Wild Man Fischer
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| Wild Man Fischer | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Lawrence Wayne Fischer |
| Born | November 6, 1944 |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California |
| Genre(s) | Outsider music |
| Years active | 1968 - 1984 |
| Label(s) | Bizarre, Rhino, Collectors' Choice |
| Associated acts | Frank Zappa, Barnes & Barnes, Mark Mothersbaugh, Rosemary Clooney |
Larry "Wild Man" Fischer (born Lawrence Wayne Fischer, November 6, 1944 in Los Angeles, California) is a prolific songwriter in the outsider genre. He is notable for being responsible for Rhino Records' first release, Go To Rhino Records (1975).
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[edit] Biography
Fischer was institutionalized at age 16 for attacking his mother with a knife.[citation needed] He was later diagnosed with two mental disorders: severe paranoid schizophrenia and bipolar disorder (manic depression). Following his release from the hospital, Fischer wandered Los Angeles singing his unique brand of songs for 10¢ to passers-by. Discovered by Frank Zappa, with whom he recorded his first album, Fischer became an underground concert favorite, earning him the title "godfather of outsider music." Zappa was responsible for Fischer's initial foray into the business of music, an album called An Evening with Wild Man Fischer, contains 36 tracks of "something not exactly musical." Zappa and Fischer remained close — until Fischer threw a jar at Zappa's daughter Moon Unit Zappa, barely missing her.[citation needed] Due to this falling out, Zappa's widow Gail Zappa has chosen to not release An Evening with Wild Man Fischer on CD, to the ire of the small but dedicated Wild Man Fischer fan club. Original vinyl copies have been sold for high amounts on the Internet.[citation needed]
In the 1980s, Fischer worked with Art and Artie Barnes (actually Bill Mumy, of Lost in Space/Babylon 5 fame, and Robert Haimer), to produce two albums, Pronounced Normal (1981) and Nothing Scary (1984).
Fischer has appeared on national television (Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In) and has been the subject of a comic book (The Legend Of Wild Man Fischer).[1]
In 1986, Barnes and Barnes also wrote and produced "It's A Hard Business", a duet featuring Fischer and Rosemary Clooney. The song was the result of a telephone friendship that began after Clooney heard Fischer's song "Oh God, Please Send Me A Kid To Love."[citation needed]
Fischer has been linked musically with Linda Ronstadt, Tom Waits, Jim Morrison, and Janis Joplin, and has recorded with Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo.
Fischer went on to record three full-length albums for Rhino.
[edit] Legacy
In 1999, Rhino released The Fischer King, a two-CD package comprising 100 tracks and a 20-page booklet, which sold out within weeks. The limited-edition album comprises his entire Rhino catalogue, including the albums with Barnes and Barnes and Wildmania (1977), along with his duet with Clooney. Fischer also appears as guest vocalist with the noise band Smegma on their album Sings Popular Songs.
In October 2004, Fischer appeared on ABC-TV's late-night talk/comedy show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!. He sang "Monkeys vs. Donkeys" while tapping on a backwards acoustic guitar, and also sat for a chat with the host, wherein he explained what it means to have "the pep" (i.e., when the spirit is in him and he's singing happily).
In 2005, Josh Rubin and Jeremy Lubin, collectively known as The Ubin Twinz premiered their documentary about Wild Man Fischer, entitled Derailroaded: Inside The Mind Of Wild Man Fischer, at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas. An Evening With Wild Man Fischer remains unreleased on CD. The awareness brought to Fischer by Derailroaded did, however, bring all three Rhino albums back in print on CD through Collectors' Choice Music.
Wild Man made his first appearance in five years on August 16, 2006, at the Trunk Space for Ryan Avery's "See You In Two Years" show.
[edit] References
- ^ Eichhorn, Dennis P., J.R. Williams (w). The Legend of Wild Man Fischer) (2004), Top Shelf Productions, ISBN 1-891830-61-9
