Text by Bruce Gallanther (DMG Newsletter for August 21st, 2026)
“Rock and Roll Doctor” by Little Feat from Feats Don’t Fail Me Now (released in 1974)
There was a woman in Georgia, didn’t feel just right
She had the fever all day and chills at night
Now things got worse, yes a serious bind
At times like this it takes a man with a style I cannot often find
A doctor of the heart and a doctor of mind
If you like country with a boogie beat, he’s the man to meet
If you like the sound of shufflin’ feet, he can’t be beat
If you wanna feel real nice, just ask the rock and roll doctor’s advice
It’s just a country town but patients come
From Mobile to Moline from miles around
Nagodoches to New Orleans
In beat-up old cars or in limousines
To meet the doctor of soul, he’s got his very own thing
Two degrees in be-bop, a PHD in swing
He’s the master of rhythm, he’s a rock and roll king, yeah
If you like country with a boogie beat, he’s the man to meet (he’s the man to meet)
If you like the sound of shufflin’ feet, he can’t be beat (I say he can’t be beat)
If you… if you wanna… if you wanna feel real nice, just ask the rock and roll doctor’s advice
Considering that most of us feel we are living in an ongoing nightmare under our current administration, I often search for music that makes me feel better than the average bear. Considering that I grew up in suburban Central Jersey (Linden), I have long felt an affinity for funk, soul & R&B, as well as all sorts of rock, folk, country, psych and prog. Growing up in the mid-1960’s, the radio and TV played pop music (first AM and then FM) of many different types, blending genres to keep folks groovin’ to the beat and the message.
Once I got to college (1972-1976), I started dancing and cutting loose more often. Although I nearly gave up on most commercial music, disco, lame fusion, and light jazz, I still liked to dance and nod my head to the beat or groove. Much of my favorite funk music was created in the 1970s, and I still go back to it often today. I am working on another mixtape and here is what’s included mostly from the seventies: Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield, Marvin Gaye, Little Feat, Grateful Dead (“Eyes of the World”), Funkadelic, the Meters, Earth, Wind and Fire, David Bowie (“Golden Years”), Talking Heads (from ‘Remain in Light’, 1980), Rufus… Little Feat and The Dead were and still are my fave party/groove bands in the 1970’s.
The first five Little Feat albums are all great, especially Dixie Chicken, Feats Don’t Fail Me Now, and The Last Records Album. As soon as I put any of their music on the stereo or on my phone, I feel better, an easy way to escape all of the BS surrounding us. Even after Lowell George (leader of Little Feat) left the band and passed away in 1979, the band continued to make good records and play great gigs. If you want to hear some great funky Feat, check out “Skin It Back” from the album Feats Don’t Fail Me Now.
“If you be Dixie Chicken, I’ll be Your Tennessee Lamb, and we can walk together down in Dixie Land”! A tasty toast to Little Feat! Music for your mind, your soul, and your tush!
