Daniel Johnston (born Daniel Dale Johnston in Sacramento, CA, on 22 January… Read Full Bio ↴Daniel Johnston (born Daniel Dale Johnston in Sacramento, CA, on 22 January 1961; died in Waller, TX, on 10 September 2019) was an American singer-songwriter and visual artist regarded as a significant figure in outsider, lo-fi, and alternative music scenes. Most of his work consisted of cassettes recorded alone in his home, and his music was frequently cited for its "pure" and "childlike" qualities. His music has been acclaimed by many artists including David Bowie, Sonic Youth, and Simpsons creator Matt Groening. Kurt Cobain of Nirvana fame praised Johnston's work, and often wore a t-shirt with a Johnston illustration and a caption reading, "Hi How Are You?"
Johnston spent extended periods in psychiatric institutions and has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. He gathered a local following in the 1980s by passing out tapes of his music while working at a McDonald's in Austin, Texas. His cult status was propelled when Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was seen wearing a T-shirt that featured artwork from Johnston's 1983 album Hi, How Are You. In 2005, Johnston was the subject of the documentary The Devil and Daniel Johnston.
His songs were typically painfully direct, and often display a disturbing blend of childlike naïvete with darker, "spooky" themes. Johnston's singing voice is rather high-pitched, and his performances often seem faltering or uncertain; pitchfork writes that Johnston's recordings range from "spotty to brilliant". He also draws and paints; he is a cult comic book artist and his illustrations have been featured with most of his albums.
Johnston was born in Sacramento, California and grew up in West Virginia, United States, but then moved to Waller, Texas. Johnston suffers from manic depression, and has had varying luck with different treatments. He has been institutionalized for periods.
In the late 1970s, Johnston began recording his songs on a $59 Sony Boombox, singing and playing either guitar, piano or harmonica. He gave tapes of his music to anyone who would take them. Johnston created the comic book inspired art that usually accompanied his own recordings. His debut recording Songs of Pain was released in 1981.
His early songs established a number of themes that would persist through Johnston's career: Unrequited love, Casper the Friendly Ghost, and comic book superheroes, especially Captain America and Jack Kirby's other works. "Joe"—a partly autobiographical character—has been featured in a number of songs. Johnston has cited The Beatles as a prime influence.
A sizable proportion of Johnston's songs throughout the years have dealt with his unrequited love for "Laurie," a girl he became friends with in college, who was the first to encourage him to record his music. The Laurie character quickly assumed the role of the idealized female muse. The real life Laurie Allen married an undertaker, prompting Johnston to write lyrics in which the Laurie figure becomes strongly associated with the imagery of death in addition to her original role as a muse. For example, the song Funeral Home in which Johnston sings that he's "going to a funeral home" represents both the foreknowledge of death and Johnston's desire to be reunited with Laurie, who at the time worked at a funeral home. Laurie Allen has since divorced and filmmaker Jeff Feuerzeig arranged a meeting between Allen and Johnston.
Johnston gained a cult following in Austin, Texas. Some regarded Johnston as little more than a quaint curiosity, but others recognized a genuine talent: Johnston has a knack for creating great, catchy melodies, while his lyrics are evocative and often use clever wordplay. His songs have been covered by a number of admirers.
A 1985 MTV special on Austin brought Johnston wider attention, and a number of record stores outside Texas began selling his cassettes.
His music has been acclaimed by David Bowie, Sonic Youth, and Simpsons creator Matt Groening. Kurt Cobain of Nirvana fame praised Johnston's work, and often wore a t-shirt with a Johnston illustration and a caption reading, "Hi How Are You?"
1994 saw the release of Fun on Atlantic Records. The record was produced by Paul Leary of Butthole Surfers, a group who had long supported Johnston, even inviting him to open a number of concerts for them.
In 1993, Johnston painted a mural of the "Hi, How Are You?" frog, also known as Jeremiah after the Three Dog Night song, on the side of the Austin Sound Exchange music store. The site was converted into a Baja Fresh franchise in 2004. Although initial plans called for the mural to be torn down, public outcry caused restaurant owner John Oudt to let the mural stay, at a price of $50,000 in additional costs and lost revenue.
Fun was Johnston's only major-label release, but he has continued writing and recording songs, as well as drawing pictures.
In September 2004, a 2-disc release compilation entitled The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered. Disc one featured covers of Johnston's songs by such prominent artists as Eels, Beck, Death Cab for Cutie, Tom Waits, The Flaming Lips, Bright Eyes, and TV on the Radio, among others. Disc 2 featured Johnston's original tracks.
The Devil and Daniel Johnston (2005) is a documentary by Jeff Feuerzeig about Johnston's life and music, and won the Director's Award at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival.
In August 2005, it was reported that Johnston had been experiencing mood swings requiring medical attention. This led to cancellation of his touring schedule. On November 25th, 2005, Johnston was hospitalized for what appeared to be Lithium poisioning (Johnston takes lithium to control his manic depression). His father had found him in an incoherent state and unable to walk. Johnston is recovering and is thought to be out of any immediate danger.
On December 8th, 2005, it was reported that his condition remained "very serious", but on December 23rd, Johnston was released from the hospital. Johnston's family had been told that "Daniel would require long-term medical care and permanent dialysis for kidney failure," however his health dramatically and unexpectedly improved. Johnston died on September 10, 2019.
Johnston spent extended periods in psychiatric institutions and has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. He gathered a local following in the 1980s by passing out tapes of his music while working at a McDonald's in Austin, Texas. His cult status was propelled when Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was seen wearing a T-shirt that featured artwork from Johnston's 1983 album Hi, How Are You. In 2005, Johnston was the subject of the documentary The Devil and Daniel Johnston.
His songs were typically painfully direct, and often display a disturbing blend of childlike naïvete with darker, "spooky" themes. Johnston's singing voice is rather high-pitched, and his performances often seem faltering or uncertain; pitchfork writes that Johnston's recordings range from "spotty to brilliant". He also draws and paints; he is a cult comic book artist and his illustrations have been featured with most of his albums.
Johnston was born in Sacramento, California and grew up in West Virginia, United States, but then moved to Waller, Texas. Johnston suffers from manic depression, and has had varying luck with different treatments. He has been institutionalized for periods.
In the late 1970s, Johnston began recording his songs on a $59 Sony Boombox, singing and playing either guitar, piano or harmonica. He gave tapes of his music to anyone who would take them. Johnston created the comic book inspired art that usually accompanied his own recordings. His debut recording Songs of Pain was released in 1981.
His early songs established a number of themes that would persist through Johnston's career: Unrequited love, Casper the Friendly Ghost, and comic book superheroes, especially Captain America and Jack Kirby's other works. "Joe"—a partly autobiographical character—has been featured in a number of songs. Johnston has cited The Beatles as a prime influence.
A sizable proportion of Johnston's songs throughout the years have dealt with his unrequited love for "Laurie," a girl he became friends with in college, who was the first to encourage him to record his music. The Laurie character quickly assumed the role of the idealized female muse. The real life Laurie Allen married an undertaker, prompting Johnston to write lyrics in which the Laurie figure becomes strongly associated with the imagery of death in addition to her original role as a muse. For example, the song Funeral Home in which Johnston sings that he's "going to a funeral home" represents both the foreknowledge of death and Johnston's desire to be reunited with Laurie, who at the time worked at a funeral home. Laurie Allen has since divorced and filmmaker Jeff Feuerzeig arranged a meeting between Allen and Johnston.
Johnston gained a cult following in Austin, Texas. Some regarded Johnston as little more than a quaint curiosity, but others recognized a genuine talent: Johnston has a knack for creating great, catchy melodies, while his lyrics are evocative and often use clever wordplay. His songs have been covered by a number of admirers.
A 1985 MTV special on Austin brought Johnston wider attention, and a number of record stores outside Texas began selling his cassettes.
His music has been acclaimed by David Bowie, Sonic Youth, and Simpsons creator Matt Groening. Kurt Cobain of Nirvana fame praised Johnston's work, and often wore a t-shirt with a Johnston illustration and a caption reading, "Hi How Are You?"
1994 saw the release of Fun on Atlantic Records. The record was produced by Paul Leary of Butthole Surfers, a group who had long supported Johnston, even inviting him to open a number of concerts for them.
In 1993, Johnston painted a mural of the "Hi, How Are You?" frog, also known as Jeremiah after the Three Dog Night song, on the side of the Austin Sound Exchange music store. The site was converted into a Baja Fresh franchise in 2004. Although initial plans called for the mural to be torn down, public outcry caused restaurant owner John Oudt to let the mural stay, at a price of $50,000 in additional costs and lost revenue.
Fun was Johnston's only major-label release, but he has continued writing and recording songs, as well as drawing pictures.
In September 2004, a 2-disc release compilation entitled The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered. Disc one featured covers of Johnston's songs by such prominent artists as Eels, Beck, Death Cab for Cutie, Tom Waits, The Flaming Lips, Bright Eyes, and TV on the Radio, among others. Disc 2 featured Johnston's original tracks.
The Devil and Daniel Johnston (2005) is a documentary by Jeff Feuerzeig about Johnston's life and music, and won the Director's Award at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival.
In August 2005, it was reported that Johnston had been experiencing mood swings requiring medical attention. This led to cancellation of his touring schedule. On November 25th, 2005, Johnston was hospitalized for what appeared to be Lithium poisioning (Johnston takes lithium to control his manic depression). His father had found him in an incoherent state and unable to walk. Johnston is recovering and is thought to be out of any immediate danger.
On December 8th, 2005, it was reported that his condition remained "very serious", but on December 23rd, Johnston was released from the hospital. Johnston's family had been told that "Daniel would require long-term medical care and permanent dialysis for kidney failure," however his health dramatically and unexpectedly improved. Johnston died on September 10, 2019.
Funeral Girl
Daniel Johnston Lyrics
We have lyrics for these tracks by Daniel Johnston:
"Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Your Grievances" Don't let the sun go down on your grievances Respect love…
'Casper the Friendly Ghost Intro' He was smiling through his own personal hell Dropped his las…
08 you're gonna make it joe You're gonna make it, Joe you're gonna make it, Joe…
08. i'll never marry I'll never marry I'll never wed Nobody wants to kiss you Whe…
1-14 since i lost my tooth I've been up and I been down When I been between…
A Little Story There was this big Guy And He had a great idea.…
A Lonely Song Well, you heard about the time I climbed the Empire State…
A Walk in the Wind A walk in the wind… I just want to be a…
Adjectives Got home from camping last spring. Saw people, places and th…
Ain't No Woman Gonna Make a George Jones Outta Me Ain't no woman gonna make a George Jones outta me Ain't…
Almost Got Hit by a Truck I was walking across the bridge Going to my friend's house …
An Idiot I don't have to say a thing She knows exactly what…
And You Love It True love will find you in the end You'll find out…
Beatles When I was born in '61 They already had a hit They…
Big BIg World Big business monkey Nothing's funny Big business monkey Ever…
Bloody Rainbow Swirling hypnotic Disrupts the girl And the skull-headed s…
Blue Cloud and there's lots of friends to have - yeah yeah…
Blue Clouds Feeling your warm body next to mine Feeling this feeling so…
Brainwash Me and a friend went out one night Walkin' in the…
Burn Baby Burn A rich man and a poor man stood face to…
Casper Casper lives in a world without promise Sitting at home in…
Casper the Friendly Ghost He was smiling through his own personal hell Dropped his las…
Casper The Holy Ghost Well you've heard about Casper the friendly ghost Well I'll …
Cathy Cline You were forever my girl I was forever your man We always…
Catie She caught the caddy Left me the mule to drive She caught…
Chord Organ Blues Everything's big in Texas You know it is I think I might…
Circus Man If I was a cricus man Then I'd be a circus…
Cold Hard World It's a cold hard world It's a cold hard world It's a…
Come See Me Tonight Come to me tonight If you can hear me thinking Come see…
Crazy Love I love that girl so much I can't get enough of…
Danny Don't Rapp Danny don’t rapp, Danny don’t rapp Danny don’t rapp, Dann…
Davinare March, Friday or Saturday Art show with Ron English Says I'm…
Dead Lover Though the whole world be blown apart No matter how dumb…
Dead Lovers Twisted Heart Though the whole world be blown apart No matter how dumb…
Delusion Confusion Oh, I love you so Want you to know my love…
Dem Blues Hello. We are about to begin a little excursion if you…
Despair Came Knocking Despair came knocking At my door And I let her in For a…
Desperate Man Blues There ain't no colors in the sky Anymore And I don't…
Devil Town I was livin' in a devil town Didn't know it was…
Don Don't act nice I know who you really care about…
Don't Be Scared There's a life worth living and it's interesting There's a c…
Don't let the sun go down Don't let the sun go down on your grievances Respect love…
Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Your Grievience Don't let the sun go down on your grievances Respect love…
Don't Play Cards With Satan Don't play cards with Satan He'll deal you an awful hand D…
Dont Let the Sun Go Down on Your Grievience Don't let the sun go down on your grievances Respect love…
Dream I'm having dreams about you I wanna scream about you I'm hav…
Enlightenment After all the football games After all the shows After all t…
Etiquette Never noticed her Why I noticed her so much I made myself…
Evening Stars Walkin' my baby underneath a tree Everything seems real to …
Everlasting Love I had a welcome mat But you never came around I left…
Favorite Darling Girl Just then she talks too loud She says I?m not allowed To…
Fish Try aching every care in the world She's only the most…
Fly eye Fly eye, fly eye Fly eye, fly eye Into the night, It’s…
Follow that Dream Oh it's a world of lonely faces oh it's a…
Folly Those good natured artists never gave a hint of pain…
For the Love of Pete For the love of Pete you were no cheat although…
Forever Your Love Wish I see everywhere The love that's there is nowhere The…
Foxy Girl She's so precious She's so luscious Put your head in a whi…
Frankenstein Love There was a time When I was Frankenstein Dressed in pain, …
Funeral Home Funeral home Funeral home Goin' to the funeral home Got me a…
Get Yourself Together Get yourself together or fall apart Make your mind up or…
Ghost of Our Love Who’s that knocking at the door It’s the ghost of our…
Girl Of My Dreams Memories like leaves are fallin' On the ground and soon to…
Girls Prettiest girl that you ever seen Just popped out of a…
Go So you think you've found the one And she knows just…
God God made the world God made you God made me too God made…
Going Down I think of all the times I felt so low When I…
Good Morning You Good Morning You You've got the world, what's in your way…
Got to Get You Into My Life I was alone, I took a ride I didn't know what…
Grievances If I had my own way, you'd be with me…
Grievances Revisited If I had my own way You'd be with me here…
Happy Talk Happy Oh keep talking happy talk Talking about the things …
Happy Time CHORUS It must have been It must have been It must have been…
Harley Man There was this drunk up at the split rail in…
Hate Song You won't even know Who you are or what you're doing Just…
Held The Hand Oh my lord I am so bored. Held the hand of satan oh…
Her Blues She knows what she’s doing She knew what she had to…
Hey Joe Hey Jude Come on, Joe Don't make that sad song Any sadder th…
High Horse I was thinking about your love You was only hiding, like…
Honey I Sure Miss You Honey, I sure miss you, And I long to kiss you And…
Hoping There's got to be a God I mean, I hope so But…
I Who knows how long I've loved you you know I…
I Am a Baby I am a baby in my universe I'll live forever I am…
i did acid with caroline I Did Acid With Caroline and we both had a…
I Had A Dream I had a dream about you You were the queen of…
I Had Lost My Mind I had lost my mind. I lost my head for a…
I Hate Myself I see your face I picture myself with a guitar I see…
I Know What I Want Love, I know what I want And I know what it…
I Live for Love I live for love I live for love And I can hardly…
I Lose She invited me to a pity party Every hour everyone was…
I Love You True love will find you in the end You'll find out…
I Picture Myself With a Guitar I see your face I picture myself with a guitar I see…
I Remember Painfully I remember how we looked at the embryo in the…
I Save Cigarette Butts I save cigarette butts for a poor girl across town We were…
I Saw Her Standing There Well, she was just Well, she was just seventeen And you kn…
I Was Alone In a town any town It was raining I was walking down…
I Will Who knows how long I've loved you you know I…
I Will Be Free You walked right beside me You didn't have a thing to…
I'd Like To Say Goodbye I'd like to say goodbye You can't really say goodbye To th…
I'll Never Marry I'll never marry I'll never wed Nobody wants to kiss you Whe…
I'm Nervous I'm nervous And I'm sad And I'm sorry And I'm mad Saw …
Impossible Love You hurt me so bad You were the best friend I…
It You broke my heart in two And I'm leaving this half…
Jelly Beans well, he's a space orphan from Long Store 6 Left to…
Joy Without Pleasure When I was a little kid And all the people, they…
Keep Punching Joe Ladies and gentlemen... he headed out west, Looking for the…
King Kong They shot him down They shot him down They thought he was…
Laurie Once I saw the most beautiful girl Sitting next to me I…
Lazy Well I made some mistakes but I ain't learned a lesson That…
Life In Vain Don't wanna be free of hope And I'm at the end…
Like a Monkey In A Zoo i'm chained to the wall i'm nothing at all and my eyes…
Live and Let Die When you were young And your heart was an open book You…
Living It For The Moment Living it for the moment Are you gonna smile or fall…
Living Life Hold me like a mother would Like I've always known…
Loner I wish I could be as happy as you I wish…
Lost In My Infinite Memory Hi, how are you these days? Everything seems sort of crazed …
Lost without a dame People see you on the street And kindly ask you, "Who…
Lousy Weekend Talk about a lousy weekend Couldn't find a single friend fri…
Love True love will find you in the end You'll find out…
Love Defined Love is patient and kind Love is not jealous or boastful I…
Love Enchanted I was lazy on my lazy way Didn't have much to…
Love Forever She’s sleeping around, running all over town She’s doubting …
Love Not Dead It was love at first sight When I talked to…
Love Of My Life I was alone, I took a ride I didn't know what…
Love Wheel Walk into a crowded room I see you there and I'm…
Love Will See You Through If you got a girl you should treat her kind Always…
Lover's Heart Though the whole world be blown apart No matter how dumb…
Man at War Jumpin Joe [?] the battlefield is clear strange soldiers th…
Man Obsessed He's a man obsessed He couldn't be a lover So now he's…
Mask Seems like her broken heart The loving part was missing As…
Mean Girls Give Pleasure Every time I think And I do get by And I have…
Mind Contorted G C G I've been through some (hard?), but I'm feeling…
Mind Movies You make a lot of movies in your mind And you…
More Dead than Alive He played the game but he failed the test but…
Mountain Top On top of a mountain top I stoop and thought one…
Museum Of Love Gone with the wild wind Like it was a dream Preserved now…
Must Funny how love dwells on your mind When life is treating…
My Baby Cares for the Dead My baby cares for the dead, I said: Come join…
My Life Is Starting Over my life is starting over again over again my friends say I'm…
My Life Is Starting Over Again My life is starting over again My friends, say I'm back…
My Little Girl She looked so fine And that brought pleasures to my heart Sh…
My Yoke Is Heavy Blue clouds twisted into a tunnel Somewhere far off the thun…
Nervous Love I got a nervous love I got a nervous love Worrying’s all…
Never Before Never Again Never, never before Never, never again You walked right …
Never Get To Heaven Mother told me always to follow their golden rule and…
Never Relax There was this kid named syd and he was born Maybe…
Never Relaxed there was this kid named syd and he was born maybe…
No More Pushing Joe Around One, two... Tell you what, cigarette butt! When I get bac…
Nothing Not that you want to be Out of curiosity Just a corsag…
Now If you think your thoughts so rationally Then you might just…
Only Missing You Don't know, wish I did wish I had someone else…
Party Don't wanna scare you Don't wanna waste you Just kind of lik…
Peek A Boo When I'm down, really down, Nothin' matters. Nothin' does. …
Phantom of My Own Opera I'm the phantom of my own Opera Oh don't I know…
Pinny Pinny Mr. Very Fat and Mrs. Very Skinny Had a little dog…
Poor You Hi, how are you? Every morning he got up Dreading each…
and many more tracks by Daniel Johnston.
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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