Published September 15, 2005

Doobie Brothers drummer Keith Knudsen passed away last February, but the
serenity he and his wife sought lives on
at the Grace Ranch.

When Keith Knudsen and his wife Kate first debated a move from Los Angeles to Sonoma, Doobie Brothers road manager Bruce Cohn tried to talk them out of it. “Bruce said, ‘It’s really slow up here. I don’t think you’d like it,’” Kate Knudsen said. “And we said, ‘Bruce, we want slow.”

And slow is what the Knudsen’s got — particularly after they moved into the Grace Ranch, an 8 1/4-acre equestrian ranch nestled into the side of Sonoma Mountain north of Glen Ellen.

The place provided a refuge from the hectic, jet-setting lives both Knudsens led — Keith as a touring rock and roller, and Kate as an accessory designer for European fashion designer Evita Peroni. “This is an amazing piece of property,” Kate said. “To be able to come to this, it was better than vacation.”

What’s so amazing? First and foremost is the incredible view of the Mayacamas range, visible from everywhere on the property. The three-bedroom main residence is perched atop a hillside, and there’s a feeling of being quietly and cozily ensconced high up in the forest.

Sitting by the swimming pool, you’d never realize that the house is just one building in a fully-functioning equestrian ranch. At varying elevations along the terraced hillside sit a two-bedroom guest cottage; a professional office with partial kitchen and bath; a five-stall converted barn with a workshop, billiards room, and studio apartment (Keith converted one of the stalls into a drum-practice room — “He could make all the noise he wanted,” Kate said); an eight-stall barn with tack room and hayloft; a seven-horse covered paddock; and a 14,000-square-foot covered, lit, and sprinklered dressage arena.

“In most horse properties, you walk out the door, it’s flat, and you’re with the horses,” Kate Knudsen said, explaining that the sloping nature of the property provided a different focus. “It’s very unique.”
She said that her husband had been an excellent rider with an amazing way with the four horses he had on the property. Pictures of the drummer with the horses — or dressed as a cowboy with six-guns blazing as a child — are displayed throughout the ranch.
“This was Keith’s dream come true. He pretty much accomplished everything he wanted to do with music. I told him he was born in the wrong era — he was a cowboy.”
One of nicest places on the property is in the little yard alongside the main residence. A hammock rests between the oak trees — Keith liked to relax there with their Rottweiler, Lily — and wind chimes gently tinkle in the breeze.

Kate explained that the area has its own microclimate.
“It’s always a tiny bit cooler in the summer, and a tiny bit warmer in the winter,” she said. “It’s really peaceful — peaceful, peaceful place.”