Larry "Wild Man" Fischer, early 1980's

[ParappaTheTroller]

shit i didnt know he died last year

[Mongoose4You]

Is it me, or does it sound like the end of Laurie Anderson's 'O Superman' at the end of this clip?

[Norimagen]

Peace at last for the Wild Man. RIP larry

[TheAmericanidiot9]

Disregard- I found out, I'm even more sorry.

[TheAmericanidiot9]

@zontarnet - I have MI myself (OCD, Major Depression) What was Larry's diagnosis, if I might ask? I hear Bi-Polar Disorder. RIP - LARRY :(

[CuteBrotherProd]

RIP Larry, my cousin. I wrote a tribute song about his life & music. Please watch my new music video "Crazy Cousin Larry" here on youtube.

[bigtone1348]

Poor Larry...the medication got him in the end.....he's not the first & he won't be the last!

[Lillycoolest1]

Is he Rebecca Black's father??

[hedgie15]

oh....dear :(( I didn't know. Bless you Larry! Thanks for all the great songs...

[Babaziba]

Rest In Peace, Wild Man.

[MichaelHansenFUN]

R.I.P.

He died on my birthday and I was on the internet that day and it didnt pop up

I just found out about it NOW!!!

[safenders]

RIP

[Idnuf636]

RIP

[zappahart]

all good mr wild man , go be with frank and apologise to him in music heaven!!!!

[RasputinSir]

HE WAS THE FORERUNNER OF ANDY KAUFMAN & tHE FAMOUS JOE BUMMER .I PRAY JOE BUMMER IS STILL AMONG US ,,R.I.P. WILD MAN!!

[GT3RD]

RIP Wild Man...

[philippowitsch]

RIP



[junekentucky]

Anyone does this stuff today, they'd be locked up and medicated to "protect the person, and the public"... So much paranoia and people suing these days...

[PsytranceMan777]

@junekentucky

The mental institutes are the REAL ones with paranoid schizophrenia!

[karlhama1]

RIP Larry

[karlhama1]

RIP Larry

[Bogframe]

RIP Wild Man.

[machias88]

RIP, Larry. Enjoy eternal pep!

[lfradkin]

I played Miss Jennifer Jones many a time from the first LP. A unique man and, IMHO, a distinctive talent.

[MrWoofington]

I was lucky enough to meet him in recent years, and witness his last two performances (2001 Los Angeles, 2006 Phoenix, AZ). He was quite a character. His music will live on! A true musical genius in his own way. R.I.P., Larry!

[stamp1220]

Creative genius. RIP Larry.

[12161euclid]

he was the most uninhibited man that ever lived. we should all be so lucky to be like him in our short time on this planet. his wisdom was beyond the reach of most people who claim to be normal. take a bow in heaven,larry. you deserve it. R.I.P.

[sdromeo]

RIP

[krasnyploshad3]

they did an inventory of his life and it only amounted to just, one, great, play,

[Wolffarmer]

Ah Larry, a hard person to forget. I met him when he was at the University of Idaho, very early 70s. I interviewed him on the student owned station and some how dug up almost an hour of his music and played it a girl friend had some recordings he had made, can't remember her name. That was the 2nd time I got a death threat while DJ'ing on that station. Also shared a few meals with him in the Student Union cafeteria. Long may he run.

[Neptuneman07]

It's a catch 22 situation. He is brilliant, but mentally insane. But I can't help but enjoy his original compositions.

[numptykong]

now there's a man that never quite got over the fact he should've just got over the fact that he should've just taken his medication thats all im sorry it's a s grey and ugly as that thats all you need to do alright

[numptykong]

Feynman, Einstein, Chomsky, Wild Man Fischer, Wild Man Fischer again, Wild Man Fischer one more time,...................... you guessed it.........

[guyglowmore1]

i first met larry at the beach around '62 or 3. he was already singin' his songs and gorilla jump dancing. the songs i remember were "the moap" which was quite unique and original and "sorrento beach" which fit the time and place. figured he went to fairfax high but dunno why. then a few years later would run into him on the strip. could always tell he was sort of a hair trigger, his unusual crazyness eminated from his pores. still, i liked him and wondered if he recognized me.

[PAULLONDEN]

If this man is "wild"...I'm godzilla....

A sweet softy,more like...

[Qrayon]

One of Los Angeles's great talents, Wild Man Fischer is one of my influences. When I tell people that I'm normal, I usually say it in his voice. (No, Larry, I'm not stealing it. I'm just borrowing it. Here, you can have it back now.)

[trekforphotos]

I like the song iv got a camra

[bzzzzap]

Richard Hatch from the old Battlestar Galactica digs the Wildman! AMAZING!

[Zatoichi444]

@bzzzzap You recognized Apollo too eh? hahah

[explosionsfrommybutt]

Considering they dont sell an evening anymore its completely fine if you pirate it. 

[zbestwun2001]

I was working for WB records when this came out in the shipping room while going to college. Zappa's label was distributed by WB records.

One day Larry came in the shipping room and damn nearly made us all split a gut.

[MrSecondSkin]

what a weirdo

[PetePuma00]

Nowadays, mental illness is all you have left. Sometimes it's good, and sometimes it can be bad. I think "Wildman" found some place in between.

I'm glad that Frank Zappa let him fly. He is a crazy bird, but we need people like him to remind us of our own quirks. We all have them. And if you say you are "normal", all I can ask is "really?, what the hell are you talking about?".

WTF is "normal".

Keep on going Wildman, keep on going.

[explosionsfrommybutt]

I cant put what Im feeling into words

[11clawedfrogs]

I wish someone would put out "An Evening with Wild Man Fischer" on CD.

[squanto2]

I have the original vinyl in excellent condition.

I'm keepin it.

[11clawedfrogs]

I looked up it into Amazon and the best price for the record is $85, but you don't know the condition of vinyl unless you can see it. I have seen so many people lately trying to sell records they say are good, but the vinyl is so full of scratches and grime that it would be horrible to listen too!

[scouselid1]

Care in the community.

[DruNation]

buy that guy a beer!

[SOLIE6226]

Yeah to superche10

if You really want Real entertainment maybe you Can get some Chuckles from the Special Olympics oh wait they are also performing from the heart !! Well Then ya Sould stick to Spears or That Cyrus Kid Probably more on Your Intellect and what they are all about ??

[sockmonkey1000]

he has a really sad life story :(

[cass3rz]

superche10 you're a dumbass.

This guy is schizsophrenic and suffers from sever demension but he still gets up in front of people, thats awesome.

It's not mainstream music, it's literally the portrayal of an insane human mind.

If soldier boy can make a time singing LOL Smiley face then Fischer should be a millionare

[superche10]

this is some stupid crap. I can't believe this guy gets money for acting like a dumb ass. This offensive to poeple who like music.

[misterhiden54]

shut it froyp, this is it!S, yuou are offensive to music! on in the 80''2''s. this is awseomsem you are dumgayb

[sockmonkey1000]

hey superdouche he has schizophrenia

[jcjh20]

How is it offensive? You should be more offended by 95% of the shit on the radio today. At least he doesn't need auto tune to sound good.

[superche10]

I just found out about this guy. WTF. What the hell were people on in the 80's.

[cookiesonsteve]

He reminds me of Alfred Jarry.

[TheLauracore]

Let's do the Taster when my love was a braster!!!

[showboatingbastard]

Check out the Hawaiian shirt, no tramps wear clothes that good. Apparently brand WMF was all a put on. After a busy day 'acting crazy' for the punters, he'd adjourn to his shambling 30 acre estate near Beverley Hills to sip cocktails and socialise with a bevy of lovelies Hefner his very self would've gone green at the sight of.........them.....like

[GoWithTheFlowSheep]

YAY! Larry!!!

[FergussonMcGregor]

'I'm convinced that Wildman Fischer is just the fiscal stimulus this great planet of ours is crying out for' -  Gordon brown ("sir")

...lynch Gordon Brown...go on, you can do it...

[swackmeister]

RICHARD HATCH!!!!!!! For all you Battlestar Galactica fans out there, I swear to god that's Richard Hatch popping in half way through this vid. Adds a whole new element on my opinion of him.

[BenAliGtor]

Stating the obvious here but, next to George W. Bush, this guy's a Rhode's Scholar.

[ChimpJackson]

after they wrestled this particular cunt to the ground, he went on to lead a profitable life as 3rd mong from thje left in the Dutch version of 'One Flew Over The CooKoos Nest"

[manuscriptreplica]

There's really just something about Wild Man that's so genuine and comforting that I can't put my finger on . I love him.

[allemann4127]

Publicity aside, was there a time when he could actually sing?

[giedosst]

You know he makes a lot of sense to me.

[WildManFischersShrin]

It's alright for you people to idolise this man and buy millions of his records, but we in the health service community have to deal with his moods on a day to day basis, keep sharp objects away from him, call ambulances after Larry has been 'difficult', just think about that the next time you do the conga to his latest recording after a few drinks!

[colonelslog]

lay off us ya turkey.

[reddyredd]

I've worked in the mental health industry and I'd freakin' love to cut an album with some of my clients.

[zontarnet]

OK, I have 25 years in Mental Health, And spent a week with Larry in the mid '80s when he took a train to Boston for his only East Coast performance at Mass Art.

Yes, I did not sleep much taking care of him, but of the thousands of people with mental illness I have met, he is the only one that could hold an audience with his humanity.

I also got to be his sound man. A sick but wonderful man.

[puppettown]

@zontarnet I was at that show. It lasted, what? five minutes? Ten? He got spooked. It's amazing to me that the cross-country trip was for that one show? By train? And it was only for those few minutes, and the fact of that wasn't important enough for you to mention! :)

Rest in peace, Larry.

[zontarnet]

@puppettown

That is an exaggeration. He did have many false starts and repletion, but I never heard any complaints about the length of the show. There are a few bootleg tapes out there, so one can hear for oneself. I am thrilled that he stayed in my house, and that I was able to befriend him.

[ShitShovellor]

Apparently, the CIA demanded that Obama drop any reference to someone they referred to as 'that deadbeat Fischer' in his inauguration speech. Unabashed, the self-styled 'Wildman' has done dusted his ass down, taken stock of his life, come out fighting, put his gum shield in and, duly collapsed on the canvas in a manner only he can..

[19garrett71]

great story doctor allman, love this guy, wish i could hear all his "songs", its not so much of someething he writes like a rock group or whatever but his songs are visceral melodic expressions of his observations of his surroundings that no one else sees, like monets impressionistic paintings. not many people realize the emotional depth of this guys work, something hes tapped into that not many others can feel as a result of his paranoid schizophrenia.

[mudshark69]

we all love this gnious in moss. my town. norWAY. BUIilding A STATUE

MAN

[DanielSelby1965]

Channel 9 bulk erased all their tapes for re-use in the mid and late 1980's. Only if this was originally shot on 16mm will it be in their vaults anymore. :-(

[artiebarnes]

I have this whole piece unedited. about 12 minutes long!

[PartyOfTheThirdPart]

Excellent!  I'd love to see it.

[229095]

There you are at 1:00 !!!

[JustinStarbuck]

@artiebarnes upload it man!

[artiebarnes]

@JustinStarbuck Don't know how to transfer VHS to Youtube.

[BarackLaBomba]

just amazing. These songs will not leave your head.

[GrossOutDiscussion]

I loved Art Barnes but I couldn't stand Artie.

Lawrence 'Wildman' Ffischer should be a national treasurer in anyone's language!

[artiebarnes]

@GrossOutDiscussion Couldn't stand Artie?? Why?

[Rocketqueen07]

A-W-E-S-O-M-E-!

[DoctorAllman]

I used to see Larry at the beach during the Summer of '67 before he "hit it big". In fact, he named a song after the beach. It was called: "Sorrento Beach". It began, "Sorrento Beach is such a wild beach. It used to be oh such a quiet beach. Then along came a boy, such a wild boy. And turned this beach into a wild beach. . . ." I even remember the tune. Anyone have it?

[eriktheviking2006]

It was released on his first album, An Evening With Wild Man Fischer, which was produced by Frank Zappa. Unfortunately, chances of it being reissued are very slim as the Zappa family own the rights to it and Zappa fell out with Fischer not long after the album was released. Check eBay, it's usually on there on vinyl but it's not always cheap.

[lecagot2]

Google "Wild Man Fischer". You can download the entire album for free. I did it

[scallyhunter]

thanks. gonna do that now!

[liquidpyramid]

OH SHI-

[theoreilly]

Great clip. I remember when this first aired on Videowest back in the early 80's. I've been a huge fan of Wildman's music for over 25 years now. God bless him and long live Wildman Fischer.

[Bullzeye95]

Who's that kid in the back of the room?

Setting all his papers on fire.

Where did he get that crazy smile?

We all think he's really weird.

We never talk to him

He never looks quite right

He laughs at us, and we just beat him up

And what he sees escapes our sight

[artiebarnes]

Oooh, that's me in the blue shirt with the beard. I was there, baby!

[229095]

Whoah, I never saw that before! That IS you! You were so young!

[finylvinyl66]

You're being modest, Artie. You and Art produced Larry's two wonderful Eighties albums, now on CD. And Larry can be found on tape saying that Barnes and Barnes are better than Frank Zappa, high praise indeed!

[PaperCaravelle]

Awesome! Man, that's ace. If only I knew of any youtube videos I've inadvertently appeared on...

[pazzensutra]

Yeah, but coming from Larry, that ain't sayin' much!

[justpissedoneself]

it's not easy, not being a moron in the USA...

[SLCPunker101]

Does anyone know how to find Larry?

[229095]

nevermind

[229095]

He used to stay at the Oak Tree Inn on Sunset and Western. I met him and talked/sang with him for a couple hours, but that was in the late summer of 2002. The place changed management, and "no one knows" his whereabouts now. Meeting him was one of the most awesome and surreal experiences I've had, even in H'wood. He looked really bad, so old and just beat up from life, but he was still bouncing around like a 5-year-old.

[SLCPunker101]

Wow, thanks for telling me. It's a lead. lol. I really would like to meet him, he's so funny. Poor guy, no one really takes him seriously. I love that he's still the hyper Larry everyone seems to know and care about.

[229095]

Yeah, he's definitely hyper sometimes. He was pretty calm until I saw him and went, "LARRY FISCHER?!! WILDMAN?!?!?" I was talking and talking 100 MPH about his stuff, quoting his own lyrics back to him. He looked like I was crazy!! Then he just jumped up and went nuts, singing with me, the greatest time. He's pretty intimidating in person though. You really never know what he's going to do next.

[SLCPunker101]

Half the people I know are like that. lol

[229095]

If you haven't seen it, see the new (and only) documentary on Larry, called DeRailroaded. You'll definitely see another side of Wild Man. Barnes & Barnes did a song about him called "Tunnel Walker." It gave me chills, man.

[SLCPunker101]

I'll have to check it out.

[artiebarnes]

I produced that song. I think you mean "Walking Thru The Underground".

[229095]

Actually, Artie, most of the songs Larry & I were quoting back and forth were produced by you, from Nothing Scary, which I had on LP when I was seventeen! You sent me "Tunnel Walker" on cassette, which I thought was about Larry.

[recordman64]

My understanding is that he's now down in San Diego, homeless but not necessarily on the streets...he has a bunch of friends who'll let him crash on the couch for a night or two before he goes out wandering the streets in the daytime. Supposedly, people do recognize him and buy him meals, which he reluctantly accepts.

[pieman420]

i definitely remember wild man fisher from my daze in la in 1968-69

[Cr00kedCigarette]

"The area dividing the brain and soul

is effected in many ways by experience.

Some lose all mind and become soul:

Insaine.

Some lose all soul and become mind:

Intellectual.

Some lost both and become:

Accepted"

-Charles Bukowski (Lifedance)

God bless people like Larry Fischer. They make this world a bit more interesting.

[rubrco76]

excellent!

[captainfink]

career weirdos clustering round a national treasure...just live with it,'voice-over man' the clinically insane are often right......

[tuttt99]

Gimme a ride down the hill....

[captainfink]

Larry's lost it in the 'sanity' department!

[tuttt99]

Larry never lost it, he never *had* it.

That's why we love him so much....

[josephiav]

that one guy in the interview was from Battlestar Galactica what was HIS name

[Kirok]

Richard Hatch -- NOT the once-fat guy from the first season of "Survivor."

How random was HIS contribution to this little clip?

[matt47forTED]

i have this song stuck in my head all the time

[captainfink]

that's a pretty snazzy Hawaiian shirt for a 'down and out'

[captainfink]

did he say "entertaining" or "irritating"...?? Who cares, just VOTE LARRY!!

[captainfink]

sorry, I was talking about Larry...

[captainfink]

I heard he owns someone else's colostomy bag.....

[captainfink]

sorry, I was talking about the narrator....

[captainfink]

get some medication down that man's neck, and QUICK.....!!!

a walking indictment of the United States healthcare system....

[friedhockeyboogie]

larry was a fixture on the LA street scene in the late 60s-early 70s. He would sing you any song for a quarter. Sure, he's crazy, but very entertaining. My favorite tune of his (from the first album) was; I'm Working for the Federal Bureau of Narcotics

[TurboD]

it was for a dime

[astraldomino]

well...a heel toe...a top toe...a flap toe...a round toe... a right toe... a left toe...a shoe toe...a pigeon toe....i can't believe it, after all these years it's larry....superb......c'mon' sing along..well... a heel toe.. a......

[Zoeler]

is he related to Bobby Fischer?

[artiebarnes]

I was there that day. I'm in the video being interviewed. I have ALL the unused footage sitting in my vast archives of this shoot. Must be about 15 more minutes. OOOOhhhh. Anyway, this was aired on MTV in it's early days.

[PartyOfTheThirdPart]

I'll bet I'm not the only one who would like to see that footage! What's the story on how this ended up on VideoWest and who wrote that script???

[artiebarnes]

No idea who wrote the script. I just remember an interviewer, cameraman and maybe a guy with a mike. Or maybe it was just 2 guys total. Don't recall Videowest having anything to do with it. How did you get this thing? Is it circulating out there? Taped off the air, maybe...

[artiebarnes]

Also, I have so much unseen Wild Man footage and audio, it would dazzle the world! Some of it appeared in the documentary of Larry that came out a few years ago--

[PartyOfTheThirdPart]

The world begs to be dazzled by your Wild Man footage and audio. Well, I do anyway.

[PartyOfTheThirdPart]

Sounds like someone did the interviews and then sold the footage (or gave it) to multiple outlets, who then used it for their own various purposes, which is interesting to know. How did you and Larry come to be there, if you don't mind my asking? Do you remember what year it was? And, if my eyes don't deceive me, one of the later interviewees is another actor.

[artiebarnes]

Larry was "booked" for this taping by Rhino Records, who were promoting the newly released "Pronounced Normal" album that just came out. I co-produced that one-

[PartyOfTheThirdPart]

This was taped off the air by a friend in the 80's, and I got a copy of it shortly thereafter. I recently "rediscovered" it while going through some of my old tapes and converting them to digital.

[harriter88]

"MY NAME IS LARRY"! LOL.

[DoctorScissors]

He's awesome.

[casamusic]

a quando wild man milan?

[BenAliGtor]

"You're a nice BOY, Larry. Now stay AWAY from us!!"

LOL

[AutisticPersona]

At 1:00, Is that artiebarnes?!!!

[TheSwillMan]

Yes, it is.

[rastafarley]

Larry is my Elvis

[brakn]

Takes me back.

Merrygoround.

"The Leaves Are What?"

[fasteddy777]

Thank you Wildman. I almost got my parents committed to a mental institution because of your recordings. You are the best!

[PlasticDave]

all you'll ever meet are cheaters and liars. that is so true. my name is larry!!!!!!!!! he is a true original.

[TucumcariTimmy]

My man, my MAIN man. Wild, baby, like undone.... Larry is THE DUDE!

[SLCPunker101]

Yaay for Wildman!