D. Armenta
PlagmanThere's something about this guy...
I stumbled on this artist by accident not long ago; when I first heard him singing my reaction was "whaaaat the f**k?!" (The man can't sing)
He called himself a "Rock and Roll poet", and he is. Was.
Backstory: His name was Wesley Willis. He was a homeless man in Chicago, with one of the saddest and most horrible childhoods imaginable.
He was also suffering from acute schizophrenia.
Wesley Willis walked the streets and rode the buslines of Chicago, selling his artwork out of a paper bag. Because of his illness, he was prone to occasional outbursts of profanity directed at the "demons" who were tormenting him. He wrote thousands of songs on the computer at a neighborhood Kinko's, which he would perform on the street.
His artwork is linear and beautiful.
His songs are...strange yet deeply appealing to many. He used the default song structures on a cheap Casio-type keyboard and would speak stream-of-consciousness lines and sing a chorus.
The song structures never vary. The default songs are always cheery and pop-music oriented, and serve as a disturbing yet perfect palette for his spoken words.
"This beast comes out when it is 25 degrees below zero. It can rip your head off. It can fly as high as a bird. It can bite your face. (Chorus) The Chicken Cow The Chicken Cow The Chicken Cow The Chicken Cow.."
Wesley Willis would always end his songs the same way: "Rock over London, Rock on Chicago", followed by a line from a T.V. ad, like " Blockbuster. Wow what a difference."
He was a huge, gentle man who would greet his friends and fans by butting his head softly against theirs, for as long as they would tolerate it. The big spot you see on his face in the video is a callus from headbutting.
Wesley Willis died of leukemia at the age of 40 in 2003.
I wish I could have heard him play. There's just something about the guy.
He called himself a "Rock and Roll poet", and he is. Was.
Backstory: His name was Wesley Willis. He was a homeless man in Chicago, with one of the saddest and most horrible childhoods imaginable.
He was also suffering from acute schizophrenia.
Wesley Willis walked the streets and rode the buslines of Chicago, selling his artwork out of a paper bag. Because of his illness, he was prone to occasional outbursts of profanity directed at the "demons" who were tormenting him. He wrote thousands of songs on the computer at a neighborhood Kinko's, which he would perform on the street.
His artwork is linear and beautiful.
Courtesy culturebully.com
His songs are...strange yet deeply appealing to many. He used the default song structures on a cheap Casio-type keyboard and would speak stream-of-consciousness lines and sing a chorus.
The song structures never vary. The default songs are always cheery and pop-music oriented, and serve as a disturbing yet perfect palette for his spoken words.
"This beast comes out when it is 25 degrees below zero. It can rip your head off. It can fly as high as a bird. It can bite your face. (Chorus) The Chicken Cow The Chicken Cow The Chicken Cow The Chicken Cow.."
Wesley Willis would always end his songs the same way: "Rock over London, Rock on Chicago", followed by a line from a T.V. ad, like " Blockbuster. Wow what a difference."
He was a huge, gentle man who would greet his friends and fans by butting his head softly against theirs, for as long as they would tolerate it. The big spot you see on his face in the video is a callus from headbutting.
Wesley Willis died of leukemia at the age of 40 in 2003.
I wish I could have heard him play. There's just something about the guy.
What is Normal Anyway?
I get the impression that if he hadn't become a rock-star in his own mind, he would have joined Orble.
Is Why
Thank you for sharing what you knew of his life.
(I am being very frugal with my words incase they cut an pasted into another post) copyright Damo* (c)
Film & TV on DVD
Cool stuff as always and a quirky character to boot...
Seems you and I have both been in hibernation, nice to see your back again. Now that I have moved to the U.S of A I plan on getting down to blogging again too....hope to chat with you more frequently now and I hope all is going well for you.
The Florida Keys and Everglades
The Black Sheep Chronicles
What constitutes bad manners?
The male mystique
Debate Fan
Thanks Raven and Damo! You guys are so polite. Damo, you are
JD, so glad you're here in the USA..just in time for swine flu season, eh? I'm looking forward to your blogs!
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