Charles Michael "Chuck" Schuldiner (May 13, 1967, Long Island, New York – December 13, 2001) was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and genre innovator. B.C. Rich use unusual shapes for their guitars, like this Warlock B.C. Rich is a manufacturer of guitars and bass guitars. ... is the 133rd day of the year (134th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the island in New York State. ... This article is about the state. ... is the 347th day of the year (348th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ...

As the singer, rhythm / lead guitar player, and main songwriter of the band Death (which he founded in 1983 as Mantas), music biographers have referred to Schuldiner as "The Father of Death Metal".^[1] Death was an influential American death metal band founded in 1983 by guitarist and vocalist Chuck Schuldiner, and dissolved in 1999. ... This article is about the musical genre. ...

Biography

Early life

Chuck Schuldiner was born on May 13, 1967 on Long Island, New York to a Jewish father of Austrian descent and a mother from the American South, a convert to Judaism; both his parents were teachers. In 1968, his family moved to Florida. Schuldiner was the youngest of three children. He had an older brother named Frank and an older sister named Bethann. is the 133rd day of the year (134th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about Long Island in New York State. ... The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ...

Schuldiner started playing at the age of 9. His 16 year old brother had just been killed in an accident and his parents bought him a guitar, thinking it would help with his grief. He took classical lessons for less than a year in which his teacher taught him "Mary had a little Lamb", did not like it,and almost stopped completely, until his parents saw an electric guitar at a yard sale and bought it for him. The young Schuldiner immediately took to the instrument. After getting amps, he never stopped playing, writing and teaching himself. Schuldiner was known to spend the weekend in the garage or his room playing his guitar, but was limited to three hours on weekdays when school was in session. Schuldiner first played in public in his early teens.

Schuldiner was originally inspired by Iron Maiden, Kiss and Billy Idol, among others. He was particularly interested in the metal movement known as NWOBHM and cited bands of that genre among his favorites, He frequently cited French band Sortilège as his personal favorite metal group[1]. Slayer, Possessed, Mercyful Fate/King Diamond and Metallica were later influences he would apply more to his own band. Later in his career Schuldiner cited progressive metal bands such as Watchtower and Queensrÿche frequently as influences. Chuck's mother claims that he enjoyed all forms of music except country and rap. He also apparently particularly enjoyed jazz and classical music in addition to metal and British alternative acts such as Lush. Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in the East End of London. ... Kiss is an American rock band formed in New York City in 1971. ... Billy Idol (born William Michael Albert Broad) is an British musician and singer. ... The New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) emerged in the late 70s, in part a reaction to the contemporary decline of traditional heavy metal bands such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, all three of which had been submerged by a mixture of personal problems, tiredness and... For other uses, see Slayer (disambiguation). ... Possessed is a death metal band that formed in 1983 in El Sobrante, California. ... Mercyful Fate is an influential Danish heavy metal group who are often cited among the influences in the black metal, thrash metal, power metal, and progressive metal genres. ... King Diamond (born Kim Bendix Petersen, June 14, 1956, Copenhagen, Denmark) is a heavy metal musician known for his shock rock image. ... Metallica is a Grammy Award-winning American heavy metal/thrash metal band formed in 1981[1] and has become one of the most commercially successful musical acts of recent decades. ... Progressive metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music which blends the powerful, guitar-driven sound of metal with the complex compositional structures, odd time signatures, and intricate instrumental playing of progressive rock. ... Watchtower is a progressive technical thrash band based in Austin, Texas that was mostly active in the 1980s. ... Queensrÿche (pronounced IPA: ) is an American heavy metal / progressive metal band formed in 1981 in Bellevue, Washington. ... Country music, the first half of Billboards country and western music category, is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains. ... Hip hop music is a style of popular music. ... For other uses, see Jazz (disambiguation). ... Classical music is a broad, somewhat imprecise term, referring to music produced in, or rooted in the traditions of, European art, ecclesiastical and concert music, encompassing a broad period from roughly 1000 to the present day. ... Lush was an English shoegazing band, formed in 1988. ...

Although Schuldiner apparently did do well in school, it bored him and he eventually dropped out. He did regret this later, however[2].

Schuldiner was also known for being openly against hard drugs. This was reflected in various interviews and a few songs (notably "Living Monstrosity", which is about an addict child born to a cocaine-addicted mother). However, Schuldiner was an open advocate for recreational and medicinal cannabis use. Many drugs are provided in tablet form. ... This article is about the plant genus Cannabis. ...

Musical career

Schuldiner formed Death as "Mantas" in 1983. Original members were Chuck (Guitar), Rick Rozz (Guitar) and Kam Lee (Drums & Vocals). Death was an influential American death metal band founded in 1983 by guitarist and vocalist Chuck Schuldiner, and dissolved in 1999. ...

In January 1986, Schuldiner temporarily joined the Canadian band Slaughter on guitar. However, he quickly returned to continue the formation of Death. Main articles: History of Canada, Timeline of Canadian history Canada has been inhabited by aboriginal peoples (known in Canada as First Nations) for at least 40,000 years. ... Slaughter was a Canadian death metal band. ...

There were several lineup changes, however with Chris Reifert he eventually released his first Death album, titled Scream Bloody Gore, in 1987. He continued with 1988's Leprosy with the line-up of former Mantas guitarist Rick Rozz and rhythm section Terry Butler on bass and Bill Andrews on drums, and 1990s Spiritual Healing, where guitarist James Murphy had replaced the fired Rozz. Chris Reifert (born 1968) started out as the drummer of Death when Chuck Schuldiner moved to California. ... Scream Bloody Gore is the first album released by Death in 1987. ... Leprosy is the second album released by Death in 1988. ... Spiritual Healing is the third album released by Death in February 1990. ...

After Spiritual..., Schuldiner stopped working with full band members and now worked only with studio and live venue musicians after bad relationships with Death's previous rhythm section and guitarists. This earned Schuldiner something of a 'perfectionist' reputation in the metal community. Schuldiner had also fired his manager Eric Greif but re-hired him before the recording of his next, monumental release. Eric Greif is a lawyer and entertainment personality known first for a management career within the heavy metal musical genre in the 1980s and later within the legal profession. ...

Death's breakthrough album, Human saw the band evolving to a more technical and progressive style, in which Schuldiner displayed his guitar skills more than ever. He continued in this style (and continued the success of the band) with 1993s Individual Thought Patterns, 1995s Symbolic, and finally The Sound of Perseverance in 1998. Human is the fourth album released by Death in 1991. ... Individual Thought Patterns is the fifth album by Death, released in 1993. ... The Sound of Perseverance is the seventh and final studio album released by Death in 1998. ...

Schuldiner played guitar in the project Voodoocult on the album Jesus Killing Machine in 1994. Voodoocult was a German thrash metal project formed in 1994 by Phillip Boa, vocalist of the alternative band Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub. ...

Schuldiner folded Death after this to form a new band called Control Denied, and released The Fragile Art of Existence in 1999. Control Denied was started by Chuck Schuldiner to create a European-style power metal/progressive metal band, mixed with elements death metal recognizable in his earlier band Death. ... The Fragile Art of Existence is the first and only album by Control Denied. ...

Schuldiner was also asked to be one of the many guest vocalists on Dave Grohl's 2001 Probot project by Grohl himself. Grohl even campaigned to raise funds to help Schuldiner pay medical bills for the brain cancer that would eventually take his life. Schuldiner succumbed to the disease before any collaboration could happen. Grohl, in tears, in an interview over Schuldiner's death, said that "Chuck died for making the right decisions in life. That's just... that's just not fair." David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969, in Warren, Ohio) is an American rock musician and songwriter. ... Probot (portmanteau: probe + robot) is a musical project masterminded by Dave Grohl. ...

Battle with cancer

In May 1999, Schuldiner experienced pain in his upper neck, which he initially thought was a pinched nerve. He consulted with a chiropractor followed by a massage therapist/acupuncturist who recommended an MRI Exam. He was correct about the pinched nerve; unfortunately, it was being caused by a tumor. On his birthday, May 13, 1999, Schuldiner was diagnosed with pontine glioma, a type of brain cancer that invades the brain stem and immediately underwent radiation therapy. The mri are a fictional alien species in the Faded Sun Trilogy of C.J. Cherryh. ... is the 133rd day of the year (134th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... A glioma is a type of primary central nervous system (CNS) tumor that arises from glial cells. ... A brain tumor is any mass created by an abnormal and uncontrolled growth of cells either found in the brain (neurons, glial cells, epithelial cells, myelin producing cells, etc. ... Varian Clinac 2100C Linear Accelerator Radiation therapy (or radiotherapy) is the medical use of ionizing radiation as part of cancer treatment to control malignant cells (not to be confused with radiology, the use of radiation in medical imaging and diagnosis). ...

In October 1999, Schuldiner’s family announced that the tumor had necrotized and that he was on the way to recovery. In January 2000, Schuldiner underwent surgery to remove what remained of his tumor. The operation was a success, however, the Schuldiner family was struggling financially. The total costs of the operations would come to $70,000, a price the Schuldiner family could not afford. Many fundraisers, auctions, and benefit concerts took place to help cover the costs. The money began to come in as the metal community, in total shock, realized that Schuldiner's life was in danger. The metal community and the Schuldiner family showed deep concern because Schuldiner could lose his life due to lack of funds. The doctors who removed his tumor called the original diagnosis of pontine glioma a misdiagnosis.

Schuldiner continued to work on his music, continuing his work with Control Denied. About two years after his original diagnosis, in May 2001, the cancer returned and Schuldiner fell ill again. He was originally denied surgery (which he needed immediately) due to lack of funds. A press release called for support from everyone, including fellow artists. Jane Schuldiner urged all who read the statements about Schuldiner and his illness to go out and get insurance, showing her frustration in the American system. Schuldiner had gotten medical insurance after his first surgery, but the insurer had refused to pay because the tumor existed before he had gotten the insurance. Schuldiner received a chemotherapy drug called vincristine to help with his therapy. Like most drugs used in the treatment of cancer, the side effects were harsh and weakened Chuck greatly. Undaunted, Schuldiner fought on. In late October/early November, Schuldiner became ill with pneumonia. He died on December 13, 2001, at approximately 4 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Vincristine (Oncovin®), also known as leurocristine, is a vinca alkaloid from the Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus, formerly Vinca rosea and hence its name). ... This article is about human pneumonia. ... is the 347th day of the year (348th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... Metronome, a public art installation showing the time in New York City The Eastern Time Zone (ET) of the Western Hemisphere falls mostly along the east coast of Northern America and the west coast of South America. ...

Legacy

His mother, Jane Schuldiner, handles his legacy. She frequently interacts with Schuldiner's fans and has stated many times that she enjoys his music. Schuldiner's sister Beth seems to keep track of his recordings. Beth has a son named Christopher, who also plays guitar and has all of Schuldiner's guitars except his first one, which his mother keeps. BC Rich also released a statement in their 2008 catalog stating that Chuck's signature model Stealth will be available for purchase.

Although Schuldiner never married or had children, he dated a woman named Kim for several years, his second long-term relationship.

Despite his passing, his legacy lives on through his fans and his recordings. However, a legal battle is in progress on the settlement of the rights to the partially completed second Control Denied album. Part of these incomplete recordings were released in the Zero Tolerance two-part compilation of Death's early demos. Zero Tolerance is a compilation album released by Karmageddon Media under the name Chuck Schuldiner. ...

Tribute concerts continue to go on till this day for his legacy, often times coordinated or funded by his mother and family. The most recent of these was in December of 2007. More recently, former Death guitarist (and brain cancer survivor) James Murphy is announcing he will release a Chuck Schuldiner tribute album to commemorate his lasting mark on the metal community. Chuck's family is giving all their support towards Murphy's efforts. James Franklin Murphy (July 30th, 1967, Portsmouth, Virginia USA) is an American guitarist. ...

Religion

Although his parents were both Jewish, Schuldiner was raised in an irreligious home and he did not go through any formal religious training. In the documentary, "666 At Calling Death", he was asked whether Satanism was a part of his music. He replied, "Not at all. I really don't want to involve any type of religious theme in our music. I think that's more of a personal thing. Yeah, I'm not a satanist and I definitely don't put that into our music. No purpose. I was really young when the band first started out. I was never really into writing satanic lyrics at all, personally. We did write gore lyrics, but it was more like kind of tongue-in-cheek, horror-movie type level. Nothing... Encouraging people to go out and hurt themselves or anything stupid like that. It's pure fantasy-movie type, scary stuff. And then, I just really got into writing about reality, which is what we all have to deal with."^[2] The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ...

Despite creating the original Death logo, he later changed the inverted cross 't' to a neutral one precisely so fans and critics would not link the band with anything 'evil'.

Discography

With Death

• 1987: Scream Bloody Gore (CD) - Combat
• 1988: Leprosy - Combat
• 1990: Spiritual Healing - Combat
• 1991: Human - Relativity
• 1992: Fate: The Best of Death (best of) - Relativity
• 1993: Individual Thought Patterns - Relativity
• 1995: Symbolic - Roadrunner Records
• 1998: The Sound of Perseverance - Nuclear Blast
• 2001: Live in L.A. (Death & Raw) (live) - Nuclear Blast
• 2001: Live in Eindhoven (live) - Nuclear Blast
• 2006: Sound of Perseverance - Deluxe Edition - Nuclear Blast

Scream Bloody Gore is the first album released by Death in 1987. ... Leprosy is the second album released by Death in 1988. ... Spiritual Healing is the third album released by Death in February 1990. ... Human is the fourth album released by Death in 1991. ... Individual Thought Patterns is the fifth album by Death, released in 1993. ... The Sound of Perseverance is the seventh and final studio album released by Death in 1998. ... Live in L.A. (Death & Raw) is the live album released by Death in 2001. ... Live in Eindhoven is a live album released by Death in 2001. ...

With Control Denied

• 1999: The Fragile Art of Existence

The Fragile Art of Existence is the first and only album by Control Denied. ...

As Chuck Schuldiner

• 2004: Zero Tolerance (compilation)

Zero Tolerance is a compilation album released by Karmageddon Media under the name Chuck Schuldiner. ...

With Voodoocult

• 1994: Killer Patrol Single
• 1994: Metallized Kids Single
• 1994: Jesus Killing Machine Full-length
• 1995: When You Live As A Boy Single
• 1995: Voodoocult Full-length

Voodoocult was a German thrash metal project formed in 1994 by Phillip Boa, vocalist of the alternative band Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub. ...

Equipment

Schuldiner's primary guitar throughout most of his career was the B.C. Rich Stealth model, an extremely rare model available only through the BC Rich custom shop until 2008, when it is due to be released to the public. Prior to this, he used a BC Rich Mockingbird. Most of Schuldiner's sound came from a DiMarzio X2N pickup placed in the bridge. During the (In)Human Tour of the World (1991-92), Schuldiner briefly endorsed a small Wisconsin custom guitar company called Axxtra, who worked with him on designs, though he still insisted on using his BC Rich during filming of the Lack of Comprehension video in September 1991 in Orlando. B.C. Rich use unusual shapes for their guitars, like this Warlock B.C. Rich is a manufacturer of guitars and bass guitars. ... DiMarzio (full name: DiMarzio Musical Instrument Pickups, Inc. ...

The amp he used towards the end of his career was a Marshall Valvestate amp head and Valvestate 4x12 speaker cabinets. Before that he used various equipment including Randall Amps and cabinets, and on the (In)Human Tour of the World he used a small GK 250ML miked up, despite having hollow 4x12 stacks 'for show'. Look up Marshall in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Playing Style

Schuldiner is known for his unique playing style. Techniques most frequently utilized by Schuldiner included his extremely fast and accurate alternate picking technique and his somewhat off-the-wall legato style. Schuldiner did occasionally utilize techniques such as sweep picking and string skipping as well, and he was an accomplished two hand tapper (as evidenced by the tap intro to "The Philosopher"). Alternate-picking is a technique that employs downward and upward picking strokes in a continuous run. ... In musical notation legato indicates that musical notes are played smoothly. ... Sweep picking is a technique used on the guitar in which a sweeping motion of the pick is combined with a matching fret hand technique in order to produce a specific series of notes which are fast and fluid in sound. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Contrary to what many assumed, Schuldiner was in fact not well schooled in musical theory. He found "playing by ear" to be a more effective and advisable method. Schuldiner did "make up" his own scales and modes (many of which ended up being real scales, such as harmonic minor and melodic minor) which Schuldiner frequently utilized in his solos, a testament to his excellent ear. This also led him to create his odd fingering positions which very much defined his style. Music theory is a set of systems for analyzing, classifying, and composing music and the elements of music. ... A minor scale in musical theory can be viewed as the sixth mode of the major scale. ... A minor scale in musical theory can be viewed as the sixth mode of the major scale. ...

Schuldiner tended to use more theorized guitarists for his counterparts in Death, including James Murphy, Paul Masvidal, Andy LaRocque, Bobby Koelbe and Shannon Hamm, this made an interesting contrast between his more unconventional style. Arguably the guitarist Schuldiner clicked best with was Shannon Hamm, as on his work with him on Deaths Sound of Perseverance as well as on Control Denied's The Fragile Art of Exsistance, there were many harmonies and naturally layered guitar lines between the two. James Murphy may refer to: James Murphy (electronic musician) (born 1970), principal member of LCD Soundsystem and head of DFA Records James Murphy (footballer) (1910–1989), Association Football player and manager James Murphy (football player) (born 1959), receiver in the Canadian Football League James Murphy (musician) (born 1967), American heavy... Paul Masvidal was the guitarist, singer and a founding member of the now disbanded progressive metal band Cynic. ... Andy LaRocque (real name Anders Allhage, born 29 November 1962, Göteborg, Sweden) is best known as the guitar player of the band King Diamond. ... Shannon Hamm is a death metal guitarist. ... Sound of Perseverance is the 7th album released by Death in 1998. ... Control Denied was started by Chuck Schuldiner to create a European-style power metal/progressive metal band, mixed with elements death metal recognizable in his earlier band Death. ...

Source

• The source for much of this material is Emptywords.org, as well as Schuldiner's former manager and various online sources and articles. Permission granted is under the condition that Emptywords.org is cited as the source of the material if it originated there. Material is to be used specifically for the development of the biography of Chuck Schuldiner/Death/Control Denied on Wikipedia.org. A copy of this specific copyright release has been posted on the discussion page for this wiki.

References

1. ^ http://wc08.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:3iftxqe5ld6e~T1
2. ^ Interview in which Chuck discusses his religious beliefs

Death was an influential American death metal band founded in 1983 by guitarist and vocalist Chuck Schuldiner, and dissolved in 1999. ... Scream Bloody Gore is the first album released by Death in 1987. ... Leprosy is the second album released by Death in 1988. ... Spiritual Healing is the third album released by Death in February 1990. ... Human is the fourth album released by Death in 1991. ... Individual Thought Patterns is the fifth album by Death, released in 1993. ... The Sound of Perseverance is the seventh and final studio album released by Death in 1998. ... Live in L.A. (Death & Raw) is the live album released by Death in 2001. ... Live in Eindhoven is a live album released by Death in 2001. ... Control Denied was started by Chuck Schuldiner to create a European-style power metal/progressive metal band, mixed with elements death metal recognizable in his earlier band Death. ... Voodoocult was a German thrash metal project formed in 1994 by Phillip Boa, vocalist of the alternative band Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub. ...