Sublime is:
Bradley Nowell - Vocals, Guitar
Eric Wilson - Bass
Bud Gaugh - Drums
Starting out on Long Beach’s underground punk/ska scene, Sublime was dedicated to playing their own brand of ass-kicking music. Their sound was an eclectic mix of punk, ska, dub, reggae, and classic rock. By the early 90’s, the band and their producer Miguel decided to set up Skunk Records in order to release Sublime’s debut album, 40 Ounces To Freedom. Sublime sold thousands of copies out of their own vans, and 40 Oz. quickly became a classic.
Next up, the band recorded Robbin’ The Hood. The album allowed Sublime to experiment with dubbing, which is obvious with one listen to Robbin’. This dub-fest only furthered their wild following. By now, Sublime had also gained a reputation as an awesome live band. They were featured favorites on huge tours including The Warped Tour, Sno-Core Tour, The 3 Ring Circus, and Band Aid 3, where they co-headlined with Bad Religion.
In 1996, Sublime released their self-entitled third album. They scored radio hits with "What I Got", "Santeria", "Wrong Way", and "Doin’ Time". The album began to take off as Sublime hit the road that spring. However, the band’s success was cut short when, on May 25, 1996, Brad was found dead of a drug overdose.
Nowell’s death was a huge blow to Eric and Bud but they decided to carry on with their side band, The Long Beach Dub All Stars. The LBDAs released "Right Back" in 1999, and are touring relentlessly (including the 2000 Warped Tour) in support of it. They’re known for the crazy Sublime covers that they do during their shows.
1991 - Jah Won’t Pay The Bills
1992- 40 Oz. To Freedom
1993 - Chiva Keneevil
1994 - Robbin’ The Hood
1996 - Sublime
1997 - Second Hand Smoke
1998- Stand By Your Van… Live
1998 - Bradley Nowell and Friends… Acoustic
---Extremely rare. This one wasn’t released off of a label as far as I know. It includes the original "Ball and Chain", a demo of fan favorite "Date Rape", and the original recording of "Don’t Push".
---Sublime’s first label release, and still their most popular, includes the classics "Badfish", "Date Rape", "Ebin", and the Grateful Dead cover, "Scarlet Begonias".
---Another rare release. Still, most of Chiva’s songs have shown up in other places, such as on their next release "Robbin’ The Hood", and on the rarities collection "Second Hand Smoke".
---On "Robbin", Sublime played around with turntables and sampling. This one has "STP", "DJs", "All You Need", and "Saw Red", a collaboration with Gwen Stefani from No Doubt.
---Straying from the dub-laden, 4 track recordings of old, Sublime’s self-titled masterpiece was quickly labeled as a "classic" and many rock magazines titled it "album of the year". The amazing thing about it was that Sublime’s music was readily accepted by the public, who were only a couple of years out of their grunge shell. It features the riot anthem "April 29, 1992", as well as "Wrong Way", "Garden Grove", and "Same In The End".
---Second Hand Smoke was a compilation of rarities and Sublime favorites. It incudes a remix of the rare "Get Out!", as well as two new versions of "Doin Time".
--- Sublime’s electricity was captured well on this live record, which features "Don’t Push", "Let’s Go Get Stoned", "STP", and "Caress Me Down".
---"Acoustic" captured the spontaneity of Brad and the rest of Sublime. It shows how the boys could show up at a party and bust out in song without warning. It features unreleased songs like "Foolish Fool" and "Little District", as well as acoustic takes on "Wrong Way", "Saw Red", and "Pool Shark".
Sublime released "Living In A Boring Nation" in Australia in 1996. Why is there no US release? Don’t ask me. "Nation" includes "Roots Of Creation", "Date Rape", and "We’re Only Gonna Die".
Sublime had a 2-CD live set called "Memories". The set was limited to 10,000 (I think), making it EXTREMELY rare. Finding one of these now may be impossible.
In 1996, Sublime also put out the "All You Need" 7" split with The Wesley Willis Fiasco. It’s another Sublime rarity, which features the title song "All You Need".
Sublime had two singles which are also worth noting… the "Doin’ Time" single featured the album version of the song, as well as a version produced by Wyclef Jean and a collaboration with The Pharcyde. The "Badfish" single includes the original "Don’t Push", a live version of "We’re Only Gonna Die", and the unreleased "Roots of Creation".
Other well-known Sublime bootlegs include "Bums Lie", which includes some never-before played songs, "Shootin Up In Beantown", which I know little about, "Sensimilla", which is a live set of songs off the albums, and the KUCI Ska Parade CD, which was a set of songs that Sublime did live on KUCI, a Cali radio station. These songs include "Don't Push", "Scarlet Begonias", and "We're Only Gonna Die".