Doug and the Slugs

Doug and the Slugs. This Vancouver rock band was formed in 1977 by the singer and songwriter Doug Bennett (b Toronto 31 Oct 1951; d Calgary 16 Oct 2004). The original members included John Burton (guitar), Dennis Henderson (bass), Drew Neville (keyboards), Ted Laturnus (drums) and John "Wally" Watson (drums), who, in the absence of club work, organized theme and costume parties in local halls. By December 1978 the Slugs comprised Burton, Watson, Richard Baker (guitar), Simon Kendall (keyboards), and Steve Bosley (bass), a lineup that remained constant until 1991. Over the next few years the membership of the band changed again when Doug Grant became the drummer (1995), Marc Gladstone joined on keyboards (1998), Elio Martelli on guitar and Jay Wittur on bass, leaving Bennett as the only original member.

Keywords

Pop Groups

Initially the Slugs' novelty, humour, and theatrics, and Bennett's unlikely 'pop star' image, made them a media success in Vancouver. An early Bennett description of their music was widely quoted: '[it's] your basic rock and roll but with a certain Kafka-esque, grass roots, Pavlovian, existential, Calvanistic, Zen, New York liberal Jewish intellectual kind of slant to it' ( Vancouver Sun 15 Aug 1980).

Their first single, 'Too Bad,' was a modest national hit in 1980 and was followed by such popular titles as 'Who Knows How to Make Love Stay' and 'Making It Work' in 1983, and 'Tomcat Prowl' in 1988. The band released LPs under its own Ritdong label (distributed 1980-4 by RCA) and through Tomcat/A&M. Their albums included Cognac and Bologna (1980), Wrap It (1981), Music for the Hard of Thinking (1983), the compilation Ten Big Ones (1984), Popaganada (1985), Tomcat Prowl (1988), Tales from Terminal City (1992) and Slugcology 101: A Decade Of Doug And The Slugs (1993). The first three, as well as Popaganda, each sold more than 50,000 copies in Canada. Songs associated with the band include 'Real Enough,' 'Day by Day,' and 'Love Shines.' Doug Bennett also issued a solo album, AN.I.MAT.O, in 1986.

For the most part a club-based act, the Slugs toured extensively in Canada and performed in the northeast and on the west coast of the US and in more than 200 different cities and communities in Canada. Their songs have been used in films and television including Iron Eagles II, Meatballs III, Tough Love and Neon Rider.

Doug and the Slugs received the Canadian Organization of Campus Activities (COCA) Hall Of Fame Award for Live Performance in 1989, and in 1997 they received a special award from the Pacific Music Industry Association for their contribution to the BC music industry.

Doug and the Slugs also received several awards from The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences that included Song of the Year (1980), Independent Release (1980) Best Album Graphics (1980), Best Album Graphics (1981), Song of the Year (1985), Male Vocalist of the Year (1985), Album of the Year (1985), Group of the Year (1985), Independent Release of the Year (1985), and Best Album Graphics (1987).

Bennett independently received awards that included Best Director from both the Chicago Film Festival and from the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences and Best Music Video from the Yorkton Film Festival.

Under Bennett's directorial hand, the Slugs showed effectively in music videos, which brought the band an early following on the American MTV channel. Bennett directed more than 23 videos for several other artists such as Trooper, the Headpins, Zappacosta and Images In Vogue, and he produced and directed seven country music videos for Suzanne Gitzi, Rhodes and Marshall, and Wynona Sue and the Turnpikes. Bennett also appeared as Parker in three productions 1988-90 of John Gray's Rock and Roll.

Bibliography

Dyyk, Lloyd. 'It's a slugs life,' Vancouver Sun, 15 Aug 1980

Livingstone, David. 'An export strategy for paunch rock,' Maclean's, 5 Apr 1982

Knight, Irene G. 'Doug Bennett of Doug and the Slugs,' CanMus, vol 4, Sep-Oct 1982

Masters, John. 'Reach for the top 40,' Quest, May 1983

Conlogue, Ray. 'Singer turned actor revels in rock and roll role,' Toronto Globe and Mail, 3 Sep 1988

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