What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits

What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits is the fourth studio album by American rock band The Doobie Brothers. The album was released on February 1, 1974, by Warner Bros. Records.

Recording and content
Tom Johnston's "Another Park, Another Sunday" was chosen to be the album's first single. "It's about losing a girl," stated Johnston. "I wrote the chords and played it on acoustic, and then Ted [Templeman] had some ideas for it, like running the guitars through Leslie speakers." The song did moderately well on the charts, peaking at #32.

The second single released was "Eyes of Silver", another Johnston penned tune. According to him, "Wordwise, that one really isn't that spectacular. I wrote them at the last minute." That song didn't have much success on the charts either. Grasping for chart action, Warner Brothers re-released the band's first single, "Nobody". This release was soon overshadowed when radio stations discovered "Black Water". Other stations joined in and the song was officially released as a single that went on to sell over a million copies and became the Doobie Brothers' first #1 hit. "Black Water" had been featured as the B-side of "Another Park, Another Sunday" eight months earlier.

Artwork
The unusual lettering on the album cover was suggested by drummer John Hartman after visiting his high school alma mater, J.E.B. Stuart in Falls Church, Virginia. The School's newspaper, Raiders Digest, had just changed its masthead to include those stylized fonts. The cover photo is by Dan Fong, their touring "Media Coordinator". The cover photo was taken at a live concert on December 4, 1973, at E.A. Diddle Arena, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Kentucky. He also did the cover photo for their album Takin' It to the Streets.

Personnel
The Doobie Brothers:
 * Tom Johnston – guitars, vocals
 * Patrick Simmons – guitar, vocals
 * Tiran Porter – bass, vocals
 * John (Little John) Hartman – drums
 * Michael Hossack – drums

Additional Musicians:
 * Keith Knudsen – backing vocals
 * Jeff "Skunk" Baxter – guitar, pedal steel guitar
 * James Booker – piano on "Down In The Track"
 * Arlo Guthrie – autoharp, harmonica
 * Eddie Guzman – conga, timbales, and other percussion instruments
 * Jack Hale – trombone
 * Milt Holland – tabla, marimba, pandeiro, and other percussion instruments
 * Wayne Jackson – trumpet
 * Andrew Love – tenor saxophone
 * James Mitchell – baritone saxophone
 * Novi Novog – viola on "Black Water"
 * Bill Payne – keyboards
 * Ted Templeman – percussion

Production

 * Producer: Ted Templeman
 * Production Coordination: Benita Brazier, The Doobie Brothers
 * Engineer: Lee Herschberg, Donn Landee
 * Mastering: Lee Herschberg
 * Horn Arrangements: Andrew Love, The Memphis Horns, Wayne Jackson
 * Cover Design: Chas Barbour
 * Art Direction: Chas Barbour
 * Photography: Dan Fong

Charts
Album

Singles