Amy Holland

The first album by Amy, known at the time of this review as Michael McDonald's wife. Her father was an opera singer and her mother a country singer with 1940s hits. She and Michael had known each other since their teens. Here he wrote two songs and gave her full support as a performer, co-producing with Patrick Henderson, his collaborator in the Doobie Brothers and another musician from the Leon Russell circle.

Her appealing ‘girl next door’ cuteness is immediately evident in ‘How Do I Survive,’ a No. 22 American hit written by Paul Bliss, the British singer-songwriter who had emerged with the Doobies' support. Michael's care runs through the choices of Stevie Wonder and Tim Moore covers and a cast including Doobie members, Bill Payne and Nick DeCaro. Amy released a second album, On Your Every Word, in 1983, but after marrying Michael she mostly sang in his backing group. Only in 2008 did an independent label finally release a country-leaning comeback album.