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.
I Saw Her Standing There
Daniel Johnston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Well, she was just seventeen
And you know what I mean
And the way she looked was way beyond compare
So, how could I dance with another
When I saw her standing there
Well, she looked at me
That before too long I'd fall in love with her
She wouldn't dance with another
When I saw her standing there
Well, my heart went boom
When I crossed that room
And I held her hand in mine
Well, we danced through the night
And we held each other tight
And before too long, I fell in love with her
Now I'll never dance with another
Since I saw her standing there
Well, she was just seventeen
And I know what you mean
And the way she looked was way beyond compare
So how could I dance with another
When I saw her standing there
Well, she looked at me
And I, I could see
That before too long, I'd fall in love with her
She wouldn't dance with another
When I saw her standing there
The lyrics to Daniel Johnston's "I Saw Her Standing There" tell the story of a young man who is immediately smitten with a girl he sees across a crowded room. He describes her beauty as "way beyond compare" and can't help but fall in love with her despite only just meeting her. He is so taken with her that he cannot dance with anyone else and only has eyes for her. As they dance through the night, they hold each other tight and he realizes that he is in love with her and will never dance with anyone else.
The song represents the classic tale of love at first sight and perfectly encapsulates the intense feelings that come with it. The lyrics are simple yet impactful, conveying a sense of urgency and passion that perfectly fits the song's upbeat, catchy melody. The song is a reminder that sometimes, love just happens, and there's little we can do to stop it.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, she was just
The girl who caught my eye was simply present in the moment.
Well, she was just seventeen
The girl I saw was young - barely legal - and just beginning her adult life.
And you know what I mean
I'm sure you can understand why a young girl so beautiful would catch my eye.
And the way she looked was way beyond compare
The girl was so gorgeous, there was no one else I could compare her to.
So, how could I dance with another
There was no other girl in the room who captivated me like she did, so dancing with anyone else was out of the question.
When I saw her standing there
The moment I saw her, I knew she was the one I wanted to be with.
Well, she looked at me
The girl noticed my presence and looked my way.
And I, I could see
I could tell from the way she looked at me that we would have a connection.
That before too long I'd fall in love with her
I knew that it wouldn't take long for me to start feeling romantically towards her.
She wouldn't dance with another
The girl felt the same way towards me and wouldn't dream of dancing with someone else.
Well, my heart went boom
I felt my heart leap in my chest with excitement and possibility.
When I crossed that room
As I walked towards her, I felt a rush of adrenaline and anticipation.
And I held her hand in mine
As soon as I got close to her, I wanted to make physical contact to feel closer to her.
Well, we danced through the night
The girl and I danced together for hours, lost in the moment and the connection we shared.
And we held each other tight
As we danced, we held each other closely, feeling each other's warmth and connection.
And before too long, I fell in love with her
After spending so much time dancing with this girl and feeling so connected, I knew I was in love with her.
Now I'll never dance with another
The connection I shared with this girl was so strong that I know I'll never feel the same way with anyone else.
Since I saw her standing there
It was the moment I laid eyes on her that changed my life forever.
Contributed by Camilla E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.