Biography

Whether he's in Social Distortion or playing solo, the musician born as Johnny Wickersham performs under the pseudonym Jonny Two Bags. He launched his solo career in 2012, nearly a decade after he joined Social Distortion and nearly 20 years after he made his professional debut as the leader of the Cadillac Tramps. That capsule history suggests just how deep Wickersham's musical roots lie. A native of Southern California and son of a professional musician, he grew up a rockabilly punk kid in the early '80s, learning about music through the Blasters and X. His own bands soon followed and that included the Cadillac Tramps, who released their debut album, Tombstone Radio, in 1993. Two more albums with the Cadillac Tramps followed -- 1994's It's Allright, 1995's Cadillac Hearse -- and while the group never disbanded, he jumped into Youth Brigade in 1996, appearing on their To Sell the Truth record. Three years later, he was playing with U.S. Bombs, appearing on The World, but the next big shift in his career occurred when he replaced his late friend Dennis Danell in Social Distortion in 2000. The first Social Distortion album to feature Wickersham was 2004's Sex, Love & Rock 'n' Roll and he followed lead singer Mike Ness into the vocalist's 2008 solo tour. Social Distortion may have been his main gig but Wickersham would still play with old friends, sitting in with U.S. Bombs on a 2010 tour and putting out his own 7" single in 2012. In 2014, he took the plunge into a full-fledged solo project with Salvation Town, a muscular roots rock record. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi