Browse by Artist: J.T. IV

Artist:	J.T. IV
Title:	Cosmic Lightning
Label:	DRAG CITY
Format:	LP/DVD
Price:	$21.00
Catalog #:	DC 378LP

Repressed again -- and still "rare as hen's teeth"? "Like a bolt from the black, Cosmic Lightning has struck again -- but who felt the shock the first time around? The sounds of J.T. IV were too much for 1980s Chicago. Now they can be truly absorbed, 20 years after they first flashed. Rock and roll often grows out of harsh circumstances. John Timmis IV survived a broken childhood and a nightmarish adolescence, ending up homeless and hustling on the streets after being committed to a mental hospital by his mother in the mid-'70s. At New Trier High School on Chicago's North Shore, he obsessed over the Velvets and David Bowie and taught himself how to play guitar. Two years later, he recorded his first 45, Waiting for the C.T.A. backed with 'Song For Suzanne' and 'Death Trip.' Then came 'In The Can' (written during his institutional stay), which was included on the B-side of his second single, Destructo Rock. These singles were pressed in runs of a hundred or two -- and there are only two known extant copies of the first release. Both were recorded at Odyssey Studio on Michigan Avenue and released on J.T.'s Rock And Roll Records imprint. John did his best to publicize his work, giving away copies of Destructo Rock all around town. During the '90s, rare sightings were reported at record stores, and rumors persist that a few 45s can still be found in jukeboxes in Europe. Sadly, John's talents didn't include selling his records, and the copies he gave away haven't survived in any great numbers. After an odd absence in which he claimed to have been horribly disfigured in a car accident, John rebounded in 1987, and released his last single under the name Frankenstein. The Cosmic Lightning album was compiled from his singles discography. Additionally, he produced and directed the 85-hour film (longest film in history, according to the Guinness Book of World Records) entitled The Cure For Insomnia, which played once at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He finished a memoir entitled From The Inside, framing his life story inside a narrative of his time incarcerated at the Menninger Clinic. In 1988 he moved to Ohio, never to be heard from again. He died in 2002 after a long struggle with drugs and alcohol. Though his music was energized by the punk and glam movements, John was beyond style, feverishly (and unknowingly) meshing punk and classic rock sounds with dark psychedelic touches. He performed live only three times, at events that were almost make-believe concerts, showcasing his appeal in serendipitous fashion. The spirit of J.T. IV was a unique and damaged thing. He was a legend in his own mind, a mind that opened several times in his lifetime with thrilling results. His 1977 sophomore yearbook photo from New Trier graces the cover of Cosmic Lightning, as close to an official portrait as he ever came. This is what's left of J.T. IV -- and it rocks."

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