It's all about YOU!

[Doug Sulpy]

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

[Henry Long]

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...

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!

*showing-my-age reference

[Doug Sulpy]

"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.

[Darren]

im 20 years old and live in new jersey. 

I've always loved pop music and great simple songwriting.  Nirvana the beatles, the pixies, tom waits, the vaselines, and guided by voices just to name a few.  I had heard about daniel of course and had heard yo la tengo's cover of speeding motorcycle.  but it wasnt until the fall of last year that i really looked into daniel.  i downloaded speeding motorcycle and played it over and over for days.  then i proceeded to download all his albums.  im pretty sure i have his whole discography now.  (this is something that really troubles me.  i know daniel is trying to buy house and i feel really guilty.  i live in a small town with no decent record shop.  if anyone knows a way to contact daniel so i can reimburse PLEASE LET ME KNOW)

Im not sure i can put into words why I love daniel and what his music means to me.  First of all, its great pop songs.  really catchy, really fun.  Daniel is prolly the best pop songwriter of the last 25 years.  in my opinion at least.  There is also an quality of earnestness in his performance.  especially his albums from the 80s.  just the kid sitting in his bedroom, rocking out, playing the rockstar, having fun.  toss in great songs and daniel is everything i'll ever love about rock and roll. 

as for who i am.  i sit in my apartment and write silly songs on my computer. 

music besides daniel: boredoms, radiohead, pixies, sonic youth, xiu xiu, john zorn, the vaselines, mf doom, joanna newsom, fela kuti, and ween

[billybob]

i was in an austin band, poison 13, and daniel, who was a simultaneously shy and hyper-outgoing funny guy, if that makes sense,  used to come see us every time we played, and gave us his tape, "hi how are you?"  it sat around at our bass player's house for a while, then one day when i went over to his house, he said, "you have to hear this tape from that guy daniel."  i remember the first song i heard was "i am a baby in my universe."  i was blown away.  we all thought that of course he was a genius but i never really thought he would ever become well-known...now i realize that he only needed to be heard to have a big following.  i became his good friend around that period and he never ceased to amaze me with his songwriting, his mental quickness, and his encyclopedic knowledge of pop culture--and his way of incorporating different aspects of it into his own worldview.  since then i have stayed friends with daniel, sometimes seeing him often, sometimes not.  one of my bands, the meat purveyors, covered "museum of love" on our second record.  the last thing i actually recorded with daniel was "party" and "i lose" for rejected unknown.  and something for the ron english cd too.

[Gina]

WOW!

...great posts! ...excited that 'my sharing post' inspired it...

No time left today to read about everyone...will come back on and check out the info on my fellow DJ fans as I find more time

Looking forward to learning more about everyone -
Gina

[bbreslin12]

My name is Brian. I'm 31 and i'm from Philadelphia, PA (USA). I'm always looking for new music that's a little different. I am a big Dead Milkmen fan and they do a cover of "Rocketship" that is amazing. At first i just thought it was one of their songs but then i found out it was originally done by a guy named Daniel Johnston. Well. i figured i should check out this Johnston guy so i bought his album "Fun" and was blown away. His songs hit you on so many different levels. He instantly became my favorite musical artist. By the way, check out the dead milkmen if you get a chance they are a great band as well. Their cover of "Rocketship" is on an album called 'Bucky Fellini" which is really great.

[danaisgone]

My name is dana. I'm from the east coast of canada.... Think Maine, but higher (in every sense of the word).

Bad puns aside, I first was exposed to daniel when i saw "Kids" for the first time and picked up the soundtrack.

I'm 22. I work. I record and release things localy. My greatest ambition is to be as cool as Donovan, or at least Leonard Cohen.

My musical tastes range from Black Flag to Prince to Death to Daniel back to Donovan and if you make a right you'll probably notice i have a couple public enemy albums as well. I just like sounds. and lots of them.

My favorite band is The Beach Boys. My favorite album is Pet Sounds. My Favorite Movie is The Last Picture Show. My favorite book is Heart Of Darkness.

I am dull, in a non-threatening slightly pleasant way. People like me, but mostly at a distance (emotionally mostly. unless it's the day before wash day).

That's all I can come up with.

[gina164]

Henry,

I just hate that your poem got deleted in the recent 'technical difficuties'...

Can you repost it?

Thanks, Gina

[Henry Long]

Arrgh! My thesis on the art of Daniel Johnston was swallowed too. Dammit. I didn't save it anywhere, and it was written during one of those late night flashes of inspiration/insight (if I do say so myself)

Anyway, thanks for the poem request, Gina. Here it is:


Prayerabola   

I wanna see the world
while there’s still a world to see.
The future just ain’t
what it used to be.

Somehow in our infamy,
we lost the infant poetry,
forgot the codes of alchemy,
accepted mediocrity
and called graffiti prophecy.

Lucifer,
you little Daystar,
old horny headed pal,
you aint down there for the count,
you’re just trippin on your tale.

Yahweh,
you old buzzard,
bearded hot-headed Jew,
you did not create the universe,
man, the universe created You.

And bless us,
O big Mama Earth.
Keep us on the ground.
And let us not fear
dark or light,
and may the World go round.
                                                                     

I am hard at work on my first novella called "1972" A funny, twisted coming of age story; sort of Richard Brautigan meets Charles Dickens meets Stan Lee meets a 9-year-old kid on paregoric. If I can, I'll send you an excerpt, or post part of it somewhere in here if I'm allowed.

From now on, all essays on Daniel will be saved in Appleworks FIRST, then posted. A hard lesson has been learned.

[gina164]

Thank you, Henry - I will keep a copy of that -
loved it!

Best regards,

Gina

PS - send me anything you'd like to - I'll be happy to read it.
ginareynolds164@yahoo.com

[favorhouseatlantic]

I heard his name mentioned in an interview that I don't really remember. I decided to check him out and was deeply intrigued when I downloaded the Hey Joe song. It reminded me so much of being a kid. It was weird. Now, it is not like he is one of my favorite musicians, it's like he's one of my favorite people.

[Sorry Entertainer]

My name is Alex. I live in Moscow, Russia. I'm 27, working in clinical research. I also sing, write songs (in English) and play a guitar and theremin in a band.
The first time I heard Daniel Johnston's record was in the summer 2004. I was browsing through CDs in an Italian music store in Rimini and they had those listening stations. There I first heard Fear Yourself. I listened to a couple of songs and I really didn't like it. I didn't know anything about Daniel at that time so this episode remained blocked out until now.
A few months ago my father was looking through new releases and found out about Discovered Covered. He put in on our wish-list and I eventually stumbled upon this CD in a record store. I knew nothing about Daniel at that time and I was amazed when I listened to his songs and read his biography. Also, thanks to this album I learned about a handful of great musicians like Vic Chesnutt, Calvin Johnson, Clem Snide. And Kathy McCarty is great! I wonder why wasn't she on this tribute record? That's kind of weird.
Listening to Daniel Johnston is always an inspiration for making my own music.

Cheers.

[gina164]

Hi to the newbie here, Alex, in Moscow!

I, too, wondered why Kathy did not get on the tribute album...anyone know why?

Gina

[wickedwill]

Yeah it would have been kinda neat...I wished the Butthole Surfers would have done something on the benefit album! That would have been awesome