Being dyslexic hasn't stopped Billy Childish from writing two novels and 30 volumes of poetry. Being tone-deaf hasn't stopped him from singing in a bunch of garage bands. And his determination to do things his own way without giving a damn about being ignored by the mainstream has made him into an icon of underground music, especially of garage-punk.
His bands since since the early 1980s include The Milkshakes, The Mighty Caesars, Thee Headcoats and, now, The Buff Medways. The music is rough and loud, like he recorded it in a bathroom and screamed the vocals through a loud hailer.
Recently, on the BBC's "Top of the Pops," The White Stripes asked if Childish -- whose work includes more than 2,000 paintings -- could paint on stage while they performed "Fell in Love with a Girl." TOTP refused, so guitarist Jack White wrote "B. Childish" on his arm in bold letters as a protest.