G.G. Allin: Outlaw Scumfuck
Where do I begin? G.G. is truly a being like no other. Regardless of his bizarre childhood (he was born Jesus Christ Allin, his father was mentally unstable, they lived in a log cabin in the backwoods of New Hampshire, etc.) G.G.’s eccentricities stood on their own. His performing “career” began in high school when he would go to class dressed in drag. He later made his way into music as a drummer in several unsuccessful punk bands. He finally found his niche and moderate success as frontman of the Jabbers (and later the Scumfucks, Cedar Street Sluts, and Texas Nazis) a typical late 70’s punk band, similar to the Dead Boys and the Damned. Chaos is probably the best way to describe his music (as would be true with most punk bands, but especially G.G.’s). Song titles included “Last In Line For The Gang Bang,” “Gimme Some Head,” and “Suck My Ass, It Smells” just to name a few. G.G. did not just sing about sex, drugs and defecation, he actually lived it. As an alcoholic, heroin addict, squatter and small criminal, G.G. truly lived the spirit of his music. Ironically, his idols included Nina Simone and Hank Williams, Sr., claiming he relates to Simone as a fellow rebel and Williams as an loner, as he was often homeless and considered himself a wandering feces-covered troubadour.
G .G.’s performances included defecation, urination, self-mutilation, masturbating, sex acts and violence, not to mention to consumption of the end-products. While Iggy Pop may have performed nude and cut himself and Stiv Bators abused himself on stage, no one could compare to G.G., not even Darby Crash and Wendy O of the Plasmatics. G.G.’s performances often ended in riots when the police and venue owners would cut the power and attempt to arrest G.G. for indecent exposure, public urination, sexual abuse and assault (just to name a few). Gaining cult status, G.G. had an entourage that would follow him around from show to show, participating in the antics. G.G. also performed spoken word as well, but as were true with his musical performances, they were done scantily clad and involved some mixture of blood, feces, urine and semen. G.G. also painted and drew. His sketches and paintings mostly portrayed rebellion and sex, but some were portraits and scenes of blues performances, as G.G. was a self-proclaimed blues enthusiast. G.G. considered himself the “last true rock n’ roller” and thus, the sacred guardian of blues and roots music. Allin rose to cult status and even appeared on national talk television shows, such as Jerry Springer and the Jane Whitney Show. His consistent suicide threats, which were supposed to take place on stage during Halloween, only drove him into further notoriety. He defined the image of chaos, clad in leather jacket, slave collar, and jock strap. Allin’s image also included an entirely shaved body except for his Ghengis Khan moustache and dyed-red beard and crude tattoos and scars from his performances, as he often broke bones and contracted blood poisoning from self-mutilation. Allin continued to perform (when not in jail) up until his death at age 36 when he overdosed on heroin after a show in NYC at the Gas Station. His funeral was a huge party of drugs and alcohol. Allin was buried in his leather jacket and jock strap, still covered in blood and feces, as his brother refused to allow the mortician to wash him. G.G.’s short life defined his philosophy of live fast, die young and dirty.
My personal opinion of Allin is not that great. I hold him to be an icon in punk and celebrate the impact he had on it, but I consider him to be a pollutant to the music and force it creates. He painted punk to be apolitical and crass, where I hold it to be extremely political and refined in its chaotic expression. I admire Allin for his ability to live his life on his own terms, but as an artist in a scene I am deeply tied to, I hold others in a higher light, such as, Ian MacKaye, Henry Rollins, Stiv Bators, Dick Dictor and Keith Morris.
The role of the artist today is to provide a reflection of, distraction from, and interpretation of real life. They offer commentary on life in the present and future. Artists stand as guardians of the abstractions of human behavior and serve to remind us that there is more than the physical realm in front of us. They help us navigate emotions and opinions in a large and intimidating world filled with an overwhelming amount of information and culture. G.G. Allin and Zhang Huan offer us different perspectives and aspect of life. Zhang Huan offers the spiritual and pluralist view, while G.G. offers the rebellious and damaged side of life. Both artists entertain and shock us in a variety of ways and on many different levels. Artists also serve to remind us that we are all different in how we perceive things as every artist draws both praise and criticism.
I really find the last question concerning an event that would be important today, pretty difficult to answer. I suppose an important event would include a large group of people and the participation of the audience. I think it is important for artists to break down the barrier of artist and audience. I can’t really think of something that would be too important. I will get back to you on that after some more pondering.