Varty, Doug - Feel Free

Tracks

		Track Name	Length
	1	Kickin' Ass	03:55
	2	Upsetter (feat. Mr. Chill)	03:01
	3	Feel Free (feat. Mr. Chill)	04:45
	4	The Itch	03:30
	5	Paid	04:27
	6	Now You're Talking	03:50
	7	Misfit	03:28
	8	Intoxicated	04:10
	9	I Wanna Fight About It	04:29
	10	Make My Day	03:38

Photos

Videos

No Video

Information/Write-up

Doug Varty is a rock ’n’ roll survivor whose career spans more than five decades of constant performing, recording, and touring. Born and raised in London, Ontario, he left home at seventeen to join a touring and recording band in Toronto in 1970, beginning a musical journey that has kept him on the road ever since.

Varty’s earliest projects on the London scene led to the formation of Southcote, a melodic rock outfit he conceived in 1972 as an outgrowth of his previous group, Homestead. The band first played Ontario’s high-school and university circuit, establishing Varty as a versatile frontman and songwriter. When Smile Records later re-launched Southcote nationally in 1973 with a new lineup featuring Beau David, Breen LeBoeuf, Charlie White, Joe Ress, and Lance Wright, their single “She” became a major Canadian radio hit, earning a Juno nomination for Most Promising Group. Varty returned to the fold in 1975 for the band’s final incarnation under W. David Smail’s Dollars & Sense Company, sharing vocals and guitar duties with Beau David and reconnecting Southcote to its London roots.

His professional career next gained traction with Sea Dog, a Sudbury–Toronto outfit that emerged from Northern Ontario’s late-1960s scene. Alongside drummer Jim Norris, guitarist Paul Weston, bassist Brian Kirkwood, and keyboardist John Redmond, Varty’s gritty vocals and Hammond organ gave Sea Dog its distinct blues-rock edge. Signed to CHUM Radio’s MUCH Records, the band released several singles—including “It’s a Hot Night,” “I Don’t Wanna Hear,” and “Rock and Roll Business”—earning national airplay and U.S. distribution through Buddah Records. They toured widely, sharing stages with April Wine, Lighthouse, Crowbar, Fludd, and Ike & Tina Turner before disbanding in 1975.

After Sea Dog, Varty joined Studebaker Hawk, recording the 1975 single “Rainbows, Pots of Gold and Moonbeams” b/w “It All Fades Away” on Smile Records SLE 109. The release bridged his transition from blues-rock to the smoother, radio-friendly sound that would characterize his 1980s work. Around the same time, he also performed and recorded with the Old Chicago Band and The Bushdoctors, two respected London-area ensembles that kept him active on the Southern Ontario club circuit through the late 1970s.

In 1982, Varty co-founded Lowdown with bassist Ted Floyd and drummer Brian Salt, steering the group toward a polished melodic blend of rock and adult contemporary. Their independent debut Love Ya (Lady Records, 1982) was followed by Gimme Some (1983), whose title track—written by Varty—reached #1 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart, remaining there for ten weeks. Additional hits like “I’m So Happy,” “How Can You Say,” and “Baby I Know” all reached the national Top 5 between 1983 and 1985. Produced by Dee Long at Wellesley Sound in Toronto and distributed by RCA, the group toured Canada from coast to coast, opening for The Beach Boys, John Mellencamp, Roy Orbison, Neil Sedaka, and The Four Seasons, while appearing on national telethons and community events.

By the early 1990s, Varty was fronting his own Doug Varty Band, carrying forward the same high-energy tradition that defined his earlier work. Known for his raspy voice, expressive guitar tone, and unfiltered stage presence, he built a devoted following across Canada and the United States. His 2011 album Feel Free, produced by Robert Breen and recorded live to 2″ analog tape at The Bunker, distilled decades of road experience into a lean, hard-hitting rock record that earned critical acclaim. Fireworks UK hailed it as “a glorious dose of blues-rock … littered with great vocal hooks and memorable riffs,” while The London Free Press ranked it among the Top Ten CDs of 2011.

In March 2025, Varty returned with Keep the Dream Alive on Australia’s MelodicRock Classics label, a 15-track retrospective combining unreleased material and career highlights produced with Jack Richardson, David Tyson, Dee Long, Marc Ribler, and Gerry Mosby. Songs such as “Solid Ground,” “Everybody Needs a Lover,” “The Right Mistakes,” and “This Is My Country” showcase the full range of his craft—equal parts grit, melody, and conviction.

After more than fifty years, Doug Varty remains true to the spirit that first drew him to music. Whether fronting a power trio in a crowded club or recording soulful rock in the studio, he continues to prove that authentic Canadian rock ’n’ roll is alive and well—still passionate, still uncompromising, and still chasing that perfect groove.
-Robert Williston

Doug Varty: guitar, vocals
Rob Allen: bass
Dale Penney: drums, backing vocals
Kelly “Mr. Chill” Hoppe: harmonica

Produced by Doug Varty and Bob Breen
Recorded and mixed by Bob Breen at The Bunker, assisted by Dani Breen

Comments