Dave Mustaine is one of the greatest guitarists in the world, but, like any of us, has its drawbacks. For many years he had problems with drugs, but after several courses of treatment he still managed to cope with them. Once he played in the cult team Metallica, but because of his heavy character did not last long there. Then the talented musician founded his own group and called it Megadeth, which, in fact, brought him popularity.
Biography
Dave Mustaine (full name David Scott) was born on September 13, 1961 in the California town of La Massa. The origin of the musician is quite colorful, as it contains German, English, Irish and Jewish roots. The family was large, and in addition to Dave, the four Mustaines had three older daughters.
The only boy in the family became a victim of domestic violence, as an eternally drunk dad, trying to raise a "real man", often beat him. When Dave was only four years old, his mother, unable to withstand the tyranny of her husband, divorced him. However, dad did not allow the family to live in peace, so they constantly traveled around California to avoid meeting him. In 69, the mother saved up money and gave her beloved son a guitar, but he learned to play really much later. When the guy was in school, he was fascinated by baseball, and he even became a catcher in the local team.
Young years
In the 75th, the family went to live in the house of David's elder sister, Susanna, who had already married by then. However, Dave Mustaine's son-in-law hated hard rock, so mutual antipathy arose between them.
As a fifteen-year-old boy, David began to hunt with drug dealers, which allowed him to rent a separate house for himself. One of his regular customers often didn’t have money to buy “checks”, so she paid the price by bringing legendary vinyls to the guy: AC / DC, Motörhead, Iron Maiden and Judas Priest.
In 78th, Dave Mustain dropped his studies and plunged into the world of "sex, drugs and rock and roll." For twenty long years, the musician suffered from alcoholism and drug addiction and once almost went to the other world.
Bad experience
The first group of Dave - Panic - did not live long, because it did not have commercial success. However, in those days several compositions were written, which were included in the first Metallica album. Just before the recording, Dave Mustaine was fired for his swine attitude to other musicians of the group. Panic performed one concert, which was also the last one, as their bus drove into the railway booth on the way home. In that accident, the drummer and sound engineer died, so the further fate of the band was a foregone conclusion.
Work with Metallica
Back in the 81st, a young musician stumbled upon a newspaper ad stating that "a guitarist is needed in a band." That's how Dave Mustaine and Metallica ended up in the same boat, but the collaboration lasted no more than a year. He is the author of four songs from the band's debut album, and The Four Horsemen also entered the first Megadeth vinyl under its original name Mechanix. James Hetfield modernized the composition for himself, changing and adding something, so it sounds a little different. Dave as solo guitarist was replaced by the equally talented Kirk Hammett, who is in the Metallica group to this day.
Reasons for contention
According to former colleagues, Mustaine is a very gifted musician, which is directly proportional to the severity of his character. Moreover, at that time he was constantly under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and this at times increased his negative qualities. A serious conflict between Hetfield and Mustaine was that David brought his dog to the rehearsal, and James got angry and kicked the poor animal. In addition, once Dave decided to make a fool of himself over the bass player - Ron McGowney, pouring beer on his instrument, after which the musician could not bear the insult and left the band. Shortly after these events, the guys went to New York to record their first vinyl, and Mustaine continued to play pranks on the road. Therefore, the musicians decided that they did not need such a comrade, and fired him before arriving on the label.
Fallen Angel and Megadeth
In 83, Mustaine put together a gang of Fallen Angel, which lasted only a few months. The group performed songs written in previous years, as well as cover versions of famous rock hits.
After the collapse of an unsuccessful project, Mustaine recalled how, on his way home after being fired from Metallica, he wrote new texts on newspaper scraps, and one of them had a note on Megadeath's arsenal. He liked the name, and initially he wanted to give it to one of the songs, but changed his mind. Thanks to a random memory of him during the creation of a new group, he did not have to think long about how to “christen” it.
The persistent Dave Mustaine became the nuclear engine of the new team, being responsible for both vocals, rhythm and solo guitar. Strength was given to him by a burning desire to surpass Metallica in everything, and each new single made him thirst for the struggle for primacy. The symbol of Megadeath - Vic Ruttlehead was also invented by Mustaine, in response to the "star" of former comrades.
Needless to say, Dave hated Metallica members for having kicked him out of the band like a lousy dog ?! He was particularly furious that on their debut album Kill `Em All there were compositions that he invented himself, and no one even asked permission for this from Mustaine. Despite the long feud, the two teams once played on the same stage.
In the balance of death
The Megadeth group was expected in Budokan, but shortly before that something happened that sooner or later was to happen. On February 17, 1993, the guys performed in Oregon, and Dave was in a deplorable state - he barely stood on his feet. Having finished the concert, Mustaine ate a couple of dozen “wheels” of “Valium”, and by the time he arrived at the clinic he almost went to the other world. The help was provided on time, and they managed to pump it out, after which they sent him to compulsory treatment in Phoenix. The teammates made sure that the rehabilitation course was not interrupted and was completed, because they did not want the death of their leader. Mustaine had to be treated for addiction as much as fifteen times, as he constantly returned to drugs. In 2002, he severely damaged the nerve of his left forearm, so other members of the group were sent on vacation. However, two years later, Megadeth rose from the ashes and released the album The System Has Failed.
It was 2009, and Metallica was credited to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and Mustaine was included in the list of guests of honor, but Dave referred to his employment and did not come. In 2011, Dave underwent surgery on his neck, and, apparently, the problem with this part of the body is purely professional, since Tom Araya (Slayer) was under the surgeon’s knife for the same reason. In general, comrades, do not shake your head a lot, otherwise by age of honor you will encounter the same ailment!
Instruments
Dave Mustaine's guitars are currently Zero and Dean VMNT. These are personalized instruments with varying sensitivity and body color. He also has an acoustic company from Dean Mako, which is usually used for lyrical compositions.
The guitars used by the musician at different times are: Jackson King V, BC Rich and ESP DV. Dave Mustaine prefers Cleartone strings and yellow picks from Jim Dunlop Tortex.