Dokken exploded out of the boiling hard rock and heavy metal scene in Los Angeles in the early 1980s. “Breaking the Chains,” with its catchy title track, then set the stage for Dokken to become the most dominant creative and commercial force in the world of Melodic Hard Rock for the following years. Such classic albums as “Tooth and Nail,” “Under Lock and Key,” and “Back for the Attack” all became multi-platinum selling smashes and the live “Beast from the East” went gold in Europe and Japan. Songs like “Alone Again,” “Just Got Lucky,” “Into the Fire,” “In My Dreams,” “Unchain the Night,” “Dream Warriors,” “Burning like a Flame,” and “Heaven Sent” are still nowadays regarded among the genre’s finest.
The band hit stadium status in 1988 by playing in front of over one million fans in just five weeks. It seemed Dokken was on the verge of superstardom, but like so many other bands that have come before and after them, Dokken broke up his group in 1989.
In 1994, the legendary A&R man John Kalodner offered Dokken a recording contract on the condition the group had to be original members. The band released the appropriately titled “Dysfunctional” in 1995 selling 450,000 copies, which by the mid ’90s was considered by industry standards very respectable. Just as they were on the verge of releasing a second single, filming a video, starting a world tour and “taking it all the way,” as Don Dokken puts it, the baggage from their past reared its ugly head, and again the group began to unravel. Soon after guitarist George Lynch left the group.
In October 2016, the original members of Dokken reunited for a brief sold out tour of Japan, playing in several arenas. The current Dokken lineup includes Don Dokken on vocals, BJ Zampa on drums, Jon Levin on guitar, and Chris McCarvill on bass. More information on Dokken is available at: https://dokken.net.
George Lynch helped lead Dokken to stardom with his guitar and songwriting, which made him one of the most influential guitarists in modern music. In 1989, he left Dokken and formed his own band Lynch Mob. In just three years, Lynch Mob released two records and launched two worldwide tours. In the following years, George reunited with Dokken, played with Lynch Mob, and started a career as a solo artist. George formally retired the name of Lynch Mob in 2020, and has since rebranded his power trio as George Lynch & The Electric Freedom Band. George Lynch is also a prolific recording artist completing records with many notable musicians and creating collector’s art guitars under his Mr. Scary Guitars Brand. More information on George Lynch and Lynch Mob is available at https://georgelynch.com.
