John Douglas, the guitarist and vocalist of the Trashcan Sinatras, has died, aged 63.
The Irvine-born guitarist had been with the Scottish indie rock outfit since 1986, and played on all seven of their albums, including their latest, ‘Ever The Optimist’, which was released just days before his passing.
Taking to social media today, the band wrote: “We are devastated to inform all of you that we have lost our dear friend and brother John after a brief illness.
“He died peacefully in the early hours of Monday the 3rd August 2026, surrounded by loved ones, his beautiful voice and songs filling the room.”
Tributes from fans have poured in since news emerged. “Talent, heart, kindness…he had it all,” wrote one fan on Instagram, with another adding: “I imagine the timely release of your brilliant new album is bittersweet.”
The aforementioned ‘Ever the Optimist’ arrived on July 31, and marked the band’s first full-length release in 10 years. They had previewed the record with a video of its title track, which saw the group reunite at a recent one-off 40th anniversary live performance at Irvine’s Harbour Arts Centre.
That footage provided fans the first glimpse of all five members on stage together for the first time in almost seven years, and was described in a press release as “an emotional reunion [that] left a new sentence unfinished in the band’s storybook, but served as an expression of gratitude and joy amongst an invited audience of old friends”.
Speaking about the video in a recent interview with Spill Magazine, Douglas echoed that sentiment, saying it was “very emotional” to be back together.
“The show was very heart warming just to be with the guys in the room,” he said. “We were on stage, amongst friends and playing songs that were written over the many years. It did feel like a one-off, because circumstances had arrived for the time, and we took advantage of them.
“But those circumstances aren’t around too often. So, there was a lot of treasuring every minute, looking at each other. I am glad it was filmed and recorded. For me songs are the best, as a writer, when you are in a room, playing them and seeing how much they mean to someone else.
“There is a real connection that music does that you don’t get from anywhere else. To be part of the band doing that is a treasure and you only get it when you play.”
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