Kerplunk by punk rock band Green Day is the second full-length album. It was released on January 17, 1992 on Lookout! Records. Kerplunk! was their last release on an independent label and was also the first album to feature their current band lineup, with Tré Cool on drums. The album went on to become one of the bestselling independent albums ever, selling 10,000 units on the day of its release.  Major labels took notice of Kerplunk!’s phenomenal popularity and many approached the band. Green Day realized that they had outgrown their record distribution capacity with Lookout! and eventually signed with Reprise Records. With Reprise, Green Day would record and release their third album Dookie (1994), which would become a landmark album of the 1990s with over 14 million units sold in the U.S. alone and 39 million units worldwide.In December 2007, Blender magazine ranked Kerplunk! #47 on their list, “The 100 Greatest Indie Rock Albums Ever”. (more…)

1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours is a collection of early recordings by American punk rock band Green Day, released in 1991. Although it is often referred to as the group’s first album, this is not factually correct. Their first album was 39/Smooth, whereas 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours includes that album in its entirety as well as two complete EPs and a track from a previous compilation album.

The album included one cover, “Knowledge“, which was originally by influential California punk band Operation Ivy.

The album was re-released in 2007 with special limited packaging and all new CD-rom features, incl. live performances and pictures.

Track listing

1. “At the Library” by  Billie Joe Armstrong

2. “Don’t Leave Me” by B. J. Armstrong

3. “I Was There” by John Kiffmeyer

4. “Disappearing Boy” by B. J. Armstrong

5. “Green Day” by  B. J. Armstrong

6. “Going to Pasalacqua” by  B. J. Armstrong

7. “16″ by B. J. Armstrong

8. “Road to Acceptance” by B. J. Armstrong

9. “Rest” by B. J. Armstrong

10. “The Judge’s Daughter” by B. J. Armstrong

11. “Paper Lanterns” by B. J. Armstrong

12. “Why Do You Want Him?”  byB. J. Armstrong

13. “409 in Your Coffeemaker” by B. J. Armstrong

14. “Knowledge [A]“ by Jesse Michaels

15. “1,000 Hours” by B. J. Armstrong

16. “Dry Ice” by B. J. Armstrong

17. “Only of You” by B. J. Armstrong

18. “The One I Want” by B. J. Armstrong

19. “I Want to Be Alone” by B. J. Armstrong

Green Day emerged out of the Northern California underground punk scene in the late 80’s. Their first album 1,039 / Smoothed Out Slappy Hours was a compilation of three previous released EP’s. Shortly after the album was released Tre Cool replaced the band’s drummer, John Kiffmeyer, completing the trio that make up the group today. After a second album Kerplunk, released in 1992, the band signed to major record label Reprise.

At first, Green Day was part of the California punk scene. Childhood friends Billie Joe Armstrong (guitar, vocals) and Mike Dirnt (bass; born Mike Pritchard) formed their first band, Sweet Children, in Rodeo, California when they were 14 years old. By 1989, the group had added drummer Al Sobrante and changed their name to Green Day. That year, the band independently released their first EP, 1,000 Hours, which was well-received in the punk scene. Soon, the group had signed a contract with the local independent label, Lookout! Records. 39/Smooth, Green Day’s first album, was released later that year. Shortly after its release, the band replaced Kiftmeyer with Tre Cool (born Frank Edwin Wright, III); Tre Cool became the band’s permanent drummer.

Throughout the early ’90s, Green Day continued to cultivate a cult following, which only gained strength with the release of their second album, 1992’s Kerplunk. The underground success of Kerplunk led to a wave of interest from major record labels; the band eventually decided to sign with Reprise. Dookie, Green Day’s major label debut, was released in the spring of 1994. Thanks to MTV support for the initial single “Longview,” Dookie became a major hit. The album continued to gain momentum throughout the summer, with the second single “Basket Case” spending five weeks on the top of the American modern rock charts. At the end of the summer, the band stole the show at Wo odstock ‘94, which helped the sales of Dookie increase.

By the time the fourth single “When I Come Around” began its seven-week stay at number one in the modern rock charts in early 1995, Dookie had sold over five million copies in the US alone; it would eventually top eight million in America, selling over eleven million copies internationally. Dookie also won the 1994 Grammy for Best Alternative Music Performance. (more…)