Fred Durst has shared an emotional video tribute to late Limp Bizkit bassist Sam Rivers, reflecting on their first meeting and the early days of the band.
Speaking in an eight minute Instagram video, Durst recalled first meeting Rivers at a small Florida bar called Pier 7. “And there Sam [Rivers] was on the stage with his band, killing it on the bass,” he said. “I went, ‘Oh my gosh, this guy’s amazing.’ … It was the bass player.”
Durst said Rivers’ talent was instantly clear. “He was playing a five-string bass, too. I’d never really seen someone using a five-string bass. And he was so smooth and good, and he stood out, and I could hear nothing else but Sam. Everything disappeared besides his gift.”
After the show, Durst approached him with an idea that would soon change their lives. “‘Hey, man, you’re unbelievable. I got this idea for this band I wanna do,’” Durst recalled telling him. Rivers simply replied: “‘Killer. I’m in. Let’s do it!’”
He soon introduced Rivers to his cousin, drummer John Otto, and the trio began rehearsing in Sam’s garage, marking the birth of Limp Bizkit. “This is it. This is what I’ve been looking for,” Durst remembered.
Durst also spoke about their shared love of grunge, bands like Mother Love Bone, Alice In Chains, and Stone Temple Pilots, which helped shape the band’s early sound. “He had this kind of ability to pull this beautiful sadness out of the bass that I’d never heard,” Durst said.
“It’s so tragic that he’s not here right now,” Durst added. “With Limp Bizkit, we’ve been on such a journey… Sam was just really, really happy about it.”
Closing the tribute, he said: “What [Sam Rivers] left us behind is priceless… He really did have an impact on the world, and his music and his gift is the one that’s gonna keep on giving.”
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