Some nights just turn out perfectly. At about 545pm tonight, I was just about to turn off my computer at work, when I figured I'd check e-mail one more time. New message. From Craigslist. A girl named Jessica had an extra ticket for Daniel Johnston and was offering at face value. I replied immediately. For the next 30 minutes I sat starting at my phone. It finally rang and we decided to meet outside Bimbos at 830. Wow.I arrived at Bimbos with my digital SLR in hand. I figured it was a longshot, and I was just going to ask the bouncer, to avoid the possibility of having it taken away from me during the show (my Nikon D80 is like a member of my family....I can NOT leave it at coat check). The bouncer was really nice, but said nope. He told me to leave it at coach check since leaving it in the car could be risky. I felt more comfortable leaving it in my car. I took about five steps and the gentleman tugged at my shirt. "Promise to keep the flash off?" I was in.
I watched the opener, The Oh Sees, who were quite good. But I was too distracted thinking about what I was about to see. I'll admit, I don't know Daniel Johnston's catalog *that* well, although I know about 40 or so songs. And no, I didn't discover him after the movie. I first learned of Daniel Johnston while hearing Wilco cover "True Love Will Find You in the End" in the mid-90s as well as the summer of '95 when I first heard Yo La Tengo's brilliant take on "Speeding Motorcycle".
But here's what really drew me to Daniel Johnston. And I'll preface this by saying that yes, many musicians and artists struggle with mental illness, and many are able to use that as a vehicle for their art. But there's something different about Daniel Johnston. There's an innocence. There's a true battle within that isn't fabricated, exploited or manipulated. It's who he is. His battles with various forms of mental illness leave him looking like a child in a genuis' body. That's a terrible description, but hopefully it makes some sense.
When Daniel Johnston took the stage a shiver went down my spine. He just looked like a child. He looked perfectly comfortable, but you could see his illness. He went for a drink of water and his hands were rattling around. It didn't appear to be nerves, but rather a manifestation of one of his illnesses. He said hello and picked up a tiny guitar. He sang about 7-8 folk songs. They were beautiful. He found a way to manage the shaking of his hands, although they continued to flail around. He told an absolutely hysterical yet jarring story about a dream he'd had last night. When he played "Grievances" I nearly lost it. See, Daniel Johnston holds nothing back. He openly talks about his disappointments. He doesn't hold back that he's had little attention from women. He wears his emotions on his sleeve. It was beautiful.
After a short break, the Oh Sees joined and backed him on about six songs. He sang "Speeding Motorcycle" with anger. You could see him pouring out his soul. There were no frills. He played a song in which he talked about his death. He yelled something like "And Daniel Johnston died tonight". Some laughed. I can't say that I found this funny. I found it sad. But I found it real.
The greatest part about the show is that Daniel Johnston seemed genuinely happy. He let a sold out audience into his soul and exposed his demons and insecurities without a moment of hesitation. It's very rare that ANY artist opens themselves up this much. Daniel Johnston is an absolute treasure. There's so much complexity to his art and his mind, but in the end, he just seems like a man expressing what's inside. We should be grateful to have him.
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