The quality is fine - pro-shot.

There are only two Daniel performances, though, plus an interview with him on the second disc.

Hi, Ubertar!
Thank you for the link and sharing this rare performance. Makes my day to hear some new Daniel (even if it's old Daniel...)

Doug

I'd begin with "The Late Great Daniel Johnston" - it gathers material together from various parts of his career - not just the early, boom-box stuff.

It's a shame, because touring would be good for Dan's career, particularly with the release of the documentary, but obviously his health comes first.

I join the rest of you, of course, in wishing him well... wherever he is .

D.

My fault. I didn't read closely enough - the entire catalog is not available on iTunes, just selected albums.

I just checked iTunes and they're not there (there is, however, some album I've never heard of by a "Daniel Johnston" who's not THE Daniel Johnston... how weird).

What's this about "only been released on cassette"? ... Dan's Stress tapes were available in MP3 form for years on-line - I know, because that's how I got "Frankenstein Love" when it came out.

Sure
Email me at dsulpy at ptd dot net if you still need help.

Doug

"35 miles from Wilkes-Barre?! Which mountaintop, my friend? (there's a bunch of 'em). Next time I'm home to see mom (in Ashley) I'll have to look you up. Share a few Daniel stories..."

Albrightsville - take 115 out of WB and you're there (or here, rather ).

"Jeez, all these Daniel fan's with BFA's/MFA's...I say we all get together someday soon and visit the man himself. Sort of a Merry Prankster's* bus affair. Waller Texas or Bust! Bring a video camera and some digital equipment and make our own damn movie!"

I'm game, if I can find any money. Sounds like fun .

D.

Great topic, Henry.

As for me, I'm 47 and spent most of my life in New Jersey. I'm now living "on top of a mountaintop" in Pennsylvania, about 35 miles from Wilkes-Barre (the place that Henry escaped from!).

I have an MFA (Master of Fine Arts) from Rutgers University. I'd say I have a BFA, too, but I threw that one out a long time ago. Unfortunately, the school I attended neglected to inform their students that they would have to DO something for a living once they got out of school - and I flat-out forgot to ask. Consequently, I found myself, like one of the other posters here, asking "what do I want to do for the rest of my life?" - I'm still working on that one.

I married while still in school, and had two children - one of them (the blonde one) is finishing up college, and spinning hard trance (yuck) in Switzerland at the moment. The other is trying to scrape up enough money to go back to art school so she, too, can have a career as an unemployed painter. The marriage ended a couple of years ago and I found myself here on the mountain, where at least it's peaceful.

Like Daniel, I am a lifelong Beatles fan, and started my own fan magazine in 1986. Since 1990, I have supported myself (barely) by publishing a newsletter for Beatle collectors, and various books on the subject. My other interests are in restoring the early Chaplin films (slowly but surely) and Chinese films (which seem to fill up half the house).

Music-wise, I have a wide range of interests - from the earliest 78's to The Velvet Underground. Daniel's music is very special to me, though, and I have (and will) do everything I can to promote it to others.

Doug

Tweaks on the tweaks (or just thoughts)...

"Outsider music is music performed either by social outsiders, who have no close associates in, or serious interest from, the mainstream music business. These musicians often live and work in seclusion, often due to compromising behavioral or psychological conditions."

Well, Daniel certainly has connections in the music industry (some of them post here!), but I don't know about "mainstream" (and that's a GOOD thing, needless to say!).

"Their lyrics and melodies are often bizarre and songs show a great ignorance or disregard for structural conventions in mainstream music. Their ears seem to work differently than ours; they often do not even realize that their music is any different from the songs they hear on the radio. To them, their music sounds like a hit, not matter how ear-splitting, atonal, or outre it may be. They are 'all art and no craft', and they tend to 'luck into' what popularity they manage to accrue, as they simply do not and cannot offer a 'product' that is sellable to the mainstream audience, with the only exceptions being once-in-a-lifetime fluke novelty chart hits like Tiny Tim's 'Tiptoe Thru the Tulips' or the Lonesome Stardust Cowboy's 'Paralyzed'."

Enough interesting stuff in this to fill up a couple of threads . I interviewed Tiny once, and I think he saw himself as an entertainer, whether singing at the Royal Albert Hall or to a bunch of strangers on a street corner in Iowa. I get a similar impression about Daniel - that is if absolutely NO ONE paid any attention to his music whatsoever he'd STILL be pounding them out and taping them on a boombox, because he's driven by something beyond recognition and renumeration to create his songs. Indeed, this is exactly the pattern that outsider artists exhibit.

(snip)

"Some outsider musicians are routinely touted as being 'brilliant' or called 'genius' by jaded members of the press seeking something - anything! - that they haven't already become bored with. It's an 'apples and oranges' situation, though; their lyrics, however fascinating and/or entertaining they may be in their own way, cannot really be compared (certainly not favorably) with those of a skilled, inarguably gifted songwriter such as Bob Dylan or Stephen Sondheim. Some OMs are famous specifically for their awfulness and most of their audience considers them to be a surreal comedy act, a fact that many of these performers eventually realize and some even choose to embrace."

Here we have a category which clearly excludes Daniel Johnston. He possesses several of the characteristics required, but not nearly all. Most significantly, while his lyrics often contain unusual stylistic quirks and idiosyncracies, just as many are both emotionally affecting and intelligently crafted. The works he has produced which inspire cries of 'genius' are hampered only by his level of available technology and the limitations of his voice. Any number of his songs have the potential chart-toppers, classics, or even standards if recorded with care and affection by a Michael Stipe or a Harry Connick, Jr."

They're just amazing songs - though I don't know if I buy into the "limitations of his voice" thing. To me, the singing and the songs are all part of the same package. Very occasionally I prefer the covers to Daniel's originals ("Living Life," for example, or "Good Morning You" come to mind), but Daniel's sincerety and emotional commitment far overshadow any "deficiencies" in his voice - making me wonder just what that term means ANYWAY (I mean, I've known people who turn away from Daniel's music because of his singing, but then rave about the most recent Dylan album.... huh???).

Much better than the previous hit piece.

Two glaringly dumb statements, though -

1. Daniel cribbed some of his songs from The Beatles.
    - Oh, yeah? What? I can pick out songs that Dan's cribbed from people but none of them are Beatle songs.

2. His fans do not consider him an outsider artist
    - Huh? He's the most glaring living example one can possibly think of as an outsider artist!

On another note...
Oh, God bless the new server. I can finally log in as myself again, instead of as a guest (after I changed my e-mail address, the old software did not allow me to log in!). I finally feel "official" again!

A little clarification from a fan's point of view...
I'm sure none of us listen to performances like "Careless Soul," or "Long Lost Love" and just think: "catchy melody" or "clever words" - in other words, the feeling in those songs (and countless others) clearly comes through to those of us who aren't related to Daniel - and a big part of our "jumping up and down in approval" relates to our appreciation that he is able to communicate pain / longing / obsession / whatever - that's his REAL gift - and it's the sharing of those feelings that ties the fans to him, I think.

Doug

My first exposure to Daniel's music was in a now-defunct record store in Belmar, N.J. that my friend Eric tended - one day in 1994 I wandered in, and he said: "You've got to hear THIS guy..." and played the first track off of "Fun." I was hooked within a matter of seconds, and haven't stopped yet . Funny thing is, my friend soon lost interest in Daniel's music, and didn't like "1990" when I played it for him some time later - he said it was too depressing. I think that's interesting, because I've never found Daniel's music to be depressing - heartwrenching at times, sad at times - but sad and beautiful at the same time, which makes up for it.

Two other things...
I created an Excel file of Daniel's performances. After a bit more polishing, I don't see why that couldn't be made available to anyone here who wants it. I don't know about you youngsters (snort), but there are over 700 songs now, and I'm beginning to have trouble remembering what song is on what album! (Dejected... did you get this okay? I realize you're busy... just nod yes or no... ).

Second other thing...
Any news on the tribute album, like further artists, or release date? I wonder what the chances are of getting one of Jeff Tweedy's performances of "True Love Will Find You In The End" on there. That would pull in X amount of Wilco fans - which I assume is the aim of the whole project, to pull in fans of the performing artists' work and introduce them to Daniel's music. Has someone remembered to invite Kathy McCarty? She was a pioneer in this kind of thing - although, come to think of it, I haven't heard anything from her AT ALL since "Dead Dog's Eyeball" and the "Sorry Entertainer" EP (sigh).

The link says the song is "Amazed" by someone named Mozella. If so, the beginning of it, at least, is damn reminiscent of "Some Things Last A Long Time", from "1990."

I'm glad there's a link to the commercial, by the way, so you can all hear it.

D.

I was thinking about that for "Desperate Man" ... is Daniel singing along to something, or did he find someone to play the song?