Editing Daisy Berkowitz

{{Musician
|Name                = Scott Putesky
|Img                 = Scott-Putesky.jpg
|Img_capt            = Scott Putesky playing a piano set at the 2008 Independent Working Artist Network's winter showcase.
|Img_size            = 250
|Landscape           = Yes
|Birth_name          = Scott Mitchell Putesky
|Background          = non_vocal_instrumentalist
|Alias               = Daisy Berkowitz, SMP, Scott Putesky
|Born                = April 28, 1968
|Died                = October 22, 2017 (aged 49)
|Origin              = New Jersey
|Instrument          = Guitar, vocals, Piano
|Genre               = Rock, Metal, Punk, Industrial 
|Occupation          = Musician, Guitarist, Singer, Songwriter
|Years_active        = 1989–2017
|Label               = Radiculture, Alien, Psychic Theatre, Risk, Scorpian Rising, Empire MusicWerks, [[Interscope Records|Interscope]], [[Nothing]], WYNF, [[Beat Up Your Mom Music]]
|Associated_acts     = [[Stuck on Evil]], [[gODHEAD]], [[Jack Off Jill]], [[Three Ton Gate]], [[The Linda Blairs]], [[Mrs. Scabtree]], [[Marilyn Manson (band)|Marilyn Manson]], India Loves You, The Daisy Kids
|URL                 = http://www.myspace.com/threetongatemusic
|Notable_instruments = Yamaha RGX 612-S YAMAHA<br>1965 Teisco Del Rey KAWAI<br>Jackson Soloist FENDER
}}
'''Scott Mitchell Putesky''' (born April 28, 1968 and died October 22, 2017), better known by his stage name '''Daisy Berkowitz''', was a professional musician. He was the co-founder and the guitarist of industrial metal band [[Marilyn Manson (band)|Marilyn Manson]] before moving on to [[Three Ton Gate]] in 1997, and [[Stuck on Evil]] in 2000. His stage name is formed from the names ''Daisy'' Duke and David ''Berkowitz''.

== Biography ==
[[File:little-scott-putesky.jpg|200px|thumbnail|left|Scott in childhood]]
Putesky's first instruments were the flute and the snare drum, and in 6th grade joined the school's chorus, for which he apparently had a talent. His early loves were drawing, movies and, like his later band mate [[Jeordie White]], he adored ''Star Wars''. His first record was the ''Star Wars'' soundtrack, and the influence that it had on him can be seen in much of his original artwork, which consists of aliens and spaceships. In the late 1970s, when Scott was in his early teenage years and punk had given way, he found admiration for artists such as [[David Bowie]] and Talking Heads, influences that are apparent in his later work.

== Early career ==
Putesky's discovery of MTV after his moving to Fort Lauderdale in 1980 gave him the inspiration to save up to buy a small Casio keyboard. He taught himself to play, and later, in 8th grade, took guitar lessons. Influenced by his early favorites, Putesky learned to play songs by The Cure and U2, leading to his development of a unique personal style sometimes described as a fusion between metal, blues, and grunge. Putesky's first band, The Flying Eggbeaters, featured schoolmates Tom Wolf and Jim Neuman as drummer and bassist. This gave him the experience needed to later go on to other bands, such as Blue China and Ear Wacks.

A period of drifting followed, in which Putesky attended a local art college where he majored in advertising design. Though his musical abilities were sidetracked, he began to visit local metal clubs such as The Gutter and The Cell. In 1988, after being given a small 4-track recorder by his parents, he bought a bass guitar and a drum kit to record his music with a full ensemble. At this time, Scott also played with a surf-rock band called The Hodads, and later formed a band named Kinetic Ritual with Hodads' bassist Rick Waters and future "Spooky Kid" Fred Streithorst on drums. Another drifting period soon set in, however, as Putesky was unsure where to take his unique style.

== Marilyn Manson ==
[[File:1990-29-01-brian-warner-and-scott-putesky.jpg|200px|thumbnail|right|Brian Warner and Scott Putesky (January 29, 1990)]]
Putesky and [[Brian Warner]] met at the bar of a small local party. The two instantly bonded, poking fun at America and its dual obsession with serial killers and beautiful women. According to Manson's autobiography, ''[[The Long Hard Road Out of Hell]]'', Putesky was the second member to be recruited for the group.<ref name="DaisyJoins">''[[The Long Hard Road Out of Hell]]''. ReganBooks. [[Marilyn Manson]]. April 1, 1999. pp. 84</ref>

Putesky, who had at this point not thought to advance his lyrical ability, began to meet up with Warner and brainstorm after his admission of wanting to start a band as a creative outlet for his poetry-writing abilities. Dual input from both parties gave the band its darkly psychedelic style, and as early as 1989, they began to record on Putesky's 4-track songs that would seven years later become known as "[[Cake and Sodomy]]" and "[[Dogma]]". They quickly assembled a band with Warner's schoolmate Brian Tutunick, better known as [[Olivia Newton Bundy]], and, as Warner describes in his autobiography ''The Long Hard Road Out of Hell'', Perry Pandrea, a gawky teenager given the moniker [[Zsa Zsa Speck]]. The band played its first show at Churchills, a club in Miami. A popular local band named The Goods gave them their initial break. The initial show was performed to a small group of about 20 people.

[[File:First-Spooky-Kids-Show-Guitar.jpg|200px|thumbnail|right|The Yamaha RGX 612-S played by Scott Putesky, better known as Daisy Berkowitz, at Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids' first live performances.]]

[[Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids]], with its mix of psychedelic rock and subtle metaphors - candy, for example - quickly built a cult following in South Florida, playing at clubs such as Squeeze and the Reunion Room, and later opening for several national acts such as [[Danzig]]. The group also won a number of Slammies, Florida's version of the Grammy, for metal acts. In August 1992, Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids played [[1992/07/31 Davie, FL|their last show]], renaming themselves (or rather, being renamed by their enigmatic vocalist) to the shorter [[Marilyn Manson (band)|Marilyn Manson]]. The line-up had by that time changed to include Fred Streithorst, Jr. as [[Sara Lee Lucas]] on drums, Bradley Stewart as [[Gidget Gein]] on bass, and Stephen Bier as [[Madonna Wayne Gacy]] on keyboards.

After signing with [[Trent Reznor]]'s label [[Nothing Records]] in the summer of 1993 (Warner had interviewed Reznor years before and remained in touch — Reznor, when asked to come and see a show, was suitably impressed and offered them a contract on the spot) and began work on their first album, ''[[Portrait of an American Family]]''. Though Marilyn Manson built up a strong local fanbase throughout these years, it was not until their 1995 release ''[[Smells Like Children]]'' that they caught the ear of the world with the darkly gothic cover of Eurythmics' "[[Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)]]". In February 1995, after opening for Danzig, having two headlining tours, and making three more music videos, the band headed back to the studio to begin work on ''[[Antichrist Superstar]]''.

[[File:berns-steak-house.jpg|200px|thumbnail|right|Photo by Scott Putesky (Bern's Steak House, Tampa, Florida)]]

At this point, creative differences between Warner and Putesky reached their peak - Putesky, somewhat introverted on stage compared to the riotous antics of Manson, Gacy and Ramirez, began to be pushed off stage by Manson, find his equipment mysteriously broken, and was criticized at every possible opportunity - his image was, according to Warner, just not shocking enough. Excluded from photoshoots and videos (he features less than any other bandmember in the "[[Dope Hat]]" video, for example) and ignored by production crew, his feelings of isolation and frustration grew. Apathy, however, soon turned into active victimization, and before ''Antichrist Superstar'' was completed, an airline ticket for a one-way flight back to Fort Lauderdale mysteriously appeared in the studio. Putesky said nothing, returning home silently with no backup plan, job, or opportunity.

== After Marilyn Manson ==
Abandoning the Daisy Berkowitz moniker in favor of his own initials, SMP, he began recording demos for his first solo project, Three Ton Gate was named for the massive coral gate at the entrance of the Coral Castle in Homestead, Florida, built single handed by one infatuated Ed Leedskalnin for his Sweet 16). A three-song demo, ''3x3'' was his first musical undertaking post Marilyn Manson. The tape featured rough tracks written and performed entirely by Putesky, under the name "Scott Mitchell" (his first and middle names). Shortly thereafter, Scott hired Tyreah James to handle the vocals for the full-length Three Ton Gate release, ''Vanishing Century'' based on the ''3x3'' demo tapes. Scott produced Tyreah's vocals in the studio for all the basic tracks at the now defunct Digital Beach Recording Studio in Fort Lauderdale. The disc was released in 1997 in limited quantities, and sold out its entire run of pressings. Copies of the disc can occasionally be found on eBay. The album, written entirely by Scott Mitchell, was the first Three Ton Gate official release and featured gothic vocalist Tyreah James. At the same time, Putesky was playing live shows in a whimsical side project called [[The Linda Blairs]]. The band featured several unknown South Florida musicians who performed cover tunes previously recorded by female fronted 80s rock bands and was created by singer [[Jessicka]] of Jack Off Jill as an opening act for her band. The Linda Blairs did several live performances dressed in drag. Focusing so much time on the side project detracted Scott from his creative genius with Three Ton Gate and the project with Tyreah soon faltered and was put aside.

In late 1998 Scott joined up with longtime Marilyn Manson collaborators [[Jack Off Jill]], replacing departing member Ho Ho Spade and playing live guitar on their 1999 West Coast tour which lasted for only a handful of gigs. His first recorded work with the band was the 1998 EP ''Covetous Creature'', to which he lent guitar and some production. By early 1999, SMP was no longer a member of Jack Off Jill. By most accounts, he simply lost interest in the band and returned once again to Fort Lauderdale to resume work on his own music, primarily seeking a live band to perform his Three Ton Gate material. In the meantime, he successfully sued Marilyn Manson for what he claimed were unpaid royalties for his contributions to ''[[Antichrist Superstar]]''. In the same lawsuit, Putesky was also awarded the rights to 21 unreleased recordings by [[Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids]].

Following his settlement with Manson, Putesky kicked around several solo and collaborative projects, including continuing to develop Three Ton Gate as a vehicle for film soundtrack work, joining the backing band of Israeli-born musician Michal Towber, and lending his songwriting skills to Washington, DC, industrial-rock band [[gODHEAD]] (who would later, ironically, become the first and only band on Marilyn Manson's record label, [[Posthuman Records]]). He also reestablished the Rednecks on Drugs project with Tim Malvita and fellow musician Rich Penny (who was also in The Linda Blairs).

Eventually, Rednecks on Drugs metamorphosed into Stuck on Evil, essentially a hard-rock band with gothic, Southern rock, and early rock 'n' roll influences. Stuck on Evil recorded a 10-song full-length album, ''Suntanic'', produced by Scott Putesky, in 2001. Their plan for a national tour starting in August of that year was ruined, however, by September 11 and a bone-breaking accident on the part of vocalist John Cain Riley. Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, and the subsequent condemnation of "evildoers" by President George W. Bush, the band decided to drop the word ''evil'' from its name. Explained Putesky: "Stuck on Evil - it's a joke! And then nobody got the joke, and therefore it became a silly name, and all of a sudden having ''evil'' in your name wasn't so funny." Riley agreed: "With the whole nation up in arms about evildoers, it just wasn't a good name to have."

Reverting to the original name of Three Ton Gate, Putesky recorded the album ''Lose Your Mind'' for his own label, Scorpion Rising, in 2003. It was also around that time that Putesky released Lunch Boxes & Choklit Cows, a compilation of remastered Spooky Kids songs. The release was planned to be the first of two releases, but trouble soon befell it as Putesky found himself on the receiving end of a lawsuit from Manson for unauthorized use of artwork and concert footage, which appeared in a bonus CD. The suit was settled out of court, and the compilation re-released without the unauthorized artwork and bonus CD. Perhaps as the result of this fiasco, the second compilation never happened. Copies of the original release can still be occasionally found on eBay.

Putesky has since reported that he plans to reform The Spooky Kids to record a studio album featuring Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids' signature songs, before embarking on a tour. The forthcoming record will be distributed by Alien Music and Radiculture Records.<ref>[http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=20040870&blogId=492374988 NEW]. Scott Putesky. MySpace. June 1, 2009.</ref> As of May 2010, no such project or subsequent work has arisen.

Putesky officially joined electro-punk band Kill Miss Pretty in July 2010 after collaborating with them on their single "Judy Garland". In 2011 they were at work on a new album which will contain the Spooky Kids' song [[She's Not My Girlfriend]].<ref>http://killmisspretty.com/default.asp?page=bio</ref>; however, as of 2012 Putesky is no longer a member of the band. He is currently writing and recording solo material under the name "Scott Mitchell" and planning to revive the "Three Ton Gate" moniker for live performances.

Putesky has in recent years released a number of Marilyn Manson demos online. The band's "first ever" 4-track recording, "[[No Class / Styrofoam Raps]]", and earliest studio recording, "[[All Fall Down]]", were released on November 16, 2010. The following September, the "[[Wormboy]]" demo "Wormboy Gets His Wings" was released, in addition to 1993 recordings of "[[Organ Grinder]]" and "[[Sweet Tooth]]", [[1994/06/29 Fort Lauderdale, FL|a listening party]] performance of "[[Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)]]" circulated in bootlegs for years, two separate demos of "[[Man That You Fear]]" recorded in 1995 and 1996 and a demo of the once live staple "[[Smells Like Children (song)|Smells Like Children]]". Later on November 8, 2011, the musician released a demo of "[[The Beautiful People]]" and the scrapped ''Antichrist Superstar'' introduction "[[Heaven on the Brain]]". In 2012, Putesky released a 1994 4-track recording of "[[Antichrist Superstar (song)|Antichrist Superstar]]", studio demos of "[[Wrapped in Plastic]]" and "[[Cyclops]]," and the "[[Deformography]]" demo "P Is for Porno."

In November of 2013 it was announced that Putesky was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer<ref>[http://loudwire.com/founding-marilyn-manson-guitarist-scott-putesky-daisy-berkowitz-battling-cancer/ ''loudwire.com'']</ref><ref>[https://fundly.com/beat-4-life-scott-mitchell-putesky#supporters/supporters Scott Mitchell Putesky Fundly]</ref>.

The Daisy Kids was an American hard rock supergroup consisting of guitarist Daisy Berkowitz, alongside producer, multi-instrumentalist and bass player THEE PAUSE. Guest vocals on the ''Mr Conrad Samsung EP'' were provided by Justin Symbol of Nursing Home fame. After numerous delays due to internal health problems plaguing both band members Scott and THEE PAUSE, the ''Mr Conrad Samsung EP'' was released on September 20, 2015 digitally via Organic Intelligence Records internationally. Vocal duties were split on this EP between Daisy Berkowitz, THEE PAUSE and Justin Symbol. No tour is planned at the moment as the band members focus on their health and Justin Symbol continues to peruse his various solo and side projects.

On April 7th, 2015 Bust.com announced a [[Jack Off Jill]] reunion show at The Orange Peel in Asheville, NC on July 18th. The 2015 lineup consists of Jessicka, Tenni Ah-Cha-Cha, Michelle Inhell & Helen Storer. Berkowitz joined the band on stage for their encore, "Cinnamon Spider", "Strawberry Gashes", & a cover of the Cure's "Love Song".

On October 22, 2017 Scott Putesky died of the cancer.

== Discography ==
[[File:daisy-and-ginger.jpg|right|200px|Daisy and [[Ginger Fish]]]]

=== Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids ===
* ''[[The Raw Boned Psalms]]'' (1989)
* ''[[The Beaver Meat Cleaver Beat]]'' (1990)
* ''[[Big Black Bus]]'' (1990)
* ''[[Grist-o-Line]]'' (1990)
* ''[[Lunchbox (demo)|Lunchbox]]'' (1991)
* ''[[After School Special]]'' (1991)
* ''[[Live as Hell]]'' (1992)
* ''[[The Family Jams]]'' (1992)
* ''[[Refrigerator]]'' (1993)
* ''[[Lunch Boxes & Choklit Cows]]'' (2004)

=== Marilyn Manson ===
* ''[[Portrait of an American Family]]'' (1994)
* ''[[Smells Like Children]]'' (1995)
* ''[[Antichrist Superstar]]'' (1996)

=== Three Ton Gate ===
* ''Vanishing Century'' (1997)
* ''Lose Your Mind'' (2003)
* ''Rumspringa'' (2012)

=== Jack Off Jill ===
* ''Covetous Creature'' (1998)

=== Stuck on Evil ===
* ''Suntanic'' (2001)

=== The Chrome Recordings ===
* ''The Chrome Recordings'' (2004)

=== Kill Miss Pretty ===
* ''Judy Garland'' (2010)
* ''TBA'' (2011)

=== The Daisy Kids ===
* ''Square in a Minor'' (2013)
* ''Mr Conrad Samsung EP'' (2015)

=== Solo ===
* ''Millenium Effluvium'' (2014)
* ''TBA'' (Unknown)

== Trivia ==
[[File:Acss alt tracklisting.jpg|200px|thumbnail|Alternative tracklisting for [[Antichrist Superstar]]]]
* The guitar Berkowitz was initially using during the recording of ''[[Antichrist Superstar]]'' was saved from what would have been its destruction during the filming of the music video for "[[Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)]]". In the studio during the recording of ''Antichrist Superstar'', [[Trent Reznor]] expressed interest in the guitar and took it from Berkowitz, strumming the strings a few times, then mercilessly smashed it over an amplifier, consigning it to the fate that was meant for it half a year prior.

* Berkowitz appears in footage of a live performance of "[[My Monkey]]" in the ''[[Dead to the World]]'' documentary, although he is crudely blurred out in these scenes.

== References ==
<references/>

== External links ==
* [https://www.myspace.com/threetongatemusic Official MySpace profile]
* [https://www.facebook.com/ThreeTonGate Official Three Ton Gate Facebook profile]
* [https://soundcloud.com/3tgtunes Official Soundcloud profile]

{{Members}}

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