Canada is great.
I’ve been thinking ’bout doing a spot on ‘Outsider Music’ for some time now, and having just watched a film based on Jesco White and virtually soundtracked by Hasil Adkins, and a trailer for another based on the life of Joe Meek, I’m thinking it’s time to surf that wave. More on those guys in future posts -hopefully- possibly along with some posts on some other Outsiders who feel equally compelled to produce other forms of art unique to their vision, not so much pushing the boundaries as existing outside them.
The artist outsiders are, by definition, fundamentally different to their audience, often thought of as being dysfunctional in respect of the parameters for normality set by the dominant culture. What this means specifically is, of course, subject to changes dictated by history an geographical location. Thus, the emergence of a heterogeneous group has been made possible which includes those labelled as dysfunctional through pathology (usually, though not always, in terms of psychological illness), or criminality (often in tandem with the first), or because of their gender or sexuality, or because they appear to be in someway anachronistic, or are seen as un(der)developed, or often simply because of a cultural identity and religious belief that is perceived as significantly different. (Colin Rhodes, 1999, ‘Outsider Art: Spontaneous Alternatives’)
If you still can’t see the appeal watch the interview with DJ, author and Outsider Music devotee Irwin Chusid below. I first came across most of the artists in his book, and CDs, ‘Songs in the Key of Z’.
Lack of fame or success is not a requirement. ‘Telstar’ by Joe Meek was the first British single to hit No. 1 in US Billboard charts in 1962. Syd Barrett, Captain Beefheart and even William Shatner’s ‘Transformed Man’ album are also listed in Chusid’s book. Chusid states Shatner wrote the album after a head injury/UFO encounter. But does that knowing look in his eyes tell another story?
