Schizophrenia Daily News Blog

You're Gonna Miss Me - Roky Erickson and Schizophrenia

A movie has recently come out on DVD on the life of Roky Erickson, a successful musician during the 1960s who developed schizophrenia. In a story that echos the life stories of Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett, as well as Fleetwood Mac's Peter Green and The Beach Boy's Brian Wilson - it is a story that is all too familiar in its theme.

We have not reviewed the movie so we cannot comment on the accuracy of the story.

Roky Erickson was poised to be a huge star, but as his fame grew, so did his notoriety, and his drug intake and public declarations about the benefits of marijuana and LSD bought him to the attention of the local police. Arrested for the possession of a single joint in 1969, Erickson pleaded insanity to avoid a prison term, and spent the next three and a half years in the State institute for the criminally insane, diagnosed as schizophrenic and subjected to electro-shock treatment. Though he would go on to release dark, influential albums up until the mid-90s, he never fully recovered.

The film sees Roky, surrounded by televisions and hi-fi equipment, cloaking himself with sound, while being looked after by his doting, overprotective mother, whose well intentioned refusal to allow Roky prescribed medication and psychiatric advice is questioned by his younger brother Sumner, who takes his mother to court to challenge her guardianship.

Reviewers have suggested that Keven McAlester's documentary is not only a great rock 'n' roll story, but a challenging portrait of mental illness and an affecting family drama.

Learn more about the movie: You're Gonna Miss me (IMDB)

Read a review here: You're Gonna Miss me (Hollywood Reporter)

The DVD is available here: You're Gonna Miss Me (Amazon)

See the following video clip from YouTube on the band here:

Related Reading: Schizophrenia Risk Increased with Street Drug Use