R.I.P Jay Reatard: You'll Always Be An SS Pick.
We were all pretty shaken up in the SS HQ this morning to find out an act we followed, listened, and marvelled at his playful integrity is no longer with us. Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr, aka Mephis punk rocker Jay Reatard died last night naturally in his sleep. SUPERSWEET offers our condolences for the family and friends of the artist.
Destined for success, the frisky twenty nine year old jumped into recording from the age of fifteen with his band The Reatards (thanks to Goner Records) and summoned a mischievous stage performance that would seal his charisma as an artist. Once he spiraled off from his extensive collaborative efforts (Lost Sounds, Nervous Patterns, The Final Solutions, Digital Leather, Angry Angles, Terror Visions, Bad Times) into the solo arena, Lindsey’s victory followed from Blood Visions (2006) and breakthrough album Watch Me Fall (2009), which swiftly reeled in to work with art-rock legend Beck.
What came as a surprise was the unbelievable social networking uproar hailing the short-lived success of Lindsay, so to honor the noisy-pop mastermind we’ve grabbed just a few snippets to create a SUPERSWEET Remembrance Roll. But with your participation, for any readers who wish to share their stories, contact us This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it with Reatard in the subject line, you will be published in the roll.
"We are devastated by the death of [Jay]…[He] was as full of life as anyone we've ever met, and responsible for so many memorable moments as a person and artist. We're honoured to have known and worked with him, and we will miss him terribly." - Matador Records (Nils Bernstein)
“I was on a flight to NY this afternoon and when I landed there were about two dozen text messages about Jay Reatard’s passing. It is the height of understatement to say I’m upset, confused and deeply saddened by the loss of one of the more amazing people I’ve been fortunate to know. In record company parlance, yeah, we’ve lost (let’s go down the checklist) a phenomenal performer, songwriter, and insatiable music lover. But we’ve lost a great friend as well, and that’s the part that hurts the most.
We’re not the only ones feeling that way right now, obviously. Jay’s friends all over the country, heck, all over the world are dealing with this. I know his various scrapes over the years have made for cheap internet fodder, but the people who cared about him are gonna remember a real person that mattered to them. Our thoughts are with that very large group of people this evening.” - Matador Records (Gerard Cosloy)
"We want to express our condolences to the friends and family of Jay Reatard, on his sudden passing today” - Pixies
Jay's Cover of 'Gamma Ray' posted on his website - Beck
Photo Tribute, No Age and Lindsey spending time together - No Age