Died On This Date (June 27, 2018) Steve Soto / Bassist For The Adolescents & Agent Orange
themusicsover Steve Soto
August 23, 1963 – June 27, 2018
Steve Soto, best known as the co-founder of influential Southern California punk bands, Agent Orange and the Adolescents, has passed away. The 54-year-old musician died in his sleep on June 27, 2018 – reportedly of natural causes. A multi-instrumentalist, Soto played bass in both bands – first in Agent Orange, which formed in 1979, then in the Adolescents, which he helped form the following year. Along with Social Distortion and the Vandals, Soto and his groups would emerge as the most influential punk bands, hardcore or otherwise, to come out of Orange County during the early ’80s. Members of the Offspring, Green Day and Rancid have since noted Soto’s direct influence on them. Signed to the legendary independent label, Frontier Records in 1981, the Adolescents released eight studio albums and several EPs, live albums and singles throughout their career. Over the band’s 38 on-and-off years of existence, Soto was the only constant through the break-ups and reunions.
What You Should Own
Rich Fitzgerald was a greatly respected music industry professional who took his tireless passion for music and made a successful career out of it. Raised in Seattle, Washington, it was the young Fitzgerald who was likely turning his classmates on to the newest records. He went as far, it has been said, as creating his own pop charts and distributing them to his friends. Fitzgerald began his career working for Capitol Records there in Seattle, and by the mid 1970s, he was employed by one of the hottest new labels at the time, RSO Records, where he played a role in the success of such artists as the Bee Gees, Andy Gibb, and Eric Clapton with whom he would build a lifelong business and personal relationship. He was also directly involved with the pop culture phenomenons known as Saturday Night Fever, Grease, and Fame while at RSO. He went on to work for Network, Geffen, Reprise, and Warner Bros. Fitzgerald eventually rose to the position of Vice President of Promotions while at Warner Bros. where he helped such future stars as Madonna, Prince, Green Day, and the Pretenders get their first records played on radio. During his final years, Fitzgerald was working directly with Clapton. Rich Fitzgerald was 64 when he died of esophageal cancer on August 15, 2011.
Jerry Finn was a well-respected producer who lent his talents to a who’s who of alternative rock, artists like Blink-182, Green Day, Sum 41, AFI, Rancid, the Offspring, Morrissey, Alkaline Trio and many others. While working on a Morrissey release in July of 2008, Finn suffered a massive brain hemmorage. Never regaining consciousness, he was taken off life support on August 9 and passed away twelve days later. He was just 39.
John Sicolo is best remembered as the owner of celebrated Wales nightclub, Newport TJ’s. Opened nearly four decades ago, Newport TJ’s has hosted such now-famous acts as Oasis, Green Day, Primal Scream, and Joe Strummer. During the early ’90s, 
