Bobby Steele
Encyclopedia
Bobby Steele is an American
punk rock
musician. He is the current guitar player, songwriter, and sole original member of punk band The Undead
. He has been a member of multiple other bands, most notably, as the second guitarist of The Misfits. He was replaced by Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein
.
and lived there until 1978, when he moved into Manhattan
. The house he had lived in later became the base for Post Mortem records, a label he founded.
Steele was the guitarist for Parrotox, Slash and The Whorelords before joining The Misfits in 1978. While with The Misfits, he performed on the Horror Business, Night of the Living Dead and 3 Hits From Hell
EP
s and his playing can also be heard on the Beware and Halloween
EPs as well as the "missing" Misfits album 12 Hits From Hell
. After being replaced in October 1980 by Jerry Only
's younger brother Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein
. Steele formed The Undead
with Chris Natz and Patrick Blanck. The band released their debut EP, 9 Toes Later
, in 1982, which Glenn Danzig
helped finance. The Undead have undergone many personnel changes throughout the years and today, Steele is the only remaining original member and chief songwriter of the band.
He has also played with Sloppy Seconds
, Times Square, The Migraines, and The Graveyard School, and appeared in several movies.
, which forced him to wear a steel leg brace to aid in walking, a device he would often use to gain leverage in fighting during his youth. Steele has advocated for medical marijuana legalization in front of the New York State Legislature, and has spoken out about the same at the Million Man March
in New York City
. He considers himself a politically incorrect individual and a social conservative. On April 30, 2011, Steele married Jill Kethel, best known as one of the girls in Danzig
's "Mother
" video. The private ceremony was held during the Chiller Theatre Toy, Model and Film Expo in Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey
.
apartment's landlord, alleging that the property manager attempted to force him out of his rent-controlled
apartment by removing a bulkhead over the stairwell which resulted in significant water damage to the top-floor unit.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
musician. He is the current guitar player, songwriter, and sole original member of punk band The Undead
The Undead
The Undead is a horror punk band formed in 1980 in New Milford, New Jersey by Bobby Steele , Chris "Jack" Natz , and Patrick Blanck . Bobby had just been fired from his previous band, The Misfits, when forming The Undead.They released their first EP 9 Toes Later in 1982...
. He has been a member of multiple other bands, most notably, as the second guitarist of The Misfits. He was replaced by Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein
Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein
Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein , is an American guitarist best known for his material with the horror punk band the Misfits.-Life and career:...
.
Career
Steele grew up in New Milford, New JerseyNew Milford, New Jersey
New Milford is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 16,341.New Milford was incorporated as a borough on March 11, 1922, from what remained of Palisades Township, based on the results of a referendum held on April 18,...
and lived there until 1978, when he moved into Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. The house he had lived in later became the base for Post Mortem records, a label he founded.
Steele was the guitarist for Parrotox, Slash and The Whorelords before joining The Misfits in 1978. While with The Misfits, he performed on the Horror Business, Night of the Living Dead and 3 Hits From Hell
3 Hits from Hell
3 Hits from Hell was the sixth release from the Lodi, New Jersey horror punk band The Misfits.The 7" EP was released in April 1981 as Plan 9 Records number PL1013...
EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
s and his playing can also be heard on the Beware and Halloween
Halloween (Misfits)
"Halloween" is the fifth single by the horror punk band the Misfits. It was released on October 31, 1981 on singer Glenn Danzig's label Plan 9 Records. 5,000 copies of the single were pressed on black 7" vinyl, some of which included a lyrics sheet....
EPs as well as the "missing" Misfits album 12 Hits From Hell
12 Hits from Hell
12 Hits From Hell is a cancelled studio album by the Misfits. It was recorded in 1980 but went unreleased. Caroline Records attempted to release it in 2001, but band members Glenn Danzig and Jerry Only called off production and the album was scrapped....
. After being replaced in October 1980 by Jerry Only
Jerry Only
Jerry Only is an American bassist. He is the current bassist and vocalist for the Misfits. He is credited with creating the infamous hair style known as the devilock.-Life and career:...
's younger brother Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein
Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein
Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein , is an American guitarist best known for his material with the horror punk band the Misfits.-Life and career:...
. Steele formed The Undead
The Undead
The Undead is a horror punk band formed in 1980 in New Milford, New Jersey by Bobby Steele , Chris "Jack" Natz , and Patrick Blanck . Bobby had just been fired from his previous band, The Misfits, when forming The Undead.They released their first EP 9 Toes Later in 1982...
with Chris Natz and Patrick Blanck. The band released their debut EP, 9 Toes Later
9 Toes Later
9 Toes Later is the first release from Lodi, New Jersey punk band The Undead. Glenn Danzig of The Misfits helped the band finance the EP. It was originally released June 25, 1982 on Stiff Records. There were 1995 copies available. It was re-released in 1983 on Rosemary's Babies bassist Post...
, in 1982, which Glenn Danzig
Glenn Danzig
Glenn Danzig Glenn Danzig Glenn Danzig (born Glenn Allen Anzalone; June 23, 1955 is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, entrepreneur, and a progenitor of the horror punk subgenre of music. He is a founder of bands the Misfits, Samhain, and Danzig...
helped finance. The Undead have undergone many personnel changes throughout the years and today, Steele is the only remaining original member and chief songwriter of the band.
He has also played with Sloppy Seconds
Sloppy Seconds
Sloppy Seconds is a Ramones-influenced punk band from Indianapolis, Indiana that started in the mid-1980s. They gained notoriety in the underground "punk" scene with songs like "Come Back, Traci" , "I Don't Want to be a Homosexual", "Jani is a Nazi", "I Want 'em Dead" and "So Fucked up".The bands...
, Times Square, The Migraines, and The Graveyard School, and appeared in several movies.
Personal life
He adopted the stage name Steele because he has a minor case of spina bifidaSpina bifida
Spina bifida is a developmental congenital disorder caused by the incomplete closing of the embryonic neural tube. Some vertebrae overlying the spinal cord are not fully formed and remain unfused and open. If the opening is large enough, this allows a portion of the spinal cord to protrude through...
, which forced him to wear a steel leg brace to aid in walking, a device he would often use to gain leverage in fighting during his youth. Steele has advocated for medical marijuana legalization in front of the New York State Legislature, and has spoken out about the same at the Million Man March
Million Man March
The Million Man March was a gathering of social activists, en masse, held on and around the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on October 16, 1995...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He considers himself a politically incorrect individual and a social conservative. On April 30, 2011, Steele married Jill Kethel, best known as one of the girls in Danzig
Danzig (band)
Danzig is an American heavy metal band, formed in 1987 in Lodi, New Jersey. The band serves as a musical outlet for the singer/songwriter Glenn Danzig. Danzig can be seen as the third stage in Glenn Danzig's musical career, preceded by the horror punk bands The Misfits and Samhain...
's "Mother
Mother (Danzig song)
"Mother" is a song by Danzig that first appeared on their 1988 debut album, Danzig.Thematically, the song is a rhetorical challenge to parents, primarily inspired by Tipper Gore who, along with the Parents Music Resource Center, introduced the Parental Advisory warning placed on albums that contain...
" video. The private ceremony was held during the Chiller Theatre Toy, Model and Film Expo in Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey
Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey
Parsippany-Troy Hills Township, commonly called Parsippany, is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the township population was 50,649. The name Parsippany comes from the Lenape Native American word parsipanong, which means "the place where...
.
Legal troubles
In March 2006, Steele was involved in a legal dispute with his East VillageEast Village, Manhattan
The East Village is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, lying east of Greenwich Village, south of Gramercy and Stuyvesant Town, and north of the Lower East Side...
apartment's landlord, alleging that the property manager attempted to force him out of his rent-controlled
Rent control
Rent control refers to laws or ordinances that set price controls on the renting of residential housing. It functions as a price ceiling.Rent control exists in approximately 40 countries around the world...
apartment by removing a bulkhead over the stairwell which resulted in significant water damage to the top-floor unit.
The Misfits
- Horror BusinessHorror Business"Horror Business" is the third single released by the horror punk band the Misfits. It was released on June 26, 1979 on singer Glenn Danzig's label Plan 9 Records....
(1979) – EP - Night of the Living Dead (1979) – single
- Beware (1980) – EP
- 3 Hits From Hell3 Hits from Hell3 Hits from Hell was the sixth release from the Lodi, New Jersey horror punk band The Misfits.The 7" EP was released in April 1981 as Plan 9 Records number PL1013...
(1981) – EP - HalloweenHalloween (Misfits)"Halloween" is the fifth single by the horror punk band the Misfits. It was released on October 31, 1981 on singer Glenn Danzig's label Plan 9 Records. 5,000 copies of the single were pressed on black 7" vinyl, some of which included a lyrics sheet....
(1981) – single - 12 Hits From Hell12 Hits from Hell12 Hits From Hell is a cancelled studio album by the Misfits. It was recorded in 1980 but went unreleased. Caroline Records attempted to release it in 2001, but band members Glenn Danzig and Jerry Only called off production and the album was scrapped....
(2001) – LP
Albums
- Never Say Die (1986) – LP
- Never Say Die (1987) – cassette
- Act Your RageAct Your RageAct Your Rage is a compilation album by American punk band The Undead. It was released May 8, 1989 on Post Mortem Records/Forefront Records. It featured unreleased songs recorded between 1984 and 1986...
(1989) – LP, cassette - Dawn Of The UndeadDawn of the Undead-LP:SIDE A* Evening Of Desire* A Life Of Our Own* Never Say Die* Gimme Your Autograph* I Don't Wanna Go* In Eighty Four* The Way We Behave* Put Your Clothes Back OnSIDE B* R.A.T.T...
(1991) – LP - Dawn Of The UndeadDawn of the Undead-LP:SIDE A* Evening Of Desire* A Life Of Our Own* Never Say Die* Gimme Your Autograph* I Don't Wanna Go* In Eighty Four* The Way We Behave* Put Your Clothes Back OnSIDE B* R.A.T.T...
(1991) – CD, cassette - Live SlayerLive SlayerLive Slayer is an album by the band The Undead, it was released on LP, CD, and Cassette. Its title is a parody of Slayer's Live Undead.-Track listing:# "When The Evening Comes"# "In Eighty Four"# "Verbal Abuse"# "Eve Of Destruction"...
(1992) – LP, CD, cassette - The Undead (1995) – cassette
- Til DeathTil DeathTil Death is the first full-length studio album by the American band The Undead, and the first release since the 3 song cassette from 1995. Til Death was recorded in 1997, in Bobby Steele's bedroom in New York. It was released on June 25, 1998 on Underworld Records/Post Mortem Records, and a promo...
(1998) – LP, CD - Dawn of the UndeadDawn of the Undead-LP:SIDE A* Evening Of Desire* A Life Of Our Own* Never Say Die* Gimme Your Autograph* I Don't Wanna Go* In Eighty Four* The Way We Behave* Put Your Clothes Back OnSIDE B* R.A.T.T...
(Remastered) (2006) – CD - Still The Undead After All These Years (2007) – CD
EPs
- 9 Toes Later9 Toes Later9 Toes Later is the first release from Lodi, New Jersey punk band The Undead. Glenn Danzig of The Misfits helped the band finance the EP. It was originally released June 25, 1982 on Stiff Records. There were 1995 copies available. It was re-released in 1983 on Rosemary's Babies bassist Post...
(1982) – 7" EP - Times SquareTimes Square (Undead EP)In 2000, Bobby Steele made a split EP together with both his bands: The Undead and Times Square. Note: the song Bullet is a cover of the punk band The Misfits, in which Bobby was a member before The Undead.-Track listing:#The Undead - "Undead"...
(2000) – split 7" EP - Third World U S A (2002) 4-song EP
- Rockn'Roll Whore (2002) 4-song EP
- Be My Ghoul Tonight (2003) 4-song EP
Singles
- Verbal AbuseVerbal AbuseVerbal Abuse is a hardcore punk band, originally from Houston, Texas, but which became successful after moving to San Francisco.Verbal Abuse was started in Houston, Texas in 1981 after singer and songwriter Nicki Sicki quit the band Sick Pleasure and moved to Virginia, then back to Texas when he...
(1983)- 7" single - Never Say Die (1985) – 7" single
- Invisible Man (1992) – 7" single
- Evening Of Desire (1992) – 12" single
- There's A Riot In Tompkins Square (1993) – 7" single