Hip folks who lived in the LA area in the late 20th Century knew him as the uniquely cool frontman of Chuck E. Weiss and The Goddam Liars—the house band for the LA club The Central before it became the infamous Viper Room. A much wider audience knew him only as a name in the Ricky Lee Jones hit "Chuck E.'s In Love."
I knew him from seeing him at The Central and in passing at other venues and events around LA. He was one of those icons of cool that you (i.e. me) secretly wish would acknowledge you and when they do makes you feel like you won something. In other words I dug him and hoped he dug me.
You can read about his many talents and accomplishments and famous accomplices and connections to our cultural history, but from the first moment I saw him, not knowing any of that, I knew I was in the presence of a force of nature. Oh, and finding out he was ten years younger than me was a shock, as my first impression was that he was around in some deeply vital way long before I was.
Condolences to his family, friends, and fans.
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