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Howie Epstein R.I.P.


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Some of you might not be aware of the significance of this. Howie, in my humble opinion, was INTEGRAL to the development of the "Tom Petty sound", whatever that means. Even if you don't recognize his solid, laid-back bass playing which was always great for the music, you'd certainly know his voice, since he was the key harmonizing singer in the band. Heroin...sheesh. How is it possible that otherwise smart people are still using (and being killed by) drugs like smack? Sad day. :( - Jeff
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His talent with that band was solid, no doubt about it. You read about these stories (like him being replaced in the band), and wonder if they are probably heading down a slippery slope...and then you see a forum posting announcing the death. It's sad.
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[quote]Originally posted by Jeff, TASCAM Guy: [b]Some of you might not be aware of the significance of this. Howie, in my humble opinion, was INTEGRAL to the development of the "Tom Petty sound", whatever that means.[/b][/quote]Well, I think Howie was talented, but I wouldn't go that far. He wasn't the original bass player. Most of the early stuff that really best defined the band's sound - "Refugeee," "Breakdown," "Here Comes My Girl," "The Waiting" et al - he wasn't on. [quote][b] Even if you don't recognize his solid, laid-back bass playing which was always great for the music, you'd certainly know his voice, since he was the key harmonizing singer in the band. [/b][/quote]Well... in the early days it was original drummer Stan Lynch doing all the key harmonies. When Howie joined the band he began to take over a lot of the singing from Stan when they played live. Just for the record. :D Howie's real strength I think was that he was a multi-instrumentalist and would add a lot of subtleties to the band... he would sometimes play mandolin or harmonica or acoustic guitar if the song called for it. And for whatever it's worth to anybody, he won a Grammy before Petty did - for his production work. [quote][b] Heroin...sheesh. How is it possible that otherwise smart people are still using (and being killed by) drugs like smack? [/b][/quote]I know... but I think it has little to do with logic. I actually wonder sometimes if intelligent people might be MORE susceptible to smack addiction because the more perceptive you are, the more you realize how fucked up things are. :D Which would make you likelier to seek solace in something like heroin. Lots of highly intelligent alcoholics out there too. :(
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