Charlie Dominici, former singer for progressive-metal titans Dream Theater, has died at the age of 72. His passing was reported on Facebook by Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy.
Dominici was Dream Theater’s second singer, replacing original vocalist Chris Collins, and was a member of the band from 1987 to 1989. His vocals appear on Dream Theater’s debut album, 1989’s When Dream and Day Unite. After he parted ways with the band, Dream Theater tapped James LaBrie as their lead singer, and their career took off from there, beginning with their legendary sophomore album, 1992’s Images and Words.
Portnoy’s full post reads as follows:
“I am devastated to share the news of the passing of former Dream Theater singer Charlie Dominici. Charlie was the voice of DT on our debut album ‘When Dream And Day Unite’, recorded back in 1988. Beyond being a great singer, he also was an incredibly talented songwriter and well rounded musician on both guitar and keyboards.
While we parted ways with him in late 1989, he always remained a friend…fronting the band that played at mine & Marlene’s wedding in 1994, reuniting w DT for WDADU’s 15th anniversary show in 2004, opening for DT in Europe with his solo band in 2007 and coming to see myself & JP on our tour together in 2022. I was texting with him as recently as a few weeks ago when he texted me to congratulate me on my return to DT on the day of the announcement. He was so happy and excited for us all…
Charlie’s unexpected passing is a tremendous loss to everyone in the Dream Theater family, and we wish to extend our deepest sympathies to the Dominici family during this immensely difficult time.
If you haven’t seen it already, there is a documentary on DT’s 1988/1989 era that I compiled for the ‘When Dream And Day Reunite’ DVD called ‘I Can Remember When…’ that is a great tribute to Charlie and his time in the band.”
Dominici, who was significantly older than the other Dream Theater members, recalled his departure from the band in a 2008 interview with Big Music Geek (as reported by Blabbermouth). “There were a number of issues going on at the time. People who saw that situation from the outside have a very interesting slant on things. It’s either ‘Charlie was booted out’ or ‘Charlie quit.’ I always like to say that neither of those are true. What happened was that I fired the band (laughs).”
In that same interview, he admitted he wasn’t the best fit for Dream Theater, saying, “It was a very difficult thing for me to sing in that band. The vocals were out of my range.”
Dominici said he went on to have a successful career in running car dealerships, but eventually felt the itch to make music again. From 2005 to 2008, he released three albums under the name Dominici. Prior to his stint in Dream Theater, he was a member of the band Franke and the Knockouts.
Our condolences go out to Charlie Dominici’s family, friends, and bandmates during this difficult time. Revisit his guest reunion performances with Dream Theater in the clips below: