Turning people onto Daniel Johnston

[wickedwill]

I am definetly one of Daniels biggest promotion tools! As in if you know me you know I am a hardcore Daniel Johnston fan. I live in a small town with one chain retail music store and I have hung posters in there. Whenever Daniel was in the N.Y. Times one of the guys who works there called me, out of the blue and said I found a Daniel Johnston article and saved it for you. I dont even really know this guy(he got my phone # because its listed in their comp) but he knows me well enough to save a article for me. Thats cool!

Anyways the local Music Instrument Store is owned by a pretty swell guy named Dave and he knows I am a Daniel fan and asked me about the movie. Well I loaned him my copy and burned him a WickedWill best of cd.
Now most music stores are full of techno geeks....they spend all day talking about how Steve Vai could get a better tone if he trimmed his pinky nail......blah blah blah. I normally would think that would be the LAST place to find a DJ fan.
Dave told me his wife was interested in it also because she works with hanicapped people(not mentally ill but HANDICAPPED)  He said that she wanted to see it but did not want to see a film that trivialized or made light of any mental illness. I assured him it was a good movie and shed light not only on the man and the myth but also his illness.

I left the cd and movie with this guy for a week and when I went to get it I was overwelmed by the response......even more taken back by the fact he LOVED the cd and him and his kids (elementary aged) listen to it quite a bit. He said they loved the song "Never Relaxed" and the kids started to sing it! Dave said his kid asked about the masterbation word and he said he just blew it off. His wife loved  the movie and said she was kinda iffy on watching it but it was done in great taste and with alot of heart!
Daniels music is not for everyone but all it took was me just making small talk with this guy, about a great songwriter  in Texas. Him going home and checking out the site (seems he spent quite a bit of time looking around) and when I came in again it was the perfect moment to find out more....and of course I could sit and talk about DJ all day. I hit pay dirt with this guy!
He really sees the talent Dan has and while some of the songs "seemed like a bunch of ramblings but some were really really good" he was fond of "Nothing" and "Some Things Last a Long Time" "Never Relaxed" I kinda made him a really bastardized version of "Welcome to My World"
with about 5 songs cut and 8 new ones added. I always make it a point never to give someone a release that they can buy.
I have turned many folks on to Dan but this for some reason more "memorable"
I guess I did not expect the guy to really get it but he did.


Anybody else "Spread the Gospel Of Daniel Johnston" and have a success story?

[Billy Castillo]

I kinda made him a really bastardized version of "Welcome to My World"
with about 5 songs cut and 8 new ones added.

Which songs were cut, and which were added?

[King Weasel]

yeh im becoming very weary of becoming annoying due to the fact that im always talking about daniel johnston to people, trying to let them in on the secret to having a life changing experience.I bought my family each a copy of TDADJ for christmas.  But most people i know just dont get daniel, which is a little depressing because i always imagined having the type of friends that would like daniel. Through my endless efforts of promoting daniel it is clear that he is not for everyone. THese days I can tell if a person i just met, if he will like daniel after just a few sentences, and if thought they wouldnt, i'd tell them anyway.  Ive hit a few home runs but not as many as i would have liked.
But my favourite one was at a family party a few months ago. I asked my uncle who i knew had a good taste in music had he ever heard of daniel johnston. He said he hadnt and was skeptical when i told him he was the greatest singer song writer alive today. He asked me to play his best song on my i-pod to convince me. After about 4 minutes i finally decided upon 'story of an artist', although i dont consider it his best song i think its his most communicative for a once of listening .I gave him my i-pod and after 'listen up and il tell a story' kicked in he took off the earphones and said;
 " i hate using earphones but thats the best music ive ever heard, where has he been all my life".

I felt like a humanitarian.   

[kung_fu_elvis]

I find "story of an artist" a great way to grab people and draw them into Dan's stuff... A lot of my friends are alrady into 'singer-songwriters' so it wasn't too far of a grasp for most of them. I found I'd play them a song or two, and then leave it... a day or so later, they'd always come back around wanting to hear more. Or cursing me for having one of DJ's tunes stuck in their heads.

[Henry Long]

King- Your Humanitarian Award is in the mail!

Cool story. Daniel's music cuts directly through the crap, doesn't it?! Glad your uncle took a moment to listen.

One in ten who hear a song in my living room, (I usually go for something off "Yip/Jump" or "Artistic Vice," and "Lost and Found" of late) are hooked. The last convert was a corporate lawyer. World travelled, bookshelves of the Western Canon, cultured tastes (she buys my art!) and of very strong opinions. Anyway, I've mentioned Daniel on a number of meetings with her, but I finally played her a few choice cuts, and she left with a copy of "Welcome To My World," a Black "Hi How Are You?" Tshirt, and all the web site info to read/hear/buy more. Had there been extra CD's around, she would have made me an offer.

Daniel's minions, hard at work

[D. Sulpy]

The responses from people I've tried to turn onto Daniel over the years have been wildly varied. They've ranged from "well, it's obvious he's a genius" (after hearing a song or two off of "Fun"), to literal anger ("it disgusts me how someone who sings like that can get an audience and a record contract when thousands of great musicians are ignored!"). The nicest story, however, is that I was able to make a DanFan out of my friend Bruce Gary (drummer for The Knack). Indeed, just a week or two before he died last summer, I remember talking to him about Dan.

[chunk1904]

my mom just called to tell me she saw the movie.
 i told her about him a long time ago .
(she suffers from bipolar and severe depression)
she kida shrugged it off when i fist told her about the movie and him. but she called today to tell me on demand had it,
and how much she loved it and how sad she got when he sang funeral home .and now she loves his music.
so tonight i made her a mix here is what i picked out for her.

1.dont let the sun go down
2.somethings last a long time
3.casper the friendly ghost
4.living life
5.walking the cow
6.running water
7.blue clods
8.she called the pest control
9.true love will  find you in the end
10.softly and tenderly
11.worried sheos
12.speeding motorcycle
13.phantom of my own opera
14.never relaexd
15.spirit world rising

[Henry Long]

A very loving mix. And very understanding of you as well.
I think you made some good song choices.

[concrete]

I was watching TDADJ (for about the 7th time) when one of my housemates wandered in to the room just as he's singing "Funeral Home" with the crowd...He asked "Is this a joke?" to which I could only say "no"...he sat and watched the rest of the movie then made me play a ton of music...now totally converted...yay...

I feel kind of weird when I play people the music and they don't get it, kind of wish I hadn't bothered because I'd rather they didn't know about it than they sneered at it...

[RioThaFnkyHomosapien]

I was watching TDADJ (for about the 7th time) when one of my housemates wandered in to the room just as he's singing "Funeral Home" with the crowd...He asked "Is this a joke?" to which I could only say "no"...he sat and watched the rest of the movie then made me play a ton of music...now totally converted...yay...

I feel kind of weird when I play people the music and they don't get it, kind of wish I hadn't bothered because I'd rather they didn't know about it than they sneered at it...

Yeah, I kind of feel that if people watched his movie it'd help them understand a LOT. I mean, I listened to him before I watched the movie, but a lot of people are so caught up in having every aspect of music up to the popular standard that they miss out on amazing people like Daniel.

I have yet to have a successful Daniel Convertee, but that's mainly 'cause I haven't tried a lot. If I can get one person to hear his music and understand it's brilliance, I'll feel like I've done something to help their lives.

[freedomCAN]

While channel surfing the other night I stumbled across TD&DJ flic. I immediately became engrossed with story of Daniel. I have always considered myself as somewhat worldly in my knowledge of artists. I am humbled.. Since seeing the movie again I have spread the word within my circle of friends. I find it strange that I am familiar all of the artists that Daniel has crossed paths with (Sonic Youth, Nirvana etc.) but not with Daniel himself. Now that I am aware it will be my mission to share the brilliance of this man with others. Perhaps one of my fellow fans can assist my efforts? I currently have none of Daniels recordings. For myself and others, what recordings should I start my mission with? (Say 5-10 titles) I look forward to your comments and suggestions!

[OhJoy]

i started with "Welcome to my World"
It's a nice mix, hand pick by some of Daniel's friends.

[Henry Long]

http://www.rejectedunknown.com/store/shop/music/

"Welcome..." and the "Archive 5 Pack." But honestly with Daniel you can close your eyes and pick up anything and you will be hooked. His work from the past 10 years is as heart felt and poetic as those initial legendary tape recordings. You can find an argument in the bowels of this forum for almost every release being "The One" to get.

I suggest you put some spending money aside, cuz once you get 1, you'll be getting everything you can get your hands on! Let us know what you end up buying, and how you like it, okay?

[D. Sulpy]

I'd agree, if you're talking about his "solo" work - I certainly wouldn't suggest anybody start with one of the albums he did with Jad Fair or - God forbid, one of those "Danny & The Nightmares" CDs. Nor, much as I love the album, do I think "1990" would be a good place to start. I'd pick "Fun" or "Rejected Unknown" or even "Why Me?." Needless to say, there's some great music on the Stress-era releases, but I think the lo-fi might be a barrier some new listeners might have trouble getting over... I'd want to hook them, first.

[Lee]

I'm not a Johnston expert, and there's a number of his albums I haven't even heard.  Still I feel pretty confident in recommending to FreedomCAN that s/he start with Early Recordings Vol 1: songs of pain / more songs of pain.  No better place to start than the beginning, right?  Of course you'll need to brace yourself for some very lo-fi sound quality.  But many of DJ's best songs, in my opinion, are on these first albums.  And since they are bundled together, the price is definitely right.

http://www.rejectedunknown.com/store/shop/details/7

yip jump music is also recommended

http://www.rejectedunknown.com/store/shop/details/11


enjoy!