Studio
Fantasy Studios
Label
Reprise Records
Producers
Rob Cavallo, Green Day
Mixing
Jerry Finn
Engineer
Neill King
Musicians
Billie Joe Armstrong (vocals, guitar), Mike Dirnt (bass, vocals), Tre Cool (drums, guitar, vocals)
Artwork
Ritchie Bucher (cover), Pat Hynes (booklet artwork), Ken Schles (photos)
Singles
Longview, Basket Case, Welcome To Paradise, When I Come Around, She
Awards
Grammys: Dookie - Best Alternative Music Performance (Won), Green Day - Best New Artist (Nominated), Basket Case - Best Rock Performance (Nominated), Longview - Best Hard Rock Performance (Nominated)
Notes: Green Day's debut album on a major label and their best-selling release with sales of over 10 million in the US alone. The album was recorded during a break in touring in the summer of 1993. The original title was supposed to be "Liquid Dookie" but it was deemed to be too gross. In 2023, a 30th Anniversary Edition of Dookie was released with demos and outtakes.
Tracklist
01
09
02
10
03
11
04
12
05
13
06
14
07
15
08
Track 15: Originally a "secret song" that played after several seconds of silence at the end of F.O.D., the song was given its own place on the tracklist in later digital editions of the album.
Demo Sessions
Key
[O] Officially released
[D] Demo released
[U] Unofficially released
[X] Unreleased
4-Track Demos (1992-93)
All demos marked as released appear on the 2023 Dookie 30th Anniversary Edition, with the exception of 'All By Myself' which first appeared on the original 1994 album as a "secret song". Audio for the unofficially released tracks are available in our audio archive.
- [D]Burnout
- [D]Chump
- [D]Pulling Teeth
- [D]Basket Case
- [D]She
- [D]Sassafras Roots
- [D]When I Come Around
- [D]In The End
- [D]F.O.D.
- [D]When It's Time
- [U]When It's Time
- [D]All By Myself
- [X]The Girl From Ipanema [Stan Getz cover]
- [X]Blue Skies [Irving Berlin cover]
- [U]J.A.R.
- [U]Having A Blast
- [U]Don't Wanna Fall In Love
All demos marked as released appear on the 2023 Dookie 30th Anniversary Edition, with the exception of 'All By Myself' which first appeared on the original 1994 album as a "secret song". Audio for the unofficially released tracks are available in our audio archive.
Art Of Ears Demos (1992)
From Todd (audio archivist); “This Dookie demo was recorded at Art of Ears studios in San Francisco on December 27, 1992. The songs were all overdubbed and remixed at Dancing Dog with Kevin Army". Audio for this session is available in our audio archive.
- [U]Having A Blast
- [U]When I Come Around
- [U]Longview
- [U]Burnout
- [U]Basket Case
- [U]Haushinka
- [U]J.A.R.
From Todd (audio archivist); “This Dookie demo was recorded at Art of Ears studios in San Francisco on December 27, 1992. The songs were all overdubbed and remixed at Dancing Dog with Kevin Army". Audio for this session is available in our audio archive.
Dancing Dog Demos (1993)
From Todd (audio archivist); “Most likely the same basic tracks as the 1992 Art of Ears songs, but were overdubbed, partially re-recorded, and remixed at Dancing Dog. This tape is the master for these 8 songs.” Audio for this session is available in our audio archive.
- [U]When I Come Around
- [U]Having A Blast
- [U]Haushinka
- [U]Burnout
- [U]Longview
- [U]J.A.R.
- [U]Basket Case
- [U]Monk's Keys
- [X]Unknown Track
From Todd (audio archivist); “Most likely the same basic tracks as the 1992 Art of Ears songs, but were overdubbed, partially re-recorded, and remixed at Dancing Dog. This tape is the master for these 8 songs.” Audio for this session is available in our audio archive.
Art Of Ears Demos (1993)
From Todd (audio archivist); “Recorded at Art of Ears studios in winter 1993, most likely February.” Todd added that the first three songs may be 4-track demos recorded at a different time than tracks 4-7. This session marked the final Dookie demo recordings made before the band hit Fantasy Studios with Rob Cavallo in July. Audio for this session is available in our audio archive.
- [U]She
- [U]Pulling Teeth
- [U]Sassafras Roots
- [D]Walking The Dog [Rufus Thomas cover]
- [U]Don’t Wanna Fall In Love
- [U]F.O.D.
- [U]Thoughts Of Smog And Slums [Corrupted Morals cover]
- [X]The Metro [Berlin cover]
From Todd (audio archivist); “Recorded at Art of Ears studios in winter 1993, most likely February.” Todd added that the first three songs may be 4-track demos recorded at a different time than tracks 4-7. This session marked the final Dookie demo recordings made before the band hit Fantasy Studios with Rob Cavallo in July. Audio for this session is available in our audio archive.
Session Notes
According to a post on Billie Joe’s Instagram story, the 4-track demo songs were recorded on a Tascam Portastudio he purchased after the Kerplunk tour in 1992.
The lyrics for the 4-track demo of 'Basket Case' were completely rewritten prior to the band recording their first studio demo of the song on December 27, 1992. You can hear the original version on the Dookie 30th Anniversary Edition.
The 4-track demo of 'All By Myself' featured Jeana Repetto on guitar and backing vocals while Tre Cool sang lead and Billie Joe played a bass drum. This demo is the same version of the song that appears on Dookie.
Two of the 4-track recorded covers have yet to surface. The first is an instrumental take on 'The Girl From Ipanema', featuring Jeana Repetto on guitar and Tre Cool on doumbek. The second, 'Blue Skies', features the same lineup but with Tre Cool on lead vocals. Billie Joe acted as the recording engineer for both songs. Special thanks to Jeana for the information on the last two notes.
The demo of ‘Monk’s Keys’ was released as ‘Rox Yer Ass’ under the band name "Billie Joe Experience" on Life Without Spot, A Food Not Bombs Benefit Compilation.
Every original song aside from 'Monk's Keys' on these demos eventually received a formal studio recording. While most were featured on Dookie, the remaining tracks surfaced over the following years: 'Don't Wanna Fall In Love' debuted as a 1995 b-side for 'Geek Stink Breath' (later compiled on Shenanigans), and 'J.A.R.' appeared that same year on the Angus soundtrack. 'Haushinka' was later re-recorded for 1997’s Nimrod, while 'When It's Time' finally saw a release in 2010 on the American Idiot Broadway Cast Recording.
Studio Sessions
Key
[O] Officially released
[D] Demo released
[U] Unofficially released
[X] Unreleased
Session Tracks (July/August)
- [O]Burnout
- [O]Having A Blast
- [X]Chump
- [X]Longview
- [O]Welcome To Paradise
- [O]Pulling Teeth
- [O]Basket Case
- [O]She
- [O]Sassafras Roots
- [O]When I Come Around
- [O]Coming Clean
- [O]Emenius Sleepus
- [O]In The End
- [O]F.O.D.
- [O]Christie Road
- [O]Tired Of Waiting For You [The Kinks cover]
- [O]On The Wagon
- [O]409 In Your Coffeemaker
Re-Record Session (October)
- [O]Chump
- [O]Longview
Session Notes
According to producer Rob Cavallo, Billie Joe recorded his vocals for the entire album in under two days.
The band revisited three older tracks in these sessions: 'Welcome to Paradise', '409 in Your Coffeemaker', and 'Christie Road'. Only 'Welcome To Paradise' secured a spot on the tracklist; '409' was issued as a b-side to the 'Basket Case' single, while 'Christie Road' remained unreleased for thirty years before finally surfacing on the 2023 anniversary box set of the album.
While recording the album went quickly, Billie Joe told VH1 that they struggled with the initial mix. 'The first time we mixed, we didn't even want to use any reverb. We just wanted it to sound really dry, the same way the Sex Pistols record or the early Black Sabbath records sounded. But the first time we mixed it, it sounded like shit!' Producer Rob Cavallo credits the decision to give a young mixer named Jerry Finn a shot as the turning point that unlocked the record's classic sound.
An inordinate amount of tape hiss during the drum transition between 'Chump' and 'Longview' prompted Rob Cavallo to suggest a re-recording. Having played the songs live extensively since the initial sessions, the band jumped at the chance; they felt their previous takes were too slow and welcomed the opportunity to inject more energy into the tracks. This second version became the definitive album cut, while the original, slower recording has never been released.
In addition to the previously mentioned studio takes of 'Christie Road' and '409 In Your Coffeemaker,' two other tracks from the sessions were left off the album: a cover of The Kinks' classic 'Tired of Waiting for You' and the original song 'On the Wagon' (tracked under the working title 'On the Wagon Again'). Both recordings were eventually issued alongside '409' as b-sides for the 'Basket Case' single and were later released on Shenanigans.
MUSIC VIDEOS
Longview
Basket Case
Welcome To Paradise
When I Come Around