Jon Doll releases first full album of original music with help from Grammy-nominated artist

SHEBOYGAN – Jon Doll , a Sheboygan native who has been writing and performing for 50 years, is releasing his first full professional album of original music.

The album, "Let That River Run," is the culmination of Jon's lifelong dream to see his music available to all.

For years, Doll, who plays the acoustic guitar, has performed in front of small groups, from corporate boardrooms to intimate coffeehouses and at almost any "open mic" he could find.

"Now, I just want to see if my music appeals to larger audiences," he said.

His earlier attempts at recording and publishing his songs came in sessions in his basement or in "catch as you can" sessions in a friend's studio.

"I have always been a 'basement singer,' but I decided, even at this stage in my life, I needed to find a producer and improve the quality of my songs," Doll said.

A chance meeting with music producer Hans Christian through a mutual friend started the journey that led to "Let That River Run."

Christian, a Grammy-nominated artist, has a 40-year legacy of musical performance and production. He has been active as a producer in the genres of Americana, folk and blues, collaborating with regional singers and songwriters.

In addition to recording and producing the album, Christian contributes to it, playing bass, cello, harmonium and synthesizer. He also assembled the backup singers and musicians and brought them to Studio 330, his base in Sturgeon Bay.

With "Let That River Run," Doll hopes to point out "… the anger and joy, the pain and humor, the darkness and light that exist together in this crazy world."

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It started with The Primates.

Doll's musical journey began as a teenager, performing with The Primates, a band he helped to form while still in middle school. The group played mostly in bars and at parties.

While in college at the University of Washington, Doll began writing original songs for college groups, a combination of parodies of political situations and normal young adult love songs.

After college, Doll used his strong people skills and music to focus on raising consciousness on social issues. At the time, he was working as an executive in retail, managing employees for two major department store chains. After a particularly stressful company meeting, employees asked him to parody the absurdity of the corporate mentality.

The result, "Power Merchant":

Sittin' at my desk and callin' the shots

I can plan the best defense.

To keep the customers guessin'

And hold my staff in suspense.

Although a satire, Doll said songs of this nature "apply to everyday life where people often feel oppressed.

"I tried to ease the anxiety of co-workers and ease any tension they felt," he added.

Efforts at improving the atmosphere in business led him to teach management by the proverbial "powers that be." He used music when he often taught courses, workshops and seminars for college students studying business management at community colleges.

Travel abroad expanded his exposure to more musical stylings.

After leaving the retail industry, Doll worked in the nonprofit industry for the United Way of King County in Seattle, helping it to become the largest United Way in the world in terms of dollars raised. This led to a job for United Way Worldwide in London, where he lived for two years.

While helping to start the United Way of London and the United Kingdom during his day job, he performed during the evenings at a variety of pubs throughout greater London. This experience changed his life forever as he realized he could write and perform songs as well as anyone and that he did, after all, have a gift others could appreciate and admire.

Travels to other countries broadened his exposure to music even further as he performed in Poland, France and other countries in eastern Europe.

He would spend off hours at taverns and coffeehouses listening to same-genre singers and songwriters. He would often perform in "open mic" settings where he found that his songs resonated. This furthered his desire to market his music to a wider audience.

Doll said his music and songwriting also reflect the influence of his mother, who performed in community theatrical productions and devoted her time to charitable organizations that helped people in need.

"She lived through three generations of theater and retail," he said. "Her parents, grandparents and children all loved the theater and somehow ended up in the department store business, which was a most dramatic setting in its own way.

"She understood the ups and downs that existed in these two seemingly unrelated worlds," he continued. "In her view, they were a microcosm of the wider world; one that spoke to the vast consumer culture that has defined us.

"She never fulfilled her dream of writing and producing a musical comedy about the retail sector, so I tried to fulfill this dream of hers in my own writings and compositions," Doll said.

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The path led Jon Doll home.

Now retired to his native Sheboygan, Doll performs in various settings around the region, garnering him more attention and even enabling him to win awards along the way, such as the Cedarburg Cultural Center's prestigious songwriting competition at the Blueburg Café.

The path has led him to Christian and to a collaboration that has just begun.

Doll's intent is to create another album that begins work in December with Hans and the same musicians who live and perform in Door County, a place Doll refers to as "the Laurel Canyon of the Great Lakes."

Where to get 'Let That River Run'

"Let That River Run" is available through Jon Doll's website, jondoll.com . The CD includes a booklet containing lyrics for all songs and bios of the other artists. The cost is $15, plus shipping. Doll's music is also available through a link on his website to all major streaming services.

Joe Gulig is a retired journalist and former city editor for the Sheboygan Press.

This article originally appeared on Sheboygan Press: Musician Jon Doll, Sheboygan native, releases album Let That River Run