 Marilyn Manson (aka
Brian Warner) was born Ohio. In his late
teens, Manson worked as a music journalist in
Florida. But when Manson decided to join the
music scene as an artist, the result was one
of the most controversial music figures of
the 90s. His music was often upstaged by his
own over the top persona, on-stage antics,
and off-stage actions. The band itself has
also shared in the controversy, and although
the group's line-up has changed several
times, band members could always be found
changing their names to fit their image
(often a combination of female celebrity icon
and a serial killer). The name... Marilyn
Manson is a combo of 60s icons Marilyn Monroe
and Charles Manson ...David Berkowitz is a
combo of Daisy Duke and David Berkowitz
(serial killer, Son of Sam) ...Zsa Zsa Speck
is a combo of Zsa Zsa Gabor and serial
killer, Richard Speck ...Gidget Gein is a
combo of TV character, Gidget and cannibal,
Ed Gein ... Olivia Newton Bundy is a combo of
Olivia Newton-John and serial killer, Ted
Bundy ... Madonna Wayne Gacy is a combo of
Madonna and serial killer, John Wayne Gacy
...Twiggy Ramirez is a combo of the model
Twiggy and serial killer, Richard Ramirez
...Ginger Baker is a combo of Ginger Rogers
and killer, Albert Fish ...Sara Lee Lucas is
a combo of baker, Sara Lee and serial killer,
Henry Lee Lucas.
 Marilyn Manson, the band, was
formed when Manson joined up with guitarist
Daisy Berkowitz (aka Scott Mitchell and/or
Scott Putesky) and eventually added Gidget
Gein on bass and Madonna Wayne-Gacy on
keyboards.
The band's drum machine was
replaced by a real drummer - Sara Lee Lucas.
In the early 90s, Marilyn Manson
began to get noticed around Florida with
their sounds becoming more refined and
distinct. The band began to sell their music
on cassettes at various performances and
record stores.
Marilyn Manson's hard-rock and
gothic sound was beginning to gain popularity
in Florida as Marilyn Manson & The Spooky
Kids, and the band were nominated for a few
local music awards. The band reduced its name
to just Marilyn Manson by the end of the
summer. Marilyn Manson was named Best Heavy
Metal Band by New Times Magazine and
was nominated for 2 South Florida Slammies
including Band of the Year and Best Hard
Alternative Band.
Marilyn Manson's big break came
in the form of Trent Reznor of Nine
Inch Nails who offered the band a contract
with his own label and the opening slot of
his tour.
At the end of the year, the band
replaced bassist Gein with Twiggy Ramirez.
Marilyn Manson won 2 South Florida Slammies
for Band of the Year and Song of the Year
("Dope Hat").
 Marilyn Manson released Portrait
Of An American Family.
The band was banned from
performing in Utah, but when Reznor invited
Manson on-stage, he sparked more controversy
by ripping up the Book of Mormon.
Manson was also jailed in
Florida for a short time for nudity
violations during his concert appearances.
By the end of the year, Manson
had gained the title of "Reverend"
by the founder of the Church of Satan. The
band won a South Florida Slammie for Band of
the Year.
The band's drummer, Lucas, was
replaced with Ginger Fish (Lucas quit a day
after Manson set his drums on fire while
playing).
Berkowitz decided to leave the
band and was replaced with Zim Zum.
 The EP, Smells
Like Children, was released and
eventually went platinum. The band's version
of the Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams
(Are Made Of This)" got the attention of
MTV viewers and hard rock stations.
The band was
nominated for a MTV Video Music
Award for Best Hard Rock Video ("Sweet
Dreams") and won another South Florida
Slammie for Band of the Year.
 Antichrist
Superstar was released with the
track "The Beautiful People" -
available for download at  - and debuted in the Top 3 of
the LP charts. Marilyn Manson was also
receiving more critical praise for the work
with the LP release than previous efforts.
Marilyn Manson
was nominated for 3 MTV Video Music
Awards for Best Rock Video, Best Special Effects, and Best Art Direction ("The Beautiful
People").
 Marilyn Manson was a key topic
at a Senate panel discussing the effects of
today's music on the youth of America. A
father of a 15-year-old who killed himself
while listening to the band's music described
how he felt the music played an important
part of his son's suicide. When the boys body
was found, Manson's Antichrist
Superstar was reportedly playing in the
portable CD player the boy was wearing. The
boys father stated, "I failed to
recognize that my son was holding a hand
grenade and it was live and it was going to
go off in his mind." Other speakers at
the hearing included senators and medical
experts who were concerned about a possible
links between expressive lyrics and violence.
Record companies have been placing warning
labels on offensive material for several
years, but some at the panel suggested making
parental warnings more stringent. Manson
responded: "Obviously it upset me that
someone [would think] I would encourage that
type of behavior. I've always said that
people [who] would harm themselves or others
over music or film or books, [they're] just
being ignorant. If people want to be ignorant
there's nothing you could do about it. It's a
wake-up call for parents to teach their kids
to be more intelligent [ways], to interpret
art with some sort of intelligence. If you
want to blame music for someone hurting
themselves, then you can just as easily blame
Shakespeare writing "Romeo &
Juliet" which is something I was taught
when I was a kid, and that's a story about
two teenagers that killed themselves because
their parents don't understand them and I
think the key lesson is that parents don't
understand their kids. If you take more time
to talk to your kids, your kids are going to
live happier lives."
 The EP, Remix
& Repent, was released.
Marilyn Manson could also be
heard on the soundtracks for Lost
Highway (with "Apple Of
Sodom") and Private
Parts (with "Suck For Your
Solution").
 Marilyn Manson could now be
called an author - his autobiography written
with Neil Strauss, The
Long Hard Road Out Of Hell, was published.
Marilyn Manson may be outspoken about the
arts and freedom of expression, but not on
the Internet Super Highway - the shock rocker
blames the Internet for many of the rumors
that have formed his career. Manson stated
his opinion during the National Public Radio
program, Fresh Air. He referred to
the Internet as a "dangerous tool"
and blames the Internet for many of the
rumors that plague his music. He stated,
"In the wrong hands, the Internet can be
a dangerous tool. It's the CB radio of the
'90s, but it's being interpreted as a
legitimate source of news, which it's not. I
think eventually there will be some sort of
laws that will deal with that."
Marilyn Manson cancelled 7 tour
dates in Europe due to the band's drummer
coming down with mononucleosis.
Zim Zum left the band to pursue
solo interests and was replaced by John 5
(aka John Lowery).
Marilyn Manson appeared
on the soundtrack for Dead
Man On Campus with "Golden Years."
 Marilyn Manson talked about his
new LP, Mechanical
Animals, with CNN and controversy about
him: "I'm telling people what I see...
and some people are scared of that because
they don't like the way I see it... I expect
problems, you know, always with whatever I
do... but that's part of being a provocative
artist, which is something I'll always be...
I kind of represented myself as a destroyer
on Antichrist
Superstar because I couldn't fit into a
world that hated me... and so I wanted to see
it destroyed."
Manson talked with the LA
Times: "Anyone who blames music for
their kids' problems or for kids hurting
themselves or others is kidding themselves...
(the answer is to) raise your kids to be more
intelligent... every house that has a Marilyn
Manson record probably also has a Bible and
history book and William Shakespeare's Romeo
And Juliet... if anything is taken out
of context, it can cause damage."
Mechanical
Animals topped the Billboard 200 Albums
chart for a week.
Marilyn Manson found his first
bought of opposition when public officials in
Syracuse, NY moved to stop him from appearing
in concert there.
Marilyn Manson and DMX teamed up together on
a remix of "Damien" (from DMX's
debut LP) appearing on DMX's LP Flesh
Of My Flesh, Blood Of My Blood.
The band found trouble when they
reportedly trashed 4 hotel rooms and their
dressing room after a concert appearance in
New York over the weekend (including arson
and vandalism). A few days later Manson was
accused of getting his bodyguards to assault
an editor of Spin magazine on Monday.
According to the editor, Craig Marks,
"(Manson) said 'You know I can kill you,
your family and everyone you know'... right
after he said that, I was grabbed and shoved
up against the wall by my neck."
Rolling
Stone named "The Dope Show"
as the Best Video of the Year.
Marilyn Manson was nominated for
a European Music Award for Best Rock Video
and won 2 Billboard Video Music Awards for
Best Clip (Hard Rock/Metal) and the Maximum
Vision Award ("The Dope Show").
Marilyn Manson
could be seen in "all his glory" in
the gay adult magazine Honcho. The
photos were taken previous to Manson's
musical fame.
Manson found
himself being sued by the executive editor of
Spin for $24 million
stemming from an alleged attack in November.
Manson cut short his concert
performance in Australia on Sunday after an
unruly crowd began throwing objects onto the
stage.
Manson could
also be seen briefly in the film Jawbreaker.
Marilyn Manson
were nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance ("The Dope
Show").
At the same time Hole decided to end their
touring relationship with Marilyn Manson,
Manson fell on-stage resulting in an ankle
injury and a few cancelled tour dates.
Manson spoke out about the
tragic school shooting in Columbine, Colorado
(when 2 students killed 12 other students and
a teacher) and the increasing finger-pointing
at today's music. A Marilyn Manson concert
set for the end of the month at Red Rocks was
cancelled by the mayor. Manson said in a
statement, "It's tragic and disgusting
anytime young people's lives are taken in an
act of senseless violence. My condolences go
out to the students and their families."
Manson cancelled the last 5
dates of his tour at the start of May. Manson
wrote more about the killings in Rolling
Stone: "It is sad to think that
the first few people on earth needed no
books, movies, games or music to inspire
cold-blooded murder. The day that Cain bashed
his brother Abel's brains in, the only
motivation he needed was his own human
disposition to violence... When it comes down
to who's to blame for the high school murders
in Littleton, Colorado, throw a rock and
you'll hit someone who's guilty. We're the
people who sit back and tolerate children
owning guns, and we're the ones who tune in
and watch the up-to-the-minute details of
what they do with them.... Responsible
journalists have reported with less publicity
that Harris and Klebold were not Marilyn
Manson fans -- that they even disliked my
music. Even if they were fans, that gives
them no excuse, nor does it mean that music
is to blame... I think that the National
Rifle Association is far too powerful to take
on, so most people choose Doom, The
Basketball Diaries or yours truly... In
my work I examine the America we live in, and
I've always tried to show people that the
devil we blame our atrocities on is really
just each one of us. So don't expect the end
of the world to come one day out of the blue
-- it's been happening every day for a long
time."
Manson was
stirring up controversy again with the
release of the video for "Coma
White" which re-created the
assassination of John F. Kennedy for the sake
of "artistic expression." The
video's release was originally delayed due to
the death of John Kennedy, Jr.
The video for
"The Dope Show" was nominated for a
MTV Video Music
Award for Best Cinematography (Martin Coppen).
Marilyn Manson were nominated
for a MTV Europe Music Award for Best Rock
Artist.
 Marilyn Manson released a live
LP, The
Last Tour On Earth.
MTV: 100
Greatest Videos Ever Made includes
"The Beautiful People" at # 54.
 Marilyn Manson released Holy
Wood (In The Shadow Of The Valley Of Death).
VH1: 100
Greatest Artists of Hard Rock included
Marilyn Manson at # 78.
Toward the end of the month,
drummer Ginger Fish fractured his collarbone
during a performance in New York.
 Marilyn Manson
were nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance ("Astonishing
Panorama Of The Endtimes").
After
performing in Italy, Manson was arrested for
indecent exposure.
Marilyn Manson
could be heard on the soundtrack for Valentine with the track
"Valentine's Day."
Manson was charged with criminal
sexual conduct in Michigan after performing
an alleged offensive act on a security guard
during a performance.
 Marilyn Manson could be heard on
the soundtrack for From
Hell with the Wormwood Remix of
"Nobodies."
Marilyn Manson
recorded a remake of "Tainted Love"
for the film Not
Another Teen Movie.
Manson was in
trouble again with another civil suit filed
against him - this time for rubbing his
crotch on a security guard's head - again.
Manson's
charges for crimimal sexual conduct (from
July, 2001) were reduced to a misdemeanor.
 Holy
Wood (In The Shadow Of The Valley Of Death) was certified gold.
Marilyn Man could be heard on
the compilation LP WWF
Forceable Entry with the track "The
Beautiful People (The WWF Remix)."
Marilyn Manson contributed the
track "The KKK Took My Baby Away"
to We're
A Happy Family - A Tribute To The Ramones.
 Marilyn Manson's next LP, The
Golden Age Of Grotesque, was released.
Marilyn Manson topped the
Billboard Top 200 Album chart for a week with
The
Golden Age Of Grotesque which sold over
118,000 copies in the US its first week of
release.
The
Golden Age Of Grotesque topped the Canadian LP
chart.
The
Golden Age Of Grotesque was certified
gold.
Marilyn Manson began taking part
in Ozzfest. Marilyn Manson was not be able to
perform as part of Ozzfest when they rolled
into Six Flags at Darien Lake in New York.
They were viewed as inappropriate for the
venue.
 Marilyn Manson was nominated for
a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance
("mOBSCENE").
Marilyn Manson released the
collection Lest
We Forget: The Best Of.
Drummer, Ginger Fish was injured
during a fall from the stage at an awards
ceremony performance in Germany - resulting
in a mild concussion and broken wrist.
Lest
We Forget: The Best Of was certified gold.
 Marilyn Manson
got married.
Marilyn Manson released Eat
Me, Drink Me.
 Marilyn Manson
could be heard on the compilation Nightmare
Revisted with the track
"This Is Halloween."
Marilyn Manson released The
High End Of Low.
 Marilyn Manson released Born
Villain.
Marilyn Manson topped the
Billboard Hard Rock Albums chart with Born
Villain.
Marilyn Manson were nominated
for a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock / Metal
Performance ("No Reflection").
|
Portrait Of An American
Family
Released: July, 1994
US: Gold
Tracks: "Prelude
(The Family Trip)" - "Cake And
Sodomy" - "Lunchbox" -
"Organ Grinder" -
"Cyclops" - "Dope
Hat" - "Get Your Gunn" -
"Wrapped In Plastic" -
"Dogma" - "Snake Eyes And
Sissies" - "My Monkey" -
"Misery Machine" |
|
Smells Like Children (EP)
Released: October, 1995
US: Platinum
Billboard
peak:
# 31
Tracks: "The Hands
Of Small Children" - "Diary Of
A Dope Fiend" - "Chicken Gang
Bang" - "Kiddie Grinder"
(Remix) - "Sympathy For The
Parents" - "Sweet Dreams (Are
Made Of This)" - "Everlasting
C*********" (Remix) - "F****
Frankie" - "I Put A Spell On
You" - "May Cause Discoloration
Of The Urine Or Feces" -
"Scales, Guns & Peanut
Butter" - "Dance Of The Dope
Hats" (Remix) - "White
Trash" - "Dancing With The
One-Legged..." - "Rock 'N' Roll
N*****" |
|
Antichrist Superstar
Released: October, 1996
US: Platinum
Billboard
peak:
# 3
Rolling Stone
review: 
Tracks:
"Irresponsible Hate Anthem" -
"Beautiful People" -
"Dried Up, Tied And Dead To The
World" - "Tourniquet" -
"Little Horn" -
"Cryptorchild" -
"Deformography" -
"Wormboy" - "Mister
Superstar" - "Angel With The
Scabbed Wings" -
"Kinderfield" -
"Antichrist Superstar" -
"1996" - "Minute Of
Decay" - "Reflecting God"
- "Man That You Fear" |
|
Remix & Repent (EP)
Released: November, 1997
Billboard
peak:
# 102
Tracks: "Horrible
People" - "Tourniquet"
(Prosthetic Dance Mix) - "Dried Up,
Tied And Dead To The World" (live) -
"Antichrist Superstar" (live) -
"The Man That You Fear"
(Acoustic Requiem for Antichrist
Superstar) |
|
Mechanical Animals
Released: September 15,
1998
US: Platinum
Billboard
peak:
# 1 (for 1 week)
Rolling Stone
review:
Tracks: "Great Big
White World" - "Dope Show"
- "Mechanical Animals" -
"Rock Is Dead" -
"Dissociative" - "Speed Of
Pain" - "Posthuman" -
"I Want To Disappear" - "I
Don't Like The Drugs (But The Drugs Like
Me)" - "New Model, No. 15"
- "User Friendly" -
"Fundamentally Loathsome" -
"Last Day On Earth" -
"Coma White" |
|
The Last Tour On Earth
Released: November, 1999
Billboard
peak:
# 82
Rolling Stone
review: 
Live Tracks:
"Inauguration Of The Mechanical
Christ" - "Reflecting God"
- "Great Big White World" -
"Get Your Gunn" - "Sweet
Dreams (Are Made Of This)" -
"Hell Outro" - "Rock Is
Dead" - "Dope Show" -
"Lunchbox" - "I Don't Like
The Drugs (But The Drugs Like Me)" -
"Antichrist Superstar" -
"Beautiful People" -
"Irresponsible Hate Anthem" -
"The Last Day On Earth" -
"Astonishing Panorama Of The End
Times" |
|
Holy Wood (In The Shadow
Of The Valley Of Death)
Released: November, 2000
US: Gold
Billboard
peak:
# 13
Rolling Stone
review:
Tracks:
"Godeatgod" - "Love
Song" - "Fight Song" -
"Disposable Teens" -
"Target Audience (Narcissus
Narcosis)" - "President
Dead" - "In The Shadow Of The
Valley Of Death" -
"Cruci-Fiction In Space" -
"Place In The Dirt" -
"Nobodies" - "Death
Song" - "Lamb Of God" -
"Born Again" - "Burning
Flag" - "Coma Black: Eden Eye /
The Apple Of Discord" -
"Valentine's Day" - "Fall
Of Adam" - "King Kill" -
"Count To 6 And Die" |
|
The Golden Age Of
Grotesque
Released: May, 2003
US: Gold
Billboard
peak:
# 1 (for 1 week)
Rolling Stone
review:
Tracks: "This Is New
S***" - "Mobscene" -
"Doll-Dagga Buzz-Buzz
Ziggety-Zag" - "Use Your Fist
And Not Your Mouth" - "The
Golden Age Of Grotesque" -
"(s)aint" - "Ka-Boom
Ka-Boom" - "Slutgarden" -
"Spade" - "Para-noir"
- "The Bright Young Things" -
"Better Of Two Evils" -
"Vodevil" - "Obsequy (The
Death Of Art)" |
|
Lest We Forget: The Best
Of
Released: September, 2004
US: Gold
Billboard
peak:
# 9
Rolling Stone: 
Tracks: "The Love
Song" - "Personal Jesus" -
"mOBSCENE" - "The Fight
Song" - "Tainted Love" -
"The Dope Show" - "This Is
The New S***" - "Disposable
Teens" - "Sweet Dreams (Are
Made Of This)" -
"Lunchbox" -
"Tourniquet" - "Rock Is
Dead" - "Get Your Gunn" -
"The Nobodies" - "Long
Hard Road Out Of Hell" - "The
Beautiful People" - "The
Reflecting God" |
|
Eat Me, Drink Me
Released: June, 2007
Billboard
peak:
# 8
Rolling Stone: - Entertainment
Weekly: B
Tracks: "If I Was
Your Vampire" - "Putting Holes
In Happiness" - "Red Carpet
Grave" - "They Said The Hell's
Not Hot" - "Just A Car Crash
Away" - "Heart-Shaped Glasses
(When The Heart Guides The Hand)" -
"Evidence" - "Are You The
Rabbit?" - "Mutilation Is The
Most Sincere Form Of Flattery" -
"You And Me And The Devil Makes
3" - "Eat Me, Drink Me" |
 |
The High End Of Low
Released: May, 2009
Billboard
peak:
# 4
Rolling Stone:  - Entertainment
Weekly: C+
Tracks:
"Devour" - "Pretty As A
($)" - "Four Rusted
Horses" -
"Arma-goddam-motherf*****-geddon"
- "Blank & White" -
"Running To The Edge Of The
World" - "I Want To Kill You
Like They Do In The Movies" -
"WOW" - "Wight
Spider" - "Unkillable
Monster" - "We're From
America" - "I Have To Look Up
Just To See Hell" - "Into The
Fire" - "15" |
Amazon.mp3 |
Born Villain
Released: May, 2012
Tracks: "Hey, Cruel
World" - "No Reflection" -
"Pistol Whipped" - Overneath
The Path Of Misery" -
"Slo-mo-tion" - "The
Garderner" - "The Flowers Of
Evil" - "Children Of Cain"
- "Disengaged" - Lay Down Your
Goddamn Arms" - "Murderers Are
Getting Prettier Every Day" -
"Born Villain" - "Breaking
The Same Old Ground" - "You're
So Vain" |
iTunes
Amazon.mp3 |
The Pale Emperor
Released: Janaury 20, 2015
Billboard
Top 200 LPs
peak: # 8
Tracks: "Killing
Strangers" - "Deep Six" -
"Third Day Of A Seven Day
Binge" - "The Mephistopheles Of
Los Angeles" - "Warship My
Wreck" - "Slave Only Dreams To
Be King" - "The Devil Beneath
My Feet" - "Birds Of Hell
Awaiting" - "Cupid Carries A
Gun" - "Odds Of Even" -
"Day 3" - "Fated,
Faithful, Fatal" - "Fall Of The
House Of Death" |
iTunes
Amazon.mp3
vinyl |
Heaven Upside Down
Released: October 6, 2017
Tracks: "Revelation
#12" - "Tattooed In
Reverse" - "We Know Where You
F****** Live" - "Say10" -
"Kill4Me" -
"Saturnalia" - "Je$u$
Cri$i$" - "Blood Honey" -
"Heaven Upside Down" -
"Threats Of Romance" |
iTunes
Amazon.mp3
vinyl |
We Are Chaos
Released: September 11,
2020
Tracks: "Red Black
And Blue" - "We Are Chaos"
- "Don't Chase The Dead" -
"Paint You With My Love" -
"Half-Way & One Step
Forward" - "Infinite
Darkness" - "Perfume" -
"Keep My Head Together" -
"Solve Coagula" - "Broken
Needle" |
| Note: Song title and
position links lead you to the song's Top
40 chart run (from the ARC Weekly Top
40)
and LP links take you to Amazon.com for that LP (often
including track listings and sound
samples). |
|
|
