Bob Heathcote obit

Suicidal Tendencies bassist Bob Heathcote dead after motorbike accident

 

 He was not on the list.

Bob Heathcote, the former bassist of thrash metal group Suicidal Tendencies, has died aged 58 following a motorbike accident.

Heathcote’s son, Chris, confirmed the sad news in a Facebook post yesterday. Part of his message read: “I cannot put words together other than the fact that this is a loss I will hardly recover (if ever), and the fact that he was a hard working father who raised five children, including me.”

The post detailed that the cause of death was a motorbike accident. The exact nature and location of the incident are as yet undisclosed.

Heathcote played bass with Suicidal Tendencies in the late 1980s and contributed to the band’s influential third album, 1988’s How Will I Laugh Tomorrow When I Can’t Even Smile Today. He also appeared for three tracks on the band’s 1989 album Controlled by Hatred/Feel Like Shit… Déjà Vu.

“His interests included music, traveling, race cars and attending race tracks. He was also a supporter of the Dodgers,” Chris’ message continued. “In addition to his work in the technology and photography industries, dad gained a bit of publicity in the late 80’s as the bass player of the legendary punk/metal act Suicidal Tendencies. His tenure with S.T. lasted for just one album, the Epic Records release ‘How Will I Laugh Tomorrow When I Can’t Even Smile Today’, which spawned the hits ‘Trip At The Brain’ and the title track ‘How Will I Laugh Tomorrow’.”

“Those two songs garnered airplay from Headbangers Ball on MTV and active rock radio stations, including the defunct legendary Long Beach-based radio station 105.5 KNAC. After that album, he left S.T. and the band would replace him with future Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo.”

Chris concluded: “Each and every moment I’ve shared with my dad will forever remain as a treat. Thank you dad for everything you did for me and my family. I will miss not only your keen sense of humour, but you and me doing a lot of things we loved doing together, including talking about or listening to music, traveling, going to the beach, going to Mexican restaurants, attending Dodger games, etc.”

Suicidal Tendencies are still together, with singer Mike Muir as the only remaining member of the original lineup. The band’s last album was 2018’s Still Cyco Punk After All These Years.