George Scott III
Encyclopedia
George Scott III was a bass player for several New York City bands during the No Wave era. He was a founding member of 8-Eyed Spy
and the Raybeats
, and he worked with James Chance and the Contortions
, James White and the Blacks, Human Switchboard
, and John Cale
, among others.
, on October 16, 1953. He moved to Sarasota, Florida
, while a teenager, and attended high school there. One of his classmates was Paul Reubens
, better known as Pee Wee Herman. Scott was interested in film and stage work at this point in his life, and he was planning to pursue a career of some type in film.
Scott moved to New York City around 1975. Shortly after getting there, he took an interest in the burgeoning punk music scene with bands like Television
and the Patti Smith Group
. He eventually bought a bass guitar and joined Jack Ruby, a band named after the man who assassinated Lee Harvey Oswald
.
While trying to make a go of it in music, Scott supported himself by working in record stores, Bleecker Bob's and the Musical Maze among them. After Jack Ruby dissolved around late 1977, Scott joined the Contortions, a band led by James Chance, formerly with Teenage Jesus and the Jerks. He recorded for the album Buy, released by ZE Records in 1979, but James Chance erased his bass lines before it was released. That same year, he appeared on a No Wave "disco" album by James White and the Blacks, which was essentially the Contortions with a new name and sound. It was while working with James Chance that Scott met Jody Harris
and Don Christensen, who would later join him in the Raybeats.
After leaving James Chance in early 1979, Scott worked with John Cale, formerly of the The Velvet Underground
, playing several live gigs with him that developed into Cale's Sabotage! album, released in 1979. It was around this time that Scott teamed up with Lydia Lunch
, who had worked with Chance in Teenage Jesus, to form 8-Eyed Spy, a fairly popular No Wave band that also consisted of Pat Irwin
, Michael Paumgarden and Jim Sclavunos
.
While 8-Eyed Spy was starting to garner some notoriety, Scott decided to form an instrumental band. He teamed up with former Contortions Harris and Christensen, and fellow 8-Eyed Spy member Pat Irwin, to form the Raybeats in the fall of 1979. Over the next year, the band built up a following by playing several places in the New York area, as well as around the USA.
On August 5, 1980, George Scott died from a heroin overdose. It was a drug he had first experimented with about three years earlier when he was a member of Jack Ruby. Following Scott's death, 8-Eyed Spy decided to call it quits. The Raybeats, however, soldiered on, recruiting Danny Amis (now with Los Straitjackets
) on bass.
George Scott was buried in his hometown of Burlington, Iowa.
8-Eyed Spy
8-Eyed Spy was a late 1970s No Wave/Post-punk band featuring Lydia Lunch, Jim Sclavunos, Pat Irwin, Michael Paumgardhen and George Scott III. They covered the Swamp rock classic "Run Through the Jungle" by Creedence Clearwater Revival and Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit"...
and the Raybeats
Raybeats
The Raybeats were an instrumental neo-surf rock combo from New York City that arose from the No Wave musical scene. The original line-up consisted of Don Christensen , Jody Harris , Pat Irwin , and George Scott III .- History :The Raybeats formed in 1979, brought together by George Scott...
, and he worked with James Chance and the Contortions
James Chance and the Contortions
James Chance and the Contortions, led by saxophonist and vocalist James Chance, were one of the original punk jazz groups of the New York No Wave music scene. Their first recording, credited solely as Contortions, was on the 1978 compilation, No New York, produced by Brain Eno...
, James White and the Blacks, Human Switchboard
Human Switchboard
The Human Switchboard was a rock band.-1970s:The band was formed in 1977 when Bob Pfeifer met Myrna Marcarian at Syracuse University. They spent that summer back in Cleveland, where Pfeifer grew up. They, along with drummer Ron Metz, recorded an EP of four songs, enlisting David Thomas of Pere...
, and John Cale
John Cale
John Davies Cale, OBE is a Welsh musician, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the experimental rock band The Velvet Underground....
, among others.
Biography
George Leonard Scott III was born in Burlington, IowaBurlington, Iowa
Burlington is a city in, and the county seat of Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 25,663 in the 2010 census, a decline from the 26,839 population in the 2000 census. Burlington is the center of a micropolitan area including West Burlington, Iowa and Middletown, Iowa and...
, on October 16, 1953. He moved to Sarasota, Florida
Sarasota, Florida
Sarasota is a city located in Sarasota County on the southwestern coast of the U.S. state of Florida. It is south of the Tampa Bay Area and north of Fort Myers...
, while a teenager, and attended high school there. One of his classmates was Paul Reubens
Paul Reubens
Paul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
, better known as Pee Wee Herman. Scott was interested in film and stage work at this point in his life, and he was planning to pursue a career of some type in film.
Scott moved to New York City around 1975. Shortly after getting there, he took an interest in the burgeoning punk music scene with bands like Television
Television (band)
Television was an American rock band, formed in New York City in 1973. They are best known for the album Marquee Moon and widely regarded as one of the founders of "punk" and New Wave music. Television was part of the early 1970s New York underground rock scene, along with bands like the Patti...
and the Patti Smith Group
Patti Smith
Patricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist, who became a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses....
. He eventually bought a bass guitar and joined Jack Ruby, a band named after the man who assassinated Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald was, according to four government investigations,These were investigations by: the Federal Bureau of Investigation , the Warren Commission , the House Select Committee on Assassinations , and the Dallas Police Department. the sniper who assassinated John F...
.
While trying to make a go of it in music, Scott supported himself by working in record stores, Bleecker Bob's and the Musical Maze among them. After Jack Ruby dissolved around late 1977, Scott joined the Contortions, a band led by James Chance, formerly with Teenage Jesus and the Jerks. He recorded for the album Buy, released by ZE Records in 1979, but James Chance erased his bass lines before it was released. That same year, he appeared on a No Wave "disco" album by James White and the Blacks, which was essentially the Contortions with a new name and sound. It was while working with James Chance that Scott met Jody Harris
Jody Harris
Jody Harris is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and composer who was born in Kansas and became a central figure in the seminal No Wave scene in New York City in the 1970s.-Career history:...
and Don Christensen, who would later join him in the Raybeats.
After leaving James Chance in early 1979, Scott worked with John Cale, formerly of the The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground was an American rock band formed in New York City. First active from 1964 to 1973, their best-known members were Lou Reed and John Cale, who both went on to find success as solo artists. Although experiencing little commercial success while together, the band is often cited...
, playing several live gigs with him that developed into Cale's Sabotage! album, released in 1979. It was around this time that Scott teamed up with Lydia Lunch
Lydia Lunch
Lydia Lunch is an American singer, poet, writer, and actress whose career was spawned by the New York No Wave scene...
, who had worked with Chance in Teenage Jesus, to form 8-Eyed Spy, a fairly popular No Wave band that also consisted of Pat Irwin
Pat Irwin
Pat Irwin is an American composer and musician, who was a founding member of a number of groups that grew out of New York City's No Wave scene in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including 8-Eyed Spy and Raybeats. He has composed the scores for numerous films and cartoons...
, Michael Paumgarden and Jim Sclavunos
Jim Sclavunos
Jim Sclavunos is an American rock music drummer, percussionist and producer.Sclavunos, a half-Greek and half-Italian from Brooklyn, New York , is well-known for his exceptional height at 6'7". Sclavunos has performed with Sonic Youth, Tav Falco's Panther Burns, Lydia Lunch and was a member of 8...
.
While 8-Eyed Spy was starting to garner some notoriety, Scott decided to form an instrumental band. He teamed up with former Contortions Harris and Christensen, and fellow 8-Eyed Spy member Pat Irwin, to form the Raybeats in the fall of 1979. Over the next year, the band built up a following by playing several places in the New York area, as well as around the USA.
On August 5, 1980, George Scott died from a heroin overdose. It was a drug he had first experimented with about three years earlier when he was a member of Jack Ruby. Following Scott's death, 8-Eyed Spy decided to call it quits. The Raybeats, however, soldiered on, recruiting Danny Amis (now with Los Straitjackets
Los Straitjackets
Los Straitjackets is an American instrumental rock band that formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1988. Originally comprising guitarists Danny Amis and Eddie Angel and drummer L. J. "Jimmy" Lester under the name The Straitjackets, the band split up soon after forming and reunited as Los Straitjackets...
) on bass.
George Scott was buried in his hometown of Burlington, Iowa.