Eric Brynaert
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Eric Brynaert (born January 26, 1953) is a bassist and guitarist, best known for his short career with the band Jesus and the Lizards, playing from 1979-1981.
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[edit] Childhood
Eric Brynaert was born to a devoutly Hasidic Jewish family in Stittsville, Ontario. His parents, Wayne Brynaert and Marie Weinstein fled Belgium in 1938, fearing Hitler and the German army would soon invade their country. As a child, Eric was considered by peers to be "Very nice, yet odd". In 1968, Brynaert went to Bell High School where he met Alex Wagstaff. Shortly after meeting Wagstaff, the two formed a band named 20 Strong.
[edit] Renouncing Faith
While in high school, Eric met and fell in love with a girl named Kimberly Johnson. When Brynaert brought her home to meet his parents, Kimberly was asked to leave to to the fact that she was a "goy" (Gentile). This prompted Brynaert to question his religion, and shortly thereafter Brynaert chose to renounce his faith. After breaking the news to his parents, Brynaert was told to leave the house immediately. Having no job, no money and only his acoustic guitar, Eric left the family home in 1972 where he would remain on the streets for seven years. Known to locals as "Heroin Eric" (The nickname was given as a joke, Brynaert had a fear of needles and would lecture anyone who would listen about the evils of drugs), Brynaert would play his guitar and eventually developed a style he could call his own.
[edit] Jesus and the Lizards
Seven years passed without much exceptional happening to the young man, until miraculously, Brynaert came across a mourning Alex Wagstaff. Having not talked to Wagstaff for over seven years, Brynaert had no idea that Jesus and the Lizards had become popular, and that guitarist Aaron Voelker had passed away. Wagstaff then listened to a few of Brynaert's songs and immediately asked Brynaert to be the group's new bassist. Although Brynaert had never played a bass before in his life, he accepted. Brynaert played many shows and recorded two albums with the band, Rock Out With Your Iguana Out in 1979 and Jesus Makes a Comeback (And He Brought the Lizards With Him) in 1981.
[edit] The New York Incident
Backstage before a show on November 20, 1981 at the Knitting Factory, Wagstaff and Brynaert started bickering over small matters, such as who ate all the lunch meat and who made the mess on the tour bus. This argument affected the band's performance, and after finishing their set, Wagstaff apologized to the crowd saying "Sorry about our shitty performance, Eric (Brynaert) over here would not stop fucking up. Maybe next time we should unplug the fucker?". This enraged Brynaert, who threw his bass, kicked a hole in the bass drum of the drum set and stormed offstage.
[edit] Life after Lizards
After the New York Incident, Brynaert left the band and has refused to speak to the members since. He says "I can't believe they would publicly humiliate me like that. I did not deserve the treatment he [Wagstaff] gave me. If he wants to let petty matters piss him off so much, then so be it. I do not want any more part in the Lizards." For many years, Brynaert lived off royalties from his short stay in the Lizards, until the money finally ran out. Brynaert is now the manager of a local gas station, and plays in a few local bands.
