Name: Jason Curtis Newsted
Born: March 4 1963
From: Battle Creek,Michigan
Marital Status: Divorced
Plays: Those Kick-ass bass lines
Vitals: 5'8",150lbs,brown-red hair,blue eyes
Jason joined local rock band Gangster which included Tim Hamlin, a mentor to Jason. Jason quit high school just 3 months before graduation(he later went on to earn his ged and does not recommend dropping out of school!). In 1981 Jason and Hamlin left Michigan for California. They only made it as far a Phoenix,Arizona by Halloween of '81. In phoenix Jason kept himself busy with odd jobs including a stint at a Subway shop. Jason and Hamlin drifted apart and soon Jason hooked up with drummer Kelly David-Smith.
Jason played with Paradox for a while but that amounted to very little. Eventually he moved in with David-Smith in Scotsdale,Arizona. The pair soon hooked up with guitarists Mark Vasquez and Kevin Horton. The fledgling band called themselves Dogz. Horton was soon replaced by Ed Carlson and this lineup played various gigs and even recorded some demos.
In 1983 vocalist Erik A.K. joined Dogz and shortly after their name was changed to Flotsam & Jetsam. Jason acted as bass player,song writer,manager and lyricist for the band. Flotsam & jetsam gained a spot on the same Metal Massacre compilation that spawned Metallica a few years earlier. The band signed with Metal Blade records and released one album, "Doomsday for the Deciever" with Jason and later released another with songs written by him. On Halloween 1986 Jason played his last gig with the band.
Jason learned of Cliff Burtons death and saw an oppertunity of a lifetime. For his audition with Metallica he learned Cliff's parts but also added other parts to show he was a capable bass player. The evening after he was adked, at "tommy's Joint" the famouse question "Do you want a job?" Jasons response was a yell that nearly scared off the other customers. After a year of hazing Jason then became the integral part of the Metallica we know today.
