Gary Arthur McDaniel (born February 1, 1954 ), better known by his stage name Chuck Dukowski, is an American punk rock musician most well known for being the bass player, and occasional songwriter for Black Flag.

Career

Early years

Dukowski was born and raised in a self-described middle-class family in

San Pedro, Los Angeles San Pedro ( ; Spanish: " St. Peter") is a neighborhood within the City of Los Angeles, California. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los Angeles in 1909. The Port of Los Angeles, a major international seaport, is partially located wi ...

, California where his father worked for TRW. Dukowski's mother was German and her family lineage had many musicians and composers. Dukowski attended

San Pedro High School San Pedro High School is a public high school in the Los Angeles Unified School District and is located in the San Pedro portion of the city of Los Angeles, California. The school serves the entirety of San Pedro as well as most of the Eastvie ...

and later

Chadwick School Chadwick School is a nonsectarian independent K-12 day school located in an unincorporated area on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Specifically it is located at the top of the neighborhood referre ...

, where he played football. After graduation, he went to college to study psychobiology.

Würm

Dukowski's first band was

Würm The Würm is a river in Bavaria, Germany, right tributary of the Amper. The length of the river is , or including the ''Steinbach'', the main feed of Lake Starnberg. It drains the overflow from Lake Starnberg and flows swiftly through the villag ...

which started in 1973. By 1977, the band had moved to

Hermosa Beach Hermosa Beach (''Hermosa'', Spanish for "Beautiful") is a beachfront city in Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California, United States. Its population was 19,728 at the 2020 U.S. Census. The city is located in the South Bay region of th ...

and lived in a communal house called "the Würmhole" but broke up later that year.

Black Flag

Keith Morris Keith Morris (born September 18, 1955) is an American singer and songwriter known for his role as frontman of the hardcore punk bands Black Flag, Circle Jerks, and Off!. Born and raised in Hermosa Beach, California, he formed Black Flag at the ...

and

Greg Ginn Gregory Regis Ginn (born June 8, 1954) is an American guitarist, bassist, singer and songwriter, best known for being the leader, primary songwriter, and the only continuous member of the hardcore punk band Black Flag, which he founded and led ...

were regulars at Würmhole parties in 1977 Dukowski joined their band Panic before they played their first show. Panic changed their name to Black Flag after discovering another band using the name "Panic". He left the band in 1983 before the recording of ''

My War ''My War'' is the second studio album by American band Black Flag. It was the first of three full-length albums released by the band in 1984. It polarized fans due to the LP's B-side, on which the band slowed down to a heavy, Black Sabbath-e ...

'', and afterward served as Black Flag's manager. He was responsible for booking nationwide and worldwide tours until 1986. Dukowski wrote or co-wrote some of Black Flag's most popular songs, including "My War," "The Bars," "I Love You" and "Modern Man." Dukowski started

SST Records SST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by musician Greg Ginn. The company was formed in 1966 by Ginn at age 12 as Solid State Tuners, a small business through which he sold electronics equipm ...

with Ginn in 1978 and was a co-owner until 1989.

Later projects

After Black Flag, Dukowski reformed

which continued until guitarist Ed Danky died. Other bands Dukowski formed include SST "supergroup" October Faction, and SWA formed in 1985 with Merrill Ward of Overkill. Dukowski has a new band with his wife, artist and musician Lora Norton and son Milo called

The Chuck Dukowski Sextet The Chuck Dukowski Sextet (or CD6) is a band featuring former Black Flag bassist Chuck Dukowski. The band is called a sextet even though they only have four members. History Dukowski wanted to start playing again so he began playing with a drum ...

. They released their debut album, ''

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.Lang, Dave (May, 2007)"Chuck Dukowski: Interview by Dave Lang" '' furious.com/perfect''. Retrieved January 10, 2 ...

'', on Dukowski's own Nice & Friendly Records in 2006. In 2013, Chuck launched Flag with former Black Flag members

, Bill Stevenson,

Dez Cadena Dez Cadena (born June 2, 1961) is an American punk rock singer and guitarist. He was the third vocalist and later rhythm guitarist for hardcore punk band Black Flag from 1980 to 1983. Cadena played guitar with Misfits from 2001 to 2015, initi ...

, and

Descendents The Descendents are an American punk rock band formed in 1977 in Manhattan Beach, California, by guitarist Frank Navetta, bassist Tony Lombardo and drummer Bill Stevenson. In 1979, they enlisted Stevenson's school friend Milo Aukerman as a s ...

All All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All al ...

guitarist Stephen Egerton to perform the music of Black Flag. He appeared in the documentaries ''

The Decline of Western Civilization ''The Decline of Western Civilization'' is a 1981 American documentary filmed through 1979 and 1980. The movie is about the Los Angeles punk rock scene and was directed by Penelope Spheeris. In 1981, the LAPD Chief of Police Daryl Gates wrote a ...

'', '' Open Your Mouth And Say... Mr. Chi Pig'', ''

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. The film premiered ...

'', '' Urban Struggle: the Battle of the Cuckoo's Nest'' and " We Were Feared (Clockwork Orange County)".

Stage name

"Chuck Dukowski" is Dukowski's stage name; according to Dukowski, it originated from a

Zippo A Zippo lighter is a reusable metal lighter produced by Zippo Manufacturing Company of Bradford, Pennsylvania, United States. Thousands of different styles and designs have been made in the nine decades since their introduction, including milita ...

lighter with "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. He turned "Chuck the Duke" into "Chuck Dukowski". Dukowski was credited under his real name on original pressings of Black Flag's ''

Nervous Breakdown A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...

'' EP as well as in film ''

'' and its companion soundtrack album. He is credited as "Charles Dukowski" on Black Flag's '' Damaged'' LP.

Discography

Black Flag

* ''

'' EP (1979) – bass * ''

Jealous Again ''Jealous Again'' is a 12" EP that was the second release by American hardcore punk band Black Flag and the third-ever release on SST Records. History Although eventually released as a 12" 45 RPM extended-play, ''Jealous Again'' was initially ...

'' EP (1980) – bass/vocals * "

Louie Louie "Louie Louie" is a rhythm and blues song written and composed by American musician Richard Berry in 1955, recorded in 1956, and released in 1957. It is best known for the 1963 hit version by the Kingsmen and has become a standard in pop and ...

" single (1981) – bass * '' Six Pack'' EP (1981) – bass * '' Damaged'' (1981) – bass * ''

TV Party Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

'' EP (1982) – bass * ''

Everything Went Black ''Everything Went Black'' is a compilation album by the American hardcore punk band Black Flag. It was released in 1982 through SST Records SST Records is an American independent record label formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California by music ...

'' double LP (1983) – bass * ''

Slip It In ''Slip It In'' is the fourth studio album by the American hardcore punk band Black Flag, released in 1984 on SST Records. ''Slip It In'' is an extension of the sound Black Flag utilized on its second album ''My War'': heavy, cathartic, intense ...

(1984) – guest backing vocals

SWA

* ''Your Future (If You Have One)'' (1985) – bass * ''Sex Dr.'' (1986) – bass * ''XCIII'' (1987) – bass * ''Evolution 85–87'' (1988) – bass * ''Winter'' (1989) – bass * ''Volume'' (1991) – bass/vocals

Chuck Dukowski Sextet The Chuck Dukowski Sextet (or CD6) is a band featuring former Black Flag bassist Chuck Dukowski. The band is called a sextet even though they only have four members. History Dukowski wanted to start playing again so he began playing with a drum ...

* ''

'' (2006) – bass/guitars * ''Reverse the Polarity'' (2007) – bass * ''Haunted'' (2012) – bass

Other

* Wurm – ''I'm Dead'' EP (1982) – bass/vocals * Wurm – Feast (1985) – bass * October Faction – ''October Faction''(1985) – bass/vocals * October Faction – ''Second Factionalization'' (1986) – bass/vocals * Chuck Dukowski/Paul Cutler/Bill Stinson – ''United Gang Members'' CD (1994) – bass/vocals * Black Face - "I Want to Kill You / Monster" 7" (2011) *

Bl'ast Blast (stylized as BL'AST!) is an American punk rock band formed in 1983 in Santa Cruz, California. After breaking up in 1991, they reunited in 2001 and again in 2013. To date, Blast has released three original studio albums (the latest being ...

- ''For Those Who've Graced The Fire!'' single (2015) - bass (as guest)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dukowski, Chuck 1954 births Living people American punk rock bass guitarists American male bass guitarists Black Flag (band) members Hardcore punk musicians American male guitarists 20th-century American bass guitarists