Don Gates

Don Gates was born in Concord, New Hampshire. Born into a large family with a myriad of musical talents it was only natural that he too would have an avid love of music. He grew up in Tampa, Florida and there he would be exposed to various genres of music. This exposure would lead him to Tampa’s underground metal scene where he would become known globally for his harmonic, as well as melodic guitar riffs and leads.

Fortunately, making a name for himself in metal didn’t pull him away from his country roots. Through the years of playing and recording metal he would always find himself drifting off into another world, that world was naturally country music. After having nearly 25 years under his belt and taking part in writing albums that are known today as classics in the genre, and building a resume that most “metal heads” only dream about, he decided it was time to hang up the distorted monster guitar and saddle up the acoustics he had collected for so many years and bring his real dream to life. And that dream was to go back where he belonged, home.

Country music has been his passion for the greater part of his life; with influences from Keith Whitley, George Strait, Garth Brooks, Gary Allen as well as the old legends Johnny Cash, Hank Williams and Waylon, the list goes on and on. Combining his love of country with his past musical career he brings a fresh new sound to the industry with his first EP release “Almost A Cowboy”.

The material that you will hear on “Almost A Cowboy” is a collection of songs written over the course of the past 20 years. 

In August 2016 Don Gates released "Seminole Wind"  a remake of the John Anderson Classic.