Wesley Willis R.I.P.

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

http://www.alternativetentacles.com/news.php?sd=U44fjr6Wacz8tU5CycQ#165

08/22/03: Rock Star Wesley Willis Dead at 40

Dear Friends and fellow Wesleynauts,
We are deeply saddened to report that one of our artists, Wesley Willis passed away yesterday, Thursday, August 21st. Wesley will be greatly missed by all that had the privilege to know him, as well as the fans who have been fortunate enough to experience his genius.

Wesley was diagnosed with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML) at the end of 2002, and had to undergo emergency surgery on June 2nd to identify the source of, and to suppress internal bleeding. It is not clear if this bleeding was related to his leukemia or not, and the exact cause of death is still unknown. Wesley had been recovering at a Hospice in Illinois, and since the surgery his health had deteriorated rapidly.

His songs were simultaneously disturbing, hilarious, blunt, and intoxicating. Wesley's sheer excitement and unaffected honesty about every cultural phenomenon, defined his music as truly individual, and truly punk rock.

Wesley released well over 50 albums - 3 of which are on Alternative Tentacles, and a 4th, entitled, Wesley Willis Greatest Hits Vol. 3 (CD) had already been scheduled for release in October of this year.

For more information on Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia, please visit http://leukemia-lymphoma.org .

Currently there are no plans for any funeral service but we will inform you if there will be.

― Sam J. (samjeff), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:02 (twenty years ago) link

Sad. My friend Dan made a documentary about WW & I think they became buds, I imagine he'll be feeling pretty low today...

― s1utsky (slutsky), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:05 (twenty years ago) link

wow, RIP

― dleone (dleone), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:06 (twenty years ago) link

Given all the crap that swirled around him and his own situation, I pretty much hope that he was at some sort of peace at the end, and that he really did find some peace along the way with all that performing.

And I will still say that "Rock 'n' Roll McDonalds" is great.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:07 (twenty years ago) link

Holy shit dude. Fuck. What the fuck I'm seriously about to cry, this is not cool! I served him a "toona fish sammich", I headbutted this man...

AAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:09 (twenty years ago) link

If y'all don't mind, I'd kinda like to put some of his artwork on this thread.

http://starchild.streams.com/starchild/wesley/copcar.gif

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:12 (twenty years ago) link

His headbutts will be missed.. Seriously.

― Dale the Titled (cprek), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:12 (twenty years ago) link

Saw him w/ the Country Teasers in '01. One of the strangest nights of my life, for many reasons, but that's a fucking shame. RIP.

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:12 (twenty years ago) link

NO. THIS IS A LIE. WESLEY IS NOT DEAD. COULDNT BE. NOOOOOOOO!

― Spinktor the Unmerciful (mawill5), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:13 (twenty years ago) link

http://www.focalart.com/images/Willis002.jpg

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:15 (twenty years ago) link

I saw him with Action Patrol back in '00...and again like 2 years ago in Austin. Truely magical evening.

I will definately tip a 40oz tonight in his honor.

― Spinktor the Unmerciful (mawill5), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:15 (twenty years ago) link

I think I'll put some HP Sauce on my dick.

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:17 (twenty years ago) link

What do you think the chances are of WW getting a shoutout on a magazine? Or do you think they are going to "Joe Strummer" him?

(And by "joe strummering" i mean totally ignore his significant contributions to music)

― Spinktor the Unmerciful (mawill5), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:23 (twenty years ago) link

ha ha

― strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:26 (twenty years ago) link

(sorry, i know it's not good to laugh on an RIP thread, but that last statement is indefensible.)

― strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:26 (twenty years ago) link

Whatever, dude...Wesley was right up there with such influential mofos as Elvis, Roy Orbison, David Lee Roth, and John Lennon.

― Spinktor the Unmerciful (mawill5), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:29 (twenty years ago) link

his music was awful, i always felt unclean when people would put it on at high school parties. his art was actually pretty good as you can see above (although he signed his name in foot-high letters half the time, somewhat mitigating their prettiness). he seemed like a genial guy who maybe wasn't getting the right kind of attention. he head-butted me once and was very gentle about it.

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:32 (twenty years ago) link

sometimes you rocked and sometimes you rolled...

bummer man. bummer. we be sure to suck a llama's dick tonight...
m.

― msp, Friday, 22 August 2003 17:33 (twenty years ago) link

btw i worry about the two buses in that picture. are they going to collide?

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:37 (twenty years ago) link

maybe there's a stoplight out of view, like a great cosmic one.

― strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:37 (twenty years ago) link

Rock Over London Rock On Chicago RIP Wesley

― cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:55 (twenty years ago) link

btw i worry about the two buses in that picture. are they going to collide?
they're clearing not headed toward each other, and the one on the left isn't showing its brake lights, so I don't think you have to worry.

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 22 August 2003 17:56 (twenty years ago) link

i heard he was beat up

― chaki (chaki), Friday, 22 August 2003 18:28 (twenty years ago) link

playing/talking with this dude was probably the highlight of my year so far.what a great guy.

― juiceboxxx (juiceboxxx), Friday, 22 August 2003 18:36 (twenty years ago) link

In the UK, to "Joe Strummer" someone means to 'out' them as a secretly middle class person

― Andrew L (Andrew L), Friday, 22 August 2003 18:52 (twenty years ago) link

first off, RIP and all that. but ive always thought he was just like daniel johnston...except without any talent. and i though it was disgusting seeing people paid so much attention to him and pretended he had talent when they were really just laughing at him.

― tom cleveland (tom cleveland), Friday, 22 August 2003 18:55 (twenty years ago) link

strangely, i listened to heavy vegetable's "song for wesley" on my way out the door today.

RIP

― gygax! (gygax!), Friday, 22 August 2003 19:01 (twenty years ago) link

oh my god. RIP.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Friday, 22 August 2003 19:57 (twenty years ago) link

RIP

(for the record, I don't think a RIP thread is a very good place to have a critical discussion, pro or anti)

― hstencil, Friday, 22 August 2003 19:59 (twenty years ago) link

Fuck the haters, Wesley was a rockstar in Jesus' name.

Godspeed Wes.

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:02 (twenty years ago) link

so hstencil the posts should simply consist of "RIP"?

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:13 (twenty years ago) link

This news has really made me miserable. I just saw a live clip of "She Loves Me Truly" on mtv.com and I almost cried.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Friday, 22 August 2003 20:15 (twenty years ago) link

amateurist the posts could maybe be hold whatever respectful messages anybody wanted to write, but not be filled with...

oh fuck it, you're an adult, why can't you figure it out as to why that's a bad idea?

― hstencil, Friday, 22 August 2003 20:17 (twenty years ago) link

am I'm pretty sure there's are other Wesley Willis threads to do the CoD disscussion. I don't think it's to unfair to suggest that maybe 'he suckt anyway' isn't maybe the best response to news of someone's death.

― cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:28 (twenty years ago) link

unless ur talking about gg allin

― chaki (chaki), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:29 (twenty years ago) link

I misspelt "too"

― cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:31 (twenty years ago) link

i agree that if there are people here that knew him personally it's wise to save assessments of his music for another time.

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:32 (twenty years ago) link

grieving in public for someone you knew is a bad idea.

― strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:32 (twenty years ago) link

that puts to kibosh on encomiums in the new york times.

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:35 (twenty years ago) link

the kibosh

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:35 (twenty years ago) link

I don't think this thread is the proper place for discussing whether grieving is a "bad idea" or not, either.

― hstencil, Friday, 22 August 2003 20:36 (twenty years ago) link

hstencil i know this may come as a shock but did it ever occur to you that no one really gives a rats ass what you think is a good idea? (p.s. you're doing a pretty good job of derailing it yourself, as usual.)

"thanks, mom."

― strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:38 (twenty years ago) link

well as long as the thread's ruined, here goes: go fuck yourself, jess. Unless you'd rather lament other people telling you what to do while you tell other people what to do, that is.

― hstencil, Friday, 22 August 2003 20:39 (twenty years ago) link

btw i worry about the two buses in that picture. are they going to collide?

they're clearing not headed toward each other, and the one on the left isn't showing its brake lights, so I don't think you have to worry.

Wesley's eye for the Pynchonesque messages encoded in CTA timetables is what got me over the lump he left on my forehead. Whenever I'm gripped by the chill that accompanies seeing a bus pulled up on every side of a 4-way intersection, I think immediately of the man.

RIP.

― brian nemtusak (sanlazaro), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:40 (twenty years ago) link

(stence, i don't know what your problem is these days ("these days" ha ha) - caught an std on tour, pissed off about that piddling tour diary bullshit - but GET OFF MY DICK, chumpy. it's just getting tedious now. ilm seriously needs many things, but not a den mother.)

― strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:42 (twenty years ago) link

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/oliphant/thoa048.jpg

― amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:48 (twenty years ago) link

(I didn't have the guts to say it, but there ya go.)

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:49 (twenty years ago) link

(whatever jess. If you or amateurist or anybody else can't hold off expressing vitriol in a thread that's about somebody dying, then clearly anything I write chiding y'all for it is going to be ineffective. That said, grow the fuck up and show some goddamn respect for once in your measly life while you still have life. The guy's dead - what any of us think about his music is irrelevant.)

― hstencil, Friday, 22 August 2003 20:50 (twenty years ago) link

thanks mom.

how many guys died today who didn't make music? why aren't we discussing them? on i love music?

― strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:51 (twenty years ago) link

i mean, he didn't make wrought iron bedframes, but if he did, i think the value of his work would probably be important for him to get a mention or not on i love bedframes when he died.

― strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 22 August 2003 20:52 (twenty years ago) link

Skipping 147 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

but i got all dressed up

― chaki (chaki), Monday, 25 August 2003 02:09 (twenty years ago) link

aw, chaki, yr precious! *pinches Chaki's lil cheek*

― Orbit (Orbit), Monday, 25 August 2003 03:05 (twenty years ago) link

I skipped all the hatorade upthread once I had tasted it and ascertained that it was in fact fresh hatorade, everybody please be nice. I loved Wesley's stuff & had fewer of my usual exploitation-of-a-psychosis issues with it because he was so self-driven: it wasn't like people "discovered" him & set him up in public - he LIVED for going to clubs in Chicago, loved music in a way that I don't think anybody here can really claim. Having worked in mental health for years I recognized a lot of really common symptoms in his lyrics - the repetition of key figures until they drain themselves of meaning, the use of predictable/probably inscrutable formulae - but his self-released stuff just really works for me. It's no fun to have an illness like Wesley or Daniel Johnston's got (and I do think they are well-paired: people are always "oh but Daniel Johnston's got genuine" whatever, but I think that shakes out to "I prefer Daniel Johnston's psychoses to Wesley's bipolar d.o. with psychotic features"), so "rest in peace" is well put: there isn't much peace in this world for someone like Wesley. It always made me happy to see how hard he worked to find a little peace & comfort in music. I try to avoid the passive voice, but "I will miss him" seems inadequate, so I'm just gonna say "he will be missed" anyhow.

― J0hn Darn1elle (J0hn Darn1elle), Monday, 25 August 2003 03:10 (twenty years ago) link

perhaps some people might feel a touch more comfortable if they knew you weren't going to question their motivations, their beliefs and more besides

Can I get a witness?! I SAID Can I GET a witness?!
Woooooo!
Preach it man, right on! *spins*

― Orbit (Orbit), Monday, 25 August 2003 03:21 (twenty years ago) link

I stopped at Intuit Gallery in Chicago yesterday, where they were showing about a dozen of Wesley's drawings from the early nineties. I hadn't seen his artwork before this thread, and the stuff at the gallery was pretty awesome. In his Chicago street scenes, the storefronts and buses are incredibly detailed, but then overtowered by blocky buildings that hit the clouds at skewed angles. It was great. Then, I talked with a guy there who'd been friends with Wesley; he seemed to be holding back tears during our entire conversation. I was glad I went. I know I said earlier that all the ugliness on this thread made me not want to post anymore, but I figured I'd fight that with another small appreciation. R.I.P., Wesley.

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 25 August 2003 04:29 (twenty years ago) link

I assume nobody in your respective CD collections has 'narcissitic personality disorder', otherwise you're all voyeurs

― r d laing, Monday, 25 August 2003 08:57 (twenty years ago) link

''ned i post to lots of threads besides the few where i argue with ppl, you dont read them because theyre about rap. i like ilm still, even now, because of ppl like dk and jess and blount and minna and sean g, but all those threads are usually five posts and then die.''

I know what you mean trife: same with my improv threads (though there are rather less ppl that listen to improv than hip-hop) and sometimes you just surf the other threads and all of a sudden you're all in the middle of a heated arg abt something you are not as much into.

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 25 August 2003 09:17 (twenty years ago) link

I just hope that after Warren Zevon meets his maker, his obituary thread doesn't devolve into a series of random, vinctictive holy wars over flamewar-inducing abstractions.
Remember: When you start a pissing contest in a tightly closed forum, you end up with a thread that smells like a porto-potty and ILxors damp with someone elses rank body fluids.

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Monday, 25 August 2003 16:50 (twenty years ago) link

haha this thread reads like a primer on the stereotypes of each ILMer, right down to the Gareth "everyone is ok" love post.

And also right down to the "Ally in adding nothing" shockah.

Wesley RIP, I must say I think there are enough other threads that didn't go cobblers on Wesley Willis--why did this one go so bad?

― Ally-zay (mlescaut), Monday, 25 August 2003 18:48 (twenty years ago) link

Ally's right you know. maybe this thread should be in the faq

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Monday, 25 August 2003 21:52 (twenty years ago) link

I just read this thread because I didn't know Wesley Willis had passed away. Finding out he was gone made me sad, but reading this thread has made me even sadder.

I love Wesley Willis. He was an entertaining and creative individual who deserved a lot more peace in his lifetime than he got. He was a beautiful soul. Thanks for making me smile, man.

― The Man they call Dan (The Man they call Dan), Tuesday, 26 August 2003 01:59 (twenty years ago) link

Did anyone notice that one of today's Yahoo headlines is: "Chicago Musician Wesley Willis Dead at 40"? I had no idea that he was so well-known.

Link...

― phil-two (phil-two), Tuesday, 26 August 2003 02:21 (twenty years ago) link

one year passes...

Revive the thread and revive Willis!
God bless Wesley.

― Forksclovetofu (Forksclovetofu), Monday, 4 October 2004 23:18 (nineteen years ago) link

Jello can be a real boring mofo, but his ode to Wesley up there is quite moving.

― Shakey Mo Collier, Monday, 4 October 2004 23:51 (nineteen years ago) link

man, i forgot how toxic this thread turned out. :(

― REFICUL!, Monday, 4 October 2004 23:52 (nineteen years ago) link

Wow, the entire thread is this bizarre clusterfuck, though.

Heh, x-post.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 4 October 2004 23:54 (nineteen years ago) link

This thread is an amazing display of something.

― why do old people and old users of ILX such bastardos (deangulberry), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 00:01 (nineteen years ago) link

It is a sad day when Mike Taylor of all people is the voice of reason on an ilm thread...

― Disco Nihilist (mjt), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 03:29 (nineteen years ago) link

Just went back and READ the thread.
I'm a doofus for reviving this.

― Forksclovetofu (Forksclovetofu), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 04:58 (nineteen years ago) link

OK, Wesley Wills.

I downloaded a couple of tracks, but I wasn't that taken by them. I guess his back story lead me to believe the tracks would be more 'out there' than they were. In this, he reminds me of Roky Erikson, (his later stuff anyway) in that his stuff was always competent and actually lacking a little of the crazyness that a lot of artists try desperately hard to add into their stuff.

But that's the way, isn't it? Some make music to stay sane, and some make music to allow themselves to go a bit crazy.

My feeling is that Wesley Wills got what he wanted out of his music. And it's still a fine world that will allow and help people like him to do that. I have no right to judge him on a couple of tracks, even if his 'story' is that all the songs are 'the same', I actually doubt it very much. Like the Ramones are all the same? Like the Godfathers? (i.e. the songs' choruses being the title repeated four times, except for "Birth School Work Death" which is only twice)

RIP Wesley. We have to see his like again. That's what the world is made of.

― mark grout (mark grout), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 10:23 (nineteen years ago) link

three months pass...

Sad. My friend Dan made a documentary about WW & I think they became buds, I imagine he'll be feeling pretty low today...

I saw this last night and it was amazingly funny, especially the visit to the voo where Wesley wants to buy a book about Reindeer and tells the shop assistant that's it for research for songs about beastiality.

― James Mitchell (James Mitchell), Saturday, 8 January 2005 17:32 (nineteen years ago) link

I want to see that!

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Saturday, 8 January 2005 18:08 (nineteen years ago) link

oh cool james, where'd you see that?

― s1ocki (slutsky), Saturday, 8 January 2005 18:26 (nineteen years ago) link

six months pass...

this thread is an ilm low-point

― fuck you strongo, Tuesday, 19 July 2005 01:20 (eighteen years ago) link

good idea to revive it then

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 01:25 (eighteen years ago) link

you all should be reminded how repugnant you are

― moralist, Tuesday, 19 July 2005 01:34 (eighteen years ago) link

who are you?

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 01:44 (eighteen years ago) link

anonymous troll #565 (it's bato)

― wesley willis fan #4863, Tuesday, 19 July 2005 01:50 (eighteen years ago) link

thanks for stopping by!

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 01:52 (eighteen years ago) link

this is all my fault

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 04:21 (eighteen years ago) link

Holy crap, I got...emotional, that day.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 17:05 (eighteen years ago) link

Julio is maybe my favourite person ever to post to ILX.

― Adam In Real Life (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 17:21 (eighteen years ago) link

http://s11.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0HKT1WPALMC8G3VGRW3FTHL4E0

= my living room at 4am the other night.

― dog latin (dog latin), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 17:35 (eighteen years ago) link

julio used to insult me from time to time

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 19:24 (eighteen years ago) link

He is really nice in real life, it's just that the internet does this to us all.

― Adam In Real Life (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 19:25 (eighteen years ago) link

i was a magnet for insults for a brief moment, then it seemed to die away for reasons i still don't understand.

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 19:27 (eighteen years ago) link

He is really nice in real life, it's just that the internet does this to us all.

That's what someone said to me on Sunday who was friends with Blount in GA!

― jaymc (jaymc), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 19:28 (eighteen years ago) link

People underestimated you.

― Adam In Real Life (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 19:29 (eighteen years ago) link

strangely, i listened to heavy vegetable's "song for wesley" on my way out the door today.
RIP

-- gygax! (gygax0...), August 22nd, 2003 1:01 PM. (gygax!)

This is such a good song, even some Apples in Stereo and Moby fans might agree.

― gygax! (gygax!), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 21:30 (eighteen years ago) link

have you purposely named two of my least -favorite acts of the last 10 years?

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 22:01 (eighteen years ago) link

racist.

― gygax! (gygax!), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 22:11 (eighteen years ago) link

cave dwellers!

― Dr. Glen Y. Abreu (dr g), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 23:50 (eighteen years ago) link

six months pass...

god there's some really fucking stupid people here

― discus, Saturday, 21 January 2006 16:19 (eighteen years ago) link

four years pass...

thinking 'baout wesley willis today, miss <3

― buzza, Saturday, 20 November 2010 04:06 (thirteen years ago) link

Another post on this thread = more clusterf posts disappear into the "show all messages" bin.

― Mark G, Saturday, 20 November 2010 09:34 (thirteen years ago) link

I WHUP BAMANS ASS

― jumpskins, Saturday, 20 November 2010 09:43 (thirteen years ago) link

nine months pass...

Amazing thread.

― James Ferraro Boyz (Whiney G. Weingarten), Wednesday, 14 September 2011 16:26 (twelve years ago) link

Amazing thread.

― James Ferraro Boyz (Whiney G. Weingarten), Wednesday, 14 September 2011 16:26 (twelve years ago) link

KISS A WARTHOG'S FUNKY ASSHOLE

― Jamie_ATP, Wednesday, 14 September 2011 16:27 (twelve years ago) link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtgYvUpto4M

― citation needed (Steve Shasta), Wednesday, 14 September 2011 16:59 (twelve years ago) link

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.