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Music Artists Good Charlotte

By: Mar Good Charlotte is a pop rock band from Waldorf, Maryland that was formed in 1996 by Joel and Benji Madden. They took the name 'Good Charlotte' from a children's book: Good Charlotte: The Girls Of Good Day Orphanage by Carol Beach York. They have released 3 albums, most notably 2002's multiplatinum seller The Young and the Hopeless, which spawned the chart topping singles, "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," "The Anthem," and "Girls and Boys." The band's third and most recent album is 2004's The Chronicles of Life and Death. The band is fronted by twin brothers Benji and Joel Madden. Other members of the band include their friends Billy Martin and Paul Thomas.

Biography
After attending a Beastie Boys concert at the age of 16, guitarist Benji and singer Joel decided to start their very own band, although Joel had never sung before, and Benji had never played guitar. They started Good Charlotte in 1996 when they recruited childhood friends Paul Thomas (bass) and Aaron Escolopio (drums). They soon moved to Annapolis, Maryland where they were introduced to Billy Martin by a friend.

After releasing an EP, entitled Another EP, in 1999, Good Charlotte released their first self-titled album in 2000, which was not a huge commercial success. Singles that were released from that album include "Little Things", "Motivation Proclamation," and "Festival Song".

Aaron was the drummer in their debut album, Good Charlotte, before leaving the band in early 2001 to join the band Wakefield with his brother, Ryan. He was replaced with Dusty, who was just a temporary drummer, who had left the band before the recording of their second album, The Young and the Hopeless. As a result, veteran professional studio drummer Josh Freese plays for that album.

2002's The Young and the Hopeless was much more popular and marked the band's emergence into mainstream music. The single that made them famous, titled "Lifestyles of the Rich and the Famous", topped charts around the globe. Singles that followed from that album included "The Anthem" ,"Girls and Boys", "Hold On" and "The Young and The Hopeless". The album received a 3x-platinum certification from the RIAA, landing the band on Saturday Night Live, the covers of Rolling Stone and Alternative Press, a two page feature in the New York Times, and spots on CNN and The Today Show. Good Charlotte were also hugely popular on MTV, where the Madden Brothers once served as hosts on the late night music video show "All Things Rock." Their music videos were favorites on both MTV and MTV2, with "The Anthem" going on to receive the "Viewers Choice Award" on MTV's 2003 Video Music Awards.

Chris Wilson was the band's drummer for their third album, The Chronicles of Life and Death, which was released in 2004. The singles released from that album include "Predictable", "I Just Wanna Live", "We Believe" and "The Chronicles of Life and Death". This album was considered a departure from their previous 2 albums. In May 2005, Chris left the band for personal health reasons. Benji also told Kerrang! magazine that Chris leaving the band was the worst part of 2005 for him.

Their most recent "Noise to the World Tour" with Simple Plan featured Dean Butterworth, who has previously played with Morrissey, as the band's current temporary drummer.

Style
Good Charlotte's hair and clothing styles are mostly derived from a variety of punk bands from the 80s and 90s. Some of these bands include: Agnostic Front, The Cure, MxPx, The Casualties, The Exploited, Rancid, Sex Pistols, Minor Threat, Social Distortion, NOFX, H2O, Anti-Flag, and Blink 182. Several of these bands are credited in Good Charlotte's early album notes.

Famous facts/trivia
Joel & Benji used to host the MTV show All Things Rock.
The band was featured in one episode of the MTV animated series Undergrads performing "The Click," which is the theme song for the show.
Good Charlotte has a cameo in Not Another Teen Movie as the band playing at the school prom.
Joel & Benji Madden helped write and produce 3 new songs on Hilary Duff's Most Wanted Hits.
Good Charlotte's fourth CD is expected to be in stores in mid to late 2006.
Ben Lee makes reference to the band in his song "Catch My Disease", with the line "They play Good Charlotte on the radio, and that's the way I like it." Similarily, the band are referenced in the Simple Plan song "Grow Up" with the line "GC, Sum & Blink and MXPX rocking my room"