Biography
editPersonal life and death
editGray was born in Los Angeles, California. Later his family relocated to Des Moines, Iowa. In an interview, he admitted that he had a "crazy" childhood. Gray said that he was living with no family by fourteen, being both homeless and resided in friend's houses. When he was nearly seventeen, he bought his own apartment, and moved to Des Moines, Iowa when he was eighteen.[1] In his youth, Gray performed in bands such as Anal Blast, Vexx, Body Pit, and Inveigh Catharsi.[2][3]
In June 2003, Gray crashed his car into another vehicle. After police were called to the scene and searched his car, Gray was arrested for possession of cannabis, cocaine, drug paraphernalia, and failure to obey a traffic signal.[4][5] He was sentenced to one year of informal probation.[6] Turmoil was caused within Slipknot's fanbase when Gray's mugshot from the incident surfaced, as at this time, with the exception of Corey Taylor and guitarist James Root, unobstructed photographs of most members of the band's faces were exceptionally rare.[7]
On May 24, 2010, The Des Moines Register reported that Gray had been found dead in a room at the Towneplace Suites hotel in Urbandale, Iowa at about 10:50 local time.[8][9][10][11][12][13][14] He is survived by his wife Brenna who was expecting their first child at the time of his death.[15] An initial autopsy determined that no foul play or trauma was involved, but could not establish the cause of death.[11][12][16]
"He was kind of the person in the band that really wanted everybody in the band to always get along and just concentrate on the band. He was a really great friend and a really great person. He's going to be sadly missed, and the world is going to be a different place without him."
The next day, May 25 2010, The Des Moines Register announced that, according to a 911 tape obtained by WOI-DT, bottles of pills and a hypodermic needle were found next to the body of Gray in his hotel room.[8] On the same day, the band held a formal press conference in Des Moines, Iowa. They did not take any questions from the media. The band, as well as Gray's brother Tony and wife Brenna, paid tribute to him.[17] On June 21, 2010, autopsy results were released that stated Gray had died of an accidental overdose of morphine and fentanyl, and had also shown signs of "significant heart disease".[18]
Musical Career
editWhile Gray was working at a record store in Des Moines, he met Anders Colsefini and Shawn "Clown" Crahan, who told him that they needed a bass player for their band Painface. Although he had no had experience with playing bass, Gray still joined the band. Gray later joined The Pale Ones in September 1995. Both groups are considered to have started Slipknot. When he and joined Slipknot in 1996, they released the demo album Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat.. He released another demo album with them, entitled Slipknot, known as the Slipknot demo. By 1998, Gray and the band were recording their debut album, Slipknot, at Indigo Ranch in Malibu, California under the major record company Roadrunner Records. In 2001, Slipknot released Iowa, and in 2004, the band released Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses). His final album, 2008's All Hope Is Gone, would peak number one on the Billboard 200. A few months after the release of All Hope Is Gone, Paul Gray starred in the instructional video Behind the Player: Paul Gray.
Gray also performed with the project organized
References
edit- ^ Gray, Paul (2010-05-29) "Paul Gray 1972 - 2010". YouTube. Slipknot. Retrieved 2010-07-16
- ^ Crampton, Mark (2001). Barcode Killers: The Slipknot Story in Words and Pictures. Chrome Dreams. p. 15. ISBN 1842401262.
- ^ Arnopp 2001, p. 36
- ^ Kaufman, Gil (June 2, 2003). "Slipknot Bassist Busted For Drugs After Car Crash". MTV. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
- ^ "Slipknot bassist arrested". BBC. June 3, 2003. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
- ^ Lawler, Joe. Hulsebus, Lars L. (May 24, 2010). "Slipknot bassist Paul Gray found dead at Urbandale hotel". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved 25 May, 2010.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Paul Gray Mugshot". Mugshots.com. 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-15.
- ^ a b "WOI: Pills, syringe found next to Slipknot bassist Paul Gray's body". 25 May, 2010.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Slipknot Bassist Paul Gray Found Dead in Hotel". Billboard. 24 May, 2010. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Lawler, Joe. Hulsebus, Lars L. (May 24, 2010). "Slipknot bassist Paul Gray found dead at Urbandale hotel". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved 25 May, 2010.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b Slipknot Bassist Paul Gray Found Dead FMQB, May 24, 2010
- ^ a b "Slipknot Band Member Found Dead At Hotel". KCCI-TV. 2010-05-24. Retrieved 2010-05-24.
- ^ "Slipknot's Paul Gray dies: Mirror.co.uk". Mirror.co.uk. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
- ^ "Slipknot bassist Paul Gray dead - Metro.co.uk". Retrieved 25 May 2010.
- ^ "Slipknot bassist Paul Gray found dead in hotel room". News.com.au. May 24, 2010. Retrieved May 24, 2010.
- ^ "Autopsy fails to determine cause of death of Slipknot bassist". USA Today. 2010. Retrieved May 27, 2010.
- ^ a b Montgomery, James (May 25, 2010). "Slipknot Call Bassist Paul Gray 'The Best Of Us'". MTV. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
- ^ Crumb, Michael J. (June 21, 2010). "Slipknot bassist died of morphine overdose". MSNBC. Associated Press. Retrieved June 21, 2010.