Lightning-Rod Man

Album: Lightning-Rod Man (1993)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "Lightning-Rod Man" was an early effort by Lowell George, who recorded the song with his pre-Little Feat band, The Factory. George wrote the song with his friend Martin Kibbee and also played guitar and sang on it. Actually, "sang" is giving him too much credit - George really just screeched out the vocals like a lunatic. The song is either avant-garde or a musical dumpster fire, depending on your perspective. You'd never guess it's the same guy who led Little Feat, one of the most musically adept and thoroughly respected groups of the '70s. The drummer on "Lightning-Rod Man," Richie Hayward, also joined Little Feat. Martin Kibbee continued writing songs with George, some of which ended up with Little Feat, including one of their most famous songs, "Dixie Chicken."
  • The song was inspired by an 1854 Herman Melville story called The Lightning-rod Man about a guy who sells lightning rods during a thunder storm. It's one of Melville's lesser-known works - you'll know him for Moby Dick.
  • "Lightning-Rod Man" was recorded in 1966 or thereabouts, but it wasn't released until 1993 when it appeared on a compilation called Lightning-Rod Man that includes lots of early material from Lowell George. In 2000 it showed up on the Little Feat boxed set Hotcakes & Outtakes.
  • You won't be surprised to learn that Frank Zappa had a hand in this song - he produced it. In 1966 Lowell George auditioned for Zappa, who was impressed enough to produce the song for George's band The Factory. Three years later, George joined Zappa's backing band, the Mothers Of Invention. That wasn't a good fit, and George left the group a short time later to form Little Feat, where he emulated Zappa's authoritative style of leadership.
  • Lowell George called this song "a cross between 'They're Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-haaa' and Ian and Sylvia."

    "They're Coming To Take Me Away" was a novelty song from 1966 about a guy who loses his mind. Ian and Sylvia were a Canadian folk duo.

Comments: 1

  • Mr. Smartypants from ConnecticutWow you are waaaaaay off. He walks in the STORM (hence lightning. Get it?) He carries his old brass POLE ( as in LIGHTNING ROD)
see more comments

Editor's Picks

16 Songs With a Heartbeat

16 Songs With a HeartbeatSong Writing

We've heard of artists putting their hearts into their music, but some take it literally.

Tom Bailey of Thompson Twins

Tom Bailey of Thompson TwinsSongwriter Interviews

Tom stopped performing Thompson Twins songs in 1987, in part because of their personal nature: "Hold Me Now" came after an argument with his bandmate/girlfriend Alannah Currie.

Judas Priest

Judas PriestSongwriter Interviews

Rob Halford, Richie Faulkner and Glenn Tipton talk twin guitar harmonies and explain how they create songs in Judas Priest.

Butch Vig

Butch VigSongwriter Interviews

The Garbage drummer/songwriter produced the Nirvana album Nevermind, and Smashing Pumpkins' Gish and Siamese Dream.

Loudon Wainwright III

Loudon Wainwright IIISongwriter Interviews

"Dead Skunk" became a stinker for Loudon when he felt pressure to make another hit - his latest songs deal with mortality, his son Rufus, and picking up poop.

David Bowie Lyrics Quiz

David Bowie Lyrics QuizMusic Quiz

How well do you know your David Bowie lyrics? Take this quiz to find out.