January 28, 2002 — Mike Doughty will tour U.S. clubs in February, his fourth solo outing since the breakup of his former band, Soul Coughing, in 2000. The two-week tour begins February 13 in Northampton, Mass., and includes performances in New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, Chicago and other Northeast/Midwest markets. Most dates on the tour will be seated shows, attempting to reflect the intimacy and personal tone of Doughty's solo shows. See below for a list of confirmed tour dates.

Taking his self-described "small rock" on the road, Doughty performs stripped-down acoustic renditions of select Soul Coughing tunes, as well as new material. Songs penned in the last year include "Grey Ghost," "I'm Still Drinking in My Dreams" and "Busting Up a Starbux."

Doughty's itinerary also includes a stop in Los Angeles on February 24 to perform at the 24 Hour Plays L.A. Benefit at the Henry Fonda Theater, an event that will benefit the New York State World Trade Center Relief Fund. Confirmed for the event are actors including Gil Bellows, Portia de Rossi, Seth Green and Camryn Manheim; writers Neil Labute, Raven Metzner and Stu Zicherman; and directors Morgan J Freeman, Neil Pepe and Frank Pugliese. Doughty has previously participated in 24-hour plays as both a writer and a musical performer between plays.

"(Mike Doughty's) piece made me want to pick him up and carry him in triumph around the nearest Tower Records," said author and music journalist Nick Hornby in the introduction to "Da Capo Best Music Writing 2001: The Year's Finest Writing on Rock, Pop, Jazz, Country, and More." Hornby co-edited the annual compendium this year with Benjamin Schafer. Doughty's selection in the book is an essay originally published in the New York Press called "I Like It Warm and Fuzzy." Doughty continues to write occasional columns and features for the New York Press, and plans are currently being made for the release of his first book of original poetry, "Slanky."

In addition to writing songs and recording demos for his album, Mike Doughty has been working on a variety of other musical projects in recent months. Most notably, Doughty recorded the song "Mr. Xcitement" with They Might Be Giants for the duo's recent album "Mink Car"; another collaboration between Doughty and TMBG, "Your Mom's Alright," appears on the U.K. version of "Mink Car."

DOUGHTY 2002 TOUR DATES

February
13 - Northampton MA - Iron Horse Music Hall
14 - New York NY - Knitting Factory
15 - Philadelphia PA - Theatre of Living Arts
18 - Somerville MA - 608
20 - Cleveland OH - The Odeon
21 - Detroit MI - Magic Bag
22 - Newport KY - The Southgate House
23 - St. Louis MO - Blueberry Hill
24 - Los Angeles CA - The 24 Hour Plays L.A. Benefit
25 - Chicago IL - Double Door
27 - Minneapolis MN - The Woman's Club
28 - Madison WI - Stage Door at The Orpheum