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Doug Keith

About Me


"Doug Keith's debut LP, Here's To Outliving Me, is familiar but fresh. The New York native's songs are rooted comfortably in traditional folk and Americana, without being mawkish or treading into tired territory. This is largely because Keith's voice is so richly textured, backed by sweet harmonies and beautifully layered instrumentation.
Keith is a modern-day troubadour. He sings of the usual topics: women, heartbreak, death, and longing. But thanks to a welcome trace of roughness in his voice, he comes off as a well-weathered and sage source of advice and storytelling." - NPR.org, January 28, 2009
“A soulful collection of self penned songs fill this album with a hazy vibe of good times and melancholy. Doug Keith obviously has a way with a tune and an ear for a ramshackle chorus. There are moments of great beauty ‘There Are Days’ boasts a lyrical almost gossamer guitar solo that precedes a stirring mixed voice chorus that just hits the spot. You know… that spot……the one where Neil sings the chorus to Old Man and the others join in……..that spot. This is a great album. Buy it and cherish it. Then play it to someone else.” - Americana UK (9 out of 10)
“A fantastic solo debut from this New York singer-songwriter who conjures the spirit of Dylan, Young, and Waits–the former, for example, at the height of his sneering Hawks-backed era on “Salty Woman.” “Take the Hammer Down, Dear” shares the earthiness of Richard Buckner’s finest work. The songs are almost uniformly beautiful and heartrending, with backing tracks whose crisp acoustics, tinkling pianos, piercing organ, and percussive heartbeat channel the finest work of the icons Keith convincingly recalls.” - PURGe (3 in 2008’s Top 20, 2008)
“…from the first notes of “The Companion of an Angel” from his upcoming release “Here’s To Outliving Me” I was hooked. As a nice bonus Jennifer O’Connor is featured on a number of tracks including “Companion…” Its theme of an undying love for an angel-like woman is one I can relate to.” – songs: Illinois “Doug Keith’s lyrics create imagery like the classic country/folk storytellers and there’s a lot of delicate interplay between Doug’s vocals, his guitar work and the work of his band mates.” - Brooklyn Rocks
“Eleven endearing indie pop songs… Ear pleasing melodies, warm acoustics and occasional moments of shoegazing simplicity.” – Hear/Say magazine “We will watch Doug Keith and his future work very closely because he will be huge.” - Rootstime (Belgium)
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Doug Keith writes quiet revelations, stories wound effortlessly around accomplished guitar playing and a gentle, graveled voice. Here's to Outliving Me (in-stores January 13th through The Cougar Label) introduces Keith's many sides to listeners over the course of 11 songs. They are snapshots that at moments are stripped powerfully bare with just Keith and his guitar, and at others soar with lush harmonies, sliding guitars and warm, sepia-toned backdrops.
By the time he was 15, Keith was writing songs and playing local bars in his hometown of Syracuse. Schooled in the picking style of blues legend Elizabeth Cotten and the guitar prowess of Jimi Hendrix, Keith’s songs are a testament to simplicity and craft. “Hendrix and Cotten are so different but so similar to me,” Keith says. “They both played in a way where they could have no other accompanying instruments and it sounded perfect. Of all that I learned, that was the main thing that stuck with me.”
For Here's to Outliving Me Keith worked with engineer Jim Bentley (Jennifer O’Connor’s Over the Mountain, Across the Valley, and Back to the Stars), allowing room for experimentation. “I was planning on recording a mellow record with a bass player and drummer, but as the process started to go I couldn't stop tweaking the songs,” Keith admits. “Jim would encourage it and we'd come up with good ideas that we could run with.” Singers Jennifer O’Connor and Amy Bezunartea accompany on “The Companion of an Angel,” an aching declaration of love, exquisitely backed by their unison vocals. Also appearing on the record is bassist Calvin Bennett, drummer Noel Rose and pianist Lindsay Sullivan.
The songs were predominantly written when Keith moved from Brooklyn to the west side of Manhattan to live with his now wife. Keith says, “I didn't even know what cobblestones were before I moved over there. I love them though. Seeing the Hudson everyday has an effect. I think all that imagery found its way into the songs.”
Keith also plays in NYC trio Up the Empire and has released records in the past under The First Person to See an Elephant. For Here's to Outliving Me, Keith drops the moniker to record under his own name, seamlessly fusing his roots in traditional blues guitar with his innate ability to tell quiet, beautiful stories. - Lindsay Sullivan
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My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 11/01/2005
Band Website: www.dougkeith.com
Band Members: Doug Keith & many friends

Influences:

Sounds Like:

Record Label: The Village Label
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

A night out with&

I was recently included in a Night out with& piece about Jimmie & Chani Johnson in The New York Times. You can read the whole thing by clicking here.Who knew that Monday nights could be so awesome&
Posted by on Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:24:00 GMT

Doug Keith on NPR Second Stage

My song "Now I've Got it Made" from Here's to Outliving Me was picked as song of the day on NPR's Second Stage! You can check it out and download the song and podcast here:http://www.npr.org/templates...
Posted by on Wed, 28 Jan 2009 15:40:00 GMT

Some awesome reviews of Here's to Outliving Me!

A soulful collection of self penned songs fill this album with a hazy vibe of good times and melancholy. Doug Keith obviously has a way with a tune and an ear for a ramshackle chorus. There are momen...
Posted by on Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:00:00 GMT

Americana UK Review

Lo-fi lovely sounds A soulful collection of self penned songs fill this album with a hazy vibe of good times and melancholy. Doug Keith obviously has a way with a tune and an ear for a ramshackle ...
Posted by on Sat, 17 Jan 2009 13:28:00 GMT

PURGe put me as 3 in their top 20 records of 2008!

http://purgegeeks.blogspot.com/2009/01/lous-top-20-of-2008-p art-4.html "A fantastic solo debut from this New York singer-songwriter who conjures the spirit of Dylan, Young, and Waits--the former, for...
Posted by on Thu, 08 Jan 2009 03:23:00 GMT

01/09: Record Release Party in NYC

Hello 2009! My new record, Here's to Outliving Me, comes out next week and we're going to celebrate with a release party at Pianos in the Lower East Side! We'll be playing live and selling the re...
Posted by on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:59:00 GMT

10/2: Show in Brooklyn with Jim Becker from Califone!

Hi All,On Thursday, October 2nd at 8PM I am playing a free show (with full band in tow) at Union Hall in Park Slope, Brooklyn.Just to make this more amazing, also playing this night is Mr. Jim Becker ...
Posted by on Wed, 17 Sep 2008 18:03:00 GMT

Free songs from the new album!

You can download all the songs on my Myspace page now. Included in the songs are four from the upcoming album, Here's to Outliving Me, which will be out very soon via The Cougar Label! On The Cougar L...
Posted by on Mon, 08 Sep 2008 17:30:00 GMT

Sept 5: Full Band Show @ Union Hall in Brooklyn!

Hi All,This Friday night, I'm playing a show with full band in tow with two ofthe coolest bands I know at one of my favorite places in Brooklyn yo!Oh yes, this is gonna be good:Friday, September 5thUn...
Posted by on Fri, 05 Sep 2008 13:54:00 GMT

DOWNLOAD MY EP FOR FREE!

Hi All, You can now download my new 4 song EP "Here's to Outliving Me" for free! Just go here:www.cougarlabel.com/dougkeithIt's free and easy. How awesome is that? Super awesome!-Doug  
Posted by on Fri, 13 Jun 2008 15:17:00 GMT