New Bohemians & Critters Buggin Bassist Brad Houser Has Died
Houser recently suffered a stroke.
By Andy Kahn Jul 25, 2023 • 3:14 pm PDT
Brad Houser, who played bass with Edie Brickell and New Bohemians as well as Critters Buggin and others, has died at age 62. Houser had been hospitalized in Dallas after suffering a stroke on July 17.
Houser was raised in Dallas and began playing saxophone as a teen. At age 17 he picked up the bass and in the early-1980s formed New Bohemians. Originally a trio, the group later expanded to include vocalist Edie Brickell.
The band, now calling themselves Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, released their debut album Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars in 1988. The record contained the Top 10 hit, “What I Am.”
Houser contributed to subsequent Edie Brickell & New Bohemians albums, 1990’s Ghost of a Dog, its long-awaited follow-up, 2006’s Stranger Things and its long-awaited follow-up 2018’s Rocket. Houser can also be heard on the band’s most recent album, 2021’s Hunter And The Dog Star.
Brickell posted the message below in reaction to Houser’s death:
“Just spent six weeks playing and recording with my friends, New Bohemians. It was our final day recording and Brad was about to take off for a gig when I said, ‘Aw, come on! One more jam, Brad. You start it.’ He nodded and played this great part and I started singing about him to him with the biggest smile on my face just having fun. I was celebrating his generosity to stay and play one last song with me. But I never thought it would be our final song together. Our band’s very last jam was a playful song about Brad. I loved him. He taught me a lot.”
In the mid-1990s, Houser joined fellow New Bohemians drummer Matt Chamberlain and Seattle-based saxophonist Skerik in forming the jazz fusion outfit Critters Buggin. New Bohemians’ percussionist John Bush worked with Critters Buggin, appearing on their 1994 debut album, Guest. The trio later expanded to include vibraphonist Mike Dillon releasing several additional albums and regularly performing live. Their EP Multi arrived in 2014.
Houser, Skerik and Dillon also performed together as the Dead Kenny G’s. Reverend Guitars created a Brad Houser signature bass called the Basshouser Fatfish 32.
