The Rev

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For the style used when addressing clergy, see The Reverend.
Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan
The Rev of Avenged Sevenfold.JPG
Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan in 2007
Background information
Birth name James Owen Sullivan
Also known as The Rev, Rathead, Fiction, The Reverend Tholomew Plague, The
Knife Master, Jimmy
Born February 9, 1981
Huntington Beach, California, U.S.
Died December 28, 2009 (aged 28)
Huntington Beach, California, U.S.
Genres Heavy metal, hard rock, metalcore, progressive metal, avant-garde
metal, ska punk
Occupation(s) Musician, composer, songwriter, multi instrumentalist
Instruments Drums, vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards
Years active 1998 2009
Labels Warner Bros., Good Life, Hopeless, Bucktan
Associated acts Avenged Sevenfold, Pinkly Smooth, Brian Haner, Suburban Legends,

James Owen Sullivan (February 9, 1981 December 28, 2009),[1] professionally known
by his stage name The Rev (shortened version of The Reverend Tholomew Plague), was
an American musician, best known as the drummer, songwriter, co-lead vocalist and
founding member for the American heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold. The Rev was
widely regarded and critically acclaimed for his work on Avenged Sevenfold albums,
and contributed entire songs composed by himself, such as "Afterlife", "A Little
Piece of Heaven", and "Almost Easy". He was also the lead vocalist/pianist in
Pinkly Smooth, a side project where he was known by the name Rathead, with fellow
Avenged Sevenfold member, guitarist Synyster Gates (Brian Elwin Haner Jr.), and he
was the drummer for Suburban Legends from 1998 to 1999.

Contents

1 Career
2 Pinkly Smooth
2.1 Members
3 Death
4 Legacy
5 Discography
5.1 With Suburban Legends
5.2 With Pinkly Smooth
5.3 With Brian Haner
5.4 With Avenged Sevenfold
6 References

Career

Sullivan was born in Huntington Beach, California on February 9, 1981.[2] He

received his first pair of drum sticks at the age of five and his own drum set at
the age of twelve.[3] In high school, he started playing in bands. Before leaving
to join Avenged Sevenfold as one of the band's founding members, Sullivan was the
drummer for the third wave ska band Suburban Legends. At the age of twenty he
recorded his first album with Avenged Sevenfold titled Sounding the Seventh
Trumpet. His early influences included Frank Zappa and King Crimson. The Rev said
in a Modern Drummer Magazine interview that "I was raised on that stuff as much as
rock and metal."[3]
Later in life he was influenced by drummers Vinnie Paul, Mike Portnoy (who would
later be his fill-in with Avenged Sevenfold), Dave Lombardo, Joey Jordison, Lars
Ulrich and Terry Bozzio.[4] Its funny, says the drummer, of all my influences,
Tommy Lee is a visual influence. I never thought Id have one of those.[5]
Sullivan had a signature ability called "the double-ride thing" or "The Double
Octopus," as the Rev called it, "just for lack of a better definition."[6] "The
double-ride thing" is a technique that can be heard on tracks such as "Almost
Easy," "Critical Acclaim," "Crossroads," and "Dancing Dead" in which Sullivan
doubles up at a fast tempo between the double bass and ride cymbals. While playing,
Sullivan often twirled his stick to put on a show.

The Rev was a drummer, composer, songwriter, vocalist and pianist for Avenged
Sevenfold. His vocals are featured in several Avenged Sevenfold songs, including
"Strength of the World," "Afterlife," "A Little Piece of Heaven," "Almost Easy,"
"Scream," "Critical Acclaim," "Lost," "Brompton Cocktail," "Crossroads," "Flash of
the Blade (Iron Maiden cover)," and "Fiction." His music composing and songwriting
are done in several songs for Avenged Sevenfold like "A Little Piece of Heaven,"
"Afterlife," "Almost Easy," "Unbound (The Wild Ride)," "Buried Alive," "Fiction,"
"Brompton Cocktail," and more. Avenged Sevenfold released a demo version of
"Nightmare," featuring The Rev on an electronic drumset and some vocals.

At the second annual Revolver Golden God Awards, The Rev won the award for Best
Drummer. His family members, and Avenged Sevenfold, received the posthumous honor
on his behalf.[7]

In an Ultimate Guitar online reader's poll of the "Top Ten Greatest Drummers of All
Time," The Rev appeared at #8, placing higher than Bill Ward of Black Sabbath, and
lower than Keith Moon of The Who. In 2017, he once again appeared in Ultimate
Guitar's list of Top 25 Greatest Singing Drummers at #5.[8]
Pinkly Smooth

Pinkly Smooth was an American heavy metal/avant-garde metal band. The band was
formed in the summer of 2001 in Huntington Beach, California, as a side project for
Avenged Sevenfold's drummer/composer/songwriter Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan, and
originally featured The Rev (under the name "Rathead") on vocals, along with fellow
Avenged Sevenfold member Synyster Gates on guitar and former Ballistico band
members Buck Silverspur (under the name "El Diablo") on bass and Derek Eglit (under
the name "Super Loop") on drums. They released only one album, Unfortunate Snort,
which featured former Avenged Sevenfold bassist Justin Meacham (under his stage
name "Justin Sane") as a keyboard player.
Members

Rathead (The Rev) vocals, piano, drums (20012002)

Synyster Gates guitar (20012002)
El Diablo (Buck Silverspur) bass (20012002)
Super Loop (Derek Eglit) drums (20012002)
Justin Sane (Justin Meacham) keyboards (2001)

Death

On December 28, 2009, The Rev was found unresponsive in his Huntington Beach home,
and was later pronounced dead upon arrival to the hospital.[9] Police ruled out
foul play and noted his death appeared to be from natural causes. An autopsy
performed on December 30, 2009 was inconclusive, but toxicology results revealed to
the public in June that he died from an overdose of oxycodone[1][not in citation
given] (Percocet), oxymorphone (a metabolite of oxycodone), diazepam (Valium),
nordiazepam (a metabolite of diazepam), and alcohol.[citation needed] The coroner
noted cardiomegaly as a "significant condition" that may have played a role in
Sullivan's death.

On January 6, 2010, a private funeral was held for Sullivan, and then he was buried
in The Good Shepherd Cemetery, in Huntington Beach, California.[10] Shortly after
his death, Avenged Sevenfold dedicated their fifth studio album Nightmare (released
that same year) to him, as well as several songs, including "So Far Away", which
had been written by bandmate (and childhood friend) Synyster Gates; and "Fiction",
which The Rev had written three days before his death.[11][12] M. Shadows and
Synyster Gates have stated in an interview to Hard Drive Radio:

"[...]The eeriest thing about it is there is a song on the album called "Fiction"
(a nickname The Rev gave himself) which started out with the title "Death." And it
was the last song The Rev wrote for the album, and when he handed it in, he said,
'That's it, that's the last song for this record.' And then, three days later, he
died."[11]
Legacy

His triple bass drum kit from the 2008 Taste of Chaos tour was donated for display
at a Hard Rock Cafe in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.[13]
Discography
With Suburban Legends

Origin Edition (1999)

With Pinkly Smooth

Unfortunate Snort (2001)

With Brian Haner

Cougar Bait (2008)

With Avenged Sevenfold

Sounding the Seventh Trumpet (2001)

Waking the Fallen (2003)
City of Evil (2005)
Avenged Sevenfold (2007)
Live in the LBC & Diamonds in the Rough (2008)
Nightmare (2010) (posthumous; some vocals, lyrics, and composing featured;
vocals and drums on demo tracks; main part on record was on the song Fiction)

References

"MTV Newsroom". Newsroom.mtv.com. 2009-12-29. Retrieved 2011-10-28.

"Huntington Beach Independent". Hbindependent.com. 2010-02-17. Retrieved 2011-10-
28.
"''Modern Drummer Magazine Interview Oct. 2006''". Moderndrummer.com. Retrieved
2011-10-28.
"January 5, 2010". Allcurrenthotnews.com. Retrieved 2011-10-29.
"James "The Rev" Sullivan | Modern Drummer Magazine". www.moderndrummer.com.
Retrieved 2016-12-23.
"DRUM! Magazine Interview Nov. 2007". Drummagazine.com. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
"Revolver Golden Gods Awards 2010: The Winners | Latest News". Metal Injection.
2010-04-09. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
https://www.ultimate-
guitar.com/news/features/friday_top_25_greatest_singing_drummers.html
Lewis, Randy. "James 'The Rev' Sullivan dies at 28; drummer for heavy metal band
Avenged Sevenfold". latimes.com. Retrieved 2017-01-06.
"The Good Shepherd Cemetery". Find A Grave. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
"Has The New Avenged Sevenfold Album Been Given A Title?". Metal Hammer. May 14,
2010. Retrieved May 14, 2010.
"Avenged Sevenfold: The Rev's Passing Steered Album's Lyrical Direction |
Interviews @". Ultimate-guitar.com. Archived from the original on September 6,
2010. Retrieved 2011-09-20.

"Memorabilia". Hard Rock Cafe. Retrieved July 14, 2013.

[show]

v t e

Avenged Sevenfold
[show]

v t e

Suburban Legends
Authority control

MusicBrainz: 717f3252-14e9-461a-9233-12e4f9c08df3

Categories:

1981 births2009 deaths21st-century American musiciansAmerican heavy metal

drummersAmerican heavy metal keyboardistsAmerican male musical theatre
actorsAmerican male musiciansAmerican musiciansAmerican rock pianistsAvenged
Sevenfold membersDrug-related deaths in CaliforniaMusicians from Orange County,
CaliforniaPeople from Huntington Beach, CaliforniaSuburban Legends members20th-
century American pianists

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