Don McDermott is an Alabama-born British country singer-songwriter with a smooth baritone voice.
Ever since he was young, Don has loved to sing across a variety of genres, including country, swing, rock ‘n’ roll and even Gilbert & Sullivan comic operas. Don is also a trained pianist, and it was while playing at a farmers’ market in Canada that he was given the nickname ‘Boot Scoots’ for his rousing piano rendition of the Brooks and Dunn classic.
But singing soon became his greater passion and after relocating to Buckinghamshire in 2014, Don began following a career as a singer.
In 2023, Don and his mum, Anne, began writing original country songs. Since Don has always loved artists such as George Strait, Alan Jackson, Johnny Cash and Conway Twitty, it is no surprise that Don’s music has that traditional country sound, with the sweet strains of the steel guitar and fiddle evident in all his tracks.
Don’s debut country single, ‘Around the Corner,’ was released in July 2023. The track is an up-tempo song about looking forward to finding true love.
In October 2023, Don’s second single ‘Routes’ was released. ‘Routes’ is a traditional country ballad, telling the story of a man eloping with the woman who he thought was the one. Don and Anne adapted the story of ‘Routes’ from an award-winning short story by Don’s sister, Alexandra, so the song has truly been a family project.
Don dropped his third country single in December 2023, the Christmas tune “Keep Christmas”.
Written once again by the songwriting team of Don and his mum, Anne, “Keep Christmas” is a song about keeping Christmas in your heart throughout the year, and was inspired by Charles Dickens’ classic “A Christmas Carol”.
“Keep Christmas” was produced at Puzzle Maker Studios in Bristol by Danny McMahon and Drea Succi, and is a traditional-style country song, bearing the country trademarks of steel guitar and fiddle, plus some jingle bells for Christmas cheer.
In the 2023 UK Songwriting Contest, all three of Don’s singles were given five-star commended ratings in the singer-songwriter category. “Routes” was also highly commended for country, and “Keep Christmas” was a commended entry in the Christmas category.
When Don isn’t singing, he spends his time building wooden boats, sailing and birdwatching in the beautiful Thames Valley.
