Bob "Slim" Dunlap is the epitome of traveling musicians who make music just for fun, as long as their daily concerts allow.
Even so, even his casual listeners know his name for a reason, as he replaced Replacements' troubled, late late guitarist Bob Stinson.
Bob "Slim" Dunlap (born August 14, 1951) is an American rock musician.
Bob "Slim" Dunlap (August 14, 1951 – December 18, 2024)
Bob ‘Slim’ Dunlap, the final guitarist for the iconic punk rock band The Replacements, passed away on December 18 at the age of 73, as reported by The Minnesota Star Tribune. His death was attributed to complications from a 2012 stroke that left him bedridden and unable to perform music.
In a heartfelt statement, Dunlap’s family shared that he passed peacefully at home surrounded by loved ones. “We played him his Live at the Turf Club (Thank You Dancers!) CD, and he left us shortly after listening to his version of ‘Hillbilly Heaven’ — quite poignant,” they said.
Bob "Slim" Dunlap epitomizes the journeyman musician who plays for the fun of it, when his day gig allows.
However, even casual listeners know his name for one reason: landing the "hot seat" assignment of succeeding the Replacements' late, troubled guitarist Bob Stinson.
But there's more to Dunlap's story than his experience with that legendarily star-crossed Minneapolis quartet might indicate.
Dunlap's modest manner helped to ease the feelings of hardcore fans unmoved by the rationale given for Stinson's departure. Yet his talents found little outlet on the final Replacements album, All Shook Down (1990) -- on which Westerberg sidelined the band and enlisted session players to augment the album's stark, bare sound.
In the early 1970s he teamed up with rock musician and visual artist Curtiss A, also known as Curt Almsted, and together they formed Thumbs Up, an "unusual mix of rhythm and blues with pop [that] has been described as early new wave"
Dunlap gained his first local attention by playing with eccentric singer/songwriter Curtiss A (Curt Almsted) in the late '70s. Starting with a 1978 EP by Almsted's punk rockish Spooks, he graced all but one of Almsted's Twin/Tone efforts (typified by quirky outbursts like his single, "I Don't Wanna Be President").
By then, Dunlap had a reputation as an intuitive, reliable musician who could fit any situation, a quality that attracted the Replacements' Paul Westerberg.
Dunlap declined the vacancy when the Replacements let Stinson go in June 1986 -- but later reversed himself, citing his admiration for Westerberg's songwriting as the main reason.
Only a churlish zealot could pooh-pooh the benefits of having a schooled musician in such a reckless band, which grew tighter and more accomplished during the Pleased to Meet Me (1987) and Don't Tell a Soul (1989) eras. (However, Dunlap had little input on the former album, which had been largely completed before he joined.)
Born in 1951 in Minnesota, Dunlap began playing guitar in his youth and rose to prominence in the late 1970s, performing with Curtiss A (Curt Almsted) and the punk-inspired band Spooks. His talents caught the attention of The Replacements’ Paul Westerberg, who recruited him to replace founding guitarist Bob Stinson in 1987. Adopting the nickname ‘Slim’ to distinguish himself from his predecessor, Dunlap became affectionately known as “the replacement Replacement.”
During his tenure, Dunlap contributed to the band’s final albums, Don’t Tell a Soul (1989) and All Shook Down (1990). Following the band’s breakup in 1991, he embarked on a solo career, releasing critically acclaimed albums The Old New Me (1993) and Times Like This (1996). Transitioning from national fame to local impact, Dunlap remained a vital part of Minnesota’s music scene until his health challenges in 2012.
Community efforts to support his recovery included the 2013 compilation Songs for Slim, featuring contributions from artists such as Steve Earle and Jeff Tweedy. His final release, Thank You, Dancers!, captured the magic of a 2002 live performance. Dunlap’s profound influence on music continues to resonate, marking him as a cherished figure in the punk rock and local music communities.
The cause of death, according to a statement from his family, was “complications from his stroke,” which befell him in early 2012, causing severe health complications over the last nearly 13 years.
“Unsatisfied.” That’s the title of one of the Replacements’ greatest songs, and also a word that describes how serious rock fans feel every year when the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominations come around, realizing that bands like this and fellow Minnesotans Husker Du apparently don’t stand a chance of even coming up for contention, despite passing the test for combined influence and greatness several times over. The hall perpetually passing over brilliant proto-punk is really enough to give you the moody blues.
But as consolation this week, by sure coincidence, there is the release of “For Sale: Live at Maxwell’s 1986,” finally seeing the light of day as an actual professionally recorded document instead of bootleg after 31 years. It’s an amazing collection of 29 songs — most of them classics (“Bastards of Young”), a few of them not (“Gary’s Got a Boner”) — that helps remake the case for the Replacements as a band that should at least be considered in a three-way tie with U2 and Nirvana for the greatest to have come along in the post-‘70s era.
