant, with the group singing "takin' it to the streets" as Michael McDonald ad-libs underneath. This gives the song a church feel, which was intentional: McDonald thought the melody evoked gospel music, and wanted it to sound like a gospel song. This meant delivering a powerful message in the lyric and having lots of people sing on the chorus as the spirit moved them.

Michael McDonald got the idea for this song while driving to a Doobie Brothers concert in California, where he'd be playing with the band. The intro music came into his head, so when he got to the gig he quickly set up his piano and started working on the song. He chipped away at it until they had to start the concert, then kept working on it that night after the show. The lyrics he wrote later.