Vic Ruggiero

Who is Vic Ruggiero?

Victor "Vic" Ruggiero, is a musician, songwriter and producer from New York City who has played in reggae, blues, ska and rocksteady bands since the early 1990s, including The Slackers, Stubborn All-Stars, SKAndalous All Stars, Crazy Baldhead and The Silencers. He has also performed with punk rock band Rancid, both live and in the studio. He has released three solo acoustic albums and continues to tour and record worldwide. Ruggiero is known primarily as a singer and organist, although he also plays piano, bass, banjo, guitar, harmonica and percussion.

Ruggiero is known for his distinct Bronx accent that has a deep, raw quality to it. His lyrics usually follow several themes, including the apocalypse, dark humor, political distrust, paranoia, murder, irony, romance and loneliness. His songs have ranged from narrative ballads to whimsical tunes inspired by Beat generation poets, authors and songwriters, including Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and John Lennon.