YouTubeGG Allin and his father, Merle Sr. Long before he was cross-dressing, sparking riots, and exploring the world of hardcore punk, GG Allin was living an entirely different sort of life. He, however, began answering the name Kevin Micheal Allin from 1962 after his mom changed his birth name.
“After he shit onstage, complete chaos broke out in the hall,” Bloody Mess said. The younger Allin described living with Merle as a primitive existence, likening it to a prison sentence rather than an upbringing. This band featured J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. on lead guitar and Bongwater record producer/musician Mark Kramer on bass. Eventually, in 1977, he found a permanent gig playing the drums and singing backup for the punk rock band The Jabbers. Merle Allin was reclusive and abusive and routinely threatened to kill his family. Ultimately he didn’t go out quite like he planned, but his death was still a public spectacle. The Allin family’s patriarch was a religious fanatic named Merle, and they lived in a log cabin devoid of electricity and running water. "[23] He also stated that suicide should only be done when one had reached one's peak, meeting the afterlife at one's strongest point and not at one's weakest. GG was buried with a bottle of Jim Beam beside him in his casket, as requested (openly stated in his self-penned acoustic country ballad, "When I Die"). Did whatever we wanted to for the most part – including all the bands we played in. Nonetheless, he was ultimately thankful for it, as it “made him a warrior soul at an early age.”. He planned to kill himself onstage on Halloween many times in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but was stopped due to prison sentences around every Halloween each year. GG Allin was named Jesus Christ Allin after he was born on the 29th of August 1956, in New Hampshire in Lancaster to Merle Colby Allin and Arleta Gunther. [30] At the time of his death, GG Allin's "girlfriend" was Liz Mankowski. According to his older brother, he experienced bullying by fellow students for nonconformity. GG Allin's grave was frequently vandalized with urine, feces, cigarette butts, and alcohol by fans,[38] an act that was greatly discouraged by GG's mother Arleta. Allin idolized country music legend Hank Williams and saw himself as a kindred spirit. [18] In the early '70s, Alice Cooper became an important influence on Allin. Allin performing in one of his last shows. During this period, Allin collaborated with Bulge (also known as Psycho under a different name, on the album Freaks, Faggots, Drunks and Junkies), the Aids Brigade (the 7" EP Expose Yourself to Kids) and the Holymen (You Give Love a Bad Name). “It’s not so much wanting to die,” he once said, “but controlling that moment, choosing your own way.”. YouTubeAllin performing in one of his last shows. Another reason given for his onstage antics (by Dino, the drummer of his band) was that he wanted to draw a parallel between his actions and "a society that's going crazy with violence". Your email address will not be published. Born Jesus Christ Allin in 1956, GG grew up in Groveton, New Hampshire. He would dig “graves” in the cabin’s cellar to prove how serious he was. [42], Mid-era and more extreme live performances, Lifestory: GG Allin (including relevant excerpt of The First Ten Years), Learn how and when to remove this template message, "GG Allin's mother explains why he was named "Jesus Christ" when he was a baby GG Allin was a hero", "The GG Allin SuperSite Media Guide – Boston Rock – No. In the mid-80s, tensions over Allin’s unwillingness to compromise caused the band to split. In 1989, Allin wrote to Maximum RocknRoll stating that he would commit suicide on stage on Halloween 1989. He has also said that if he was not a performer, he would probably be a serial killer or a mass murderer. Allin fronted many acts during the early to mid-1980s.
After walking the streets for almost an hour, Allin eventually went to his friend Johnny Puke's apartment. He admitted to cutting and burning a woman as well as drinking her blood. Allin stayed with them until 1984 and put out his debut album Always Was, Is and Always Shall Be with them. Parfrey, Adam. Williams, like Allin, was a quiet loner with a persistent drinking habit, who traveled light and often, and wanted nothing more than to embody his music. "G. G. Allin: Portrait of the Enemy" in Parfrey, ed. He continued his threat each following year but ended up imprisoned each following Halloween. [4] Allin was best known for his controversial live performances, which often featured transgressive acts, including self-mutilation and assaulting audience members, for which he was arrested and imprisoned on multiple occasions. “I was with him when he bought the Ex-Lax,” frontman Bloody Mess recalled later. 4,665 Followers, 8 Following, 193 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from MERLE ALLIN (@merleallin) He formed several bands, cross-dressed at school, sold drugs, broke into houses, and generally lived life on his own terms.
Many words have been used to describe GG Allin.
Clips were included from other Allin appearances, as well as interviews with Allin, his band, and their fans. [30] They divorced in 1985. [18] The group covered songs by Aerosmith, Kiss, and other popular rock bands of the time period. Naturally, the destructive nature of his sets resulted in venues and equipment companies severing ties with Allin. YouTubeGG Allin drumming in one of his first bands. Full of chances and dangers. In 1985, while performing a show in Peoria, Ill. with Bloody Mess & the Skabs, GG Allin took his madman title to the next level. After learning about the infamous GG Allin, check out these rock and roll groupies that changed music history. 135 – 1993", "Eat Shit and Die: GG Allin's First Name Was Jesus Christ", "The GG Allin SuperSite Media Guide – Chairs Missing – 1989", https://archive.org/stream/GGAllinAmericasFavoriteSonAutobiography/2005%20-%20America%E2%80%99s%20Favorite%20Son%20-%20GG%20Allin%20Autobiography_djvu.txt, "interview with Bloody F. Mess by Swedish Scum", "Nosotros, los normales. Later that morning, someone noticed that Allin still lay motionless in the same place where they had left him and called for an ambulance. [30], In the mid-1980s, Allin became involved with a teenage girl from Garland, Texas named Tracy Deneault. As GG was born Jesus Christ Allin, Merle, as a young child, couldn't pronounce the word Jesus so he often called him the phonetic "Je Je". ", which features the line "This song is written and dedicated for GG Allin" spoken at the beginning. [16], Regarding Allin's views on death, he believed in some form of an afterlife. Video footage of the soundcheck, concert, and aftermath from Allin's final concert on the day of his death was appended to the 1997 DVD release of Hated. Allin also stated that, at 35, he could sleep with 12-, 13- and 16-year-old girls, boys and animals and claimed that he raped both women and men at his concerts.[25]. MERLE ALLIN of MURDER JUNKIES interview 1/26/2020 w/ REV DEREK MOODY & SISTER TRACY on the CHURCH of ROCK radio show. GG Allin drumming in one of his first bands. August Underground's Penance (2007)as Himself, Living the American Nightmare (2011)as Himself, Hated: GG Allin & the Murder Junkies (1993)as Thanks, Your email address will not be published. Then, read about David Bowie and how he shattered rock stereotypes. [28] He also mentioned a somewhat unlikely European tour, enthusiastically talking about it in the hours before his death. Allin's earliest musical influences were 1960s British Invasion bands including the Beatles, Greg Van Voorst, the Rolling Stones, and the Dave Clark Five. Ultimately he served 15 months in prison. “All of the old men in charge of the hall went fucking nuts. He recorded his own rewrites of Hank Williams, Jr.'s "Family Tradition" and David Allan Coe's "Longhaired Redneck", calling his own versions "Scumfuc Tradition" and "Outlaw Scumfuc", respectively. Relationships. Known more for his notorious stage antics than for his music, Allin recorded prolifically, not only in the punk rock genre, but also in spoken word, country, and more traditional-style rock.
Though the two seem polar opposites GG Allin idolized country music legend Hank Williams. In 1991, GG recorded an album entitled Murder Junkies, released by New Rose Records, featuring Antiseen as his backing band. The tape also featured several in-studio and in-concert recordings with an all-star band assembled by producer Maximum RocknRoll and early Allin patron Mykel Board. Hundreds of confused punk kids were flipping out, running out the door, because the smell was incredible.”. [30] Nico chose to distance herself from her family. Police were often called, especially when Allin began jumping into crowds and onto audience members. Frank Mullen/WireImageGG Allin in concert at the Club Spacefish in Orlando, Florida. When asked why he did not follow through with his threats, Allin stated, "With GG, you don't get what you expect—you get what you deserve. [36] At his funeral, Allin's bloated, unpreserved corpse was dressed in his black leather jacket and trademark jock strap. He wrote to and visited John Wayne Gacy in prison a number of times and Gacy painted a portrait of Allin, which became the album cover to the soundtrack of the film Hated: GG Allin and the Murder Junkies.