Chuck Dukowski
Encyclopedia
Chuck Dukowski is an American punk rock
musician, best known as a founding member and bass player for Black Flag
. Dukowski wrote some of Black Flag's most popular songs, including "My War," "What I See," "I've Heard It Before" and "Spray Paint." He left the band before the release of My War
, and afterward served as Black Flag's manager. Dukowski was also the co-owner of SST Records
until 1990, after which he served as "Head of Sales" until leaving the label in the late 1990s.
After Black Flag, Dukowski continued to play in Würm
, SST
"supergroup" October Faction
, and formed his own band SWA
in 1985 with Merrill Ward of Overkill.
Dukowski has a new band with artist and musician (and his wife) Lora Norton called The Chuck Dukowski Sextet. They released an album, Eat My Life
, on Dukowski's own Nice & Friendly Records in 2006.
He appeared in the documentaries The Decline of Western Civilization
, Open Your Mouth And Say... Mr. Chi Pig and We Jam Econo
.
lighter with the name "Chuck The Duke" inscribed on it that he found while searching for change. Feeling that the name "Chuck The Duke" sounded macho, he wanted to add a Polish
sounding last name, as Poles
were frequently picked on, therefore he turned "Chuck The Duke" into "Chuck Dukowski". Chuck was credited under his real name on original pressings of Black Flag's Nervous Breakdown EP as well as in film The Decline Of The Western Civilization and its companion soundtrack album. He is credited as "Charles Dukowski" on Black Flag's Damaged
LP.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
musician, best known as a founding member and bass player for Black Flag
Black Flag (band)
Black Flag was an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was established by Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes in the band...
. Dukowski wrote some of Black Flag's most popular songs, including "My War," "What I See," "I've Heard It Before" and "Spray Paint." He left the band before the release of My War
My War
My War is the second full length album by the American hardcore punk band Black Flag. It was released in 1984 on SST Records.Black Flag's founder and primary songwriter Greg Ginn played bass guitar in addition to his usual guitar; "Dale Nixon" is a pseudonym.My War was released after a long period...
, and afterward served as Black Flag's manager. Dukowski was also the co-owner of SST Records
SST Records
SST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
until 1990, after which he served as "Head of Sales" until leaving the label in the late 1990s.
After Black Flag, Dukowski continued to play in Würm
Würm (band)
Würm was a sludge metal band started in 1973 by bass player Chuck Dukowski, who would later join Black Flag. They released two LP's on Greg Ginn's SST Records and some tracks on compilations...
, SST
SST Records
SST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
"supergroup" October Faction
October Faction
October Faction was one of the many off-shoots of punk band Black Flag. A supergroup of SST alumni that mixed jazz and hard rock mainly as an instrumental vehicle, the band included Chuck Dukowski on bass and vocals, Greg Ginn on guitar, Greg Cameron on drums, Joe Baiza on guitar, and Tom...
, and formed his own band SWA
SWA (band)
SWA the band originally started as a concept defined by Chuck Dukowski, former bassist of Black Flag while he was still a member of that band. The name was created by assigning an alphabetical value to numbers on a gaming die, then rolling the die three times...
in 1985 with Merrill Ward of Overkill.
Dukowski has a new band with artist and musician (and his wife) Lora Norton called The Chuck Dukowski Sextet. They released an album, Eat My Life
Eat My Life
Eat My Life is the debut release by the Chuck Dukowski Sextet, led by founding and former bassist of Black Flag, Chuck Dukowski. It was released in March 2006 on Chuck's own Nice & Friendly Records...
, on Dukowski's own Nice & Friendly Records in 2006.
He appeared in the documentaries The Decline of Western Civilization
The Decline of Western Civilization
The soundtrack was released in December 1980 by Slash Records on LP. In the late 1990s it was released on CD as well. It is currently out of print. Germs singer Darby Crash appears on the soundtrack album cover. He died shortly before the film was released, though the promotional images for the...
, Open Your Mouth And Say... Mr. Chi Pig and We Jam Econo
We Jam Econo
We Jam Econo - The Story of the Minutemen, is a full-length documentary about the influential 1980s punk rock band Minutemen, created by director Tim Irwin and producer Keith Schieron in association with Rocket Fuel Films...
.
Name origin
Chuck's birth name is Gary McDaniel, but he has used the name "Chuck Dukowski" professionally for many years. According to Chuck, the name originated from a ZippoZippo
A Zippo lighter is a refillable, metal lighter manufactured by Zippo Manufacturing Company of Bradford, Pennsylvania, U.S. Thousands of different styles and designs have been made in the seven decades since their introduction including military ones for specific regiments.-Establishment:George G...
lighter with the name "Chuck The Duke" inscribed on it that he found while searching for change. Feeling that the name "Chuck The Duke" sounded macho, he wanted to add a Polish
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
sounding last name, as Poles
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
were frequently picked on, therefore he turned "Chuck The Duke" into "Chuck Dukowski". Chuck was credited under his real name on original pressings of Black Flag's Nervous Breakdown EP as well as in film The Decline Of The Western Civilization and its companion soundtrack album. He is credited as "Charles Dukowski" on Black Flag's Damaged
Damaged (Black Flag album)
Damaged is the debut studio album by the American hardcore punk band Black Flag. It was released in December 1981 through SST Records. In 2003, the album was ranked number 340 on Rolling Stones list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time....
LP.
Black Flag
- Nervous Breakdown 7" EP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1978) - bass - Jealous Again 12" EP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1980) - bass/vocals - Six Pack 7" EP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1981) - bass - Louie, Louie 7" single (Posh Boy RecordsPosh Boy RecordsPosh Boy Records was a Hollywood, California based record label owned by Robbie Fields, a high school substitute teacher and former copyboy at the L A Times who took an interest in the emerging punk rock scene in Orange County, California during the late 1970s...
, 1981) - bass - Damaged LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1981) - bass - TV Party 7" EP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1981) - bass - Everything Went Black double LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1983) - bass - The First Four Years LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1983) - bass/vocals - Slip It In LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1984) - guest backing vocals - Wasted...Again LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1987) - bass
SWA
- Your Future (If You Have One) LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1985) - bass - Sex Dr. LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1986) - bass - XCIII LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1987) - bass - Evolution 85-87 CD (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1988) - bass - Winter LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1989) - bass - Volume LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1991) - bass/vocals
Chuck Dukowski Sextet
- Eat My LifeEat My LifeEat My Life is the debut release by the Chuck Dukowski Sextet, led by founding and former bassist of Black Flag, Chuck Dukowski. It was released in March 2006 on Chuck's own Nice & Friendly Records...
CD (Nice & Friendly Records, 2006) - bass/guitars - Reverse The Polarity CD (Nice & Friendly Records, 2007) - bass
Other
- Wurm - I'm Dead 7" (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1982) - bass/vocals - Wurm - Feast LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1985) - bass - October Faction - October Faction LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1985) - bass/vocals - October Faction - Second Factionalization LP (SST RecordsSST RecordsSST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was initially called Solid State Transmitters through which Ginn sold electronics equipment...
, 1986) - bass/vocals - Chuck Dukowski/Paul Cutler/Bill Stinson - United Gang Members CD (New Alliance RecordsNew Alliance RecordsNew Alliance Records was the record label founded by The Minutemen's D. Boon and Mike Watt and longtime friend and associate Martin Tamburovich after the example of Black Flag's SST Records...
, 1994) - bass/vocals