“Walkin’ on the Sun” and “All Star” vocalist announced his retirement in 2021
STEVE HARWELL, WHO cofounded the band Smash Mouth in 1994, has died at the age of 56, band manager Robert Hayes confirmed. The musician, best known for hits like “All Star” and “I’m a Believer,” died at his home in Boise, ID “surrounded by family and friends.”
Harwell had been in hospice care following medical complications. The cause of death was liver failure, Hayes told Rolling Stone.
Hayes said Harwell “passed peacefully and comfortably.” In a statement to Rolling Stone, he offered a lengthy tribute to the artist, who was a staple of ’90s rock music and saw success with multiple albums and singles.
I don’t see many compliments about Steve like the outpouring of love for people like Paul Reubens when they die, so I just wanted to share some nice words about him.
My sister saw Smash Mouth and 3rd Eye Blind together in 1997 and Steve called out to the crowd “FUCK MARILYN MANSON.” I was taken aback at the time but realized he was basically calling out the focus on darkness, anger, self harm, violence etc in Marilyn’s music and the effect on the world (especially youth), vs positivity, togetherness. The music he’s put out seems to have embodies this.
You don’t read a lot about his personal life or cutesy fan interaction ala Bill Murray or Keanu…but by all accounts he is a kind and humble guy. He seems to have struggled a lot with alcohol and mental health but loved to party and have a good time.
I hope more people speak about with good things to say about him. I have a feeling he was a great guy we didn’t know very well.
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Sturgis Motorcycle Rally/Superspreader Event. As a healthcare provider during the pandemic, I lost any desire to hear All Star ever again.
https://datebook.sfchronicle.com/music/motorcycle-rally-where-smash-mouth-played-was-a-superspreader-event-report-says
That was the event that caused me to lose respect for them. I loved their music before that and was happy to see them gain popularity after Shrek and sad to see that popularity turn against them when radio shows overplayed All Star.
But then they headlined what I saw as the symbol of the lack of resilience a portion of the population had and removed them from my playlists and don’t let my mind dwell on their songs anymore.
And now I’m wondering if covid was a factor in his death. Even if his heart condition wasn’t caused by it in the first place, covid does a number on the heart and other organs, and I wonder if it took years off his life.
RIP, I’ll let go of those feelings now.
He died of liver failure, it was the drinking that did him in. Wasn’t COVID it was the alcohol.
When that video a few years ago went viral of him trying to sing (not at Sturgis) but being just absolutely to fucked up to even know where he was, there was a lot of talk about he went off the deep end drinking when his kid died. He was diagnosed with Wernicke- Korsakoff syndrome (“wet brain”) from drinking ten years before Sturgis.
I was/is an alcoholic (now sober) and I never resorted to Nazi salutes at my worst lol. I didn’t even think about that shit
I drank professionally for about 15 years and I also never once endorsed genocide. It’s really easy to do. All you have to do is be a normal person to whom it would never occur as an idea in the first place.
edit: lol @ the two downvotes who were like “not endorsing genocide is a constant struggle”
He drank enough that it killed him. I think it’s safe to say he was in a different place than you were.
Did you watch the video or read the transcript? He’s telling people he’s going to kill then. More and more agitated, just flailing at anything. Flipping off the crowd. Completely out of his mind. Not saying doing a nazi salute is ok but this guy isn’t a nazi. It’s super sad. It sucks if that’s all he will be remembered for.
He was drunk. And yet I’ve been pretty damn drunk and at no point did I ever give a Nazi salute.
But have you been drunk with wet brain?
I think there’s a gulf of difference between alcoholism that leads to end-stage liver failure and death and “I’ve been drunk before”. Considering he is dead in 2023, gonna say he was pretty pickled already in 2021, especially with whatever downtime the pandemic offered
Apparently he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and wet brain from the alcoholism ten years ago; “pickled already in 2021” sounds like an understatement
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I will say that a few times in my life I’ve been a bit tipsy, holding something in one hand, and raised my arm to get someone’s attention in a crowd and had that “oh shit, this could look really bad out of context” reaction halfway through.
But yeah. That is not at all what happened. Just pointing out that you can pretty easily do an accidental heil.
Got it. Never judge someone by their words and actions. Instead judge them for not making an ass of themselves at a meet and greet a few decades ago.
Shit. I want that deal.
Alright, he’s a violent racist if that makes you happy. The internet is so in love with labeling someone all bad or all perfect…
Dude, take a breath
People are acknowledging his flaws and… they were pretty massive ones. You, for whatever reason, are talking about how “look, just because he was throwing up nazi salutes at an event associated with white supremacy doesn’t matter. he isn’t a nazi even though he is acting like one”
Its not about “all bad” or “all perfect” to anyone except, apparently, you. It is about acknowledging reality and not glorifying shitheads. Like, to my knowledge, he never demonstrated violent tendencies so I would not call him “violent”.
Like, it increasingly feels like people would throw a god damned temper tantrum if they ever listened to a performance of Hamlet.
He’s like my aunt. You can’t say a single word of criticism for anything around her, or she’ll attack you for not being positive.
It’s very negative behavior, but she says the word positive a thousand times a day so she must be better than us!
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If we’re not allowed to call people who go to rallies that white supremacists attend and throw up nazi signs, when are we allowed to call someone racist. FFS I’m tired of this “stop calling people racist” bullshit. Stop acting racist and people won’t call them racist.
I thought he did this at a regular concert. It was an event for nazis?
It was the yearly bike rally in Sturgis. It’s not entirely a white supremacist rally but it’s quite easy to find them there as they typically have flags and tattoos that help you spot them. If it was at his own concert there’s the tiny chance it could be some extreme mental break but he went were he felt welcome for this one.
None of the things I saw when I was trying to find the video today mentioned that…hmm
As someone who dealt with depression through those years, dark music helped me feel understood and not alone. I wasn’t a Manson fan, and I actually was a Smash Mouth fan for awhile - but it wasn’t Walking on the Sun that let me know it was okay to be different and that I wasn’t the only one dealing with these things, or that the advertising and propaganda inundating me didn’t get to decide who is good or bad. Even so I was a fan and it hurt to see when he resorted to lashing out with hate.
I’m sad Steve has passed and I have good memories thanks to him. I’m also very sad that he wasn’t able to turn his life around before going. I wish that he’d been able to experience that, and to be with us for a little while longer.
His child died a couple years after all star. He tried to keep the music going, but it fucked him up badly.