The Story of Alan
Even as a young child in the small Newfoundland fishing village of Petty Harbour, Alan was holding up a sign that said ‘Look At Me’. There was no place for a singer or guitar player in the school band, so he learned drums, all the better to make the maximum impact. An ardent hockey player, only the goalie’s gear appealed to him. As hockey fans well know, the goalie’s game has only two possible outcomes - hero or goat. Either way, he is always remembered.
Just a teenager when he left home and moved to St. John’s, Doyle pursued an English & Religion BA at Memorial University, and honed his musical skills as a solo artist in dozens of pub matinees. There he developed the thick skin and iron larynx needed to go with his natural talent. In 1993 he joined forces with Sean McCann, Darrell Power and Bob Hallett, and together they started Great Big Sea, in hopes of fusing Newfoundland traditional music with their own pop sensibilities.
Despite having grossly exaggerated his ownership of a working van, and his skills as a soundman, Doyle assumed the role of lead singer, and the band mates began to assault the music business from their unlikely Newfoundland home base. Some 15 exceedingly silly years later, the band continues to astonish crowds around the world with their energy, musical skill, and inability to take themselves too seriously.
In his spare time Doyle is much in demand as a producer, arranger and general musical catalyst, producing albums for actor Russell Crowe and Juno award winners the Irish Descendants, among others, and furnishing soundtracks for the movie Young Triffie Has Been Made Away With and the TV series Hatching, Matching & Dispatching. In recent months he has been the public face of a major charity campaign for Daffodil Place, a new hospice for Newfoundland cancer patients and their families, and he is also busy creating a soundtrack for a new Atlantic Canadian video game. He still lives in downtown St. John’s.