Son of Russ Paterson (see previous post), multi-talented Don has been involved in the creative arts straight from leaving school in the 70's when he had a stint working on the Commando comics. From there he embarked on a career in music, and after getting a fair bit of experience playing guitar around the social clubs in Dundee, he went on to lead a trio in the 80's which included Nico Bruce (nephew of Jack). Next up was a group called Restless Natives, a free-improvising collective that included fellow Dundonian, Ken Hyder on drums. Ken, who had his own 70's jazz-folk band, Talisker, still operating, got Don to join them in 1984, with a line-up that included King Crimson violinist, David Cross. When Talisker split a while later, Don formed the successful Celtic-jazz outfit, Lammas, with well known saxophonist Tim Garland, and recorded numerous albums over the next few years with them. By this time, Don's other talents were flourishing, most notably writing poetry and plays. He has won many important awards for his books of poetry, and his plays have been broadcast on radio as well as performed live on stage, including "Land of Cakes" at Dundee Rep.
And if that wasn't enough, he is also editor for a publishing company, a journalist and teaches at St Andrews University. Phew!!
His own personal website is currently under construction, but you can read about his career in more detail on various literature and poetry related sites on the net, not to mention a general overview available on Wikipedia.
Oh yeah, nearly forgot, add O.B.E. to his name too!!
