Thoughtful, intelligent lyrics in the style of Gordon Lightfoot and John Prine, memorable melodies, a warm, engaging acoustic guitar style and smooth, rich vocals reminiscent of John Denver. That's the formula for truly great acoustic folk music - that's Doug Spears. A singer-songwriter free from the brooding introspection and self indulgence that marks so much of the genre, Doug has received well-deserved recognition in established festivals, folk venues and song writing competitions throughout Florida, Georgia, Texas, Colorado and California. Doug's songs tell engaging stories drawn from his personal experiences and his fourth generation Florida heritage. With well-crafted lyrics and musical styles mixing elements of Americana, bluegrass and acoustic folk he leads you through interesting places, faces and emotions, reviving old memories like the flashback brought on by a familiar fragrance.
More than thirty years ago a song writing mentor and friend told Doug, "write about what you know about." Good advise. Doug Spears' songs tell stories about people, places and experiences drawn from his past and his fourth generation Florida heritage. Covering the gamut from historically based tunes like "Teppintine" and "A Mother's Tears," to contemporary favorites like "Annie's Chairs" and "This Old House," to dedicated works about people from his past like "That Old Songwriter's Gone" written in memory of song writing great Mickey Newbury, Doug's songs lead you through familiar places, faces and emotions revealing new insights and reviving old memories.
Born in Leesburg, Florida, Doug began playing the guitar and writing songs in the early 1970's. Inspired by the songs of Mickey Newbury, Gordon Lightfoot, Harry Chapin and other great folk writers of the era, Doug's writing style has evolved and matured to earn him consistent recognition as one of the most talented song smiths in Florida. In 1997 Doug's song "Banks of the Old St. John's" earned him the Will McLean Award for best new song about Florida's people, places or events. In that same competition two of Doug's other songs, "Teppintine"and "Steam Train" were selected among the top ten. In preparation for the Will McLean Festival that year Doug was interviewed by Cathy DeWitt on WUFT- FM in Gainesville and performed "Banks of the Old St. John's" and "Teppintine" as part of the program. In both 1998 and 2000 he was one of twenty finalists in the South Florida Folk Festival's national singer-songwriter competition, chosen out of hundreds of songwriters submitting material. Similarly, he was one of six finalists in the 2000 Suwannee Springfest national song writing competition.
Warmly received by folk music lovers throughout Florida, Doug has appeared at the South Florida Folk Festival, Suwannee Springfest, the Will McLean Folk Festival and the Gamble Rogers Folk Festival, as well as countless folk and acoustic music venues around Florida, Georgia and California. He has shared his songs on stages in Colorado during the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival and in Texas during the Kerrville Folk Festival. In the central Florida area he has performed in the Langford Park concert series and the Leu Gardens concert series sponsored by Central Florida Folk. In 1997 Doug hosted a Winter Park concert series that first introduced many nationally acclaimed singer / songwriters to the central Florida music community. As part of that series, Doug opened for nationally touring folk artists, including Pierce Pettis, Ellis Paul, Andrew Calhoun and Jack Williams.
Doug's long awaited, new CD, Truths & Lies, contains twelve of Doug's most requested songs including This Old House, Annie's Chairs, Mournful Eyes and Banks of the Old St. John's. The CD was recorded and mastered by Ron Litschauer of Acoustic Music Productions in West Palm Beach, Florida. Doug was joined in the project by long time friends and exceptional musicians Alan Stowell, Paul McCaskill and Ally Smith.
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