The Dead Boys are an American punk rock band from

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, United States. The band was among the first wave of punk, and regarded by many as one of the rowdiest and most violent groups of the era. They were formed by vocalist

Stiv Bators Steven John Bator (October 22, 1949 – June 4, 1990), known professionally as Stiv Bator and later as Stiv Bators, was an American punk rock vocalist and guitarist from Girard, Ohio. He is best remembered for his bands Dead Boys and The Lords ...

, rhythm guitarist Jimmy Zero, bassist Jeff Magnum, lead guitarist

Cheetah Chrome Eugene Richard O'Connor (born February 18, 1955), better known by his stage name Cheetah Chrome, is an American musician who achieved fame as a guitarist for Rocket from the Tombs and the punk rock band Dead Boys. Career Rocket From the Tombs ...

, and drummer

Johnny Blitz John Madansky, known as Johnny Blitz, is a punk rock drummer from Cleveland, Ohio, best known as being a member of the bands Dead Boys and Rocket From The Tombs. With the Dead Boys he helped pioneer the punk rock sound, look and attitude of th ...

in 1975, with the later two having splintered from the band

Rocket From The Tombs Rocket from the Tombs (or RFTT) is an American rock band originally active from mid-1974 to mid-1975 in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The band was reconstituted several times with various line-ups starting in 2003. Heralded as an important pro ...

. The original Dead Boys released two studio albums, ''

Young Loud and Snotty ''Young, Loud and Snotty'' is the first studio album by the American Punk rock, punk band Dead Boys. It was recorded and released in 1977 on Sire Records, produced by Genya Ravan. The album is the only Dead Boys album to chart, peaking at 189 on t ...

'', and '' We Have Come for Your Children''. The Dead Boys were initially active from 1975 to 1980, briefly reuniting a few times in the mid-1980s, and then later again in 2004 and 2005 for the first time without Bators, who had died in 1990. In September 2017, Chrome and Blitz reunited the band with a new line-up for a 40th anniversary tour along with a new album, '' Still Snotty: Young, Loud and Snotty at 40'', a re-recording of their debut album. The new lineup includes vocalist Jake Hout, guitarist Jason "Ginchy" Kottwitz and bassist Ricky Rat, alongside Chrome and Blitz.

History

Formation and 1970s punk rock era

Chrome and Blitz joined Cleveland proto-punk band

in late 1974. Chrome invited his friend Steve Bators on stage to sing a few songs at a show in August 1975. This caused most of the other band members to walk off stage and they broke up. Shortly thereafter Bators, Chrome and Blitz recruited Magnum and Zero to form Frankenstein who recorded demos in October but they broke up in January 1976. When the band members relocated to New York City in July 1976, they adopted the Dead Boys moniker which came from a line in the RFTT song "Down in Flames". Moving to New York City at the encouragement of

Joey Ramone Jeffrey Ross Hyman (May 19, 1951 – April 15, 2001), known professionally as Joey Ramone, was an American musician, best known as the lead singer and a founding member of the punk rock band Ramones. His image, voice, and his tenure with the R ...

, the

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...

' lead singer, the Dead Boys quickly gained notoriety for their outrageous live performances. Lewd gestures and profanity were the norm. On more than one occasion, lead singer

slashed his stomach with his mic stand. Such antics reportedly discouraged the development of a mainstream rock following, despite the relative breadth of their material beyond pure punk. They frequently played at the rock club

CBGB CBGB was a New York City music club opened in 1973 by Hilly Kristal in Manhattan's East Village. The club was previously a biker bar and before that was a dive bar. The letters ''CBGB'' were for '' Country'', '' BlueGrass'', and '' Blues'', Kri ...

(the band was briefly managed by club owner

Hilly Kristal Hillel Kristal (September 23, 1931August 28, 2007) was an American club owner, manager and musician who was the owner of the iconic New York City club CBGB, which opened in 1973 and closed in 2006 over a rent dispute. Early years Kristal was bor ...

) and in 1977 they released their debut album, ''

Young, Loud and Snotty ''Young, Loud and Snotty'' is the first studio album by the American punk band Dead Boys. It was recorded and released in 1977 on Sire Records, produced by Genya Ravan. The album is the only Dead Boys album to chart, peaking at 189 on the Billboar ...

'', produced by

Genya Ravan Genya Ravan, a.k.a. Goldie (born Genyusha Zelkovicz; April 19, 1940) is an American rock singer and music producer. She was lead singer of The Escorts, Goldie and the Gingerbreads, and Ten Wheel Drive. Life and career Childhood Ravan was born ...

. Their song "

Sonic Reducer "Sonic Reducer" is a punk rock song written by Cheetah Chrome and David Thomas during their tenure in Rocket from the Tombs, which made its recorded debut on the Dead Boys 1977 album ''Young, Loud and Snotty'' with a change of lyrics that were r ...

" is often regarded as one of the classics of the punk genre, with

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

calling it "one of punk's great anthems." Their second album, '' We Have Come for Your Children'', produced by

Felix Pappalardi Felix A. Pappalardi Jr. (December 30, 1939 – April 17, 1983) was an American music producer, songwriter, vocalist, and bassist. He is best known as the bassist and co-lead vocalist of the band Mountain, whose song "Mississippi Queen" peaked at ...

, was recorded in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

in early 1978 and released later that year.

Sire Records Sire Records (formerly Sire Records Company) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Records. History Beginnings The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer ...

pressured the group to change their look and sound to appeal more to the U.S. mainstream (which had yet to embrace punk on the level seen in the UK) and this contributed to Dead Boys breaking up in 1979. Shortly after returning from Miami Johnny Blitz and a group of his friends got into an altercation on Second Avenue in Manhattan which led to Blitz being stabbed in the chest 5 times. While he was recovering in the hospital a benefit was held for him, at which the Dead Boys performed without him, with

John Belushi John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American comedian, actor, and musician, best known for being one of the seven original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). Throughout his ca ...

and former

New York Dolls New York Dolls were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved much commercial succe ...

and

Johnny Thunders John Anthony Genzale (July 15, 1952 – April 23, 1991), known professionally as Johnny Thunders, was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence in the early 1970s as a member of the New York Dolls. He later played with ...

the Heartbreakers The Heartbreakers, sometimes referred to as Johnny Thunders' Heartbreakers, were an American punk rock band formed in New York City in 1975. The band spearheaded the first wave of punk rock. History Johnny Thunders (vocals/guitar) and Jerry N ...

drummer

Jerry Nolan Gerard "Jerry" Nolan (May 7, 1946 – January 14, 1992) was an American rock drummer, best known for his work with the New York Dolls and The Heartbreakers. Career A native of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Nolan joined the New York Dolls in the au ...

filling in for him on drums. Several 1979 performances were featured in the 1980 film, ''

D.O.A. DOA may refer to: * Dead on arrival * Dead or Alive (disambiguation) Film * ''D.O.A.'' (1949 film), a ''film noir'' * ''D.O.A.'' (1988 film), a remake of the 1949 film * '' D.O.A.: A Rite of Passage'' (1980 film), a documentary on the gene ...

''. A few months after the breakup the band had to reunite to record a live album and thus fulfill their contractual obligations. To exact revenge on the label, Bators purposely sang off mic and the resulting recording was unusable. When the material eventually surfaced on Bomp! Records, Bators had re-recorded the vocals in a studio. They booked a 1979 - 80 tour but Magnum, then Chrome, Blitz and finally Zero left leaving Bators as the only original member. He recorded his first solo album with the final (until later reunions) Dead Boys lineup.

Bators' and Chrome's subsequent careers

in 1979 Bators recorded some singles, including a cover of " It's Cold Outside" by the Choir and a solo album, '' Disconnected'', for BOMP! Records. Bators later joined the Wanders with former members of

Sham 69 Sham 69 are an English punk rock band that formed in Hersham in Surrey in 1975. They were one of the most successful punk bands in the United Kingdom, achieving five top 20 singles, including "If the Kids Are United" and "Hurry Up Harry". The ...

and shortly thereafter formed Lords of the New Church with Brian James from The Damned and Dave Tregunna from

. They released several albums on

IRS Records I.R.S. Records was an American record label founded by Miles Copeland III, Jay Boberg, and Carl Grasso in 1979. I.R.S. produced some of the most popular bands of the 1980s, and was particularly known for issuing records by college rock, new wave ...

, including the keyboard-laden hit single "Open Your Eyes" and a cover of " Like a Virgin". After the Dead Boys dissolved,

played around New York City (mostly at

Max's Kansas City Max's Kansas City was a nightclub and restaurant at 213 Park Avenue South in New York City, which became a gathering spot for musicians, poets, artists and politicians in the 1960s and 1970s. It was opened by Mickey Ruskin (1933–1983) in Decembe ...

) doing shows with The Stilettos, as well as his own band Cheetah Chrome and the Casualties. He recorded a single for ORK Records, "Still Wanna Die" / "Take Me Home", recorded with Atlantic Records co-founder

Herb Abramson Herbert C. Abramson (November 16, 1916 – November 9, 1999) was an American record executive, record producer, and co-founder of Atlantic Records. Life and career Abramson was born in 1916 to a Jewish family in Brooklyn. He studied to be a den ...

. Shortly thereafter, he played on

Ronnie Spector Veronica Yvette Greenfield (; August 10, 1943 – January 12, 2022) was an American singer who co-founded and fronted the girl group The Ronettes. She is sometimes referred to as the original "bad girl of rock and roll". Ronnie formed the ...

's debut solo album ''Siren''. He appeared on several recordings during the 1980s, and rejoined the Dead Boys for their ill-fated reunions of the late 1980s. In 2003, after the release of ''The Day the Earth Met the Rocket from the Tombs'', Chrome reformed

Rocket from the Tombs Rocket from the Tombs (or RFTT) is an American rock band originally active from mid-1974 to mid-1975 in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The band was reconstituted several times with various line-ups starting in 2003. Heralded as an important pro ...

with David Thomas, Craig Bell, with Steve Mehlman (

Pere Ubu Pere Ubu is an American rock group formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. The band had a variety of long-term and recurring band members, with singer David Thomas being the only member staying throughout the band's lifetime. They released their d ...

) on drums and Richard Lloyd (Television) replacing the late

Peter Laughner Peter Laughner (August 22, 1952 – June 22, 1977) was an American guitarist, songwriter and singer. A native of Bay Village, Ohio, Laughner was described by Richie Unterberger as "probably the single biggest catalyst in the birth of Cleve ...

. This reincarnation of the group toured in 2003 and 2006. In Summer 2003, they entered the studio to record some of the band's old material for the first time. The recordings were released as ''Rocket Redux''. In 2005, the members of Rocket from the Tombs flew to Germany to headline one night (

Buzzcocks Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band formed in Bolton, England in 1976 by singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto. They are regarded as a seminal influence on the Manchester music scene, the independen ...

headlined the other) of the International Punk Kongress in Kassel; then, in 2006, they reconvened in Cleveland, Ohio to write material for a new record. This material became the single "I Sell Soul"/"Romeo and Juliet", released in 2010, and the full-length album ''Barfly'', released in 2011. In early 2010, Chrome formed a short lived band called Batusis with Syl Sylvain of the

. They recorded at least 10 songs but released only four on an EP. In September 2010 ''Cheetah Chrome: A Dead Boy's Tale from the Front Lines of Punk Rock'' was published. At the end of a week-long Rocket from the Tomb tour in December 2011, Chrome announced to the band that he had decided to stop touring extensively after 2012. He currently works for Plowboy Records in Nashville, TN, mainly in production and promotion.

Reformation, death of Bators, 40th anniversary tour

The Dead Boys reformed for several gigs in the 1980s. They re-released their first album as ''Younger, Louder and Snottier'' in 1989, mastered from a cassette tape of rough mixes, attributed to a young

Bob Clearmountain Bob Clearmountain (born January 15, 1953) is an American recording engineer, mixer and record producer. He has worked with many major acts, including Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Toto, Bon Jovi and Bryan Adams, with whom he has a very ...

, a studio assistant at the time. In June 1990, Bators died in France due to injuries sustained after having been hit by a taxi. In September 2004, the remaining members of the band re-formed for a one-off gig in Cleveland. In 2005, they played a benefit show for CBGB and another reunion show on Halloween. On April 25, 2017, Chrome and Blitz played six shows in Canada as a tribute to the 40th anniversary of ''Young, Loud and Snotty''. The band played the record in its entirety. Chrome and Blitz then announced in 2017 that the band would go on a full reunion tour. On September 8, 2017, '' Still Snotty: Young, Loud and Snotty at 40'' was released. The album is a re-recording of their debut album and the first album by the Dead Boys in 39 years. Along with Chrome and Blitz, the tour and album will feature Jason "Ginchy" Kottwitz (Bulemics, Sylvain Sylvain and the Sylvains, Cheetah Chrome solo band) on guitar, Ricky Rat (Trash Brats) on bass and vocalist Jake Hout from zombie-themed Dead Boys tribute band the Undead Boys. Chrome said of the tour "With the 40th anniversary of the Dead Boys on the horizon and a solid band that could interpret and deliver the performance and sound needed to maintain the authenticity of the Dead Boys, I reached out to Johnny Blitz about an anniversary tour and he said yes and we began the journey of what would become Still Snotty. I've been singing the Dead Boys songs myself for 20 years because I couldn't find another singer I trusted enough to hand it to. The first gig with Jake, it was like, 'You got it, man!' I think Stiv would be very proud of our choice." A photobook, ''Dead Boys 1977: The Lost Photographs of Dave Treat'', was also released on September 29, 2017.

CBGB movie

In 2013, an American-made motion picture titled ''

'' was released to theaters. Bators is portrayed by actor

Justin Bartha Justin Lee Bartha (born July 21, 1978) is an American actor, known for his roles as Riley Poole in the ''National Treasure'' film series, Doug Billings in ''The Hangover'' trilogy, and David Sawyer in the NBC comedy series '' The New Normal''. ...

, best known for his roles in ''

The Hangover ''The Hangover'' is a 2009 American comedy film directed by Todd Phillips, co-produced with Daniel Goldberg, and written by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore. It is the first installment in ''The Hangover'' trilogy. The film stars Bradley Cooper, Ed ...

'' films and the ''

National Treasure The idea of national treasure, like national epics and national anthems, is part of the language of romantic nationalism, which arose in the late 18th century and 19th centuries. Nationalism is an ideology that supports the nation as the fundame ...

'' films, while

Rupert Grint Rupert Alexander Lloyd Grint (; born 24 August 1988) is an English actor. Grint rose to fame for his role as Ron Weasley in the ''Harry Potter'' film series, for which he was cast at age eleven, having previously acted only in school plays an ...

, best known for his work in the ''

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...

'' film series as

Ron Weasley Ronald Bilius Weasley is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' fantasy novel series. His first appearance was in the first book of the series, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', as the best friend of Harry Potter ...

, plays Cheetah Chrome. Chrome also makes a cameo appearance in the film.

Members

Current members *

(Gene O'Connor) –

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

(1976–1979, 1987, 2004–2005, 2017–present) * Jake Hout –

vocals 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 without ...

(2017–present) Former members *

(Steve Bator) – vocals (1976–1979, 1987) *

(John Madansky) –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

(1976–1979, 1987, 2004–2005, 2017–2019) * Jimmy Zero (William Wilden) – rhythm guitar (1976–1979, 1987, 2004–2005) *Jeff Magnum (Jeff Halmagy) – bass (1976–1979, 1987, 2004–2005) * Jason "Ginchy" Kottwitz –

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

(2017–2019) * Ricky Rat –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

(2017–2019)

Discography

The Dead Boys only have three official full-length studio releases, however many labels have released rough material and outtakes in the years following their initial 1979 breakup.

Studio albums

*''

'' (1977,

) *'' We Have Come for Your Children'' (1978, Sire) * '' Still Snotty: Young, Loud and Snotty at 40'' (2017, Plowboy Records) **Re-recording of ''Young Loud and Snotty''

Alternate mix albums

*''Younger, Louder and Snottier'' (1997, Bomp!) **Original rough mixes of ''Young, Loud and Snotty'' *''3rd Generation Nation'' (1999,

Bad Boy Production Bad or BAD may refer to: Common meanings *Evil, the opposite of moral good *Error, Erroneous, inaccurate or incorrect *Unhealthy, or counter to well-being *Antagonist, the threat or obstacle of moral good Acronyms * BAD-2, a Soviet armored tr ...

) **Premix of ''We Have Come for Your Children''

Live albums

*'' Night of the Living Dead Boys'' (1981, Bomp! Records) *''The Return of the Living Dead Boys'' (1987, Revenge Records) (Import/France) **Recorded July 22, 1977 at CBGB *''Liver Than You'll Ever Be'' (1988, Various Labels) (Import/Various) **Recorded December 26, 1987 at the Ritz, NYC *''Twistin' on the Devil's Fork: Live At CBGB's'' (1998, Hell Yeah Records /

Bacchus Records In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...

) **Recorded October 2, 1977 and August 31, 1978 at CBGB *''All This and More'' (1998, Bomp!) **Recorded in 1977, November 1 in San Francisco and August 7, 22 and April 7 at CBGB

Singles

7" singles

" (1977, Sire) *"Tell Me" (1978, Sire) *"Search and Destroy" (1979, live, Revenge) (Import/France) *"Buried Gems" (2000, Cold Front Records)

12" singles

*"All The Way Down/Nights Are So Long" (1987,

Relativity Records Relativity Records was an American record label founded by Barry Kobrin at the site of his company, Important Record Distributors (IRD) in metro New York. Relativity released music that covers a wide variety of musical genres. When it entered in ...

8165) (never released on CD)

DVD

*''Return Of The Living Dead Boys! Halloween Night 1986'' (2008,

MVD Visual The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation (MVD; russian: Министерство внутренних дел (МВД), ''Ministerstvo vnutrennikh del'') is the interior ministry of Russia. The MVD is responsible for law enfo ...

) *''Live At CBGB's 1977'' (2009, MVD Visual)