David Berman

David Berman (January 4, 1967 – August 7, 2019) was a singer-songwriter, poet and cartoonist who was part of the Silver Jews along with with Pavement’s Stephen Malkmus and Bob Nastovich. He was a recluse and gained a cult following as a talented lyricist.

He was the estranged son of Richard Berman, a firearms, tobacco, and fossil fuel lobbyist dubbed ‘Dr Evil’, who in a 2009 interview with The Guardian David himself described as “a despicable man … [a] human molestor … an exploiter … a scoundrel”.

After Silver Jews disbanded in 2009, Berman took a break for a decade before releasing an album under the moniker Purple Mountains backed by two of the members of the band Woods.

He died August 7th, 2019 at the age of 52. His death was ruled a suicide.