# Who best epitomized the out-of-control lifestyle of rock and roll? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 1, 2015, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677 "2015-01-01T14:32:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2015, 9:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/61 "2015-01-03T09:03:52Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > Makes me wonder what rock star is the polar opposite of the “out-of-control rock and roller”? The anti-Keith Moon? Neil Peart. ---
**Author:** ![syncrolecyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@syncrolecyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/syncrolecyne)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2015, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/62 "2015-01-03T13:46:14Z")
I’d say Bon Scott. He did some prison time and had some scary tattoos way before that became common in rock. Nearly every song he wrote was an ode to misbehavior of one sort or another. He also transformed over time from a teen idol pop-rock singer in Australia in the in the 1960s (not too different from the early Bee Gees) to a pretentious, “serious” progressive musician (in Fraternity) during the early 1970s before just going for broke and becoming an all out screaming demon in AC/DC by 1975 until he died during a night of drinking in 1980. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2015, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/63 "2015-01-03T14:51:46Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > Makes me wonder what rock star is the polar opposite of the “out-of-control rock and roller”? The anti-Keith Moon? Cliff Richard comes to mind, as do the members of Abba. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2015, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/64 "2015-01-03T23:53:04Z")
> [@The\_Tooth](#): > > Neil Peart. Who, ironically, was a huge Who fan in his youth. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/65 "2015-01-04T00:04:35Z")
Another “anti-rock star” who comes to mind is possibly Henry Rollins. He’s massively intelligent, and I could be totally off the mark on this, but as a straight woman, he strikes me as being completely asexual. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/66 "2015-01-04T00:40:07Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > [Screamin’ Jay Hawkins:](http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/WolfFiles/story?id=94216&page=1&singlePage=true) > Opened his act arising from a coffin and other stunts that Ozzie and Alice Cooper would be proud to have thought of, six wives, [somewhere between 50 and 75 illegitimate children](http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/WolfFiles/story?id=94216&page=1&singlePage=true). He died of natural causes, but not for lack of trying. One of his girlfriends, who happened also to be one of his backup singers, stabbed him because he was cheating on her. FWIW, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins was a really nice man. I interviewed/hung out with him for around an hour before his concert in SF circa 1984. This was after Down By Law was released and he was reliving some popularity with “I put a spell on you.” I’d go with Jim Morrison (assuming ~30 as the cut off for live fast die young). I’d give Keith Moon his 32 years but some of his excesses really seemed to be an act (hmmm, they expect me to drive a limo into the hotel pool, fuck it, why not?) type thing. On the punk side of the house, [Darby Crash of the Germs](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darby_Crash)gets an honorable mention. Sid Vicious was just kind of a sad individual. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/67 "2015-01-04T02:06:26Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > But it’s actually just an optical illusion. Later at night his head is normal-sized again. Well played. ---
**Author:** ![SykoSkotty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@SykoSkotty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SykoSkotty)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/68 "2015-01-04T15:14:47Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > In the summer of 1993, I worked with a man who had lived for a while in Austin, Texas, and we were all talking about concerts we had attended. He sheepishly said, “I saw GG Allin” and I replied, “Before you say anything more, all I know about GG Allin is that every time he performs, he always ends up getting arrested. What does he do onstage, or do I want to know?” > > "Oh, he shits onstage - " > > Other co-workers: “You are lying!” > > " - he sticks his microphone up his butt - " > > “You are making this up!” > > When asked why he went to something like this, he replied, “I just wanted to find out if the guy was for real.” > > He got another job (the co-worker, not GG Allin - just thought I’d clarify that) and the day after he quit, I read in Rolling Stone that Allin was dead. Too bad; I would have loved to have been the one to tell him. > > Guess he didn’t get to blow himself up onstage after all; instead, he quietly OD’d at an aftershow party. [Findagrave.com](http://Findagrave.com) said that his headstone had to be removed because relatives and friends of other people buried at that cemetery complained about all the vandalism, mostly people taking a dump on Allin’s grave. :smack: There’s a documentary about GG on YouTube - it’s **graphic.** I mean, “have a bucket nearby” graphic. I also found some footage of his last gig and the entourage walking the streets on their way to the after party, where he died of an overdose. It is rumored that after he died, no one at the party realized he was dead, so they started taking pictures with him, thinking he was passed out. Now, I don’t think he falls into the OP’s category, because he didn’t do any lavish spending - he was flat broke all the time. One of the things that seems to qualify these rock stars for expensive habits is success. If they didn’t have millions they wouldn’t have the money for expensive drugs, cars, and hotel bills. ---
**Author:** ![Ms\_Boods](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5e9695/32.png) [@Ms\_Boods](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms_Boods)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/69 "2015-01-04T16:19:23Z")
While Robert Johnson did lay down the foundations for the wild and crazy lifestyle of the pop musician, he did not openly brag about selling his soul to the devil down the crossroads, &c – that was _Tommy_ Johnson > **[Tommy Johnson (musician)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Johnson_%28musician%29)** > > Tommy Johnson (January 1896 – November 1, 1956) was an American Delta blues musician who recorded in the late 1920s and was known for his eerie falsetto voice and intricate guitar playing. > He was unrelated to the blues musician Robert Johnson. > Johnson was born near Terry, Mississippi, and in about 1910 moved to Crystal Springs, where he lived for most of his life. > He learned to play the guitar and, by 1914, was supplementing his income by playing at local parties with his brothers Major and L... The devil/soul/crossroads story about Robert Johnson doesn’t actually start to appear in popular culture until quite a while after his death. (Stories of selling one’s soul to the devil in exchange for musical prowess go back quite a long way in European and American folklore; if you’re interested in that sort of thing, you can check out Yronwode, Catherine. ‘The Crossroads in Hoodoo and Magic, and the Ritual of Selling Yourself to the Devil.’ Hoodoo in Theory and Practice. Lucky Mojo Curiosity Co. \<[http://www.luckymojo.com/crossroads.html>](http://www.luckymojo.com/crossroads.html>). I put together an article a conference a few years back that dealt in some detail about musicians from the Middle Ages onwards doing the whole music-lessons-from-the-devil thing – If I get a chance, I’ll have a sift through my old drafts, I’ve also got a source for a guy who compiled a hell of a lot of these folk-stories earlier in the 20th century via oral histories and interviews – he found tales of people selling their souls for prowess at guitar, violin, banjo, and in at least one instance, accordian. You’ll never look at Weird Al the same way again…) ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/70 "2015-01-04T19:53:15Z")
> [@SykoSkotty](#): > > There’s a documentary about GG on YouTube - it’s **graphic.** I mean, “have a bucket nearby” graphic. I also found some footage of his last gig and the entourage walking the streets on their way to the after party, where he died of an overdose. It is rumored that after he died, no one at the party realized he was dead, so they started taking pictures with him, thinking he was passed out. > > Now, I don’t think he falls into the OP’s category, because he didn’t do any lavish spending - he was flat broke all the time. One of the things that seems to qualify these rock stars for expensive habits is success. If they didn’t have millions they wouldn’t have the money for expensive drugs, cars, and hotel bills. Are you talking about “Hated”? One of my hobbies is watching documentaries about things only I and the people who made the movie are interested in, and yes, I have seen it. It’s not pleasant viewing, but I knew that ahead of time. I watched it on Netflix, and the DVD extras are grosser than the movie. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/71 "2015-01-04T21:02:29Z")
> [@Ms\_Boods](#): > > While Robert Johnson did lay down the foundations for the wild and crazy lifestyle of the pop musician, he did not openly brag about selling his soul to the devil down the crossroads, &c – that was _Tommy_ Johnson > > [Tommy Johnson (musician) - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Johnson_%28musician%29) > The devil/soul/crossroads story about Robert Johnson doesn’t actually start to appear in popular culture until quite a while after his death. > > (Stories of selling one’s soul to the devil in exchange for musical prowess go back quite a long way in European and American folklore; if you’re interested in that sort of thing, you can check out Yronwode, Catherine. ‘The Crossroads in Hoodoo and Magic, and the Ritual of Selling Yourself to the Devil.’ Hoodoo in Theory and Practice. Lucky Mojo Curiosity Co. \<[http://www.luckymojo.com/crossroads.html>](http://www.luckymojo.com/crossroads.html>). > I put together an article a conference a few years back that dealt in some detail about musicians from the Middle Ages onwards doing the whole music-lessons-from-the-devil thing – If I get a chance, I’ll have a sift through my old drafts, I’ve also got a source for a guy who compiled a hell of a lot of these folk-stories earlier in the 20th century via oral histories and interviews – he found tales of people selling their souls for prowess at guitar, violin, banjo, and in at least one instance, accordian. You’ll never look at Weird Al the same way again…) Don’t make me get all medieval on your ass…😉 **Ms Boods** speaks truth. The story of the artist who lives a “rock and roll” lifestyle goes back forever… ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/72 "2015-01-04T21:56:31Z")
> [@SykoSkotty](#): > > There’s a documentary about GG on YouTube - it’s **graphic.** I mean, “have a bucket nearby” graphic. I also found some footage of his last gig and the entourage walking the streets on their way to the after party, where he died of an overdose. It is rumored that after he died, no one at the party realized he was dead, so they started taking pictures with him, thinking he was passed out. > > Now, I don’t think he falls into the OP’s category, because he didn’t do any lavish spending - he was flat broke all the time. One of the things that seems to qualify these rock stars for expensive habits is success. If they didn’t have millions they wouldn’t have the money for expensive drugs, cars, and hotel bills. Was he the guy who ate his (or someone else’s) shit onstage? ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/73 "2015-01-04T23:53:31Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > Was he the guy who ate his (or someone else’s) shit onstage? Among other things, yes. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2015, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/74 "2015-01-05T04:08:31Z")
Some years back, I stumbled onto a groupie message board; I have no idea if it’s still up any more. My favorite thread was the one started by a woman who said she was married to one of the musicians (mostly from hair bands) “profiled”, and said, “I don’t know who that woman had sex with, but it DEFINITELY wasn’t him!” :dubious: 😛 :smack: And the one rock star who would have groupies that they had said they had NEVER gotten any kind of “report” on - good, bad, ugly, indifferent, etc. - was, of all people, Eddie Van Halen. That really didn’t surprise me, though, because back when Yahoo had their old message boards, anything to do with Van Halen was troll-free. We could even INVITE them and they didn’t show up! We never figured out why. ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2015, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/75 "2015-01-05T17:21:15Z")
It seems like Brian Jones should at least get a mention in this thread. Like Moon, his behavior was a reflection of serious personality problems. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2015, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/76 "2015-01-05T17:25:41Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > GG Allin Does he even qualify as the out-of-control lifestyle of rock and roll? I mean, there’s unrestrained hedonism, and then there’s just sick. I \*get \*wanting limitless sex and drugs. I don’t get stomach churning activities. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 10:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/77 "2015-01-06T10:06:33Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > Not one vote for Sid Vicious? The fucker snuffed his girlfriend! If that wasn’t a short, crazy, and sad spin out of control I don’t know who’s life was. I wrote a post about my skepticism on that murder, but then decided to post it in [its own thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=745491) so as not to hijack this one. ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/78 "2015-01-06T15:57:31Z")
> [@bup](#): > > Does he even qualify as the out-of-control lifestyle of rock and roll? > > I mean, there’s unrestrained hedonism, and then there’s just sick. I \*get \*wanting limitless sex and drugs. > > I don’t get stomach churning activities. Exactly what I was thinking…as has been pointed out, I think, you don’t need success and excess to just participate in some messed up shit. For that matter you could nominate the guys in [Mayhem](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayhem_%28band%29), or any other psychotics who just happen(ed) to be musicians as well. That’s all a far cry from the “typical” story of succumbing to excess. But maybe that’s wrong, because I don’t know where the line is drawn – I’ve certainly always considered Sid Vicious and some of the others who have gotten high and killed others or themselves to be part of the category we’re talking about, so maybe there’s no line. So I nominate Mayhem. I think a lot of the black metal bands and the imagery and “characters” they portray are kind of an act to appeal to broody teens and the deep-down violent impulses in many of us. When nobody’s looking many of these guys probably take their grandmas to brunch every Sunday and frolic in the park with their kids. Not these guys, what with the murders and fights and burning churches and whatnot. They’re the classic example, I think, of that particular style of rock and roll imagery, and the exact sort of thing that Metalocalpse/Dethklok skewers brilliantly. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/79 "2015-01-06T16:56:18Z")
Yeah, Mayhem. Extreme with about 20 capital Xs. Rock should be dangerous, but not resort to outright murder. I don’t know of anything that approaches that level of foolishness in a band. Ugh, let’s hope I never do. ---
**Author:** ![SpeedwayRyan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@SpeedwayRyan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpeedwayRyan)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677/80 "2015-01-06T20:46:00Z")
As far as anti-Keith Moons go, Brian May of Queen was studying for his PhD in astrophysics in the early 1970s, which he later went on to earn… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-best-epitomized-the-out-of-control-lifestyle-of-rock-and-roll/708677.md?page=5)