Donald Roeser (born November 12, 1947), known by his stage name Buck Dharma, is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is the sole constant member of hard rock band
Blue Öyster Cult
Blue Öyster Cult ( ; sometimes abbreviated BÖC or BOC) is an American Rock music, rock band formed on Long Island in Stony Brook, New York, in 1967, and best known for the singles "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", "Burnin' for You", and "Godzilla ( ...
since the group's formation in 1967. He wrote and sang vocals on several of the band's best-known hits, including "
(Don't Fear) The Reaper
"(Don't Fear) The Reaper" is a song by American rock band Blue Öyster Cult from the band's 1976 album ''Agents of Fortune.'' The song, written and sung by lead guitarist Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser, deals with eternal love and the inevitabili ...
", "
Godzilla
is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produc ...
" and "
Burnin' for You
"Burnin' for You" is a song by American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult. It was released as the lead single from the band's eighth studio album, '' Fire of Unknown Origin'', released in June 1981, where it was the album's second track. The song ...
".
Early life
Roeser was born in
Queens
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
, New York City. His father was an accomplished
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
saxophonist
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...
, and Roeser spent a lot of time listening to jazz music as a result. Because of this, Roeser developed an interest in the melodic arts at an early age, even playing the accordion for a brief time.
Roeser was influenced greatly by the
British Invasion of 1964, and decided to pursue rock-and-roll music. He first started out playing the drums, but had to stop temporarily after breaking his wrist playing basketball. While recovering, Roeser learned to play guitar, and found he enjoyed it more than the drums.
[
During his high-school years at Smithtown Central High School, Roeser played guitar in various cover bands. At this time, he started to develop his own signature sound by imitating his favorite guitarists and combining their sounds with his own style. Roeser attended ]Clarkson University
Clarkson University is a private research university with its main campus in Potsdam, New York, and additional graduate program and research facilities in the New York Capital Region and Beacon, New York. It was founded in 1896 and has an enr ...
in New York, and joined a band that included later bandmate Albert Bouchard
Albert Thomas Bouchard (; born May 24, 1947) is an American musician. He is a founding member and the original drummer of the hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult and current drummer of The Dictators. He is the brother of former Blue Öyster Cult ...
. The two played together on and off during the rest of their college career. At the end, both musicians abandoned potential degrees (Roeser's in Chemical Engineering
Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...
), and decided to pursue music full-time. They moved into a band house near Stony Brook University
Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public research university in Stony Brook, New York. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is one of the State University of New York system's ...
, where Roeser was a part-time student, and started their careers.[
]
Career
Early career: 1967–1971
Roeser and Albert Bouchard started the band Soft White Underbelly in 1967. Members included keyboardist Allen Lanier
Allen Glover Lanier (; June 25, 1946 – August 14, 2013) was an American musician who played keyboards and rhythm guitar. He was an original member of Blue Öyster Cult.
Lanier wrote several songs for Blue Öyster Cult albums, including "T ...
, singer Les Braunstein, bassist Andrew Winters and former music critic Sandy Pearlman
Samuel Clarke "Sandy" Pearlman (August 5, 1943 – July 26, 2016) was an American music producer, artist manager, music journalist and critic, professor, poet, songwriter, and record company executive. He was best known for founding, writing for, ...
(their producer). In 1968, they were signed by Elektra Records
Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the 1 ...
after the company's president Jac Holzman
Jac Holzman (born September 15, 1931) is an American music businessman, best known as the founder, chief executive officer and head of record label Elektra Records and Nonesuch Records. Holzman commercially helped launch the CD and home video form ...
saw them perform. The band dropped Braunstein and added new singer Eric Bloom
Eric Jay Bloom (born December 1, 1944) is an American musician, singer and songwriter. He is best known as the co-lead vocalist, guitar and keyboard/synthesizer player for the long-running band Blue Öyster Cult, with work on more than 20 albu ...
to their lineup - and recorded under the name Stalk-Forrest Group (after a bad gig forced them to change their name) in 1970. Elektra dropped the band because of problems with the personnel, and the album was shelved (it was eventually released in 2001 under the name '' St. Cecilia: The Elektra Recordings'').
Blue Öyster Cult: 1971–present
Roeser, along with Bouchard, Lanier, Pearlman, Bloom, and new member bassist Joe Bouchard
Joseph J. Bouchard (; born November 9, 1948) is an American musician. He was the bassist and one of the lead singers of the hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult during their most successful period. He is the younger brother of original Blue Öyster ...
(younger brother of Albert Bouchard) reformed with the name Blue Öyster Cult
Blue Öyster Cult ( ; sometimes abbreviated BÖC or BOC) is an American Rock music, rock band formed on Long Island in Stony Brook, New York, in 1967, and best known for the singles "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", "Burnin' for You", and "Godzilla ( ...
. They signed with Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
in 1971, and released four albums between 1972 and 1975. By Blue Öyster Cult's fifth album ''Agents of Fortune'' in 1976, Roeser proved himself as a songwriter and vocalist with the band's signature song "(Don't Fear) The Reaper
"(Don't Fear) The Reaper" is a song by American rock band Blue Öyster Cult from the band's 1976 album ''Agents of Fortune.'' The song, written and sung by lead guitarist Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser, deals with eternal love and the inevitabili ...
". As a result, Roeser's songwriting and vocals were more prevalent on the follow-up albums ''Spectres'', ''Mirrors'', ''Cultosaurus Erectus'' and ''Fire of Unknown Origin''. Most significantly, he penned and sang on the tracks "Godzilla
is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produc ...
" and "Burnin' for You
"Burnin' for You" is a song by American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult. It was released as the lead single from the band's eighth studio album, '' Fire of Unknown Origin'', released in June 1981, where it was the album's second track. The song ...
".
In 1982, Roeser recorded and released '' Flat Out'', his first and only solo album to date. The tracks were all composed by Roeser (some co-written with Richard Meltzer
Richard Meltzer (born May 10, 1945) is an American rock critic, performer, writer and songwriter. He is considered by some rock historians to be the first to write real analysis of rock and roll and is credited with inventing "rock criticism".
B ...
, Neal Smith and Roeser's wife Sandy), with the exception of "Come Softly to Me
"Come Softly to Me" is a popular song recorded by The Fleetwoods, composed of Gretchen Christopher, Barbara Ellis, and Gary Troxel, who also wrote it. The original title was "Come Softly", but was changed en route to its becoming a hit. Bob Reisdo ...
", a song originally recorded by The Fleetwoods
The Fleetwoods were an American vocal group from Olympia, Washington whose members were Gary Troxel (born November 28, 1939), Gretchen Christopher (born February 29, 1940), and Barbara Ellis (born February 20, 1940).
Early history
The band mem ...
. The songs on the album were ones Roeser wanted to record with BÖC, but were perceived as too poppy by the other members of the band. Singles from the album were "Born to Rock" and "Your Loving Heart", both of which had music videos made but did not chart. The video for the former was part of an MTV promo along with Blotto's Metalhead clip, in which Buck made a cameo appearance, as well as playing guitar on the song.
Roeser and Blue Öyster Cult subsequently recorded several more albums that flopped commercially, but contained several of Roeser's compositions and many tracks with him on lead vocals. The band's commercial struggles, along with the loss of original members Albert Bouchard (1982) and Allen Lanier (1985), prompted Blue Öyster Cult to break up in mid 1986.
In 1985, Roeser and Bloom participated in Hear 'n Aid
Hear 'n Aid was a charity record recorded by a large ensemble of 40 heavy metal musicians and released in 1986. The project was organized by Ronnie James Dio, Jimmy Bain, and Vivian Campbell, all from the band Dio. Proceeds from the album were ...
, a project created by Ronnie James Dio
Ronald James Padavona (July 10, 1942 – May 16, 2010), known professionally as Ronnie James Dio, was an American heavy metal singer. He fronted and founded numerous bands throughout his career, including Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and H ...
to raise money for famine relief in Africa. It included many famous heavy metal musicians. Hear n' Aid recorded the song "Stars", which includes a guitar solo by Roeser. Hear n' Aid also released a compilation album which included "Stars", as well as live outtakes from the participating artists.
In 1988 Blue Öyster Cult released ''Imaginos'', which was recorded between 1982 and 1988. The record was originally planned to be a concept album based on Sandy Pearlman's poetry by former drummer Albert Bouchard. At the insistence of Columbia Records, it was released under the band name. Despite largely positive reviews, the album did not do well commercially, and the band was dropped by Columbia. This was the last album featuring all original members, as the Bouchards left at the end of production.
In 1988, Roeser formed The Red and the Black with John Rogers on bass and Ron Riddle on drums. The band recorded demos, but was never signed by a record company and never released an album. As a result, the band split quickly.[ In 1989, Roeser contributed the instrumental "Gamera is Missing" to the album ''Guitar's Practicing Musicians Volume 3'' (later included on the CD re-release of ''Flat Out'').
Dharma in 2006
After releasing ''Imaginos'', Roeser, Bloom and Lanier continued to tour as Blue Öyster Cult, with various musicians on bass and drums. In 1992, the band wrote the score for '']Bad Channels
''Bad Channels'' is a 1992 American science fiction spoof direct-to-video film, produced by Full Moon Features and released by Paramount Home Video. It is about two aliens (Cosmo and Lump) who invade a radio station with the intention of capturi ...
'' and composed two original songs for its soundtrack. In 1994, Blue Öyster Cult released ''Cult Classic
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...
'', an album containing remakes of their greatest hits.
In the late 1990s, Blue Öyster Cult signed with Sanctuary Records
Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and is as of 2013 a subsidiary of BMG Rights Management solely for reissues. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest m ...
, and released two studio albums and one live album between 1998 and 2002. The band was dropped by the label in 2002. Roeser continues to tour extensively with the band, and in December 2012 reunited for a final time with all of the original members for the band's 40th Anniversary Concert.
On January 1, 2015, Roeser released "Fight", an original song, on his SoundCloud
SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...
account. It is his first newly released material since 2001. The song was later re-recorded with Blue Öyster Cult, appearing on their fifteenth album ''The Symbol Remains
''The Symbol Remains'' is the fifteenth studio album by American rock band Blue Öyster Cult, released on October 9, 2020.
The title comes from a lyric in the song "Shadow of California" on Blue Öyster Cult's 1983 LP ''The Revölution by Night' ...
'' (2020).
Roeser appears on the song "Metal Head" by the comedy-rock group Blotto and appears in the song's video, watching television.
Personal life
In 2002, Roeser and his wife created "The Dharmas", a web-series exclusively featured on Roeser's website. The web-series is a comical, fictionalized insight on the life and times of the Roeser family.
In 1996, Roeser heard about Ricky Browning, a 10-year-old fan of Roeser's "Godzilla" who was battling a brain tumor. Roeser organized a benefit concert to help with the family's medical costs. Roeser, his wife Sandy, drummer John Miceli
John Miceli (born May 29, 1961 in Long Island, New York) is the drummer for Meat Loaf's backing band, the Neverland Express.
Meat Loaf
Miceli began touring with Meat Loaf in 1991, and was a part of the Neverland Express when '' Bat Out of Hell ...
and bassist Danny Miranda played the concert under the name "Buck Dharma Band". Roeser taped the concert and released a video of it, which includes the story of Browning. Browning eventually succumbed to his illness. The Roesers still have a close relationship with the Browning family.
Equipment
Roeser uses the Gibson SG
The Gibson SG is a solid-body electric guitar model introduced by Gibson in 1961 as the Gibson Les Paul SG. It remains in production today in many variations of the initial design. The SG (where "SG" refers to Solid-Body Guitar) Standard is Gib ...
and numerous Steinberger
Steinberger is a series of distinctive electric guitars and bass guitars, designed and originally manufactured by Ned Steinberger. The name "Steinberger" can be used to refer to either the instruments themselves or the company that originally pro ...
models.
One of his Steinberger guitars has a custom body made to look like Swiss cheese; Dharma calls this guitar his "Cheeseberger".[
]
His other equipment use includes: a ''Giuliano Balestra Vulcan'', a Fender Stratocaster
The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of electric guitar designed from 1952 into 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corporation has continuously ...
, a ''St. Blues'' and custom models built by ''Rick Kresiak'', ''Harper Guitars'' and ''Warren Guitars''. Many of his guitars were made by White Plains-based custom guitar maker, Giuliano.
In August 2015 Dharma became an endorser of Kiesel Guitars
Kiesel Guitars is an American manufacturer of custom electric guitars and electric bass guitars located in Southern California, with a heritage dating back to 1946. In 2015, Kiesel Guitars split from Carvin Corporation, taking the guitar and bas ...
and played a headless ''Vader 6''.
Stage name
Roeser got the stage name "Buck Dharma" in the late 1960s. Manager Sandy Pearlman came up with the idea of creating eccentric stage names for Blue Öyster Cult's members. Every member rejected their new stage name except for Roeser, who liked the name and the idea of having an alternate persona.[
]
Discography
Studio albums
*'' Flat Out'' (1982)
Singles
*"Born to Rock" (1982)
*"Your Loving Heart" (1982)
References
External links
Buck Dharma Dot Com, Roeser's official website
Official Blue Öyster Cult Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dharma, Buck
1947 births
People from Long Island
American heavy metal guitarists
American rock singers
American rock songwriters
American male songwriters
Blue Öyster Cult members
Living people
Lead guitarists
Guitarists from New York (state)
American male guitarists
20th-century American guitarists
Writers from New York (state)
21st-century American guitarists
20th-century American singers
Singer-songwriters from New York (state)
Psychedelic rock musicians