Or, if not insane, clearly with Serious Serious Issues.
I can think of a handful - for some reason, all are women.
Sinead O’Connor
Amy Winehouse
Courtney Love
Whitney Houston sorta counts - she went crazy after she became famous, but I think if she hadn’t gotten big she’d still be fine. OTOH, I’m pretty sure the others on my list were off their rockers to start with.
Who else?
Syd Barret
Roky Erickson
and most likely G.G. Allin, but I’m not positive.
Which brings to mind Sid Vicious.
Wesley Willis
Insane, yes. But talented? The guy was FAKING it on the bass.
Glenn Matlock was a sloppy, raw, amateurish but energetic musician. Sid Vicious was a fraud.
Peter Green
Sun Ra.
Jimi Hendrix
Keith Moon
Jeremey Spencer also?
Lee “Scratch” Perry and Chuck Berry are the two that come immediately to mind. Maybe Dave Mustaine, as he seems to occasionally go off the deep end every few years and fire all of Megadeth, then re-form them a bit later.
He was a goofy 20-year old punk wigged-out on smack.
Troubled? Yes.
Insane? Probably not.
(I agree with you about the talented part though.)
Tom Waits
Klaus Nomi
Michael Jackson.
Surely.
I wouldn’t consider Waits insane, but definitely second Keith Moon. There was some book about Led Zeppelin that came out way back, and it was great; if even half of those stories are true, Keith Moon definitely qualifies as both gifted and nuts.
The Ol’ Dirty Bastard
Joan Baez is crazy cakes.
I’m not entirely sure Bob Dylan is the most balanced either.
Florence Welch may well be on this list…give her some time, after all, not everyone can have a hit single about a mutually physically abusive relationship and arson (Kiss With a Fist).
Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet)
Varg Vikernes
Brian Wilson
John Fahey