Daniel Johnston to play St. Bartholomew’s Church in Brighton

It doesn't take much rummaging through our archives to discover how much we love Daniel Johnston at Bobbysix.com. So we are happy to advise our readers in the South of England that he will be playing a very special show in Brighton on April 16th.

The manic-depressive artist, songwriter and performer from West Virginia has become a cult figure, admired and covered by the likes of Tom Waits, Sonic Youth and Kurt Cobain. At this momentous event in good old Sussex by the sea, Daniel will be performing his music in the sublime and breathtaking setting of St. Bartholomew's Church (the tallest purpose built church in the UK) and will be backed by a full band of distinguished guests.

The show is all-ages and you can book your tickets here. This man is an absolute genius and his music is heartbreaking and touching. Don't miss what is sure to be something truly special.

Daniel Johnston - Life in Vain

When the legendary Daniel Johnston performed in Sydney last year (above), it was one of the most touching and inspiring things ever. One of the songs he played was Life in Vain, which offers these hugely evocative lyrics, "It's so tough just to be alive/When I feel like the living dead... Flip on your TV/And try to make sense out of that/If we were all in the movies/Maybe we wouldn't be so bored/We're giving it up so plain/We're living our lives in vain/And where are we going to?/You gotta really try/Try so hard to get by/And where are you going to?"

In our humble opinion, it is one of the best songs ever written and the strings on the album version simply punch right through your ribcage and rip your heart clean out. Anyway, we were just on a hefty Youtube procrastination session and found the below version which, while not offering strings, gives us a mesmerising stripped-down performance. It's not easy viewing but we dare you to not to get emotional.

If you want to know more about Daniel, then you should really have a look at the magnificent documentary about him, The Devil and Daniel Johnston.