Bradley Nowell
Bradley James Nowell (commonly known as
Brad Nowell) (
February 22 1968 –
May 25 1996), was an influential
ska musician, who served as
lead singer and
guitarist of ska punk band
Sublime. At the age of twenty-eight, shortly before the release of Sublime's major label debut album,
Sublime, Nowell succumbed to a fatal
heroin overdose. Some critics have said that if he had not died before the release of Sublime's major label debut album, Nowell would have become a major rock icon during the
1990s.
Despite the fact that he died before his band Sublime became famous, Nowell has become a pop culture icon arguably in the tradition of the late
Kurt Cobain, to whom Nowell is occasionally compared. [
1]. In the August 12, 1996,
Time Magazine article "When the Music's Over," Christopher John Farley wrote, "Nowell might have been to
ska what Kurt Cobain was to
grunge or, in Sublime's case, before most Americans had even heard of it." [
2][
3]
1968-1981 - Early life
|
Bradley Nowell, as a child, poses with a pet rabbit. Nowell remained a lifelong animal lover, once describing himself as having a "plethora" of pets. |
Music was an integral part of Nowell's upbringing. Nowell's mother, Nancy Nowell-Watilo, was a musician who had
perfect pitch, and Nowell's father, James Nowell, was fond of
folk music and often played guitar during family gatherings. On holidays, Bradley Nowell would often play guitar and sing with his father and uncles for hours. Brad was often able to play a song on the
guitar after hearing the song only once.
When Nowell was ten years old his parents divorced. After the divorce, Nowell lived with his mother in
Orange County for four years. In
1981, he took up residence in
Long Beach, California with his father. In contrast to the wealthier and largely white suburb of Orange County, Long Beach had an ethnically diverse population that included whites,
African Americans,
Hispanics, and
Southeast Asians. Because Long Beach offered lower rent than
Hollywood, by the 1980s the city had cultivated a thriving underground art community, including a music scene that nurtured punk, surf, and hip-hop music — three genres Nowell would later incorporate into his musical
repertoire.
Though Bradley was by many accounts an intelligent person, he did not enjoy school. It has been reported that Nowell often convinced his sister, Kellie, to do the homework that didn't interest him. "He was probably twice as intelligent as I am", Kellie was quoted as saying, "but he just wasn't real school-minded". Eventually, Nowell was diagnosed with
ADD and was prescribed
Ritalin.
1981-1988 - Introduction to reggae music
When Nowell was eleven years old he accompanied his father on a trip to the
Virgin Islands. This trip was significant in the life and career of Nowell because it was his introduction to reggae music, which would remain a lifelong favorite of his and would be incorporated into the music for which Nowell would later become famous. Shortly after returning from the Virgin Islands, Nowell was given his first guitar. Nowell is said to have taught himself the reggae style on his guitar and to have practiced that style every day.
|
A young Bradley Nowell performs with his band. |
Shortly after becoming interested in reggae music, Nowell also became interested in
hip hop music and
punk rock music, which he would later combine with reggae music to create his signature sound. At the age of thirteen, Nowell founded his first band, which he named "Hogan's Heroes". It dissolved shortly after its formation, however.
Despite his initial dislike of compulsory education, by 1986 Nowell had become an honor-roll student at Wilson High School in Long Beach, California. After graduation from Wilson High School, Nowell enrolled at
University of California, Santa Cruz, then at
California State University, Long Beach where he pursued a degree in finance. One quarter short of obtaining his
baccalaureate, Nowell decided to leave college in pursuit of a professional music career. Bradley's early departure from college is perhaps ironic because after the establishment of his music career the college audiences of southern California became the first audience to embrace his music.
1988-1996 - Career with Sublime
|
Bradley Nowell in publicity photo with fellow Sublime members Bud Gaugh, Eric Wilson and his pet dalmatian Louie-Dog. |
In
1988, Nowell founded Sublime with bassist
Eric Wilson and drummer
Bud Gaugh, whom he had met while attending
University of California, Santa Cruz. Sublime eventually became one of the most popular bands in Southern
California. Specifically, they were the most popular band on the campus of
Cal State Long Beach, where they often played at parties and bars in exchange for alcohol.
Around
1989, Nowell and Michael Happoldt (known as Miguel) created
Skunk Records, the label for which Sublime's early recordings were produced and distributed. (Skunk Records was named for Sublime's combination Ska and Punk genre, and the names of the two were fused into "Skunk".) The band's demo tapes were later sold at shows and local record stores. A few years later, Sublime produced its first studio recording, which resulted in the popular cassette tape called
Jah Won't Pay the Bills and released it in
1991.
As Nowell prepared to tour with the new material, he found that Gaugh was battling a drug problem. Gaugh soon decided to check himself into a drug rehabilitation center. Rather than tour without Gaugh, the trio decided to focus on recording their music in the studio.
In
1992,
40 Oz. to Freedom was released. Kelly Vargas temporarily covered for Gaugh. Sixty-thousand copies were distributed and sold from the trunk of Nowell's car. Despite growing popularity in Southern California, Sublime still had not landed a record deal with a major label. (Around this same timeframe, Nowell teamed up with longtime friend
Gwen Stefani, of fellow Southern California ska band
No Doubt, to record the single "Saw Red". The single was eventually released on Sublime's
Robbin' the Hood album.)
Frustrated by rejection of the major
record companies, Nowell descended into a two-year
heroin "experiment". Nowell claimed that his heroin use was justified, claiming it aided with his artistic creativity, thereby increasing the likelihood that his material would attract the attention of a major label.
About a year later,
Tazy Phillipz took a copy of
40 Oz to Freedom to
Los Angeles radio station KROQ, requesting that Sublime's "Date Rape" be added to the playlist. Soon after, MCA records picked up
40 Oz. to Freedom for nationwide distribution. The album soon entered the Billboard charts.
Attention from a major label did not curb Nowell's drug use. His use of heroin increased. Nowell's struggles with addiction were occasionally reflected in his artistic work. The song
Pool Shark is one of the most obvious examples of Nowell's drug dependency being referred to in his music: "Take it away but I want more and more/One day I'm going to lose the war".
In February of
1996, Sublime returned to the studio to record the bulk of their self-titled major label debut album. Production was done by
Paul Leary (producer of
Marcy Playground and
Meat Puppets) of the
Butthole Surfers at
Willie Nelson's Pedernales Studio in Austin, Texas. At this time, Nowell's addiction was about as bad as it had ever been. He spent thousands of dollars on heroin while recording the tracks. Leary often feared that by putting out this record he would be exploiting a junkie. Nowell was flown home early due to the extent of his drug use.
1996 - Death
Three days after Nowell's marriage to Troy Dendekker, Sublime embarked on a five-day tour through California cities in preparation for a summer tour of Europe. The European tour was intended as a means of promotion of their upcoming major label debut album. On
May 25 1996, before checking out of San Francisco's Ocean View Motel, Sublime's drummer Gaugh, who was sharing a room with him at the time, found Nowell's body laying on the bed with his feet still on the floor. Nowell had died at the age of twenty-eight, the victim of a fatal heroin overdose. Nowell's last performance took place at the
Phoenix Theater in
Petaluma, California. This performance became known as the "Play Nice In the Pit" show.
|
Bradley Nowell's headstone. |
Nowell was
cremated and his ashes were distributed over the water of his favorite
surf spot, Surfside. A headstone was placed at Westminster Memorial in
Westminster, California in his memory. At the
memorial service on
May 27,
1996, Bradley Nowell's father, Jim Nowell, said:
"Brad will always live for me in his son, Jake, and we can all seek relief from our grief by loving and nurturing the son he gave to us. Brad touched many people with his caring personality and musical genius and we are all lucky to have had him in our lives. Men who have lived longer have achieved less and I am content that he is now at peace".
Troy Nowell has said that she believes her widower achieved all he hoped to achieve in his life. She said that Bradley Nowell had wanted to be a father, reconnect with his family, to have a band that achieved "glory", and record a wonderful album [
4]. According to Troy, Bradley Nowell did indeed achieve all of these things in his 28 years.
A few weeks after Nowell's death, fellow Southern California band
No Doubt headlined a "cautionary"
benefit concert in tribute to Nowell. Nowell's widow and the various bands who performed wanted to make it clear that they were not glamorizing the way that Nowell died, but that they wanted to celebrate his life as well as establish a college fund for his year-old son, Jakob.
In a
January 11 1997 Los Angeles Times article titled "Cautionary Concert in Rocker's Memory", writer Jerry Crowe quoted No Doubt bassist
Tony Kanal as saying: "Obviously, it's going to be very emotional because you're there playing a show to commemorate a good friend who passed away-and passed away for very wrong reasons. But you're also there to change things for the future and prevent stuff like that from ever happening again. A lot of times we hear about musicians using drugs and it's so blase and cliched. You just kind of say, 'Oh, he'll be fine. Somebody will take care of him.' But that's not true. It's important for every single one of us to stand up and say, 'Enough of this shit.' It's time to make a difference". [
5]
Jason Westfall, one of Sublime's managers, was quoted as saying that the surviving members of Sublime had no interest in continuing to perform and record under the "Sublime" name. "Just like Nirvana, Sublime died when Brad died", Westfall said. [
6]
1996-present - Posthumous career
|
The cover of Sublime's major label debut album, featuring a picture of Bradley Nowell's upper back which was tattooed to display his band's name. |
In light of Nowell's death, record executives considered not releasing Sublime's major label debut album. After some debate, the album was eventually released, though the album's original title, "Killin' It", was substituted for an eponymous title. Sublime's major label debut album
Sublime was released on
July 30 1996.
By 1997, the album entered Billboard's Top 20, and its first single, the largely acoustic
hip hop-influenced "
What I Got", soon became the number one song on the Modern Rock chart. Throughout
1997, the album produced three more radio hits: the reggae-tinged ballad "
Santeria", the anti-prostitution anthem song called "
Wrong Way", the
George Gershwin-inspired dance song "
Doin' Time". The accompanying
music videos for these radio hits received heavy rotation on
MTV, with previously filmed footage of Nowell performing live interspersed into the video.
To the surprise of many, Sublime became arguably the most successful American rock act of
1997. The album
Sublime has since sold over 5 million copies.
Marriage and fatherhood
|
Bradley Nowell holding his son Jakob. |
While on tour in the mid-1990s, Nowell met Troy Dendekker. Dendekker grew up in Southern California, in a home with a drug addicted mother and a father who was also a drug user and a member of a motorcycle gang. In an interview, Dendekker, who has considered a career as a drug and alcohol counselor, stated that she loves addicts because they are ultimately kind people. Dendekker also said that she does not have anger towards her parents regarding the way she was brought up because, as she phrased it, her parents were "real".
In an interview with
Rolling Stone magazine, Dendekker said that Nowell was very happy and pleasant to be around when he was under the influence of substances, but that when he wasn't under the influence Nowell could be very difficult. The goal, Dendekker said, was to try to have Nowell be as happy sober as he was when he was high. To that end, Nowell attempted
detoxification and
drug rehabilitation several times, but such treatments usually had short-lived success which usually disappointed Nowell's family and friends. Bandmate Bud Gaugh tried to be supportive of Nowell in his recovery, and occasionally in his usage. Gaugh has said he tried to be Nowell's "conscience", and in some cases Gaugh tried to be Nowell's "drug buddy."
In September of
1994, Nowell and Dendekker conceived a child. On
June 25 1995, Dendekker gave birth to their son, Jakob James Nowell. On
May 18 1996, Nowell and Dendekker were married. In an attempt to better fulfill his compounding responsibilities as both husband and father, Nowell attempted yet again to overcome his drug dependency. As history would bear out, Nowell, once again, was not successful.
Bradley Nowell's Dalmatian, "Lou Dog"
|
Lou Dog on the cover of a Sublime box set compilation. |
Louie, or "Lou Dog" as he was often called, was Bradley Nowell's pet
Dalmatian who became something of a
mascot for the band Sublime. Lou dog was often allowed to wander the stage during live Sublime concert performances. Louie was also often featured on the cover of Sublime albums, and was often referred to in the lyrics of Sublime songs. The first lyrics Nowell sings on Sublime's major label debut album are, "We took this trip to Garden Grove/It smelled like Lou Dog inside the van". [
7] And in Sublime's most successful radio track,
What I Got, Nowell sings, "Livin' with Louie Dog's the only way to stay sane." Lou Dog was named in tribute to Bradley's grandfather, Louie Nowell.
In the early 1990s, Lou Dog disappeared for a week. In the video
Sublime — Stories, Tales, Lies, & Exaggerations, Troy Nowell (Bradley Nowell's widow) says that for the week during which Lou Dog was lost, Nowell spent a great deal of time lying on the couch crying in response to the loss of his dog. This was contradicted by a lyric in
What I Got when Nowell sings "I don't cry when my dog runs away." Lou Dog was eventually returned to Nowell, who, in response to the situation, later covered the
Camper Van Beethoven song "The Day That Lassie Went To The Moon" and changed it to "Lou Dog Went to the Moon" ; this song is available on the Nowell
bootleg "Firecracker Lounge" [
8] [
9]. While Lou was missing Nowell also recorded this song to his home
answering machine as a sort of audio lost dog poster.
Following Nowell's 1996 death, Lou Dog was cared for by Skunk Records co-founder Michael "Miguel" Happoldt. Lou Dog died on September 17, 2001. [
10][
11]
Comparison to Kurt Cobain
The comparison of Nowell to Cobain might be more substantial than it would at first appear. Nowell had stated that Kurt Cobain was an inspiration whom he aspired to emulate. Nowell occasionally justified his heroin use by reminding family and friends that Kurt Cobain achieved critical acclaim and commercial success despite his drug use. Further, Nowell is said to have believed heroin use was a key ingredient in Cobain's creativity and success. As justification for his own heroin use, Nowell occasionally indicated that he believed drug use would aid him in his musical creativity as well.
Troy Nowell, Bradley Nowell's widow, would later blame Bradley Nowell's childhood
Ritalin use for predisposing Bradley Nowell to heroin dependency in his adulthood. Years previous,
Courtney Love, widow of Kurt Cobain, made the same comment with regard to the addiction of her own husband. As a child Kurt Cobain was placed on Ritalin for the same reason as Bradley Nowell. As children both men were diagnosed as suffering from
ADD, for which Ritalin was deemed suitable treatment. [
12][
13]
Both Nowell's and Cobain's parents divorced during Nowell's and Cobain's respective childhoods. Both Nowell and Cobain seem to have been greatly impacted by the breakdown of their parents' marriages. There has been speculation that both men suffered a lifelong guilt about the divorce of their parents.
*
Ska, Sublime is often categorized as a ska band.
*
Punk rock, Sublime is sometimes referred to as a punk band as well.
*
Hip hop music, elements of hip hop can be found in Sublime's music.
*
Reggae, Sublime is often considered Reggae too.
*
Dub, Sublime's music also shows some elements of Dub.
*
No Doubt played a benefit for Bradley Nowell's family shortly after Nowell's death. Previously, their lead singer
Gwen Stefani provided vocals to Sublime's 1994 song "Saw Red".
*
Long Beach Dub All Stars, was a short-lived band made up of the remaining members of the Sublime, as well as various other musicians.
*
Long Beach Shortbus is Eric Wilson's current music project, which is also comprised of members of Long Beach Dub All Stars.
*
Subb, Canadian ska/punk band wrote a song in tribute to Bradley Nowell. The song is simply called "Brad Nowell" which can be found on albums
Until the Party Ends and
The Highstep to Hell.
*
Archive of articles about Bradley Nowell and Sublime*
Michael "Miguel" Happoldt, co-founder of Skunk Records, remembers Sublime*
Hot Shot Digital Tribute to Bradley Nowell*
Music Effect tribute to Bradley Nowell*
Bradley Nowell's Internet Movie Database page*
Bradley Nowell photo gallery page*
Sublime on Amazon.com*
VH1 Sublime Page*
VH1 article Sublime Singer Brad Nowell Dead at 28*
Life After Death article from Rolling Stone*
When the Music's Over Time Magazine article about Nowell's death*
Reprint of Long Beach PT article Nowell's Memory Survives Mourning: Family and friends say L.B. singer likely succumbed to his drug addiction*
Press release on No Doubt site*
Bradley Nowell and Sublime timeline*
Rocker dies young and becomes a star*
Work That We Did: Another Sublime release to make its way into stores*
A Tribute Album for Sublime: Look at all the Love We Found 
