List of Social Distortion Band Members

List Of Social Distortion Band Members

Social Distortion is an American punk rock band which currently consists of vocalist and guitarist Mike Ness, guitarist Jonny "2 Bags" Wickersham, bassist Brent Harding and drummer Scott Reeder. The band was formed in Fullerton, California in 1978, and originally comprised Ness, Rikk Agnew and his brother Frank on guitar, Casey Royer on drums, Tom Corvin on vocals and Mark Garrett on bass. The first lineup change took place in 1979, when Garrett was replaced by Dennis Danell, who had known Ness for years.

The third Social Distortion lineup change took place in 1981, when the Agnew brothers and Royer left the band to form The Adolescents. They were replaced by Brent Liles and Derek O'Brein on bass and drums respectively. By 1983, the band (then consisting of Ness, Danell, Liles and O'Brien) had managed to release their first album, Mommy's Little Monster, which is often considered a landmark hardcore album. After the release of that album, Liles and O'Brien left the band in 1984, and were replaced soon thereafter by John Maurer, who knew Ness from school in Fullerton, CA, and Christopher Reece on drums. However, the new lineup almost did not last as Ness's drug habit continued throughout 1984 and 1985 as the band continued to gain success with Another State of Mind appearing as one of the punk rarities on MTV, and touring in California and Arizona. As a result of Ness's escalating drug habit and troubles with the law, Social Distortion briefly went on hiatus in 1985. During this time, Ness was in and out of rehabilitation centers as well as serving short stints in various jails.

After Ness finished his drug rehabilitation program, Social Distortion ended their hiatus in 1986 with the same lineup consisting of Ness, Danell, Maurer and Reece. This lineup, now considered the "classic" one by fans, made three albums together: Prison Bound (1988), Social Distortion (1990) and Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell (1992). For 10 years, the band's lineup remained unchanged until Reece decided to leave the band in 1994. He was briefly replaced by Randy Carr, who briefly toured with Social Distortion and played drums on live performances before departing in 1995.

Social Distortion went on to record an album (White Light, White Heat, White Trash) without without an official drummer—uncomfortable to start recording with a new drummer too early, session musician Deen Castronovo recorded all drum tracks on the album. After the recording, Social Distortion held auditions for Reece's permanent replacement. After months of auditions, Chuck Biscuits, formerly of D.O.A. and Glenn Danzig's band, was chosen as the new drummer. The lineup of Ness, Danell, Maurer and Biscuits also recorded a live album together in 1998 before going on a temporary hiatus. Following this, Ness went on to pursue a successful solo career, releasing two solo albums in 1999, one with original material (Cheating at Solitaire) and one with song covers (Under the Influences).

On February 29, 2000, longtime guitarist Dennis Danell died from an apparent brain aneurysm at his Costa Mesa, California home at the age of 38, which left Social Distortion's future in question. The three remaining members decided that Danell would want them to carry on, and the band sought a replacement. Jonny "2 Bags" Wickersham, formerly of Youth Brigade, was chosen to replace Danell. At the same time, Biscuits had left Social Distortion and was replaced by Charlie Quintana, who had toured the Mike Ness solo band and recorded with him on his second solo offering Under the Influences. Between 2001 and 2004, Social Distortion had been touring almost constantly, playing sold-out shows in the Los Angeles, California area around the New Year, before they managed to release their sixth album, Sex, Love and Rock 'n' Roll (2004), which had been in the process of writing since Danell's death. A month before the release of Sex, Love and Rock 'n' Roll, Maurer decided to leave the band after 20 years of recording and performing and was briefly replaced by Matt Freeman (Rancid), and then the band hired Brent Harding (who also joined Ness' solo band) as Maurer's permanent replacement.

In April 2009, it was announced that drummer Charlie Quintana would leave the band and be replaced by Adam "Atom" Willard of Angels & Airwaves, and formerly of Rocket from the Crypt and The Offspring. However, eleven months later, Willard decided to leave the band to continue playing in Angels & Airwaves and was temporarily replaced by Scott Reeder of Fu Manchu. David Hidalgo, Jr., formerly of Suicidal Tendencies, is now the new drummer. By this time, Social Distortion had been busy working on their seventh album (Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes) which was released in January 2011, but it is not yet known if Willard or a different drummer has been involved in the recording.