After more than 30 years, classic rock act Doug and the Slugs returns to Halifax

CITYnews halifax / By Steve Gow

For the first time in more than three decades, the iconic Canadian band Doug and the Slugs will make an appearance in Halifax.

As the lead band to kick-off the second edition of Rock the Harbour, an annual three-day classic rock festival that takes over the stage at Alderney Landing, the pop-rock act will entertain long-admiring fans with such radio hits as Day by Day, Too Bad and Making It Work as well as other fan favourites from the 1980s.

“We love coming to the Maritimes,” Simon Kendall, the Vancouver-based band’s original and longtime keyboard player, said. “Often, we would play twice in a month at the Misty Moon during the 80s so we spent tons of time there.”

Indeed, after Kendall became part of the band in 1978, along with John Burton, Richard Baker, Wally Watson, Steve Bosley and of course singer Doug Bennett, the Slugs surged onto the Canadian music scene with their casual, upbeat musical style and offbeat stage antics.

They toured throughout the next decade and produced several hit albums, including international releases that found success and critical acclaim in America. The Slugs are even credited among one of the first Canadian bands to crack heavy rotation on MTV.

However, Doug Bennett tragically passed away in 2004 and although the original band was not performing often as a group at that point, his loss launched a renewed appreciation for the band’s broad catalogue of tunes.

For several years, the idea of carrying on wasn’t even considered until singer Ted Okos was discovered.

“We thought it was impossible,” Kendall said of replacing Doug Bennett. He added that John Burton suggested the former Nick Danger member as a possible frontman in 2009.

“We tried out two other guys and we were going, ‘this just doesn’t work’ and then Ted came down for an audition and half a song in, we all had goosebumps.”

Ever since, Doug and the Slugs (fronted by Okos) have been entertaining long-adoring fans but they have never had the opportunity to return to Nova Scotia until they were invited to perform at this year’s Rock the Harbour along with such classic Canadian acts as Glass Tiger, 54.40, Nazareth and Chilliwack —  an invitation they were only too thrilled to accept.

“(People) can expect to hear all their favourite songs (plus) a few gems,” Kendall said of the Friday evening show. “We get into the vault and play some songs that we really haven’t been played in over 40 years. There are album cuts and stuff that we love and audiences —  we feel —  deserve to hear.”

Rock the Harbour runs from August 16 to 18. For more information on Rock the Harbour, visit the website.