Daniel Johnston Dead at 58... Rip...

badascan

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Dan Johnston, singer-song writer and artist died today of natural causes at 58 years old. He was a underground superstar, an outsider folk artist who was promoted by Kurt Cobain and many others and will be missed. There was a great documentary made about him called "The Devil and Daniel Johnston", if you haven't seen it check it out. He was a kind of mad genius to some and battled with his mind his whole life. A guy who, like most of us was motivated by heartbreak and expressed it through his art... Rip...

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Don't know him, or of him. Sound's like he led a good life.
 
Natural causes at 58?!
 
The doc is fascinating.
 
RIP. He's an influence of mine in the acoustic/folk rock area. True Love Will Find You In The End is a great song, considering his issues.
 
I saw the doc on him. It was interesting. He was a truly awful musician though, and I'll never understand the following he gained. He's an inspiration I suppose, because he didn't have a musical bone in his body, but he made it for a minute or two there for whatever reason. People dug the autism folk music, I guess.
 
I saw the doc on him. It was interesting. He was a truly awful musician though, and I'll never understand the following he gained. He's an inspiration I suppose, because he didn't have a musical bone in his body, but he made it for a minute or two there for whatever reason. People dug the autism folk music, I guess.
I always got the feeling that his fans were enamored with his psychiatric condition moreso than his music. Seemed somewhat exploitive, much like Wesley Willis who was another institutionalized schizophrenic.
 
I always got the feeling that his fans were enamored with his psychiatric condition moreso than his music. Seemed somewhat exploitive, much like Wesley Willis who was another institutionalized schizophrenic.

Yeah, I can see that. As if his craziness somehow made him reach heights we all just couldn't see, despite our ears vomiting. Thing is, he's celebrated by actual artists...lucid ones, which makes me do a double take on them. This guy isn't Andy Warhol or anything. He's legitimately insane, and unlike a guy like Warhol, he really had no talent to speak of. He was just some deranged guy plucking a guitar and singing to it like a child would.

If for nothing else, he makes for an interesting documentary subject because of those factors, but that's about it.
 
Yeah, I can see that. As if his craziness somehow made him reach heights we all just couldn't see, despite our ears vomiting. Thing is, he's celebrated by actual artists...lucid ones, which makes me do a double take on them. This guy isn't Andy Warhol or anything. He's legitimately insane, and unlike a guy like Warhol, he really had no talent to speak of. He was just some deranged guy plucking a guitar and singing to it like a child would.

If for nothing else, he makes for an interesting documentary subject because of those factors, but that's about it.
his appeal is partly the raw nature of his expression. He wasn't the most technically gifted obviously but his desire for projecting his mind through music is appreciated by those who want genuine unfiltered art. It's subjective....
 
It's subjective....

I guess. As all artistic expression goes, it's all subjective as far as personal enjoyment goes. But seriously, would you not be hard pressed to convince people this guy was any good?

A three year old banging on a drum with popsicle sticks is "raw". Is it any good though?
 
I guess. As all artistic expression goes, it's all subjective as far as personal enjoyment goes. But seriously, would you not be hard pressed to convince people this guy was any good?

A three year old banging on a drum with popsicle sticks is "raw". Is it any good though?
I wouldn't try to convince someone about good or bad but if i wanted someone to appreciate his music maybe i'd have them listen to this...

 
Hadn't thought about -or listened to- that guy in years and years. Not since I was in my late teens and napster/kazaa was still a thing. Nostalgia!
Only song of his that springs to mind is this one, I guess.

 
Blows my mind how many people I see die in the age range of 40-60. Scary and sad.
 

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