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 witho ...

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 No Idea Records is an American independent record label based in Gainesville, Florida which focuses on punk rock and its sub-styles and produces both vinyl records and compact discs. The label also organizes The Fest, an independently operated ...

, a live album and three studio albums on Side One Dummy Records.

Early and personal life

Chuck Ragan is the son of former

PGA PGA is an acronym or initialism that may stand for: Aviation * IATA code for Page Municipal Airport, Coconino County, Arizona * ICAO designator for Portugália, regional airline based in Lisbon, Portugal * Abbreviation for Prince George Airport ...

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, 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 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 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

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 subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

, and in 2012, released a new album, Exister.

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 19 ...

and

Ben Nichols Benjamin Nichols (1920 – November 24, 2007) was a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Cornell University and mayor of Ithaca, New York. He was a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and as such was one of few Soci ...

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 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 vo ...

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 **Ger ...

Americana 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's

and

Lucero Lucero may refer to: * Lucero (given name) a Spanish given name * Lucero (surname) a Spanish surname * Lucero (entertainer) (born 1969), Mexican singer and actress ** ''Lucero'' (album), eponymous album released in 1993 * Lucero (band), an America ...

's Ben Nichols, with guest appearances from

Laura Jane Grace Laura Jane Grace (born Thomas James Gabel; November 8, 1980) is an American musician best known as the founder, lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist of the punk rock band Against Me!. In addition to Against Me!, Grace fronts the band Laura ...

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 of D Generation,

Chris McCaughan Chris McCaughan (born March 30, 1977) is the guitarist and vocalist in the band The Lawrence Arms. McCaughan was formerly the guitarist for the bands Tricky Dick and The Broadways (the latter also featuring fellow Arms bandmate Brendan Kelly). H ...

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, and

2009–2012

In 2010, The Revival Tour journeyed across Australia, featuring Ragan, Barry, Nichols,

, 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 terms in a particular domain of knowledge with the definitions for those terms. Traditionally, a gl ...

and

) on

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a 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 steel guitars, it can ...

. The Tour was concluded with a one-off performance at the Punk Rock Bowling festival in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the List of United States cities by population, 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the U.S. state, state of Neva ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the 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. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

, featuring Ragan, Nichols, Kevin Seconds,

Steve Soto Steve Soto (August 23, 1963 – June 27, 2018) was an American musician. Soto was a multi-talented instrumentalist, a founding member of California punk rock band Agent Orange in 1979, and a founding member of Adolescents in 1980 performing on ...

, John Carey of

Old Man Markley Old Man Markley is a punk & bluegrass band based out of Los Angeles, CA. Founded in 2007, the band consisted of John Carey (lead vocals, guitar), Annie DeTemple (Autoharp, Vocals), Alex Zablotsky (Mandolin), Jeff Fuller (Drums), Joey Garibaldi ( ...

, and

Flogging Molly Flogging Molly is an Irish-American seven-piece Celtic punk bandLife Is Good Out Now
Floggingmolly. ...

's Matt Hensley and Nathen Maxwell. The 2011 Revival Tour featured Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem, Dave Hause of

The Loved Ones Loved Ones, Loved One, The Loved Ones, or The Loved One may refer to: Films * ''The Loved One'' (film), a 1965 American satire based on Evelyn Waugh novel * ''The Loved Ones'' (film), a 2009 Australian horror film by Sean Byrne Literature *''The ...

, and Dan Andriano of Alkaline Trio, as well as guest appearances from Helen Chambers, Sam Russo, Jimmy Islip, Brian Brody, and Franz Nicolay In 2012, Ragan, Andriano,

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 i ...

, 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 th ...

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 tota ...

for the Tour's spring leg, with guest appearances by Jenny Owen Youngs,

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, Rocky Votolato, and Jay Malinowski of Bedouin Soundclash.

Musical projects

In a February 12, 2010, interview, Chuck commented that he was working on an album with Brian Fallon, frontman for the Gaslight Anthem. 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

and

, Jon Gaunt, Joe Ginsberg, David Hidalgo Jr. of

, Rami Jaffee of The Wallflowers and

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana (band), Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the Foo Fighters (album), epony ...

, Christopher Thorn of Blind Melon 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 ''The Flame in the Flood'' is a roguelike survival adventure video game developed by The Molasses Flood. The game was developed for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Xbox One. A PlayStation 4 version was released on January 17, 2017. A Nintendo ...

", a video game developed by the indie game company The Molasses Flood.

Discography

Studio albums

* 2007 '' Feast or Famine'' – SideOneDummy /

* 2009 '' Gold Country'' – SideOneDummy / TenFour Records * 2011 ''

Covering Ground ''Covering Ground'' is the third studio album by American musician Chuck Ragan, which was recorded in 2011 and produced by Christopher Thorn. The album was recorded during Hot Water Music's hiatus and features a strong folk influence with themes ...

'' – SideOneDummy / TenFour Records * 2014 '' Till Midnight'' – SideOneDummy /

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 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)

Soundtracks

* 2013: ''"It's Better in the Wind" Soundtrack'' – TenFour Records * 2016: ''

'' – TenFour Records

Live albums

* 2006: ''Live at the Troubadour'' – Self-Release (CD-R) * 2007: ''Los Feliz'' – SideOneDummy (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,

(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