Bob Forrest
| Bob Forrest | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Robert O'Neil Forrest |
| Born |
February 15, 1961 Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, keyboards, mandolin |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Associated acts | Thelonious Monster, The Bicycle Thief |
Robert O'Neil "Bob" Forrest (born February 15, 1961)[1] is the lead vocalist and lyricist for Los Angeles bands Thelonious Monster and The Bicycle Thief. In September 2006 he released his first solo album, Modern Folk and Blues Wednesday. He is also a drug counselor, appearing alongside Dr. Drew Pinsky on Celebrity Rehab and Sober House.[2]
He contributed the song "Moonshiner" to the I'm Not There soundtrack.
Forrest is the former Chemical Dependency Program Director at Las Encinas Hospital.[3] In 2010, he and co-founder Shelly Sprague launched Hollywood Recovery Services.
Forrest is also well known as a close friend of Red Hot Chili Peppers bandmates Flea and Anthony Kiedis who was once a drug buddy to Forrest and who later got clean with Forrest's help. The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Forrest's bands also have a longtime connection. In 1988, John Frusciante was originally intended to join Thelonious Monster however he joined the Red Hot Chili Peppers instead while current Chili Peppers guitarist, Josh Klinghoffer played with both Thelonious Monster and The Bicycle Thief. Forrest has performed many times with the Red Hot Chili Peppers dating back to the mid-1980s and most recently in 2009 at an awards event honoring Kiedis for his commitment to helping other addicts with the addiction and recovery process. Forrest was also one of the last people to see actor River Phoenix alive the night he died of a drug overdose.[4]
In 2008, he began releasing a series of live digital EPs exclusively at his official website. In 2010, Forrest began hosting a weekly radio show, All Up In The Interweb, airing Wednesday nights on Indie1031.com.[5]
Forrest is the subject of Bob and the Monster, a documentary about his music career and battles with drug addiction. The documentary was released in March 2011 and continues to play on the film festival circuit. The DVD was released in September 2013.[6]
Forrest released a new album, Survival Songs, on October 9, 2015.[7] It is a folk album featuring new material and folk versions of existing Thelonious Monster and Bicycle Thief songs.
References
- ↑ "Free Family Tree, Genealogy and Family History - MyHeritage". Familytreelegends.com. Retrieved 2015-10-03.
- ↑
- ↑ Las Encinas Hospital: Hospital Staff (Internet Archive, captured 29 July 2009)
- ↑ Nye, James (September 22, 2013). "How River Phoenix KNEW he was suffering an overdose the night he died: Friend reveals the actor's harrowing last few minutes before he collapsed at Johnny Depp's LA nightclub almost 20 years ago". The Daily Mail. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ↑ Archived January 15, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ "Bob and the Monster to be released on DVD in September | John Frusciante unofficial – Invisible Movement". Invisible-movement.net. Retrieved 2015-10-03.
- ↑ Steffen, Chris. "Album Premiere: Bob Forrest, 'Survival Songs'". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-10-03.