Charles Allen Ragan (born October 30, 1974) is an American
singer
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...
,
songwriter
A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...
, and
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...
ist. He is the guitarist and vocalist of the band
Hot Water Music. Ragan has also released a variety of solo material, including a series of
7-inches on
No Idea Records, a live album and three studio albums on
Side One Dummy Records.
Early and personal life
Chuck Ragan is the son of former
PGA and
Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...
golfer
Dave Ragan
David William Ragan, Jr. (August 7, 1935 – March 13, 2018) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour.
Ragan was born in Daytona Beach, Florida. He attended the University of Florida in Gainesville, ...
and gospel singer and missionary Geraldine Ragan.
Ragan is married. He and his wife have a son who was born in May 2015.
Hot Water Music
From October 1994 until 2006 Ragan was one of the lead singers for
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida, with a population of 141,085 in 2020. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, which had a population of 339,247 in ...
-based
punk rock band
Hot Water Music.
The group disbanded on good terms in 2005, and the other three members went on to form punk band
The Draft
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
, while Ragan continued a solo career playing mostly acoustic folk inspired music similar in tone to a former acoustic Hot Water Music side project called
Rumbleseat
Rumbleseat was the Acoustic music, acoustic-Folk music, folk side project of Hot Water Music frontmen Chuck Ragan and Chris Wollard, and Samantha Jones. Formed in 1998, Rumbleseat released four Gramophone record#Common formats, 7" records before ...
signing to
Side One Dummy Records. Hot Water Music reunited in 2007 for a tour across the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
and
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
, and in 2012, released a new album,
Exister
''Exister'' is the seventh full-length album by Hot Water Music, which was released by Rise Records on May 15, 2012. ''Exister'' is Hot Water Music's first original full-length album in eight years, since 2004's '' The New What Next''.
Track lis ...
.
Tours
Chuck Ragan,
Tim Barry
Tim Barry is an American musician and the lead singer of the Richmond, Virginia-based punk rock band Avail. In addition to performing with Avail, he was the bass guitarist in the Richmond-based folk punk band (Young) Pioneers from 1994 to ...
and
Ben Nichols toured in the fall of 2008. Chuck Ragan was also a support act on
Frank Turner
Francis Edward Turner (born 28 December 1981), is an English Punk rock, punk and Folk music, folk singer-songwriter from Meonstoke, Hampshire. He began his career as the vocalist of post-hardcore band Million Dead, then embarked upon a primar ...
's 2010 tour of the UK, and supported
The Gaslight Anthem
The Gaslight Anthem is an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, formed in 2006. The band consists of Brian Fallon (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Alex Rosamilia (lead guitar, backing vocals), Alex Levine (bass guitar, backing vocals), ...
during their 2010 European Fall tour. Ragan was the opener on the
Social Distortion
Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness (lead vocals, lead guitar), Jonny Wickersham (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Brent Harding (bass, backing voca ...
west coast tour in late January and February 2011.
The Revival Tour
In 2005, Ragan conceptualized the idea of The Revival Tour, a collaborative acoustic event featuring several punk rock, bluegrass, and alt-country performers. Ragan has stated that the tour is about "sharing music together" and "bringing it to people in an extremely honest and grassroots fashion."
On each tour the artists were accompanied by a fiddle player, Jon Gaunt, and an
upright bass
The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...
player. In 2008 and 2009,
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
Americana
Americana may refer to:
*Americana (music), a genre or style of American music
*Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States
Film, radio and television
* ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...
singer, Digger Barnes played the upright bass. In 2011, 2012, and 2013, the upright bass was played by Joe Ginsberg.
Beginnings
The first Revival Tour in 2008 featured
Avail
Avail is an American punk rock band from Richmond, Virginia, United States. Originally from Reston, Virginia, the band formed in 1987, its members including Joe Banks, Doug Crosby, Brien Stewart, and Mikey Warstler. The only original remaining ...
's
Tim Barry
Tim Barry is an American musician and the lead singer of the Richmond, Virginia-based punk rock band Avail. In addition to performing with Avail, he was the bass guitarist in the Richmond-based folk punk band (Young) Pioneers from 1994 to ...
and
Lucero's Ben Nichols, with guest appearances from
Laura Jane Grace of
Against Me!
Against Me! is an American punk rock band formed in 1997 in Naples, Florida, by singer and guitarist Laura Jane Grace. That same year, Grace moved to Gainesville, Florida, which is considered the band's hometown. Since 2001, the band's lineup ...
,
Kevin Seconds,
Jon Snodgrass of
Drag the River,
Jesse Malin
Jesse Malin (born January 26, 1967) is an American rock musician, guitarist, and songwriter. Starting his performing career in the New York hardcore band Heart Attack, and rising to prominence as vocalist of D Generation, a solo recording artis ...
of
D Generation
D Generation (also known as DGen) are an American glam punk band formed in 1991 in New York City. They released three albums and several EPs, to much critical acclaim, before breaking up in 1999. In 2011 the band reunited for a series of show ...
,
Chris McCaughan of
The Lawrence Arms
The Lawrence Arms are an American punk rock band from Chicago, formed in 1999. They have released seven full-length albums and toured extensively.
Band history Pre-history
Prior to forming the Lawrence Arms, the three band members were active i ...
,
Austin Lucas
Austin Lucas is an American indie artist best known for his own blend of folk punk.
Early years
Lucas grew up in Bloomington, Indiana, but moved to the Czech Republic in 2003. In 2008, he relocated back to the United States. He is the son of Bo ...
, and
Frank Turner
Francis Edward Turner (born 28 December 1981), is an English Punk rock, punk and Folk music, folk singer-songwriter from Meonstoke, Hampshire. He began his career as the vocalist of post-hardcore band Million Dead, then embarked upon a primar ...
.
2009–2012
![ChuckRagan](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/ChuckRagan.jpg)
In 2010, The Revival Tour journeyed across Australia, featuring Ragan, Barry, Nichols,
Frank Turner
Francis Edward Turner (born 28 December 1981), is an English Punk rock, punk and Folk music, folk singer-songwriter from Meonstoke, Hampshire. He began his career as the vocalist of post-hardcore band Million Dead, then embarked upon a primar ...
, Jen Buxton of Like...Alaska, Darren Gibson, and Jamie Hay, accompanied by Jon Gaunt on fiddle and Todd Beene (of
Glossary
A glossary (from grc, γλῶσσα, ''glossa''; language, speech, wording) also known as a vocabulary or clavis, is an alphabetical list of Term (language), terms in a particular domain of knowledge with the definitions for those terms. Tradi ...
and
Lucero) on
pedal steel guitar
The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...
. The Tour was concluded with a one-off performance at the Punk Rock Bowling festival in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
,
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
, featuring Ragan, Nichols,
Kevin Seconds,
Steve Soto, John Carey of
Old Man Markley, and
Flogging Molly
Flogging Molly is an Irish-American seven-piece Celtic punk band[Life Is Good Out Now](_blank)
Floggingmolly. ...
's Matt Hensley and Nathen Maxwell.
The 2011 Revival Tour featured
Brian Fallon of
The Gaslight Anthem
The Gaslight Anthem is an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, formed in 2006. The band consists of Brian Fallon (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Alex Rosamilia (lead guitar, backing vocals), Alex Levine (bass guitar, backing vocals), ...
, Dave Hause of
The Loved Ones, and Dan Andriano of
Alkaline Trio
Alkaline Trio is an American punk rock band from Chicago, Illinois. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Matt Skiba (vocals, guitar), Dan Andriano (vocals, bass) and Derek Grant (drums, vocals).
Founded in late 1996 by Skiba, bassist Rob Do ...
,
as well as guest appearances from Helen Chambers, Sam Russo, Jimmy Islip, Brian Brody, and
Franz Nicolay
Franz Nicolay (born 1977) is an American musician and writer. He is best known for playing the accordion and piano in The World/Inferno Friendship Society and keyboards in The Hold Steady from 2005 to 2010 and again from 2016 onwards. He is als ...
In 2012, Ragan, Andriano,
Laura Jane Grace,
Cory Branan
Cory Branan (born December 15, 1974) is an American singer-songwriter from Mississippi.
Early life
Branan was born in Memphis, Tennessee, to parents Dallas Lee Branan, a jet mechanic at FedEx, and Peggy Branan (née Rhodes). He grew up in ...
,
Ben Kweller and
Nathaniel Rateliff
Nathaniel David Rateliff (born October 7, 1978) is an American singer and songwriter based in Denver, Colorado, whose influences are described as folk, Americana and vintage rhythm & blues. Rateliff has performed with a backing band called the ...
performed across the United States and
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
for the Tour's spring leg, with guest appearances by
Jenny Owen Youngs
Jenny Owen Youngs (born November 22, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter. She has released three albums and a handful of EPs both independently and via Nettwerk Records, and has toured worldwide. Youngs is also a songwriting collaborator whos ...
,
Dave Hause
Dave Hause (born March 12, 1978) is an American singer-songwriter. He currently performs both solo and with his band The Mermaid. His music draws from heartland rock, folk rock and punk rock. He has also played in multiple Philadelphia, PA area ...
, and Kayleigh Goldsworthy.
In the autumn of the same year, a European leg of the Tour featured Ragan, Branan,
Emily Barker
Emily Barker (born 2 December 1980) is an Australian singer-songwriter, musician and composer. Her music has featured as the theme to BBC dramas ''Wallander'' and ''The Shadow Line''. With multi-instrumental trio the Red Clay Halo, she record ...
,
Rocky Votolato
Rocky Votolato (born March 8, 1977 in Dallas, Texas, United States), is an American singer-songwriter.
Biography
He was raised in Frost, Texas, roughly 50 miles south of Dallas, until the age of 13. After his parents were divorced, his moth ...
, and
Jay Malinowski
Jay Malinowski (born 1982) is a Canadians, Canadian singer, songwriter, visual artist and writer. He was born in Montreal, Quebec, and grew up in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is best known as the vocalist and guitarist for reggae group Bedo ...
of
Bedouin Soundclash
Bedouin Soundclash is a Canadian band based in Toronto and consisting of vocalist and guitarist Jay Malinowski, bass player Eon Sinclair and drummer Chuck Treece. Their sound has been described as a combination of reggae and ska. Bedouin Soundcla ...
.
Musical projects
![Chuck Ragan Rock Camp 2014 (5)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Chuck_Ragan_Rock_Camp_2014_%285%29.JPG)
In a February 12, 2010, interview, Chuck commented that he was working on an album with
Brian Fallon, frontman for the
Gaslight Anthem
The Gaslight Anthem is an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, formed in 2006. The band consists of Brian Fallon (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Alex Rosamilia (lead guitar, backing vocals), Alex Levine (bass guitar, backing vocals), ...
.
Since then, Fallon's vocals appeared on Ragan's song "Meet You In The Middle."
Ragan released a four-way split with underground UK singer-songwriters Sam Russo, Helen Chambers and Jimmy Islip in 2011.
On November 21, 2013, Chuck announced that his next solo album with Todd Beene of
Lucero and
Glossary
A glossary (from grc, γλῶσσα, ''glossa''; language, speech, wording) also known as a vocabulary or clavis, is an alphabetical list of Term (language), terms in a particular domain of knowledge with the definitions for those terms. Tradi ...
, Jon Gaunt, Joe Ginsberg,
David Hidalgo Jr.
David Hidalgo Jr. (born August 30, 1984) is an American drummer who plays in the punk rock band Social Distortion.
Early life, family and education
He is the son of David Hidalgo, guitarist and singer of Los Lobos. The younger David began ...
of
Social Distortion
Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness (lead vocals, lead guitar), Jonny Wickersham (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Brent Harding (bass, backing voca ...
,
Rami Jaffee
Rami Jaffee (born March 11, 1969) is an American musician. He is best known as the keyboardist for the rock band Foo Fighters, whom he initially joined in a touring and session capacity in 2005. Jaffee has contributed to six of the band's studi ...
of
The Wallflowers
The Wallflowers is an American rock solo project of American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jakob Dylan. The Wallflowers were originally a roots rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1989 by Dylan and guitarist Tobi Miller. The band ...
and
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...
, Christopher Thorn of
Blind Melon
Blind Melon is an American rock band formed in 1990 in Los Angeles by five musicians: three from Mississippi, one from Pennsylvania and one from Indiana. The band currently consists of guitarists Rogers Stevens and Christopher Thorn, drummer G ...
that would be titled 'Till Midnight and released in 2014 on Side One Dummy.
Other projects
In 2012, Ragan released a book of tour stories entitled "The Road Most Traveled." The book is said to be "more than just a collection of anecdotes, it's as much a handbook of how to act on tour as it is a cautionary tale of what not to do if you want to sustain this lifestyle for years to come."
In 2014, Ragan began working on the soundtrack for "
The Flame in the Flood", a video game developed by the indie game company The Molasses Flood.
Discography
Studio albums
* 2007 ''
Feast or Famine'' –
SideOneDummy
SideOneDummy Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1995 by Bill Armstrong and Joe Sib. The label began as a way for them to release music for their friends' bands. Thereafter SideOneDummy launched the car ...
/
No Idea Records
* 2009 ''
Gold Country
The Gold Country (also known as Mother Lode Country) is a historic region in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, that is primarily on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada. It is famed for the mineral deposits and gold mines ...
'' –
SideOneDummy
SideOneDummy Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1995 by Bill Armstrong and Joe Sib. The label began as a way for them to release music for their friends' bands. Thereafter SideOneDummy launched the car ...
/ TenFour Records
* 2011 ''
Covering Ground'' –
SideOneDummy
SideOneDummy Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1995 by Bill Armstrong and Joe Sib. The label began as a way for them to release music for their friends' bands. Thereafter SideOneDummy launched the car ...
/ TenFour Records
* 2014 ''
Till Midnight'' –
SideOneDummy
SideOneDummy Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1995 by Bill Armstrong and Joe Sib. The label began as a way for them to release music for their friends' bands. Thereafter SideOneDummy launched the car ...
/
Dine Alone Records
Dine Alone Records is a Canadian and American independent record label, founded in St. Catharines and Toronto by Joel Carriere. The label is now based in Toronto, Nashville and Los Angeles.
History
Dine Alone was born out of founder Joel Car ...
Split albums/Collaborations
* 2008 ''Bristle Ridge'' – with Austin Lucas – Hometown Caravan – LP (Ltd. European Tour Ed.) / Ten Four Records (Collaboration)
* 2009 ''Anderson Family Bluegrass / Chuck Ragan'' – Stowaway Sound / Ten Four Records (Split LP)
* 2010 ''Chuck Ragan / Darren Gibson''
Poison City Records
Poison City Records is an independent record label based in Melbourne, Victoria, founded in 2003. The label opened a physical store in 2008, at 400 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy selling records and skateboards. In mid-2020, the store and label moved ...
(Split LP)
* 2010 ''Ravi / Chuck Ragan'' – Cursing Concrete (
Rumbleseat
Rumbleseat was the Acoustic music, acoustic-Folk music, folk side project of Hot Water Music frontmen Chuck Ragan and Chris Wollard, and Samantha Jones. Formed in 1998, Rumbleseat released four Gramophone record#Common formats, 7" records before ...
cover) / Masses EP, self-published
* 2011 ''Chuck Ragan / Sam Russo / Jimmy Islip / Helen Chambers' / ''Specialist Subject Releases (Collaboration)
* 2014 ''Kindred Spirit'' (split EP with
Rocky Votolato
Rocky Votolato (born March 8, 1977 in Dallas, Texas, United States), is an American singer-songwriter.
Biography
He was raised in Frost, Texas, roughly 50 miles south of Dallas, until the age of 13. After his parents were divorced, his moth ...
)
Soundtracks
* 2013: ''"It's Better in the Wind" Soundtrack'' – TenFour Records
* 2016: ''
The Flame in the Flood'' – TenFour Records
Live albums
* 2006: ''Live at the Troubadour'' – Self-Release (CD-R)
* 2007: ''Los Feliz'' –
SideOneDummy
SideOneDummy Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1995 by Bill Armstrong and Joe Sib. The label began as a way for them to release music for their friends' bands. Thereafter SideOneDummy launched the car ...
(CD/LP)
* 2009: ''Live at Hafenkneipe Zürich'' – Leech Records (LP – Ltd. to 1500 copies)
* 2009: ''Chuck plays Frankfurt'' – Fanclub (DoLP – Ltd. to 300 handnumbered copies)
* 2009: ''Live from Rock Island: The Daytrotter Sessions'' – Side One Dummy Records (10" Vinyl)
* 2010: ''Live at Cafe Du Nord''(CD/LP)
* 2016: ''The Winter Haul Live''
Singles
*''The 7-Inch Club'' – 2006–2007,
No Idea Records (Ragan released a series of seven singles, one per month, referred to collectively as "The 7-Inch Club" because only those who had pre-ordered the entire set ahead of time could obtain copies.) The series was also pressed on a CD entitled The Blueprint Sessions which accompanied the final mailing of the 7-Inch Club.
*"Something May Catch Fire"
*"Rotterdam" 2009
Music videos
*"You and I Alone"
*"Something May Catch Fire"
*"Nomad by Fate (Punks in Vegas Session)"
*"Vagabond"
References
External links
Chuck RaganThe Revival Tour
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ragan, Chuck
Living people
American punk rock singers
Folk punk musicians
Singers from Florida
1974 births
SideOneDummy Records artists
21st-century American singers
21st-century American male singers
Hot Water Music members