Are many of the most talented musicians and artists autistic?

I am discussing this topic with the utmost of respect for the musicians and artists that I mention.  I am in no way attempting to defame or insult them.  This is merely an observation that I have been formulating over many years now.  Furthermore, I feel that I am qualified to discuss this topic as I am a high functioning autistic.  I was officially diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome in 2008.  Late in life, yes, but you know what they say.  Better late than never.

Over the years, I've noticed some musicians having what I'll loosely term "mental breakdowns".  I've also observed cases where one band member has difficulty getting along with the others.  Yes, I know that this is merely people being people in many cases.  However, I believe that there are some cases where autism could be causing the social conflicts.  People who are high functioning autistics are often extremely smart and creative.  However, their emotions are a bit out of sync with their intellect.  Sometimes quite divergent.  It is this attribute that makes people like us more susceptible to social conflicts.

Throughout the ages, I think some of the most prolific artists and musicians likely had some form of autism.  Mussorgsky, Van Gogh, Mozart, and Da Vinci just to name a few.  I think it's quite arguable that even Einstein was autistic.  Honestly, to a degree, I think high intelligence and autism go hand in hand.  Thus, there's no shame in it.  Quite the opposite.  Despite our social shortcomings, we are some of the most productive and creative people in the world.  We chip away at the mysteries of the universe because we are highly analytical and persistent.  We make great artists and musicians because we are extremely creative and have profound imaginations.

I was going to name some well known people who are alive and well today that I think have some degree of autism.  However, I think it would be even better if musicians and artists, well known or not, would step forward and be proud of who they are by announcing it themselves.  I welcome comments on this post.  In fact, I'll be more than a little disappointed if I don't see any over the coming weeks.  Whether autistic or not, I'd definitely like to 'hear' from artists and musicians.  Let's spread the word that we should be highly regarded for our intellect and creativity rather than looked down upon for our social shortcomings.

Going Out on a LIMB

Do you remember when huge conglomerates like Clear Channel controlled the music that you heard on the radio and what venues in which bands could and could not perform? How about the days where the big 4 record label conglomerates, Sony Music Entertainment, EMI, Warner Music Group, and Universal Music Group, "manufactured" talent by hiring people who could sing and having session musicians write and play the accompanying music? Didn't you hate that these conglomerates also decided who to promote and how much; thus, affecting what music hit your ears and what did not? What about all of the bands that have been screwed over by having their copyrights taken away from them after signing contracts? Was it really fair that their intellectual property didn't belong to them? Was it appropriate for these conglomerates to only pay the bands a small fraction of the profits made from their music? Let's not forget about all of the bands who were forced to pay for their own tours! Many bands have broken up because they essentially went bankrupt.

Wait a second! I must have visited the future because much of this stuff is going on right now! One band that was fairly recently affected by all of this hoopla was Agents of Good Roots. Although I am not 100% certain, I am reasonably sure that AGR broke up shortly after signing on with RCA because the record label was pushing them in a direction they did not want to go. Being that they weren't ready to sacrifice their musical integrity, I strongly believe that they were forced to disband. Back in the day, bands like King Crimson and Genesis were "raped" by EG and Atlantic respectively. In fact, there were points in the 70's where these bands nearly disbanded too due to finances and inappropriate decisions made by the record labels. There are so many musicians who are victims of the huge conglomerates out there today that I could probably fill up 20 pages with 0.5 inch margins on all sides --single spaced!

The first attempt that musicians made to take some control over their destiny was during the late 60's and 70's progressive rock era. Bands such as Genesis, Yes, ELP, Pink Floyd, Rush, King Crimson, and many others strived to keep their musical integrity by flexing their musical talents and pushing boundaries. Some of these bands found ways to keep their musical integrity. However, punk music had the unfortunate side effect of putting an end to the progressive rock era because suddenly people didn't have to sing in tune or be virtuosos. They just had to be angry and against "the establishment". Unfortunately, to many punk rockers, "the establishment" included the notion of progressive rock bands with all of their "pomp" and "self indulgence" and not just the record industry. Another extremely unfortunate side effect of punk rock is that they essentially paved the way for hip hop. In my opinion, hip hop is one of the biggest mis-steps that music has ever taken. An even bigger mis-step than punk rock! Sadly, the music industry went steadily downhill from there.

I could go on and on about how great bands were negatively affected by the industry. However, I'd like to put a stop to all of this nonsense and level the playing field once and for all. My solution would be called LIMB or League of Independent Musicians and Bands. The mission would be to help bands become self sufficient and self sustaining. LIMB would teach them how to promote themselves, how to take care of their own finances, provide any necessary legal assistance, and, most importantly, allow musicians to keep the copyright for their intellectual property. Through the help of some big names in music and some great law firms, LIMB would further level the playing field by forcing companies who monopolize the market such as Clear Channel to sell radio stations to small companies or individuals for a reasonable price. We would also force Ticketmaster to allow competition for the "manufacturing" and distribution of concert tickets. I think it's fair to say that Ticketmaster makes more profit per ticket than just about any band does. I've had the idea for LIMB since about 2003. I would love to make it a reality. However, without some big names to provide initial financing and clout, LIMB will remain but an idea posted in a blog. In order to stay in business, LIMB would have to charge musicians and bands a yearly membership fee. However, the fee would be quite reasonable considering the services that LIMB would provide.