Donohue has several albums to his credit and his songs have been recorded by Chet Atkins, Suzy Bogguss, and Kenny Rogers.
Donohue was influenced early in his career by blues guitarists Robert Johnson, Mississippi John Hurt, and Blind Blake.
[2] In the early 1990s, Donohue became a member of the house band on the radio program A Prairie Home Companion.
[2][3][4] He and his colleagues in the Guy's All-Star Shoe Band are on-screen throughout much of the film A Prairie Home Companion based on the radio show.
[6] In 2008 the Martin Guitar Company released a signature model, the OM-30DB Pat Donohue Custom Edition.