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.
Grievances
Daniel Johnston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But I rarely have my own way
I guess that's why you're not here with me today
And the librarian said, "you can't buy no respect"
I said, "hey, lady, what can you expect when I'm lying on the floor?"
You're a lovely lady but you don't wanna be no girl of mine
Well, the only thing you ever done for me
And I saw you at the funeral, you were standing there like a temple
I said, "Hi, how are you? Hello"
And I pulled up a casket and crawled in
Yes, I did
Climbed up a mountain and I looked around
Some kind of circus with all them clowns
I said, "hey wait a minute, can we slow down a bit?"
And I almost got hit by a truck
Well it just goes to show you that we're all on our own
Scrounging for our own share of good luck
Stab your brother in the back
And pick up your paycheck
Goodbye, lonely heart drawings, you never did work anyhow
I'm looking for a nice girl, and I don't want no cow
I'm heading out west
Gonna find me the best
Well, I played the game, but I failed the test
If I can't be a lover then I'll be a pest
Yes, I will
In Daniel Johnston's song "Grievances," the singer laments his loneliness and the loss of a loved one. He expresses his desire for things to be different, wishing that he had his own way and that his loved one was with him. However, he acknowledges that he rarely gets his way and that's why his loved one is not there. The singer's frustration is further expressed when he encounters a librarian who tells him he can't buy respect. He retorts by saying "hey, lady, what can you expect when I'm lying on the floor?" This suggests that the singer feels dejected, possibly as a result of his romantic situation.
The second verse highlights the singer's inability to form meaningful relationships. He tells a woman that she doesn't want to be a girl of his because she has not contributed anything meaningful to his life except for helping him waste his time. At a funeral, he sees this same woman and tries to make conversation with her, but the encounter feels awkward and disconnected. The singer then goes on to say that he climbed a mountain and saw a circus with clowns, further emphasizing that he feels like an outsider who doesn't belong.
Line by Line Meaning
If I had my own way, you'd be with me here today
I wish you were here with me, but I rarely get what I want.
But I rarely have my own way
I am not in control of my life.
I guess that's why you're not here with me today
That’s why you are not here.
And the librarian said, "you can't buy no respect"
Someone told me that respect can’t be bought.
I said, "hey, lady, what can you expect when I'm lying on the floor?"
I responded sarcastically as my behavior may naturally provoke disrespect.
You're a lovely lady but you don't wanna be no girl of mine
I think you are great, but you don't want a romantic relationship with me.
Well, the only thing you ever done for me Was help me waste my time
You have not done anything significant for me.
And I saw you at the funeral, you were standing there like a temple
I noticed you at the funeral, standing still and unchanging.
I said, "Hi, how are you? Hello"
I greeted you and engaged in small talk.
And I pulled up a casket and crawled in Yes, I did
I climbed into a casket, voluntarily.
Climbed up a mountain and I looked around Some kind of circus with all them clowns
I went up a mountain and saw a place full of foolishness.
I said, "hey wait a minute, can we slow down a bit?"
I asked if things could slow down.
And I almost got hit by a truck
I nearly got hit by a vehicle, probably because of my absent-mindedness.
Well it just goes to show you that we're all on our own Scrounging for our own share of good luck
We are all alone, trying to get whatever good luck we can find.
Stab your brother in the back And pick up your paycheck
Some people will hurt their own family to get ahead in life.
Goodbye, lonely heart drawings, you never did work anyhow
I am giving up on my art, which has never brought me happiness or success.
I'm looking for a nice girl, and I don't want no cow
I want to find a good woman to be with, not someone who is cruel or uncaring.
I'm heading out west Gonna find me the best
I am going to the West to find the best person for me.
Well, I played the game, but I failed the test
I tried my best but didn't succeed.
If I can't be a lover then I'll be a pest Yes, I will
If I cannot be with you romantically, I will still annoy you somehow.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Daniel Johnston
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Timeless
If I had my own way, you'd be with me here today
But I really have my own way, I guess that's why you're not here with me today
And the librarian said, you can't buy no respect
I said hey lady, what can you expect
When I'm lying on the floor
You're a lovely lady but you don't wanna be no girl of mine
Well the only thing you ever done for me was help me waste my time
And I saw you at the funeral, you were standing there like a temple
I said hi, how are you, hello
And I pulled up a casket and crawled in
Yes I did
Climbed up a mountain, and I looked around
Some kind of circus with all them clowns
I said hey wait a minute, can't we slow down a bit
And I almost got hit by a truck
Well it just goes to show you, that we're all on our own
Scrounging for our own share of good
Stab your brother in the back
And pick up your paycheck
Goodbye lonely heart drawings, it never did work anyhow
I'm looking for a nice girl and I don't want no cow
I'm heading out west
Gonna find me the best
Well I played the game, but I failed the test
If I can't be a lover then I'll be a pest
Yes I will
Duff Dingle
Rest in peace Daniel <3 words can't describe how much your music means to me
varicosevisage
Its crazy to think that when he started, he recorded every cassette over and over, he didn't just make copies. So hypothetically, every release he did could have sightly different variations. I wish I could have met Daniel before his passing, he truly is one of my favorite musicians. There truly isn't anyone else like him
Pizza
Songs like this always take you off guard. All his rough songs set you up to be taken away by gems like these. That's always what appealed to me about Daniel.
Bored and Generic
Couldn’t say it better myself
Ryan Becker
Yeah for real
John Whatsittoya
Agreed and agreed 👍👍 This is among his strongest compositions in my opinion, very strong melodically and the artistic originality is like a thunderbolt to the ears! Masterpiece ❤️
John Whatsittoya
And then, of course, the lyrics and the stories told within... Just a true blue triumph. Take good care, Daniel. ☁️☁️☁️
youngsloshy
Hard to think this song is over 40 years old now, and that Daniel has been gone for nearly 5 now. This song still strikes my soul like a bolt of lightning every time I listen to it.
Joseph Petersen
brilliant song, astonishing songwriting
Russell Solomon
I’m crushed by the news of his passing. I’m happy I saw him at Rudyard’s in Houston. I’m happy he touched my soul with his incredible songs. We’ve lost our poet. However, his music will live on for eternity and his songs will be discovered by those who have felt sadness and pain. His songs will continue to touch lost souls for generations to come.