Saturday, March 11, 2006

Art Paul Schlosser - Inside Outsider

"Hi,I'm ART PAUL and although I admit I am a Christian this CD is not designed to make everyone give up there fun and only talk about Jesus but rather it is a fun music CD that I hope will help you understand better about Christianity.That God Loves you not God wants to destroy you."

Art Paul Schlosser has become, according to one Wisconsin paper, "arguably Madison’s most recognizable local musician," due to his
painfully sincere lyrics, off-key singing, clumsy performances, and simple melodies. Which, of course, adds up to entertainment in my book - what's not to like about songs like "My Mother Is Reading A Book," "The Food Is Cool," and "Santa is Elvis"?

A
s the article points out, "do his fans “get” Art Paul Schlosser (if indeed there is something to “get”), or does he merely represent a subtle freak show, providing point-and-laugh amusement for drunk college students?...Is Art Paul Schlosser putting it on? Is he constructing his own image as a genial idiot savant whose childlike persona and amusing songs allow him to garner more money and attention than would otherwise be afforded someone of his limited musical skills? Perhaps yes, and perhaps not."

If he is a put-on, it's a remarkably consistent one - he's recorded numerous albums over the years. And yet, he certainly appears to behave like a show-biz professional - tv appearances, CDs, sites on MySpace, SoundClick, and garageband.com. Still, it's hard to believe someone would spend years faking songs like:

"Eat Nutriciously"

Maybe he has someone doing all this for him - he is married. Or maybe even "outsider" musicians are show-biz savvy nowadays. And "I Love My Mother" really is a great song, but I'm saving it for Mother's Day. Unless you want to buy it now - it's available through iTunes.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this post on Art Paul Schlosser. As a Madison-area native who hasn't seen the city in a while, it was almost like going home.

I've seen Art Paul in person, and if it's all a persona, he's damn good at it. He honestly comes off as having little upstairs; I recall one time at the Willie Street Fair when he sang a song about friends and declared that the world would be an easier place, and war-free, if Bush would just be friends with Saddam Hussein.

All the same, he's rather fun to watch perform.

Art Paul Schlosser said...

Hi Mr Fab

Great Post

Where are you writing it from ?

Would you like to meet me and interview me ?

If you would join my group at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PurpleBananasOnTheMoon