So I have FINALLY watched
The Devil and Daniel Johnston a couple of days ago. Finally is in capital letters because I have wanted to see the film ever since I heard about it back last September. It was my most anticipated film of 2006 for sure! So, did I like it? Would I recommend it? Of course I liked it… it is a great film! ...but I don’t know if I would recommend it... Let me explain, if you are familiar with Daniel’s music and art, and you adore both of those talents by Johnston but don’t really know too much about his life, I don’t think you should see the film. I thought, and still think that Daniel Johnston makes great, truthful music, but the film opened up things that I did not want to know as a fan of his music. My interpretations of the meanings and contents behind his songs are forever changed… the film kind of ruined the romantic ideas I had about some of his songs. I can never hear "Devil Town", my favorite track by Daniel Johnston the same way again... which is a little sad! On the other hand, if you don’t know really know anything about his work or his life, go see it, as Daniel’s life is beyond strange and interesting! Oh, who am I kidding… go see the freaking film... it is great! I would normally post a few tracks by the artists, but given what I have just wrote, I don’t think I will do that.
Here's a lovely cover of Daniel Johnston's "Worried Shoes" by Karen O and the Kids from the equally lovely soundtrack for Where the Wild Things Are. The original song was from Johnston's 1983 classis, Yip/Jump Music.
As requested, here is "Some Things Last A Long Time", the Daniel Johnston cover by The Twilight Sad. The track is off of The Twilight Sad's new EP entitled Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did. It comes out on June 9 in UK and Europe and on the 10th in US and Canada via FatCat Records.
Tom Waits not only covered "King Kong" by Daniel Johnston, but he also rendered Charles Bukowski’s poem "Nirvana" into a track on his ambitious 3-disc release, Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards.
So I have FINALLY watched The Devil and Daniel Johnston a couple of days ago. Finally is in capital letters because I have wanted to see the film ever since I heard about it back last September. It was my most anticipated film of 2006 for sure! So, did I like it? Would I recommend it? Of course I liked it… it is a great film! ...but I don’t know if I would recommend it... Let me explain, if you are familiar with Daniel’s music and art, and you adore both of those talents by Johnston but don’t really know too much about his life, I don’t think you should see the film. I thought, and still think that Daniel Johnston makes great, truthful music, but the film opened up things that I did not want to know as a fan of his music. My interpretations of the meanings and contents behind his songs are forever changed… the film kind of ruined the romantic ideas I had about some of his songs. I can never hear "Devil Town", my favorite track by Daniel Johnston the same way again... which is a little sad! On the other hand, if you don’t know really know anything about his work or his life, go see it, as Daniel’s life is beyond strange and interesting! Oh, who am I kidding… go see the freaking film... it is great! I would normally post a few tracks by the artists, but given what I have just wrote, I don’t think I will do that.
