Initial career (1997–2001)

Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh met in childhood (in 1979) and later started their first garage punk band, consisting of drums, bass and vocals. In 1988, with Bradley Nowell, they formed the ska punk and reggae rock band Sublime, which went on to sell over 17 million albums worldwide.^[1] After Nowell's fatal heroin overdose in 1996, Wilson and Gaugh founded the Long Beach Dub Allstars (LBDAS), joined by frequent Sublime contributors Michael "Miguel" Happoldt, Todd Forman, and "Field" Marshall Goodman.

Eric Wilson said: "We will never replace the greatness that Sublime did or what Bradley has done." The LBDAS were originally a 10-piece and they recorded their debut recording called Right Back, which shortly after completion in 1999 saw the departure of three members. Their second album, Wonders of the World was recorded and released in 2001. It featured "Sunny Hours" featuring will.i.am from The Black Eyed Peas. "Sunny Hours" was also used as the theme song for the Friends spin-off Joey.

Breakup and aftermath (2002–2012)

In 2002, rumors that the band had broken up began to surface. Apparently the band had taken a hard-drug-free vow and some of the band's members had broken this vow, which caused Bud Gaugh to quit and join Eyes Adrift with Krist Novoselic of Nirvana and Curt Kirkwood of Meat Puppets. Gaugh subsequently played with Kirkwood and Michael Happoldt in the band Volcano.^[2] Eric Wilson, Trey Pangborn and RAS-1 formed Long Beach Shortbus with former Slightly Stoopid and temporary Sublime drummer, Kelly Vargas (later replaced by Damion Ramirez). Marshall Goodman, Jack Maness and Opie Ortiz formed Dubcat, with members of Hepcat. Shortbus has had slightly more success than Dubcat, though the latter has yet to release an album. Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh later reunited in Sublime with Rome, a new incarnation of Sublime which chiefly performs songs by that band and features Rome Ramirez in place of Bradley Nowell. However, Gaugh left shortly after their first tour to play for the band Badfish.

Reunion (2012–present)

On September 1, 2012, Long Beach Dub Allstars played their first show in 11 years at the Queen Mary Events Park next to the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California, where they opened for The Wailers and played alongside Tribal Seeds.^[3] Then on September 30, 2012, Long Beach Dub Allstars performed at the Yost Theater in Santa Ana, California, where they opened for Fishbone. They played another show at the Brixton Southbay in Redondo Beach, California on January 25, 2013, with the local Redondo Beach Band Special "C".^[4] The reunion lineup consists of Marshall Goodman "Ras MG" on drums, Michael "Miguel" Happoldt on lead guitar/vocals, Opie Ortiz on vocals, Jack Maness on vocals/guitar/keys, Tim Wu on sax/flute/vocals, and Edwin Kampwith on bass.^[5]

When asked what kind of style the fans could look forward to hearing in possible new material, Jack Maness stated, "We’re doing some of the things that we’re true to and we’re also expanding into some other stuff."

According to Opie, they are currently doing some home recording but are looking to get into a studio: "Wherever we can get a good sound". Without giving too much away, the Long Beach legends hinted that guest appearances can be expected on future releases from artists they have worked with in the past, as well as new artists that they have plans on working with in the future.^[6]

In 2017, the group toured across California and played one-off shows in Nevada and Florida. They were set to play two shows in San Francisco and Sacramento early in 2018, as well as a gig at Red Rocks Amphitheatre on April 19.^[7]

On May 29, 2020, the Long Beach Dub Allstars released their eponymous third studio album under Suburban Noize Records.^[8] The self-titled album features 10 tracks with their first single, "Tell Me" along with a music video.

On June 30, 2023, the Long Beach Dub Allstars released their fourth studio album, Echo Mountain High on Regime Music Group. It features 13 tracks with their first single, "Let Yourself Shine" that was released on social media and YouTube on April 21.^[9] Other singles released with music videos are "Somewhere" and "Preacha" featuring Long Beach local musician Philileano.

After making their triumphant return in 2020 with their self-titled album, Long Beach Dub Allstars are taking it all the way back-to-basics on their new album "EchoMountain High". The album will take listeners on a trip through a psychedelic mountain range of musical madness filled with reggae, rock, ska, hip hop, hard dub,and soul.

When the pandemic hit, tour was cancelled and the band was put down for about a bit. After about a year, Long Beach Dub Allstars, Opie Ortiz and Edwin Kampwirth got busy and started to write some songs. Setting up their own personal musical "resort" in Opie's yard, the duo began to demo new tracks. This "resort sesh" led to the creation of 18 demos that would become the seeds of "Echo Mountain High".

The band began working with Long Beach Dub Allstars guitarist Michael “Miguel” Happoldt to help figure out which of the songs to focus on. 13 songs were chosen and sent the band. With the full band tracking straight to tape at Tracking at 64 Sound, the canvas and frame were built and it was now time to paint. So then off to record overdubs with the great Lewis "Lew" Richards at 17th Street Recording studios, as well as at Mike and Tim's home studios. Within a year, the album was completed.

"This release is extra special because after the pandemic, I honestly didn't know if we had another album in us," commented Long Beach Dub Allstars bassist Edwin Kampwirth. "The way Opie, myself and the crew came together to work on this album was really amazing to me. Everyone got busy, did their parts and treated these songs with respect and love. The last album was really beautiful, but it was very mellow. To me, 'Echo Mountain High' is the wild album that needed to happen. We took some chances, broke down some barriers and now the floodgates are open."

Long Beach Dub Allstars have always taken chances and have never been afraid to chart into unknown musical territory. "Echo Mountain High" sees them experimenting with some heavy psychedelics and finds the band playing some hard classic dub anthems along with some wild experiments, showcasing the band's free spirit and fearlessness to venture into the unknown.

Opie Ortiz describes the sound "I feel with the self-titled album, it was an old-time vibe we were going for, and Cameron Webb has more of a punk-rock approach. This new album has more of a soul feel to it, and we experimented with a bunch of sounds like Roger playing a mellotron on 'Fly So High', which gave it a sort of Beatles 'Strawberry Fields' vibe."

Joining the Dub Allstars on this mind-altering musical journey are Chris Dowd (Fishbone), who adds his trombone flavor to one track, some sweet vocals on another and some of his iconic keys on two others. Devin Morrison (Expanders/Man Like Devin) and Jesse Wagner (Aggrolites), lend some singing on a few tracks. Philieano (Doobie Raider) jumps on two tracks to rap and sing some harmonies, and local Long Beach ripper, Travis Goertz, plays a little slide guitar on one track.

The album's first single "Precious Time" was inspired by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that took the lives of nearly 16,000 people and injured thousands of others. Frontman Opie Ortiz was visiting when the earthquake happened and the harrowing experience stuck with him.

"I was there when it happened visiting my brother Philieano, but luckily we were on the west side in Nagasaki," he remembers. "It was a real eye opener being in a different country in a state of emergency. I was speaking with a person in our crew who played guitar with the One Big Family Band, his name is Yuichiro Oku, and he said I should write a song and call it 'Precious Time' because time is precious."Today’s generation of reggae-rock fans may not fully understand how critical this group was to the reggae-rock genre, following Sublime’s conclusion in 1996. They played at a time when social media was non-existent. Live-videos of their early performances are mostly of grainy VHS quality, while most live-photos shot by fans were with throw-away cameras. There was no Youtube, Facebook, and this was before Myspace or even iTunes. They were the torch bearers of a genre that Sublime introduced and the original ‘Dub Allstars lineup included most of the players who were involved in cultivating that Reggae-Rock sound with Brad Nowell. Seeing them reunite and perform new music after a 15-year absence is exciting. Together these musical professors and legends from Long Beach have engineered a new studio album that adds to the legacy of Long Beach Dub Allstars. 25 years later the band has found its resurgence with Opie Ortiz(vocals), Miguel Happoldt (guitar), Tim Wu (horns) joined by Roger Rivas (keys), Ed Kampwirth (bass) and Gil Sharone(drums).

"Echo Mountain High" rolls through the mountainside with some wild contact highs along the way with songs about youth, ghosts, police brutality, love, hate, life, death and mushrooms.

Current members

• Opie Ortiz (lead vocals, album artwork)
• Michael "Miguel" Happoldt (guitar, former Sublime contributor)
• Tim Wu (alto saxophone, baritone saxophone, flute, vocals) *also plays on/off with reggae infused rap-rock group, Chapter 11
• Roger Rivas (keyboard, organ)
• Ed Kampwirth (bass)
• Gil Sharone (drums)

Former members

• RAS-1 (lead vocals, guitar)
• Eric Wilson (bass, formerly with Sublime, currently with Sublime with Rome and Spray Allen)
• Bud Gaugh (drums, formally of Sublime and Sublime with Rome)
• Marshall Goodman "Ras MG" (drums, percussion, turntables, former Sublime member)
• Jack Maness (keyboard, vocals)
• Todd Forman (alto saxophone, percussion)
• Isaiah Ikey Owens (keyboard, formally with The Mars Volta) *Died in 2014
• Devin Morrison (guitar)
• Brad Croes (saxophone)

Note: The group started out as a 10-piece, but Forman and Owens left while recording for the album Right Back. It is unclear whether or not they appear on the album. Miguel left shortly after it was recorded; he is shown on the album and is credited, but is not cited as a member.

Albums

• Right Back (1999) No. 67 Billboard 200^[10]
• Wonders of the World (2001) No. 59 Billboard 200^[10]
• Long Beach Dub Allstars (2020)
• Echo Mountain High (2023)

Singles

• "Trailer Ras" / "Kick Down" (1999)^[11]
• "Sunny Hours" (2001) No. 28 Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks^[10]
• "Holding On" / "Steady Customer" (2017)^[12]
• "Somewhere" (2023) ^[13]

Compilation appearances

• Free the West Memphis 3 – "The Harder They Come" with Joe Strummer and Tippa Irie.