Biography
Wild Man Fischer occupied the same position in vocal performance that Jean Dubuffet held in the visual arts. Just as the French pioneer of Art Brut carved out space for creators outside conventional acceptance, Fischer embodied the ultimate Singing Outsider. Tracing his path requires looking past scattered rumors to assemble the record of his singular career. Its origins appear linked to Paul Anka’s example. During 1961 the young performer began delivering self-composed pieces at full volume, punctuating them with spontaneous rhythmic ululations and throat-produced percussive sounds. When his mother confined him to his room, he simply increased the volume and kept shaping his personal idiom.
Expelled from school in 1962 for singing during lessons, Fischer was placed by his mother the following year in Camarillo State Hospital after she found his conduct inexplicable; doctors there identified him as paranoid schizophrenic. Such institutionalization reflected a common reaction to nonconformity in the late 1950s and early 1960s, comparable to the electroshock treatments Lou Reed received for dressing in women’s clothing and displaying defiance. Fischer’s emerging style centered on the expressive force of the scream. After his 1964 release he sang at every opportunity, including an impromptu performance at Sorrento Beach featuring an original composition about the location itself. When the audience responded with applause he immediately departed. Appearances at various talent contests brought him to the attention of Solomon Burke, who invited him on tour and bestowed the name “Wild Man Fischer.” Still residing at home, the twenty-year-old was recommitted by his alarmed mother in 1965; he was discharged in 1966, though he later stated that these periods of confinement had intensified his difficulties.
Recognition arrived suddenly in 1967 and 1968 through club talent shows at the Troubadour and the Red Velvet. He met Phil Spector and unsuccessfully sought a “Wall of Sound” production. Around the same period he opened for Iron Butterfly at the Whisky a Go Go and for Bo Diddley at the Experience. His regular practice was to perform original material on Hollywood sidewalks in exchange for coins. Frank Zappa observed him both inside venues and on the Sunset Strip, leading to appearances with the Mothers of Invention and the 1968 double album An Evening with Wild Man Fischer, which Zappa produced. Fischer possessed an uncommon sensibility and openly shared his distinct perspective, yet his earlier Camarillo experiences and abrupt exposure to audiences who often mocked him undermined both his well-being and his prospects. Few vocalists have endured such persistent misrepresentation.
Relations with Zappa collapsed after a physical dispute over royalties inside the Zappa residence. The ensuing years proved difficult as Fischer attempted to establish himself as a recording artist. He played a 1969 concert at UCLA and toured Idaho in 1971. A notable step came in 1975 when he cut a 45-rpm promotional single for the Rhino Records store, becoming the label’s inaugural artist. Backed by the Plastic Rhino Band he issued the album Wildmania in 1977 and briefly toured the Midwest, including Michigan.
Meeting the Barnes & Barnes songwriting and production team in 1980 resulted in the album Pronounced Normal; Bill Mumy characterized it as “a great record that told the tale of the inner spirit without humiliating him.” A Wild Man Fischer video aired on MTV in 1981 while he moved among hotels in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Bakersfield, Long Beach, Burbank, and San Diego. In 1983 he again collaborated with Barnes & Barnes on the Rhino release Nothing Scary, which appeared the next year. He performed at the Massachusetts College of Art in 1986 and recorded a duet with Rosemary Clooney after she heard his composition “Oh God Please Send Me a Kid (I Can Buy It a Doughnut Every Day).” Late in the decade he appeared at a comic-book convention in San Diego.
During the 1990s Fischer gradually stepped back from music and sought a quieter private existence. Rhino issued the complete Rhino recordings in 1999; the limited-edition double-CD The Fischer King, sold exclusively online, sold out rapidly and became a sought-after collector’s item. In the new century he formed supportive friendships marked by genuine respect. Following a paranoid episode in 2004 he resided in an assisted-living facility in Van Nuys, California, under regular medication. He succumbed to heart failure in Los Angeles on June 16, 2011, at the age of 66.
Expelled from school in 1962 for singing during lessons, Fischer was placed by his mother the following year in Camarillo State Hospital after she found his conduct inexplicable; doctors there identified him as paranoid schizophrenic. Such institutionalization reflected a common reaction to nonconformity in the late 1950s and early 1960s, comparable to the electroshock treatments Lou Reed received for dressing in women’s clothing and displaying defiance. Fischer’s emerging style centered on the expressive force of the scream. After his 1964 release he sang at every opportunity, including an impromptu performance at Sorrento Beach featuring an original composition about the location itself. When the audience responded with applause he immediately departed. Appearances at various talent contests brought him to the attention of Solomon Burke, who invited him on tour and bestowed the name “Wild Man Fischer.” Still residing at home, the twenty-year-old was recommitted by his alarmed mother in 1965; he was discharged in 1966, though he later stated that these periods of confinement had intensified his difficulties.
Recognition arrived suddenly in 1967 and 1968 through club talent shows at the Troubadour and the Red Velvet. He met Phil Spector and unsuccessfully sought a “Wall of Sound” production. Around the same period he opened for Iron Butterfly at the Whisky a Go Go and for Bo Diddley at the Experience. His regular practice was to perform original material on Hollywood sidewalks in exchange for coins. Frank Zappa observed him both inside venues and on the Sunset Strip, leading to appearances with the Mothers of Invention and the 1968 double album An Evening with Wild Man Fischer, which Zappa produced. Fischer possessed an uncommon sensibility and openly shared his distinct perspective, yet his earlier Camarillo experiences and abrupt exposure to audiences who often mocked him undermined both his well-being and his prospects. Few vocalists have endured such persistent misrepresentation.
Relations with Zappa collapsed after a physical dispute over royalties inside the Zappa residence. The ensuing years proved difficult as Fischer attempted to establish himself as a recording artist. He played a 1969 concert at UCLA and toured Idaho in 1971. A notable step came in 1975 when he cut a 45-rpm promotional single for the Rhino Records store, becoming the label’s inaugural artist. Backed by the Plastic Rhino Band he issued the album Wildmania in 1977 and briefly toured the Midwest, including Michigan.
Meeting the Barnes & Barnes songwriting and production team in 1980 resulted in the album Pronounced Normal; Bill Mumy characterized it as “a great record that told the tale of the inner spirit without humiliating him.” A Wild Man Fischer video aired on MTV in 1981 while he moved among hotels in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Bakersfield, Long Beach, Burbank, and San Diego. In 1983 he again collaborated with Barnes & Barnes on the Rhino release Nothing Scary, which appeared the next year. He performed at the Massachusetts College of Art in 1986 and recorded a duet with Rosemary Clooney after she heard his composition “Oh God Please Send Me a Kid (I Can Buy It a Doughnut Every Day).” Late in the decade he appeared at a comic-book convention in San Diego.
During the 1990s Fischer gradually stepped back from music and sought a quieter private existence. Rhino issued the complete Rhino recordings in 1999; the limited-edition double-CD The Fischer King, sold exclusively online, sold out rapidly and became a sought-after collector’s item. In the new century he formed supportive friendships marked by genuine respect. Following a paranoid episode in 2004 he resided in an assisted-living facility in Van Nuys, California, under regular medication. He succumbed to heart failure in Los Angeles on June 16, 2011, at the age of 66.
Albums
