Scot Alexander: Mormon Musician

Scot Alexander is a bass guitarist with the alternative rock band Dishwalla. In 1991, Alexander and John Robert Richards met at a record store and discovered they had similar musical tastes. They created Dishwalla, which was first called Dish, with Richards on lead vocals, Alexander on bass, Rodney Cravens as guitarist, and George Pendergast as drummer.

In 1994, Dishwalla signed with A&M Records in 1994. The group’s first album, Pet Your Friends, became popular a year after its release due to the popularity of the single “Counting Blue Cars.” It became #1 in the alternative, rock, AAA, and hot AC radio genres. It also made it into the top ten of the top 40 charts.

Dishwalla’s fan base continued to grow as the band toured with Sheryl Crow, Goo Goo Dolls, Tonic, Better Than Ezra, Jewell, Blind Melon, Gin Blossoms, Refreshments, Styx, Stabbing Westward, The Verve Pipe, and many others. The band took a break in 2006 and returned to touring in 2008 with Alexander, Pendergast, Cravens, Jim Wood, and Justin Fox. Pete Maloney was with the group from 1998 to 2007.

By 1997, the band had received a Billboard award for “Rock Track of the Year” and was also awarded ASCAPs “Rock Song of the Year” for both 1996 and 1997. Other albums include And You Think You Know What Life’s About, Opaline, Dishwalla, Gems, Santa Claus Lane, Live . . . Greetings from the Flow State, Santa Claus Lane II, and Southeast Asia.

Scot contributed songs to over twenty film and television soundtracks and performed as a guest on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “Conan O’Brien,” “Craig Kilborn,” and “John Stewart.”

Alexander converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at age 19. He was born in Kauai, Hawaii, and raised in southern California by a single mother and grew up listening to her old record albums.