The Dictators

Long before punk rock registered as either a sonic style or a cultural force, the Dictators championed the pleasures of junk culture—professional wrestling, greasy hamburgers, late night television, fast cars, and cheap beer—fused with loud, unadorned guitars and music that made no apologies for its directness. Their timing proved especially striking: the group began operating in 1973, well ahead of the Ramones defining punk’s sound, and the Dictators’ first album, 1975’s The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!, reached stores two months before the Ramones’ debut LP. Early recordings leaned closer to muscular hard rock than to the punk template that later crystallized, yet by 1978’s Bloodbrothers the band’s approach had tightened into something leaner, quicker, and more insistent. That record closed their initial chapter, though the Dictators never fully disbanded; instead they mounted sporadic reunion tours and resurfaced with the strong D.F.F.D. album in 2001. Founder Andy Shernoff reactivated the lineup once more in 2021, issuing several singles and returning to the road.

The group first assembled in 1973 after Andy Shernoff—sometimes listed as Adny Shernoff—a music student at the State University of New York at New Paltz and publisher of the fanzine Teenage Wasteland Gazette, crossed paths with guitarist Ross Friedman, also known as Ross “the Boss” Funichello, Ross “the Boss” Friedman, or simply Ross the Boss, then active in Total Crud. Both admired the Stooges, the MC5, the Flamin’ Groovies, and the New York Dolls; Shernoff had attended grade school with John Genzale, later Johnny Thunders of the Dolls. Shernoff took bass and vocals while Ross the Boss handled lead guitar, Scott “Top Ten” Kempner joined on rhythm guitar, and, after several drummers, Stu Boy King settled into the drum chair. Although Ross the Boss alone brought substantial prior experience, producer Sandy Pearlman—best known for Blue Öyster Cult—noticed the band and secured them a contract with Epic Records. Pearlman and Murray Krugman produced The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!, on which roadie Richard Blum, performing as Handsome Dick Manitoba and billed in the liner notes as the group’s “Secret Weapon,” delivered wrestler-style monologues and sang on a deliberately ragged version of “I Got You Babe.”

The sarcastic wit and heavy attack of The Dictators Go Girl Crazy! stood apart from 1975 radio fare, leaving many critics bewildered; although the album later gained recognition as an essential proto-punk document, it sold poorly and Epic dropped the band. A reshuffled lineup followed: Shernoff switched to keyboards, Mark “The Animal” Mendoza became bassist, Ritchie Teeter replaced Stu Boy King on drums, and Manitoba assumed lead vocals. After signing with Asylum Records, the Dictators recorded 1977’s Manifest Destiny, an effort that softened both their guitar attack and their humor in pursuit of broader appeal, even if tracks such as “Science Gone Too Far” and “Young, Fast and Scientific” retained their singular character. Extensive touring, including U.K. dates that exposed them to British punk, prompted a more streamlined, louder sound on the next album. “Faster and Louder” opened 1978’s Bloodbrothers, widely regarded as their strongest and most unified collection and featuring an uncredited vocal appearance by Bruce Springsteen. Asylum’s promotion proved as ineffective as Epic’s had been, Teeter departed, Mel Anderson briefly took the drum stool, and the band dissolved in 1979.

A one-off reunion concert in 1981 yielded the cassette-only Live: Fuck ’Em If They Can’t Take A Joke, later reissued by ROIR as New York, New York: The Dictators Live. Shernoff turned to songwriting and production while Ross the Boss joined French hard rock band Shakin’ Street and, in 1982, co-founded Manowar. Kempner formed the Del-Lords with former Joan Jett guitarist Eric Ambel, releasing four studio albums between 1984 and 1990. In 1986 Shernoff, Ross the Boss, and Manitoba started Manitoba’s Wild Kingdom; with J.P. “Thunderbolt” Patterson on drums and Daniel Rey contributing guitar, the group issued …And You? in 1990, scored limited MTV exposure with “The Party Starts Now,” yet failed to expand beyond the Dictators’ existing audience and disbanded in 1991.

The Dictators reunited again in 1996, adding drummer Frank Funaro of the Del-Lords and issuing the Norton Records single “I Am Right” b/w “Loyola.” A second single, “Who Will Save Rock ’n’ Roll?” b/w “The Savage Beat,” appeared in 1997. The 2001 album D.F.F.D., featuring Shernoff, Manitoba, Ross the Boss, Kempner, and drummers Funaro and Patterson, stands among the band’s finest, marked by strong songs and energetic performances. Tours followed, including a 2004 appearance at Little Steven’s Underground Garage Festival; two East Coast shows supplied the 2005 live set Viva Dictators! Occasional dates continued, especially in Spain, but as Shernoff and Kempner pursued solo work the group gradually wound down. In 2012 Handsome Dick Manitoba formed a new project also called Manitoba, with Ross the Boss, Patterson, Rey, and bassist Dean Rispler; after initially drawing on earlier Dictators and Manitoba’s Wild Kingdom material plus covers, the band began writing originals, changed its name to the Dictators NYC in 2013, and released the 2015 single “Supply & Demand,” written by Manitoba and Ross the Boss. Following a legal conflict with Shernoff, the name reverted to Manitoba before the group split in late 2017.

That same year Shernoff released his debut solo EP, Don’t Fade Away. In 2015 he oversaw a deluxe, remastered reissue of The Dictators Go Girl Crazy! that included two remixes by Andrew W.K. Handsome Dick Manitoba issued his first solo album, Born in the Bronx, in 2019. The following year Shernoff assembled a fresh Dictators lineup with himself, Ross the Boss, Kempner, and Blue Öyster Cult drummer Albert Bouchard; their initial release was the digital single “God Damn New York.” Months later Kempner stepped away for health reasons, Keith Roth assumed rhythm guitar duties, and further digital tracks appeared: “Let’s Get the Band Back Together” and “Festivus” in 2021, followed in 2023 by “Thank You and Have a Nice Day” and a cover of the Osmonds’ “Crazy Horses.” Guitarist and co-founder Scott “Top Ten” Kempner died on November 29, 2023, at age 69 after battling early-onset dementia.