Doug Yoel: vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, slide and dobro, bass, keyboards, percussion & programming.
Influences
James Taylor, Lucinda Williams, Beatles, Tom Waits, The Band, Led Zeppelin, Jackson Browne, Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis, Willie Nelson, Joe Jackson, Steely Dan, Jerry Garcia, Van Morrsion, Neil Young, Lou Reed, John Cale, Paul Simon, Frank Zappa, Pink Floyd, Grateful Dead, David Crosby, Elvis Costello, David Byrne, Billy Joel, Leonard Cohen, Ravi Shankar, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Prince, John Coltrane, Kenny Rankin, Lou Barlow, The Blue Nile, The Jayhawks, Carly Simon, Emmylou Harris, Joni Mitchell, Wilco, Sinead O'Connor, Kate Bush, Tori Amos, Johnny Cash, Allen Ginsberg, Black Crowes, Black Sabbath, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Ahmad Jamal, Roy Haynes, Jack DeJohnette, The Ramones, The Clash, Nick Drake, George Martin, Brian Eno, Phil Spector, Daniel Lanois, Joe Boyd, Todd Rundgren, Phil Ramone, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Jean Michel Jarre, Francis Dreyfus, Serge Gainsbourg, The Allman Brothers Band, Hot Tuna, Blues Traveler, Phish, Michael Jackson, Elvis, to name a few...
Sounds Like
If Tom Waits had a baby with Jackson Browne, and it grew up listening to Son Volt.
Distinctive singer/songwriter Doug Yoel has been on a life-long quest of personal discovery and musical growth. A folk-rocker to the core, Doug’s lyrics are personal and introspective, often attempting to reconcile dreams of love and dreams of life, also childhood ideals with the modern reality. His recent songs, such as “So.. I Want You” and “Yellow Light” speak to the yearning for love, inner peace and a simpler tomorrow.
With a sound built around his finger-style acoustic and electric guitar and expressive vocal delivery, Doug infuses his vintage folk-rock with a dose of Americana and outlaw country; strains of blues, reggae and old-school soul and r&b; all forms of psychedelia; even bits of punk and 80s new wave. Also evident is Doug's close relationship with the avant garde, jazz and art music.
Doug Yoel returned with a new digital EP in November 2008, YELLOW LIGHT/SO.. I WANT YOU, released nationally on Kindred Rhythm. Doug's reappearance on record and stage follows a hiatus of nearly four years.
The last four years have found Doug co-producing projects for others an effort that has garnered an impressive 4 Grammy Nominations. His most recent production, "A Life in Time The Roy Haynes Story", received a Jazz Journalists Award and a Victoires Du Jazz, the French equivalent of a Grammy.
Doug Yoel claims to have been raised by records. His parents split in his early childhood, and the introverted young Doug lost himself in records – Beatles, 70’s folk-rock, a little bit of country, and a whole lot of Motown. “I hung on every note and every word. And I read every liner note. I had some great music teachers as a kid, but really my teachers were people like James Taylor, Bob Dylan, Jackson Browne and John Lennon.”
By the time he was 10, Doug had become a capable guitarist; an enthusiast of sound-on-sound recording (using a Craig open-reel deck from the 60’s); and an avid record collector with a penchant for making compilations (“I was the mix-tape king!” he brags). At 14, he took his first job in music, working as a roadie and guitarist for a local club-date band. At 16, Doug began working for WBAB, a popular rock station on Long Island. He was the original producer of The Opie Show (later to go national as Opie and Anthony), impersonating Bob Dylan, and contributing dozens of song parodies to the show.
After a few years in comedy, Doug returned to his original love – acoustic based folk-rock – and worked the NY area coffee houses, while finishing a music degree. After graduating from Five Towns College, he took a job for an independent jazz/electronic label, and began working on Broken English Poem (IGP Records, 2002), his first official release. Well-received in the New York market, Doug maintained a residency at the Vintage Café in Greenwich Village (with fellow Kindred Rhythm artist Neil Cavanagh) through 2002 and 2003. Work on a new album began in 2003, but was halted the following year after a series of misfortunes (including the loss of some of the albums multi-track tapes). Following the death of one of the album’s musicians, the project was revived, and finally released as the Yellow Light / So.. I Want You EP. The EP was a Top 10 New Release on eMusic’s Singer-Songwriter chart following its release in late 2008. A promotional tour and new recording is being planned for late Spring 2009.
It was fun last night being with you on WOODSTOCK CABLE ACCESS WITH JOURNEY BLUE HEAVEN! I think we collectively rocked the airwaves!! You're a cool guy, mister!
Doug, You filled the room with so much beauty and authenticity Friday night! What an enormous pleasure to listen to you. Captivating is what you are!! xox
Hey Doug! Yes nice to meet you up in Woodstock at the Alchemy. Nice songs and guitar playing. Keep in touch....I should be back up in the area in the fall. cheers!
Ciao Doug!!! Grazie a te. Complimenti per la tua musica; ti auguro tanta buona ispirazione. Sei il benvenuto tra tutti i nostri amici. Un augurio per tutto. Rosy
You want to work and so do we. If you want us to book your band in New England, you need topay the registration fee. Go here for more information: http://northamptoncommunity.ning.com
Hey YOU! I am so grateful we crossed paths again. Your music is amazing. As you can see, I am a work in progress but up and running nevertheless. I would love to see you.
