The Dickies are a delightfully zany and irreverent comedic punk band from Los Angeles, California. The group first formed in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles in 1977. The original band members were: Leonard Graves Phillips (lead vocals), Stan Lee (guitar), Bob Davis (guitar/keyboards/saxophone), Bill Remar (bass), and Carlos Cabellero (drums). The Dickies are distinguished by their winningly campy and goofy sense of playful good humor that's a total radical departure from the often snotty and sarcastic humor of your average punk band. They hold the distinction of being the first California punk group to both appear on network television (they pop up as themselves on an episode of the TV comedy series "CPO Sharkey") and be signed to a major record label. Besides such amusingly nutty original songs as "Hideous," "Waterslide," "Manny, Moe and Jack," "You Drive Me Ape (You Big Gorilla)," "Attack of the Mole Men," and "(I'm Stuck in a Pagoda With) Tricia Toyota," the Dickies have done insanely inspired covers of other artists' songs that include Black Sabbath's "Paranoid," "Nights in White Satin" by the Moody Blues (this particular cover was a Top 40 hit on the UK pop charts in 1979), Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction," and "Nobody But Me" by the Human Beinz. The band scored a Top 10 British radio hit in 1979 with their wacky rendition of the 70's Saturday morning cartoon TV series theme tune "Banana Splits (Tra La La Song)." Alas, the group has endured their fair share of hardships throughout the years: Bob Davis committed suicide after breaking up with his girlfriend in June, 1981 while replacement drummer Jonathan Melvoin died of a heroin overdose on July 12, 1996 in New York City. The group did the marvelously madcap theme songs for the movies "Killer Klowns from Outer Space" and "The Spirit of '76." The Dickies are still touring and performing on stage to this very day, although only Leonard Graves Phillips and Stan Lee remain from the original line-up.
name | The Dickies |
---|---|
background | group_or_band |
origin | San Fernando Valley, California, United States |
genre | Punk rock |
years active | 1977–present |
label | A&M;, Captain Oi, Triple X, Fat Wreck Chords |
website | |
current members | Leonard Graves PhillipsStan LeeGreg HannaDave TeagueTravis Johnson |
past members | }} |
The Dickies are an American punk rock group formed in San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, California, U.S. in 1977.
The Dickies' style is campy and humorous, influenced by The Ramones, for whom they sometimes opened. The Dickies are popular in the United Kingdom, and had a Top 10 single with "Banana Splits (Tra La La Song)" in 1979. Many of their lyrics concern Southern California culture, rife with references and in-jokes; examples include songs like "Waterslide", "I'm A Cholo", "Manny, Moe, and Jack", and "(I'm Stuck in a Pagoda with) Tricia Toyota". They are also known for recording several fast-paced punk covers of classic rock songs, including the Moody Blues' "Nights in White Satin", Black Sabbath's "Paranoid", Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction", and the Isley Brothers' "Nobody but Me". They have also covered Pretty Ballerina, a song by The Left Banke, as well as "Hair".
Drug problems slowed the Dickies down considerably in the 1980s, but they have continued playing and recording sporadically to the present day. Guitarist/keyboardist/saxophonist Chuck Wagon (born Bob Davis) committed suicide after a break-up with his girlfriend in June 1981. Jonathan Melvoin, who played drums on The Dickies album, ''Idjit Savant'', died of a heroin overdose on July 12, 1996 in New York, aged 34, while on tour playing keyboards for the Smashing Pumpkins. Original drummer Karlos Kabellero died on September 22, 2009 from heart related problems. One-time guitarist Enoch Hain (born Robert Lansing, Jr.) died on July 25, 2009 from complications arising from pneumonia.
In 1988, the Dickies wrote and performed the theme music for the horror film ''Killer Klowns from Outer Space'' which was the debut of drummer Cliff Martinez who had recently played with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Weirdos, and Captain Beefheart. Cliff would play with them from 1988 to 1994 on albums such as Second Coming, Locked N' Loaded Live in London, and idjit Savant.
In 1990, the Dickies wrote the theme song for Lucas Reiner's (son of actor/director Rob Reiner) comedy film ''Spirit of 76''.
Category:American punk rock groups Category:Musical groups from California Category:Fat Wreck Chords artists Category:Musical groups from Los Angeles, California Category:Musical groups established in 1977 Category:Reachout International Records recording artists
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