The Dictators are an American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band formed in New York City in 1973. Known for their acerbic and provocative approach in their music, the Dictators underwent several changes in their lineups. Its founding members included musicians Andy "Adny" Shernoff (electric bass, keyboards, vocals), Ross "The Boss" Friedman (lead guitar, vocals) and Scott "Top Ten" Kempner (rhythm guitar, vocals). At one point, the lineup included "Handsome" Dick Manitoba (vocals) and Mark "The Animal" Mendoza (electric bass, vocals). Throughout varying lineups, Shernoff, Friedman and Kempner have been constant members. With albums like ''The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!'', ''Manifest Destiny'' and ''Bloodbrothers'', the Dictators did not initially have any commercial success outside the punk rock scene in the 1970s and courted some controversies, but later grew to be respected as one of the pioneers in punk rock with a strong cult following. Critic John Dougan said that they were "one of the finest and most influential

proto-punk Proto-punk (or protopunk) is rock music from the 1960s to mid-1970s that foreshadowed the punk rock genre and movement. A retrospective label, the musicians involved were generally not originally associated with each other and came from a variet ...

bands to walk the earth."

History

Origins

The band was formed in 1972 by Andy "Adny" Shernoff, who was attending the State University of New York at New Paltz, and Ross "The Boss" Friedman who was playing in a local band called Total Crudd. Scott "Top Ten" Kempner was asked to join, and the trio rented a house in Kerhonkson, New York, where they lived and rehearsed with various drummers. The original

recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, re ...

line-up consisted of vocalist/bassist/songwriter

Andy Shernoff Andy Shernoff (born April 19, 1952) is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He is a founding member of The Dictators, one of the original New York punk bands, in which he wrote nearly all of the songs, played bass guitar and k ...

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 ...

ist Ross Friedman,

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

ist

Scott Kempner Scott "Top Ten" Kempner (February 6, 1954 – November 29, 2023) was an American rock musician who was the rhythm guitarist of The Dictators. He was also a founding member of The Del-Lords and later a member of The Brandos. Background and car ...

, and

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western music ensemble, bands that play Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, or Contemporary R&B, R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeepi ...

Stu Boy King. They recorded their 1975 debut album, ''The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!'' for

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...

, produced by manager

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, ...

, and

Murray Krugman Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American bicycle manufacturer * Murray Motor Car Company, an American car manufacturer * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trus ...

(best known for their work with

Blue Öyster Cult Blue Öyster Cult ( ; sometimes abbreviated BÖC or BOC) is an American rock band formed on Long Island, New York, in the hamlet of Stony Brook, in 1967. They have sold 25 million records worldwide, including 7 million in the United States. ...

). Sandy Pearlman was also instrumental in crafting the image of the Dictators, where roadie and "secret weapon" Richard Blum, who also joined the lineup of the band, was named

Handsome Dick Manitoba Richard Blum (born January 29, 1954), known by his stage name Handsome Dick Manitoba, is an American punk rock musician and radio personality. He was the singer of New York City-based band The Dictators from 1974 to 2008. With The Dictators, M ...

. Pearlman also suggested that Friedman use the surname "Funichello", but Friedman disliked it and the name was used once for the album. ''The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!'' sold poorly at the time but is now considered to be a starting point for American punk rock. ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' wrote, "''Go Girl Crazys junk-generation culture and smart-aleck sensibility did provide an essential blueprint for '70s punk. With its TV references and homely vocals, this ground-breaking and long-unavailable album continues to inspire underground groups everywhere." In a 2006 book, ''The Heebie-Jeebies at CBGB's'', Steven Beeber argued that this all-Jewish band was an early musical expression in rock music of the New York sarcasm and toughness found among this alienated population, who significantly contributed to punk rock (humor of

Lenny Bruce Leonard Alfred Schneider (October 13, 1925 – August 3, 1966), better known by his stage name Lenny Bruce, was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, and satirist. He was renowned for his open, free-wheeling, and critical style of come ...

Jonathan Richman Jonathan Michael Richman (born May 16, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. In 1970, he founded the Modern Lovers, an influential proto-punk band. Since the mid-1970s, Richman has worked either solo or with low-key acoustic an ...

Suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...

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

(founder of

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

Danny Fields Danny Fields (born Daniel Feinberg; November 13, 1939) is an American music manager, publicist, journalist, and author. As a music industry executive from the 1960s to the 1980s, he was one of the most influential figures in the history of punk ...

, the

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often recognized as one of th ...

). Frustrated by the lack of sales, the band broke up for a few months in late 1975, but reconvened in early 1976, with bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza replacing Shernoff and Ritchie Teeter replacing King. After a few months Shernoff was persuaded to return to the group as the group's keyboardist. This line-up soon secured a contract with

Asylum Records Asylum Records is an American record label, founded in 1971 by David Geffen and partner Elliot Roberts. It was taken over by Warner Communications (now the Warner Music Group) in 1972, and later merged with Elektra Records to become Elektra/As ...

(at least partly due to the notoriety the group had developed following a well-publicized brawl between Manitoba and

Jayne County Jayne County (born Wayne Rogers) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, record producer, and visual artist whose career has spanned six decades. Under the name Wayne County (inspired by Wayne County, Michigan), she was the vocalist of infl ...

) and released their second album, ''

Manifest Destiny Manifest destiny was the belief in the 19th century in the United States, 19th-century United States that American pioneer, American settlers were destined to expand westward across North America, and that this belief was both obvious ("''m ...

'', in 1977. The album was produced by Pearlman and Krugman with songs written by Shernoff. Andy Shernoff observed the growing fanbase of the band, and employed a commercial sound in ''Manifest Destiny'', stating that it was necessary to not "fuck things up". "Handsome" Dick Manitoba later recalled that in ''Manifest Destiny'', the commercial sound, which he described as "zero punk" and "overproduced" did not reflect what he considered the ethos of the Dictators, "rock and roll snotty". Ross "The Boss" Friedman was more forgiving of ''Manifest Destiny'', describing it as "experimental" and acknowledging that Shernoff went "wild on his pop side": Friedman then reflected on his guitar works in the album and was favorable to some of the songs, such as "Steppin' Out". Early in 1978, Mendoza had left the band (he soon joined

Twisted Sister Twisted Sister was an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in 1972 in Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, and later based on Long Island, New York (state), New York. Their best-known songs include "We're Not Gonna Take It (Twisted Sister song ...

), and Shernoff had returned to his original position on bass guitar. It was this line-up of Manitoba, Shernoff, Friedman, Kempner, and Teeter which recorded '' Bloodbrothers'' (yet again produced by Pearlman and Krugman with songs written by Shernoff). It was the first album to feature Manitoba as the group's vocalist on all the songs, though

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...

–a big fan of the group to this day–can be heard counting "1-2-1-2-3-4" during the album's opening track, "Faster and Louder." The album's "Baby, Let's Twist" was a minor hit on a number of East Coast

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

s, but the lack of mainstream success caused the band to split again the following year. Shortly before the split, drummer Mel Anderson had left Twisted Sister and joined The Dictators, replacing Teeter.

1980s

After the break-up, Manitoba drove a taxi cab, Shernoff worked as a record producer and songwriter and Friedman worked first with the French hard-rock band Shakin' Street, and then became a founding member of

Manowar Manowar is an American heavy metal band from Auburn, New York. Formed in 1980, the group is known for lyrics based on fantasy (particularly sword and sorcery) and mythology (particularly Norse mythology and Greco-Roman mythology), as well as n ...

in 1982 (with whom he recorded the band's first six albums, leaving the band after the 1988 album '' Kings of Metal''), and producing the first demo for

Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis'' or ''Bacillus cereus'' biovar ''anthracis''. Infection typically occurs by contact with the skin, inhalation, or intestinal absorption. Symptom onset occurs between one ...

. The members of the band began reuniting occasionally and in 1981,

ROIR ROIR (pronounced "roar"), or Reachout International Records, is a New York City-based independent record label founded in 1979 by Neil Cooper. Background ROIR was founded the same year that the Sony Walkman launched, and initially, the label ex ...

released the cassette-only ''Fuck 'Em If They Can't Take a Joke'' produced by Andy Shernoff, which featured numbers from all three of the group's studio albums, covers of the

Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1964. Its classic lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Lou Reed, Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and percussionist Moe Tuc ...

's " What Goes On" and Mott the Hoople's " The Moon Upstairs," plus two new Shernoff numbers, "Loyola" and "New York New York". Other than occasional reunion shows, little was heard from The Dictators during the next five years. However, in late 1986 Shernoff and Manitoba (along with guitarist

Daniel Rey Daniel Rey (born Daniel Rabinowitz) is an American musician, record producer and songwriter from New York City, best known for his work with the punk rock band Ramones. As a teenager Rey played in punk band Shrapnel, which also featured Dave Wy ...

) formed

Wild Kingdom ''Wild Kingdom'', also known as ''Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom'', is an American documentary television program that features wildlife and nature. It was originally produced from 1963 until 1988, and was revived in 2002. The show's second inc ...

, releasing a version of "New York New York" on the 1988 soundtrack to ''

Mondo New York ''Mondo New York'' is a 1988 Mondo film directed by Harvey Nikolai Keith. The documentary film was inspired by the 1963 movie ''Mondo Cane''. Overview ''Mondo New York'' examines the lives and activities of Manhattan performance artists, and fea ...

''.

1990s

In 1990,

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...

released the Wild Kingdom debut, ''...And You?'' written and produced by Andy Shernoff, though they were now billed as Manitoba's Wild Kingdom to avoid a lawsuit from the TV show Wild Kingdom. By this time Rey had left the group and had been replaced by Friedman (the group was rounded out by drummer J.P. Patterson). ''...And You?'' - a brief 25 minutes in length - received excellent reviews, with ''Rolling Stone'' calling it "the first great punk rock album of the '90s." The ''...And You?'' album cover was a source of some controversy, since it was lifted from a

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

recruiting poster. It was not the first time members of the band (most of whom were

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

) had been associated with charges of this sort since ''Go Girl Crazy'' had featured the songs "Master Race Rock" and "Back to Africa." By the 1990s, much about the lives of the band's members had changed markedly. Shernoff recorded and toured with

The Fleshtones The Fleshtones are an American garage rock band from Queens, New York. They are the only band that debuted at CBGB in 1976 that has not had an inactive year. History 1976–1979 The Fleshtones were formed in 1976 in Whitestone, New York, ...

in 1989 and 1990, wrote and recorded with

The Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often recognized as one of t ...

, became a successful record producer and worked as a sommelier. Manitoba opened an East-Village bar called Manitoba's in 1999. Kempner had developed a certain degree of respect from roots-rock audiences due to his 1980s work with

The Del-Lords The Del-Lords were an American rock and roll band that formed in New York City in 1982,Cocks, Jay; L., ElizabethMusic: Where the Lifeline Is ''Time''. August 4, 1986. Retrieved November 9, 2010 founded by The Dictators' guitarist Scott Kempner. ...

. In 1992, he released his solo album ''Tenement Angels'' and joined

The Brandos The Brandos are an American rock band formed in 1985 in New York City by Dave Kincaid (vocals, guitar), Ernie Mendillo (bass, vocals), Ed Rupprecht (guitar, vocals) and Larry Mason (drums, vocals). The Brandos achieved commercial success in t ...

in 1993. Friedman's work with Manowar and

Brain Surgeons Brain Surgeons were an American rock band featuring Albert Bouchard formerly of Blue Öyster Cult and vocalist Deborah Frost. Guitarist Ross the Boss was a later member of the band. The Brain Surgeonsat Allmusic They formed in 1994 and origi ...

had given him a certain cachet with heavy metal audiences. However, the group - first with

Frank Funaro Frank Funaro (born June 23, 1958) is an American drummer who has played with Del Lords, The Brandos, Camper Van Beethoven, Joey Ramone, The Dictators, Cracker, Nils Lofgren & Dion DiMucci. Funaro collaborated with Joey Ramone on his first so ...

on drums, then again with Patterson - began recording a new Dictators album written and produced by Andy Shernoff in the late 1990s, which was eventually released as ''D.F.F.D.'' in 2001.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

called the album a "non-stop barrage of spitfire precision rock. The material is, unbelievably, their best and most consistent ever for an album".

2000s

The Dictators continued to perform to a devoted audience releasing a live album, ''Viva Dictators'' in 2005, produced by Shernoff. In 2007, they compiled an album of demos, rarities, and unreleased songs which were recorded at various times over their thirty-plus year career called ''Every Day Is Saturday'' on

Norton Records Norton Records is an American independent record label founded by musicians Miriam Linna and Billy Miller in 1986. The label concentrates on releasing rock, rockabilly, primitive music, punk, garage rock, and early rhythm and blues. Most of i ...

. The title was a line in the song "Weekend" from the band's first album ''The Dictators Go Girl Crazy''. Shernoff formed The Master Plan with

' Keith Streng, releasing ''Colossus of Destiny'' on Alive-Total Energy Records in 2003, and ''Maximum Respect'' on Green Mist Records in 2011. Manitoba sang with the surviving members of the

MC5 MC5 was an American rock music, rock band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan, in 1963. The classic lineup consisted of vocalist Rob Tyner, guitarists Wayne Kramer and Fred "Sonic" Smith, bassist Michael Davis (bassist), Michael Davis, and drummer ...

and worked as a DJ in Little Steven's Underground Garage on Sirius XM Radio, till he was fired, then re-hired to work on Steven's station, which did not work out, as he left in January 2018. In October 2006, the band (Manitoba, Shernoff, Friedman, Patterson, Kempner) headlined the second and third to last shows ever at

. The second to last show featured Blondie on the bill as well, and during the Dictators final song on the CBGB stage, they were joined by Tommy Ramone, the last surviving original member of The Ramones for a rendition of the Ramones song "

Blitzkrieg Bop "Blitzkrieg Bop", titled "The Blitzkrieg Bop!!" on its single release, is a song by American punk rock band Ramones, released in February 1976 as their debut single in the United States. It was the opening track on the band's self-titled debut a ...

". In November 2007, Manitoba, along with author Amy Wallace, put out ''The Official Punk Rock Book of Lists'' on BackBeat Books, a small book company owned by Hal Leonard Publishing. Manitoba's Wild Kingdom reunited in May 2008 to play at the Joey Ramone Birthday Bash at The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza, with a lineup featuring Manitoba, Shernoff, Friedman and Patterson. In July 2008, Kempner released his second solo album ''Saving Grace''. In October 2008, The Dictators reunited for a series of four concerts in Spain. Ross The Boss released his debut solo album, ''

New Metal Leader ''New Metal Leader'' is the debut album recorded by guitarist Ross "the Boss" Friedman and his German band under the moniker, "The Ross the Boss Band". It was released on August 22, 2008 on Candlelight records in the US and A.F.M. Records in Eur ...

'', in August 2008. He and his band have released their second album ''

Hailstorm Hail is a form of solid precipitation. It is distinct from ice pellets (American English "sleet"), though the two are often confused. It consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice, each of which is called a hailstone. Ice pellets generally fal ...

'' in 2010. Patterson released his second album, entitled ''The LP Is Dead'', in November 2009 via No Fun Records.

2010s

Kempner and the rest of The Del-Lords re-united in early 2010 for a successful tour of Spain and began working on an album of all new material. Kempner's first solo album, ''Tenement Angels'', was released on March 1, 2011, on GB Music. The release is on CD (remastered with a bonus track) and on vinyl. The LP is a limited edition on 500, and comes with a digital download and a hand signed poster by Kempner. Manitoba,

Ross the Boss Ross Friedman (born January 3, 1954), also known as Ross the Boss, is an American guitarist, best known as a founding member of both the Punk rock, punk band the Dictators and the Heavy metal music, heavy metal band Manowar (band), Manowar. Hist ...

, Dean Rispler (ex- Murphys Law), JP Paterson, and

formed Manitoba in January 2012. In April 2013, the band changed its name to The Dictators NYC. A single "Supply and Demand," composed by Boss, Manitoba, and Manitoba's son Jake, and backed with a live version of the MC5's "

Kick Out the Jams ''Kick Out the Jams'' is the debut album by American rock band MC5. A live album, it was recorded at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit over two nights, October 30 and 31, 1968, and released in February 1969, by Elektra Records. The album peaked at ...

," was released in November 2015. In July 2017, it was announced that the band name would be changed back to Manitoba, "due to legal threats by ex-bandmates, Andy Shernoff and Scott Kempner". In December of that year the band announced it had broken up. Shernoff released his first solo EP ''Don't Fade Away'' on Yazoo Squelch Records in 2012. Critic Mark Deming wrote "the man is still writing excellent songs and singing them straight from the heart, which is what his best work has always been about, and it's great news that well over three decades into his career, he's still got fresh and worthwhile things to say." He released his second EP ''On The First Day, Man Created God'' in 2013 again on Yazoo Squelch records. In August 2015, he released a video collaboration with

Lydia Lunch Lydia Lunch (born Lydia Anne Koch; June 2, 1959)Martin Charles Strong. ''The Great Indie Discography''. 2003, page 85 is an American singer, poet, writer, actress and self-empowerment speaker. Her career began during the 1970s New York City no ...

for the song "A Good Night To Say Goodbye". Another video to celebrate Joey Ramone's 65th birthday was released on May 15, 2016. Former member Richard Teeter, who played drums for The Dictators between 1976 and 1979, died on April 10, 2012, due to complications from esophageal cancer. He was 61. In November 2015, ''Go Girl Crazy!'' received an expanded and remastered CD reissue, featuring several unreleased selections and remixes of three tunes by Andrew W.K. On May 1, 2018, the Dictators original drummer, Stuart 'Stu Boy' King, died from pancreatic cancer. In November 2019, Manitoba released his first solo album ''Born in the Bronx''.

2020s

On May 28, 2020, Andy Shernoff announced that the Dictators were reforming to record some new material and possibly play live, with a line-up comprising Shernoff on bass and vocals, Ross The Boss and Kempner on guitars and Albert Bouchard (formerly of Blue Öyster Cult) on drums. On January 8, 2021, Shernoff announced on Facebook that a new Dictators song and video would be released on January 15. On April 6 that year, the Dictators announced "Scott Kempner will be leaving the band due to health reasons." On October 18, the band announced that Keith Roth (David Johansen, Earl Slick, Cherie Currie, Cheetah Crome) would join the band on vocals and guitar. Kempner died from complications of

dementia Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform activities of daily living, everyday activities. This typically invo ...

in a nursing home in

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

on November 29, 2023, at the age of 69. The Dictators released their sixth album ''The Dictators'' in September 2024.

Members

Current

* Ross "The Boss" Friedman – lead guitar, backing vocals *

– bass guitar , keyboards , lead and backing vocals *

Albert Bouchard Albert Bouchard (; born May 24, 1947) is an American musician. He is a founding member and one of the first and most prominent drummers of the hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult and current drummer of The Dictators. He is the older brother of f ...

– drums, backing and lead vocals *Keith Roth – lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar

Former

* Scott "Top Ten" Kempner – rhythm guitar *

Richard Manitoba Richard Blum (born January 29, 1954), known by his stage name Handsome Dick Manitoba, is an American punk rock musician and radio personality. He was the singer of New York City-based band The Dictators from 1974 to 2008. With The Dictators, ...

– lead vocals *Stu Boy King – drums *Ritchie Teeter – drums, backing and occasional lead vocals * Mark Mendoza – bass guitar, backing vocals *Mel "Starr" Anderson – drums *

– drums *J.P. Patterson – drums, backing vocals

Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

* '' The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!'' (1975) * ''

'' (1977) #193 Billboard Top 200 Albums * '' Bloodbrothers'' (1978) * ''...And You?'' (1990) anitoba's Wild Kingdom* ''D.F.F.D.'' (2001) * ''The Dictators'' (2024)

Live albums

* ''Fuck 'Em If They Can't Take a Joke'' (

, 1981) * ''The Dictators Live, New York, New York'' (

, 1998) * ''Viva Dictators'' (2005)

Singles/EPs

* "Search & Destroy" (1977) * "Hey Boys" (1977) * "Heartache" (1977) * "I Am Right" (1996) * "Who Will Save Rock 'N' Roll?" (1997) * "Avenue A" (2001) * "16 Forever" (2007) * "The Next Big Thing" EP (2015) * "God Damn New York" (2021) * "Let's Get the Band Back Together" (2021) * "Festivus" (2021) * "Crazy Horses" (2023) * "My Imaginary Friend" (2024) * "Live In Spain" (2024)

Compilations

* ''Every Day Is Saturday'' (2007) * ''Faster... Louder - The Dictators' Best 1975-2001'' (2014)

References

Sources

External links

Official website

Andyshernoff.com
* *
Interview with The Dictators by TruePunk.com

Scott Kempner's MySpace Page

Interview with Andy Shernoff on Food Is Not Love

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dictators, The Punk rock groups from New York (state) ROIR artists Musical quartets from New York (state) Musical groups established in 1973 American protopunk groups Jewish punk rock groups 1973 establishments in New York (state)