DOUG & THE SLUGS BIOGRAPHY
Tour Dates | Booking Information
Possibly no other band in Canadian history matches the presence and good-time feeling generated when listening to Doug and the Slugs. The brainchild of Vancouver's Doug Bennett, the Slugs were Simon Kendall on keyboards, guitarists John Burton and Richard Baker, drummer John Watson and Steve Bosley on bass. From their inception in '79, they quickly made a name for themselves on the west coast for their well-written but light-hearted approach to pop music. Bennett's witty presence and showmanship soon gained the attention of executives at Ritdong Records and they were signed to RCA soon thereafter.
Their debut was recorded in Mississauga in 1980 and COGNAC AND BOLOGNA was a fitting title, the album was a mix of witty satire and slick musicianship. Their whimsical attack consisted of the lead off single, "Too Bad". This was quickly followed by "Chinatown Calculation" and two serious, laid-back singles "To Be Laughing" and "Drifting Away". Their refinement but comical approach earned them a gold record. Meanwhile MuchMusic was relishing in the Slugs'often downright hilarious videos, broadening the group's appeal even more.
Their follow-up came in '81 with WRAP IT. Recorded in Vancouver, it was backed by the frantic-jive of "Dangerous", "Real Enough", complete with masterful acapella compliments of The Nylons and "Not On The Corner", a single about a guy with a bulge in his levi's and no one to help him out with his dilemna. Produced by Jim Vallance (Prism, Bryan Adams fame), WRAP IT showed an added guidance in the control room lacked by producing their first record themselves. Also noteable from the record were the quirky jazzed-up polka-beat "Wrong Kind of Right" and the AM geared "Partly From Pressure".
Next on the Slugs' agenda was MUSIC FOR THE HARD OF THINKING, which hit the shelves in September of '83. Masterful harmonies behind "Making It Work" and the slick hit "Who Knows How" solidified them as the country's number one band for just good times, playing non-stop for the better part of the next year all across Canada as well as in the States.
A greatest hits package was released in '85 called TEN BIG ONES. A curious marketing ploy, it also contained the "It's Alright Medley". POPOGANDA was released the next year and contained the hits "Day By Day" and "Love Shines", co-penned by Eddie Schwartz. Self-produced with a hand from Gene Martynec, who'd worked with such Canadian heavyweights as Queen City Kids and Rough Trade, the record showed Bennett and Kendall had the confidence to develop their own sound again, and also featured "Dancing On The Powerlines", written by Jim Foster.
The group was put on brief hiatus while Bennett finished up ANIMATO, his first solo venture. Released in July of '88, it in all honesty could have passed a Slugs product. Though nothing ground-breaking, it did produce "It's Got To Be Monday". Partly because of this, and partly because of outside commitments, the group took nearly two years again to record their next record. With Brian MacLeod of Headpins and Chilliwack fame as producer, TOMCAT PROWL turned out to be one of the group's best efforts. A maturity was showing in their work, evidenced by the synthesizers in the title-track and hard-edged pop sensibility of "Powerful Thing". Also noteable were the ballad "Walkaway" and "Take My Breath Away".
The Slugs released TALES FROM A TERMINAL CITY in '90. Along with the title track, other noteable cuts were "You're Going To Leave Me", "Stand Up" and "Black Widow". Unfortunately, changes in radio formats got TC lost in the barrage of the mediocre material on the airwaves at the time, though the album still remains as one of their best by the die-hard fans. The group came back with a greatest hits package entitled SLUGCOLOGY 101 in '92. A crash course in good times and a carefree attitude, it's a retrospective of the group's six records together as well as their '84 version of "White Christmas", previously unavailable on lp. Just in time for the Christmas rush that same year.
Outside interests, including Bennett's Tomcat Records, kept Doug and the Slugs from touring full-time or recording at all for awhile. However a revised version of the band began hitting the road on a regular basis again in the mid '90's. In 1999 The Norm MacDonald Show aired on ABC, using "Too Bad" as their theme song.
Canada lost arguably our best singing comic, and most original performers on October 16, 2004 when Doug Bennett passed away in a Calgary hospital. He was admitted a week earlier and slipped into a coma, where he remained on life support until falling victim to complications from a long-standing heart ailment. Fine musicianship always ran through the band, regardless of who the other Slugs have been. But it was the live presence that kept Doug & The Slugs at the cream of the Canadian music crop for nearly three decades. Their no-nonsense, 'gotta make my feet move' party atmosphere put them above the rest. There was never been anyone better.
And now they are back! The five original members of the band have regrouped with new singer Ted Okos. You won't want to miss their infectiously exuberant show when they come to your town!
