Background Information

Background Info

"What do you do when you're a lonely kid, a boy surrounded by women, with no father or even a father figure?" Dave was born to Emily and John Mustaine in 1961. Along with three sisters they lived in La Mesa California. Emily, the quintessential stay at home wife and mother, John an accountant. However like every family they had their dark side. John was an abusive alcoholic. Not long after Dave's Birth, Emily left John. It was not as simple as leaving however; the years following Dave, his mother and three sisters would move from house to house and city to city to avoid John. This did not stop Dave from being a relatively normal child, he went to school and played sports like a normal child. On several occasions however was suspended, expelled, or removed from both for aggressive behavior. The aggression was not a phase however and followed Dave into his teen and adult years.

 
"Regrets, I've had a few..." A quote from Sid Vicious, bassist of the Sex pistols. In Mustaine, Dave uses this to describe his time with Metallica, and his first experiences in the music industry. At the age of seventeen Dave met a "small Danish boy" at a concert in Los Angeles (by small he means height). The small Danish boy was named Lars Ulrich. A new arrival to the United States, Lars came bearing music from Europe. Dave and Lars Became fast friends and started sharing music and teaching each other songs they knew. Along with Dave, Lars had met James Hetfield, the three were like brothers. This was the formation of three-quarters of Metallica. Along with the good times came bad, one incident in particular may have been the last straw for Dave in Metallica. The incident involved Dave and Hetfield, Just before leaving to New York in hopes to find a record deal. Both had been drinking, Dave's Dog jumped on the fender of James' car and scratched the paint. Hetfield kicked the dog which incited Dave to swing at James. The next day, with tensions still high, Dave was kicked out of Metallica. This is just one of many drunken disputes that occurred between Dave and the other members.

"Dude, if you want to be a great musician, you have to try heroin. you'll see. it's like being back in the womb..." On his way back to San Fransisco, Dave had it already set in his mind that he was going to form a band that would outshine Metallica, He already had a name in mind. Megadeth. He just needed to find the right people to fill in the gaps. A few days after arriving back in California fate struck when Dave met David. David Ellefson, a    boy from Kansas who moved to California to learn music. David brought a friend with him, Chris Poland, a fellow guitar player. Dave took them both under his wing. Now with a bass player and another guitar player all they needed was a drummer, and Chris Poland knew exactly where to look. Gar Samuelson, a jazz drummer, was the best fit for the group.

     "Come, come, come my little droogies. I just don't get this at all. The old days are dead and gone. For what I did in the past, I've been punished." After the original line up, Megadeth became a revolving door for musicians, other than Dave and David there has been no other constant members. Meanwhile Dave's drug and alcohol use spiraled out of control. having been to rehab several times, never getting completely sober. the day came when Dave burnt out. he had gone to hard to fast. his heart literally stopped. sitting in a hospital bed, Dave re-evaluated his life. he decided he needed to change. he chose to make ammends and show his true feeling to his old friend. Lars. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6yT3hUWRHo (warning video contains coarse language. viewer discretion is advised.)