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.
Loner
Daniel Johnston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I wish I could have as much fun as you do
I wish I could be your friend
But I-I-I'm afraid
I wish I had my own way
But I rarely do
But I wish I had my way with you
Been a loner since high school - oh yeah
And a loner ain't no fool - oh yeah
I'm a loner - oh - eh - eheh
Be a loner in a crowded room - oh yeah
Take me to an ocean, I'll be loner still
But I wish I could be your friend
I'm a loner - uh - uh
I'm a loner in my car - oh yeah
Sometimes it gets scary - oh yeah
Been a loner since high school - oh yeah
And a loner ain't no fool - oh yeah
But I wish I could be as happy as you
And I wish I could have as much fun as you do
I wish I could be your friend
But I-I-I'm afraid
I'm a loner
I'm a loner - uh
Lone, lone, lone,
Lone, lone, lone, lone
Uh-uuh, uh-uuh, loner, uh
I'm a loner
The lyrics of Daniel Johnston's "Loner" reveal the internal struggles of a person who feels left out from the society they inhabit. The singer expresses a wish for happiness and fun but feels unable to connect with others. The repetition of the phrase "I'm a loner" emphasizes the sense of isolation and the feeling of being an outsider. The lyrics describe how being a loner has shaped the singer's life from high school onwards, and even when in crowded places or by the ocean, they still feel the same.
The song captures the vulnerability and raw emotion of someone who feels rejected by the world around them. The lyrics are simple, but their message is powerful and universal. The melody is melancholy and sparse, adding to the sense of isolation conveyed in the lyrics. The repetition of "oh yeah" and "uh uh" gives the song a hypnotic quality and creates a feeling of resignation.
Line by Line Meaning
I wish I could be as happy as you
I desire to experience the happiness that you seem to have
I wish I could have as much fun as you do
I desire to have the same amount of fun in life as you do
I wish I could be your friend
But I-I-I'm afraid
I wish we could be friends, but fear is holding me back
I wish I had my own way
But I rarely do
I wish I could make my own choices more often, but usually cannot
But I wish I had my way with you
But I wish I could have control over our relationship
I'm a loner - oh oh - loner
I am someone who prefers to be alone most of the time
Been a loner since high school - oh yeah
And a loner ain't no fool - oh yeah
I've preferred to be alone since high school, but it doesn't make me foolish
Be a loner in a crowded room - oh yeah
Take me to an ocean, I'll be loner still
I can feel alone even in a room full of people, and even in beautiful outdoor spaces
I'm a loner in my car - oh yeah
Sometimes it gets scary - oh yeah
Even when I'm driving, which is usually a solitary activity, I can feel scared and alone
But I wish I could be as happy as you
And I wish I could have as much fun as you do
I wish I could be your friend
But I-I-I'm afraid
Once again, I am expressing my desire to feel happy, have fun, and be friends, but my fear is holding me back
I'm a loner
I'm a loner - uh
Lone, lone, lone,
Lone, lone, lone, lone
Uh-uuh, uh-uuh, loner, uh
I'm a loner
Reiterating that I am a person who prefers to be alone most of the time, and that this is an important part of my identity.
Contributed by Isabelle D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@sayakota5771
I wish I could be as happy as you
I wish I could have as much fun as you do
I wish I could be your friend
but I-I-I'm afraid
I wish I had my own way
but I rarely do
but I wish I had my way with you
I'm a loner - oh oh - loner
Been a loner since high school - oh yeah
and a loner ain't no fool - oh yeah
I'm a loner - oh - eh - eheh
Be a loner in a crowded room - oh yeah
take me to an ocean, I'll be loner still
but I wish I could be your friend
I'm a loner - uh - uh
I'm a loner in my car - oh yeah
sometimes it gets scary - oh yeah
been a loner since high school - oh yeah
and a loner ain't no fool - oh yeah
But I wish I could be as happy as you
and I wish I could have as much fun as you do
I wish I could be your friend
but I-I-I'm afraid
I'm a loner
I'm a loner - uh
lone, lone, lone,
lone, lone, lone, lone
uh-uuh, uh-uuh, loner, uh
I'm a loner
@TheRealValus
It's ridiculous how many great songs this one guy wrote.
@rebekahb7976
I hope you find peace in the end. You touched my heart. Goodbye Daniel. RIP.
@historylover2432
he was a good guy and he killed the monster
@bugglemagnum6213
Im so sad i never got to see this enigma of a man in person and shake his hand and tell him thank you. His music lives on, rest in peace daniel .
@michaelwashboard2323
What a musical piece of pure emotion, well written stuff. A song with one long chorus/bridge with minimal instrumentation that makes you feel the emotions directly, no verses to build up a story, just the statement of "I'm a loner". It's an Interesting way to write a song, creating several variations of the lyrics to keep it feeling fresh, I really like to see this technique to be used more often in songs.
@lane48877
listen to wrong by depeche mode
@bernardocatrilef2846
"I wish I could be as happy as you
I wish I could have as much fun as you do
I wish I could be your friend
but I-I-I'm afraid"
@JoannaSternbergYoutube
beyond brilliant!
@johnwhatsittoya6374
Such a beautiful lovely tune. The melodies are mesmerizing. One of his very best, in my honest opinion. So much “Beatles” and so much greatness here! 🎶
@johnwhatsittoya6374
Take good care up there, Daniel. We love you dearly ❤️