David Schulthise (September 16, 1956 – March 10, 2004), also known as Dave Blood, was an American musician best known as the original
bass guitar
The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...
ist for the
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
band
The Dead Milkmen
The Dead Milkmen is an American punk rock band formed in 1983 in Philadelphia. Their original lineup consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Rodney Linderman ("Rodney Anonymous"), guitarist and vocalist Joe Genaro ("Joe Jack Talcum"), bassist Dav ...
. Schulthise was born in
Ridley Park, Pennsylvania
Ridley Park is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,002 at the 2010 census. Ridley Park is the home of Boeing's CH-47 Chinook helicopter division.
History
Native American
The Lenape inhabited the ...
. He helped form the band in 1983 along with fellow pseudonymous musicians
Joe Jack Talcum
Anthony Joseph Genaro (born October 15, 1962) is an American musician, best known as the guitarist and co-lead vocalist for the punk rock group The Dead Milkmen. Residing in Philadelphia, Genaro has performed with a number of punk and indie ro ...
,
Dean Clean
Dean Sabatino (born 21 May 1962) is an American musician, best known as Dean Clean, the drummer of the satirical punk rock group the Dead Milkmen. Sabatino lives with his family in Media, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia. Having earned a d ...
, and
Rodney Anonymous
Rodney Linderman (born 21 May 1963), also known by his stage name Rodney Anonymous, is an American musician, journalist, and humorist currently based in Philadelphia. He is best known as the lead vocalist, keyboardist and co-songwriter of the ...
. Prior to this he was a
Ph.D. candidate in
economics
Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
at
Purdue University
Purdue University is a Public university#United States, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded ...
.
He stopped playing music in 1995 after the band broke up as the result of developing
tendinitis
Tendinopathy is a type of tendon disorder that results in pain, swelling, and impaired function. The pain is typically worse with movement. It most commonly occurs around the shoulder ( rotator cuff tendinitis, biceps tendinitis), elbow ( tenn ...
in both hands.
Schulthise visited Yugoslavia while on tour with the Milkmen and became fascinated with Serbia, its culture and people. After the band disbanded, he enrolled at
Indiana University
Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...
to study Serbo-Croatian language, literature, and history. He moved to
Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
for work and study in 1998, but in the wake of the
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
bombing campaign there he was forced to return to the US.
In late 2003, he told an interviewer that his favorite bassists were
Mike Mills
Michael Edward Mills (born December 17, 1958) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer who was a founding member of the alternative rock band R.E.M. Though known primarily as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist of R.E.M., hi ...
(
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American alternative rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the fir ...
), Johnny Gayden (
Albert Collins
Albert Gene Collins (October 1, 1932 – November 24, 1993)Skeely, Richard. "Albert Collins: Biography" Allmusic.com. was an American electric blues guitarist and singer with a distinctive guitar style. He was noted for his powerful playing ...
Band) and
Charles Mingus
Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz Double bass, upright bassist, composer, bandleader, pianist, and author. A major proponent of collective Musical improvisation, improvisation, he is considered one of ...
.
Schulthise died by suicide from a drug overdose
on March 10, 2004, at age 47.
References
1956 births
2004 suicides
American punk rock bass guitarists
Purdue University alumni
Temple University alumni
Suicides in New York (state)
The Dead Milkmen members
20th-century American bass guitarists
American male bass guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
Ridley High School alumni
2004 deaths
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