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Why Is GC My Fave Band: Because they're original, every song has a meaning, and their songs rock my socks off!
Good Charlotte Consists of: Joel: (aka SickBoy) Lead Vocals, Benji: (aka KidVicious) Vocals and guitar, Billy: (aka LiL Billy) Guitar, Paul: (aka St.Paul) Bass, and Aaron: (aka Sicky B) drums, but Aaron is no longer a part of GC ::sniffles::
What is my fave GC Song?: Seasons; Waldorf WorldWide; East Coast Anthem, Change...oh what the heck, every song of theirs is my favorite, lol
There is a dark, evil place, deep in the heart of Southern Maryland. A place devoid of all culture. A place that's secluded from the real world and is continuously drifting further into oblivion. A place were "cool" is defined by the car you drive and how you look while you strut with your crew aimlessly around The Mall every Friday night. A place with more STDs than a 50 cent hooker and roads that kill more people than crack. This place, destined for damnation, is called Waldorf. And out of this culturally comatose town comes an exception to demonic nature of Waldorf. A light in this eternal darkness. That light is Good Charlotte.
I was fortunate to find Good Charlotte in the Spring of 1997, but they have been around since 1996. Benji and Joel, who are twin brothers, were originally in the Benji, Joel, & Brian Band. This line-up changed and eventually transformed into the GC we know and love today, with Benji on 6 string and vocals, Joel on vocals, Paul on bass, and Aaron behind the drum set. A lot of people might know GC by their stage names: Benji is know as Kid Vicious, after his obsession with the notorious punk legend Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols; Joel is referred to as Sickboy, after the 1990 Social Distortion classic "Sick Boys"; Paul is St. Paul, but don't take that literally... it's a sarcastic reference to him always being in trouble; finally, Aaron is know as Sickie B, a shorted version of "Sickie B to the Wife Beater". And that is how this band destined for stardom originated.
Now, in Waldorf, there is only one venue for shows, which is a Christian coffee house called "My Brother's Place". They've played there countless times, opening for national acts such as Guardian and eventually headlining their own shows. The place would often be packed with GC fans, who would clear out after their set, leaving 12 or so left when the main act hit the stage. Rumor has it that they were banned from MBP for a while. They've also played shows at Wilmer's Park, the Waldorf Holiday Inn, and at friends' houses. Back then it was custom for GC to close their set with a little DC flava. GC would bust out the go-go and everyone would be on stage dancing. A good time is always had by everyone.
In 1997, Good Charlotte made two demo tapes and sold them at shows in Waldorf. The first tape contained "Screamer", "Let Me Go", "Hey Dad", "Gravity Girl", and "Seasons". The second tape featured "I Heard You", "Aaron's Liquorish Nightmare", "The Love", and "Complicated". These tapes are now collector's items.
It was now time to move on to bigger and better things than Waldorf or La Plata could offer. They became part of the extended Fowl Records family and set up base camp in Annapolis. There they hooked up with Jimmie's Chicken Shack, Underfoot, Jepetto, and many of the other great bands MD has to offer. Good Charlotte's popularity started to pick up pace and they garnered some fans outside of Waldorf. They played all kinds of festivals and any venue that would book them in the Annapolis, DC, and Baltimore area. But they didn't forget Waldorf. They came back for a show at MBP and released their first ever CD. Only 50 copies of Bootleg were printed and they were gone by the end of the night. It contained "East Coast Anthem", "I Heard You", "Screamer", "Complicated", "Don't Want To Stop", "Change", and "Let Me Go".
Then came their first real big break. They got to play the first ever Locals Only stage sponsored by Fowl Records at the 1999 Fall edition of the HFStival at RFK stadium. The GC buzz leading up to the show escalated daily and after their incredible set, they have succeeding in putting themselves in the same league as the most popular local bands around. "Screamer" was featured on an WHFS sampler and got some well-deserved airplay.
GC then began playing shows outside of MD. They played quite a few gigs in Philly, where they opened for Save Ferris at the TLA, Mephiskapheles (Hail Satan!), and also Fenix TX. GC also decided they needed another guitarist to take their music to the next level. Billy, the singer and guitarist from the Annapolis band Overflow (now defunct), fit into the puzzle perfectly. His first show as an official member of GC was at Fletcher's in Fells Point. After GC was finished you had to wonder how they sounded so good without him. He was exactly what GC needed to get to the next plateau. Of course Billy needed a nickname like the rest, and so he became Little Billy, since he is the youngest member of GC. They then played the legendary CBGBs in New York and I had the great pleasure of hosting their first radio interview for WMBC AM560 in Baltimore, on the show "Music That Doesn't Suck" (also defunct). Benji, Joel, & Billy came and turned WMBC into WMGC and "Little Things" was played on the air for the very first time. "I Heard You" was featured on Fowl Record's Family Fowlbum around this time.
Good Charlotte then got to play the annual WHFS Snowjob at Ski Liberty. There they shared the stage with The Suicide Machines, Lit (who should be defunct), and Long Beach Dub All Stars. Shortly after that show they were set to open three dates for the Lit/22 Jacks tour. During that tour they were selling their second CD simply titled "Good Charlotte EP". This CD had "The Little Things" which Philly's Y100 started playing. The song continually won the station's nightly Cage Match and has since been one of the most requested songs on the station since March of '99. This caused the GC fanbase in Philly to swell like a hamster in the microwave.
On March 21, 1999 GC played an WHFS sponsored major label showcase at The Garage in DC. GC played their usual incredible set and shortly afterwards got signed to the Sony's Epic Records. GC then finished their scheduled shows, which included playing the Doc Marten's Street Stage at the 2000 HFStival at FedEx Field, Y100 Feztival at the E-Center (just outside Philly in Camden, NJ), and an opening slot for the Blink 182, Bad Religion, and Fenix TX show at the E-Center before being shipped to LA to record their first major label release.
With the record finished, everyone is waiting patiently for the September 19th release date. "Little Things" is one of the most played and requested songs on WHFS and continues to thrive on Y100. Scattered radio stations all over the country are beginning to play Good Charlotte and we can only wait to see how the rest of the country embraces GC that so many people ranging from Virginia and Maryland to Pennsylvania and Jersey already love. The video for "Little Things" is finished and has a cameo by Mandy Moore and was helmed by former porno mega-director Nigel Dick.
I can sincerely say that the members of Good Charlotte are the nicest guys I have ever met. They never look at people as fans but as friends. They truly appreciate and are humbled when someone comes to a show and likes their music. They don't wait for the fans to talk to them, they go out and talk to the fans. They are always interested in the lives of their fans and always have a smile on their faces. They are always having a great time on stage and love what they do whether there are ten people watching or ten hundred. Their music is genuine, honest, and will continue touching people for a long time. They are far from the rock band cliché and will hopefully stay that way.
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