Music
Doug Fieger
1952–2010 · singer, guitarist, songwriter
Detroit-born, Oak Park-raised frontman of the Knack, who co-wrote and sang “My Sharona,” the biggest U.S. hit of 1979.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan- Died
Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California
aged 57- Birth name
- Douglas Lars Fieger
- Detroit years
- 1952–1970s
- Field
- Music
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Doug Fieger was born in Detroit in 1952 and raised in Oak Park, a northern suburb of the city, where he attended Oak Park High School. His older brother is Geoffrey Fieger, the Detroit trial lawyer best known for representing Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Drawn to the melodic side of 1960s rock, Fieger left Michigan for Los Angeles, where in 1978 he formed the Knack as singer and rhythm guitarist. With lead guitarist Berton Averre he wrote “My Sharona,” inspired by Sharona Alperin, whom he was then courting. Released in 1979, the song spent six weeks at No. 1 and became the year's biggest American hit, and the band's debut album sold millions; the follow-up single “Good Girls Don't” just missed the Top 10. The Knack's quick rise and fall became a symbol of the power-pop boom, but “My Sharona” has never left the radio. Fieger died of cancer at his Woodland Hills home in 2010.
Highlights
- Raised in Oak Park; attended Oak Park High School
- Co-wrote and sang “My Sharona” (1979)
- “My Sharona” was No. 1 for six weeks and 1979's top U.S. hit
- Follow-up “Good Girls Don't” narrowly missed the Top 10
- Brother of Detroit attorney Geoffrey Fieger
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Studied here · 1960s
Oak Park High School
Public high school in the northern suburb of Oak Park, which he attended.