Complete List Of The Dictators Albums And Songs

Feature Photo: Stefan Bollmann, Attribution, via Wikimedia Commons

This Complete List Of The Dictators Albums And Songs presents the band’s studio albums, live releases, compilations, EPs, and major singles in chronological order. The Dictators formed in New York City in the early 1970s around Andy Shernoff, Ross “The Boss” Friedman, and Scott “Top Ten” Kempner, eventually adding Handsome Dick Manitoba as the group’s larger-than-life frontman. Their music mixed hard rock, garage rock, humor, pop culture, and the stripped-down attitude that soon became associated with punk. Although the original albums were not major commercial successes, The Dictators Go Girl Crazy!, Manifest Destiny, and Bloodbrothers became increasingly influential as the New York punk scene developed.

The Dictators returned to recording with D.F.F.D. in 2001 and began another major revival in 2020. That reunion eventually produced the self-titled The Dictators album in 2024, featuring Andy Shernoff, Ross Friedman, Albert Bouchard, and Keith Roth. Scott Kempner, who had participated in the earliest reunion sessions, died in 2023, and Ross “The Boss” Friedman died on March 26, 2026 after being diagnosed with ALS. The band’s catalog also includes important live recordings, archival material, and the closely related 1990 Manitoba’s Wild Kingdom album …And You?. A 2025 Record Store Day reissue of D.F.F.D. added the previously unreleased cover of “Sonic Reducer.”

THE DICTATORS STUDIO ALBUMS

The Dictators Go Girl Crazy! (1975)

Released March 1975

The Dictators Go Girl Crazy! is the debut album by The Dictators and one of the records that helped establish the vocabulary of American proto-punk before punk became a defined movement. Released by Epic Records in 1975, the album was produced by Sandy Pearlman and Murray Krugman and featured Andy Shernoff on bass and vocals, Ross “The Boss” Friedman on lead guitar, Scott “Top Ten” Kempner on rhythm guitar, Stu Boy King on drums, and Handsome Dick Manitoba as the band’s “secret weapon.” The record combines loud hard rock with garage rock, humor, wrestling imagery, youth culture, and covers such as “I Got You Babe” and “California Sun.” Songs including “The Next Big Thing,” “Master Race Rock,” “Teengenerate,” and “Two Tub Man” established the band’s sarcastic personality. The album was not a commercial hit when first released, but its reputation grew steadily as later punk musicians recognized how early The Dictators had arrived at many of the genre’s defining ideas.

Track Listing

“The Next Big Thing” – Andy Shernoff – 4:18
“I Got You Babe” – Sonny Bono – 4:01
“Back to Africa” – Andy Shernoff – 3:20
“Master Race Rock” – Andy Shernoff – 4:15
“Teengenerate” – Andy Shernoff – 3:30
“California Sun” – Henry Glover, Morris Levy – 2:59
“Two Tub Man” – Andy Shernoff – 4:07
“Weekend” – Andy Shernoff – 4:00
“(I Live For) Cars and Girls” – Andy Shernoff – 3:55

Manifest Destiny (1977)

Released July 1977

Manifest Destiny was The Dictators’ second studio album and their first for Asylum Records. Produced again by Murray Krugman and Sandy Pearlman, the album presented a more polished and heavier version of the band’s sound while retaining the sarcasm and attitude of the debut. The lineup included Handsome Dick Manitoba on vocals, Ross Friedman and Scott Kempner on guitars, Mark Mendoza on bass, Ritchie Teeter on drums, and Andy Shernoff contributing bass, keyboards, guitar, vocals, and songwriting. Songs such as “Exposed,” “Heartache,” “Science Gone Too Far,” and “Young, Fast, Scientific” pushed the band toward a larger hard-rock sound. Their cover of The Stooges’ “Search and Destroy” kept the album connected to the raw New York and Detroit music that had helped inspire them.

Track Listing

“Exposed” – Andy Shernoff – 4:30
“Heartache” – Andy Shernoff – 3:27
“Sleepin’ with the TV On” – Andy Shernoff – 4:18
“Disease” – Andy Shernoff – 4:06
“Hey Boys” – Scott Kempner, Andy Shernoff – 4:05
“Steppin’ Out” – Andy Shernoff – 4:12
“Science Gone Too Far” – Andy Shernoff – 3:31
“Young, Fast, Scientific” – Andy Shernoff – 3:27
“Search and Destroy” – Iggy Pop, James Williamson – 3:25

Bloodbrothers (1978)

Released June 1978

Bloodbrothers, the third studio album by The Dictators, brought the band back toward the rawer energy of its debut while tightening the songwriting and performances. Murray Krugman and Sandy Pearlman again produced the record, with Handsome Dick Manitoba taking a larger role as lead vocalist. Ross Friedman handled lead guitar, Scott Kempner played rhythm guitar, Andy Shernoff played bass and keyboards and contributed vocals, and Richie Teeter played drums. “Faster and Louder,” “Baby Let’s Twist,” “The Minnesota Strip,” and “Stay with Me” became lasting favorites in the band’s live repertoire. Bruce Springsteen also appeared as a guest vocalist on “Faster and Louder.” The album became the final studio release of The Dictators’ original 1970s era.

Track Listing

“Faster and Louder” – Andy Shernoff, Joey Schaedler – 2:52
“Baby Let’s Twist” – Andy Shernoff – 3:58
“No Tomorrow” – Andy Shernoff – 2:55
“The Minnesota Strip” – Andy Shernoff – 3:29
“Stay with Me” – Andy Shernoff – 3:39
“I Stand Tall” – Andy Shernoff – 3:45
“Borneo Jimmy” – Andy Shernoff – 3:41
“What It Is” – Scott Kempner, Andy Shernoff – 3:07
“Slow Death” – Cyril Jordan, Roy Loney – 4:02

D.F.F.D. (2001)

Released 2001

D.F.F.D., short for Dictators Forever, Forever Dictators, was the band’s first full studio album since Bloodbrothers. Produced by Andy Shernoff, the album reunited Handsome Dick Manitoba, Ross Friedman, Scott Kempner, and Shernoff with drummer J.P. “Thunderbolt” Patterson and additional contributions from Frank Funaro. Songs including “Who Will Save Rock and Roll?,” “I Am Right!,” “Pussy and Money,” “The Moronic Inferno,” and “The Savage Beat” showed that the band’s humor and hard-rock attack had survived the long gap between albums. The record was widely regarded as a successful return rather than a nostalgia exercise. It became the last Dictators studio album for twenty-three years. A Record Store Day vinyl reissue appeared in 2025 with the previously unreleased Dead Boys cover “Sonic Reducer” added as a bonus track.

Track Listing

“Who Will Save Rock and Roll?”
“I Am Right!”
“Pussy and Money”
“The Moronic Inferno”
“It’s Alright”
“What’s Up With That?”
“The Savage Beat”
“In the Presence of a New God”
“Avenue A”
“Channel Surfing”
“Jim Gordon Blues”
“Burn, Baby, Burn!!”

2025 Record Store Day Bonus Track

“Sonic Reducer”

The Dictators (2024)

Released digitally September 6, 2024; physical release September 20, 2024

The Dictators marked the band’s first new studio album in twenty-three years. The record grew from the reunion that began in 2020 with Andy Shernoff, Ross “The Boss” Friedman, Scott Kempner, and former Blue Öyster Cult drummer Albert Bouchard, although Kempner’s declining health limited his participation in the early sessions. Singer and guitarist Keith Roth later joined the lineup as the project expanded from a run of singles into a full album. The finished ten-song record features Shernoff, Friedman, Bouchard, and Roth and includes “Let’s Get the Band Back Together,” “My Imaginary Friend,” “God Damn New York,” and “Thank You And Have A Nice Day.” The album was released digitally by Valley Entertainment on September 6, 2024, with the Deko physical edition following later that month. It became Ross Friedman’s final Dictators studio album before his death in 2026.

Track Listing

“Let’s Get the Band Back Together” – 2:26
“My Imaginary Friend” – 2:45
“Transmaniacon MC” – 3:31
“Sacred Cow” – 3:16
“Really Good” – 3:37
“All About You” – 3:17
“Wicked Cool Disguise” – 3:15
“God Damn New York” – 3:38
“Thank You And Have A Nice Day” – 3:29
“Sweet Joey” – 2:34

RELATED DICTATORS PROJECT

…And You? – Manitoba’s Wild Kingdom (1990)

Released 1990

…And You? is not a Dictators studio album, but it is closely connected to the band’s history through Manitoba’s Wild Kingdom. The group was formed by Handsome Dick Manitoba and Andy Shernoff, and Ross “The Boss” Friedman joined before the album was released, with J.P. “Thunderbolt” Patterson on drums. Released through MCA and Popular Metaphysics in 1990, the record includes “The Party Starts Now!!,” “Haircut and Attitude,” “New York, New York,” and “Fired Up.” Its punk and hard-rock sound carried much of the Dictators spirit into a different band name. After Scott Kempner joined in 1991, Manitoba’s Wild Kingdom evolved back into The Dictators, making the album an important bridge between the original era and the later reunion years.

Track Listing

“The Party Starts Now!!” – 2:09
“Haircut and Attitude” – 3:10
“New York, New York” – 3:04
“D.W.I.” – 2:36
“I Want You, Tonight!” – 2:38
“Fired Up” – 2:50
“The Perfect High” – 2:40
“Had It Coming” – 2:17
“Prototype” – 2:52
“Speedball” – 2:12

THE DICTATORS LIVE ALBUMS

Fuck ‘Em If They Can’t Take a Joke (1981)

Released 1981

Fuck ‘Em If They Can’t Take a Joke was originally issued by ROIR as a cassette and became the first major live document of The Dictators. Produced by Andy Shernoff, the album combines songs from the band’s three 1970s studio albums with covers of Mott the Hoople’s “The Moon Upstairs” and The Velvet Underground’s “What Goes On.” It also includes “Loyola” and “New York New York,” songs that had not appeared on the original studio albums. The recording captures Handsome Dick Manitoba, Ross Friedman, Scott Kempner, Andy Shernoff, and the band’s rhythm section in the loose, aggressive live setting that helped build their reputation. Unlike the track list in the submitted source, the original ROIR release contains twelve tracks.

Track Listing

“The Next Big Thing”
“Science Gone Too Far”
“Weekend”
“Rock and Roll Made a Man Out of Me”
“Two Tub Man”
“The Moon Upstairs”
“Loyola”
“What Goes On”
“New York New York”
“Search and Destroy”
“Borneo Jimmy”
“Minnesota Strip”

New York, New York: The Dictators Live (1998)

Released October 28, 1998

New York, New York: The Dictators Live expanded the earlier ROIR live material for a CD release in 1998. The first twelve songs follow the core sequence familiar from Fuck ‘Em If They Can’t Take a Joke, including “Loyola,” “What Goes On,” and “New York New York.” Three additional performances, “Master Race Rock,” “Baby Let’s Twist,” and “Faster and Louder,” were added as bonus tracks. The release gave the band’s early live recordings a broader digital life and placed more of their best-known songs together in one concert-oriented collection. It remains part of the official Dictators discography.

Track Listing

“The Next Big Thing”
“Science Gone Too Far”
“Weekend”
“Rock and Roll Made a Man Out of Me”
“Two Tub Man”
“The Moon Upstairs”
“Loyola”
“What Goes On”
“New York New York”
“Search and Destroy”
“Borneo Jimmy”
“Minnesota Strip”
“Master Race Rock”
“Baby Let’s Twist”
“Faster and Louder”

Viva Dictators (2005)

Released 2005

Viva Dictators captured the reunited band during the period following D.F.F.D. and presented a broad live survey of their career. The lineup featured Handsome Dick Manitoba on vocals, Ross Friedman and Scott Kempner on guitars, Andy Shernoff on bass and vocals, and J.P. “Thunderbolt” Patterson on drums. The seventeen-song set mixes early staples such as “Master Race Rock,” “Weekend,” “The Next Big Thing,” and “Minnesota Strip” with later material including “Avenue A,” “Pussy and Money,” and “Who Will Save Rock and Roll?” The performance shows how naturally the 1970s songs and reunion-era material fit together onstage. It remains the band’s most extensive officially released live album.

Track Listing

“Intro” – 0:28
“New York, New York” – 3:21
“Haircut and Attitude” – 2:56
“Master Race Rock” – 4:31
“Avenue A” – 3:30
“Baby, Let’s Twist” – 3:51
“Weekend” – 4:06
“Pussy and Money” – 3:15
“Who Will Save Rock and Roll?” – 3:22
“The Next Big Thing” – 4:15
“Minnesota Strip” – 4:09
“What’s Up With That?” – 2:47
“Faster and Louder” – 2:58
“I Am Right!” – 4:03
“Stay” – 4:41
“Two Tub Man” – 4:35
“(I Live For) Cars and Girls” – 4:00

Live Rochester NY, July ’77 (2016)

Released 2016

Live Rochester NY, July ’77 is an archival live release drawn from a 1977 Rochester performance during the Manifest Destiny period. The source article dated the release to 2015 and identified Norton Records, but the vinyl edition appeared in 2016 through Interference Records. The eight-track set emphasizes material from the band’s first two albums and includes “Science Gone Too Far,” “Young, Fast and Scientific,” “Hey Boys,” “Disease,” and “Search and Destroy.” The compact program preserves a rougher concert snapshot than the later Viva Dictators album. It is best treated as an archival live release rather than one of the core studio records.

Track Listing

“Science Gone Too Far”
“The Next Big Thing”
“Young, Fast and Scientific”
“Hey Boys”
“Steppin’ Out”
“Disease”
“Search and Destroy”
“Two Tub Man”

THE DICTATORS COMPILATION ALBUMS

Every Day Is Saturday (2007)

Released 2007

Every Day Is Saturday is a twenty-four-track Norton Records collection that gathers alternate versions, demos, radio spots, rarities, and later recordings from across The Dictators’ history. The set includes familiar titles such as “Weekend,” “Master Race Rock,” “California Sun,” “Faster and Louder,” “Minnesota Strip,” and “Stay with Me” alongside less common material including “Fireman’s Friend,” “Backseat Boogie,” “Loyola,” and “Laughing Out Loud.” Several radio spots preserve the promotional atmosphere surrounding the band’s original releases. The collection also includes two versions of “16 Forever.” For listeners interested in material beyond the main studio albums, it remains one of the most useful archival collections in the catalog.

Track Listing

“Weekend”
“Backseat Boogie”
“Master Race Rock”
“California Sun”
“Fireman’s Friend”
“Whisky Radio Spot”
“America the Beautiful”
“Sleepin’ With the TV On”
“Eugene Radio Spot”
“Faster and Louder”
“Minnesota Strip”
“Baby Let’s Twist”
“What It Is”
“Borneo Jimmy”
“I Stand Tall”
“No Tomorrow”
“Stay With Me”
“Bloodbrothers Radio Spot”
“16 Forever”
“Loyola”
“Laughing Out Loud”
“What’s Up With That? #2”
“16 Forever #2”
“Owensboro Radio Spot”

Faster… Louder – The Dictators’ Best 1975-2001 (2014)

Released 2014

Faster… Louder – The Dictators’ Best 1975-2001 is a Raven Records compilation covering the band’s original three studio albums and the later D.F.F.D. reunion period. Its twenty tracks include early favorites such as “The Next Big Thing,” “Master Race Rock,” “California Sun,” and “Weekend,” followed by selections from Manifest Destiny and Bloodbrothers. The collection closes with five songs from D.F.F.D., connecting the original era to the band’s twenty-first-century return. The sequence is more career-spanning than the archival focus of Every Day Is Saturday. It remains a concise overview of the band’s studio work through 2001.

Track Listing

“The Next Big Thing”
“Master Race Rock”
“California Sun”
“Two Tub Man”
“Weekend”
“(I Live For) Cars and Girls”
“Exposed”
“Science Gone Too Far!”
“Young, Fast, Scientific”
“Search and Destroy”
“Faster and Louder”
“Baby, Let’s Twist”
“The Minnesota Strip”
“Stay With Me”
“Slow Death”
“Who Will Save Rock and Roll?”
“I Am Right!”
“The Moronic Inferno”
“The Savage Beat”
“Burn, Baby, Burn!!”

THE DICTATORS EXTENDED PLAYS

The Next Big Thing EP (2015)

Released November 2015

The Next Big Thing EP was issued for the fortieth anniversary of Go Girl Crazy! and paired three Andrew W.K. remixes with three studio outtakes from the original album sessions. The source article incorrectly dated the EP to 1993. The release includes reworked versions of “The Next Big Thing,” “Two Tub Man,” and “Weekend,” followed by alternate or unreleased takes from the 1974 sessions. It appeared as a limited Record Store Day release in 2015. The material was also closely connected to the expanded fortieth-anniversary edition of Go Girl Crazy!.

Track Listing

“The Next Big Thing” – Andrew W.K. Remix
“Two Tub Man” – Andrew W.K. Remix
“Weekend” – Andrew W.K. Remix
“Backseat Boogie” – Take 1
“The Next Big Thing” – Alternate Take 1
“Weekend” – Instrumental Take 3

Crazy Horses EP (2023)

Released June 30, 2023

The Crazy Horses EP paired The Dictators’ new recording of the Osmonds song “Crazy Horses” with three catalog tracks. Released by Valley Entertainment in 2023, the four-song set arrived during the band’s renewed period of touring and recording. “Who Will Save Rock And Roll?,” “New York, New York,” and “Stay With Me” complete the release. The EP helped bridge the reunion singles and the self-titled studio album that followed in 2024. The source article listed “Crazy Horses” as a single, but the commercial release is a four-track EP.

Track Listing

“Crazy Horses” – 2:24
“Who Will Save Rock And Roll?” – 2:58
“New York, New York” – 3:21
“Stay With Me” – 4:17

Thank You And Have A Nice Day EP (2023)

Released September 15, 2023

Thank You And Have A Nice Day was the second four-track Dictators EP released by Valley Entertainment in 2023. The title song later appeared on the 2024 self-titled album, while the remaining tracks revisit “Avenue A,” “The Savage Beat,” and “(I Live For) Cars and Girls.” The release continued the band’s strategy of mixing new material with songs from different stages of its history. It also helped introduce the Keith Roth-era lineup before the full 2024 album arrived. The EP belongs in the catalog separately from the singles list because it contains four tracks.

Track Listing

“Thank You And Have A Nice Day” – 3:29
“Avenue A” – 3:47
“The Savage Beat” – 2:27
“(I Live For) Cars and Girls” – 4:00

THE DICTATORS SINGLES

“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

“God Damn New York” – 2021

“Let’s Get the Band Back Together” – 2021

“Festivus” – 2021

“My Imaginary Friend” – 2024

“Fireman’s Friend” – 2024

“Live In Spain” – 2024

Live In Spain was released as a two-song live 7-inch single on November 29, 2024. Recorded during the band’s 2023 Spanish tour, it pairs the Blue Öyster Cult song “Dominance & Submission,” sung by Albert Bouchard, with The Velvet Underground’s “What Goes On.”