freak flag

English

Etymology

Reportedly originated from song lyrics for If 6 Was 9 (1967) by Jimi Hendrix[1] and was popularized by its use in Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's counterculture anthem Almost Cut My Hair.[2]

Pronunciation

Audio (AU) (file)

Noun

freak flag (plural freak flags)

(idiomatic) Unconventional or unrestrained behavior; extreme, nonconformist views; the side of one's personality which harbors a tendency toward such behavior or such views.
- 1988 Feb. 21, Sarah Peasley, "Swinging Singing," Washington Post:
  "We were just blatantly flaunting our freak flag," she says. "We were trying to be badder than anyone else—and we were getting away with it!"
- 2000 May 21, James Poniewozik, "Books: Sex, Drugs and Subatomic Particles," New York Times:
  Tom Robbins, whose cosmic-absurdist, stoner-philosophical novels have moved undergraduates to scrawl So true!!! in the margins for decades, has again deputized himself to carry the freak flag of irreverence and fleshly indulgence.
- 2007 Jun. 10, Jason Sobel, "On the Hot Seat: Rory Sabbatini," ESPN.com (retrieved 26 Aug. 2008):
  Q: You've got that "Don't mess with Texas" attitude down, don't you?
  A: If you ever watched "The Family Stone," it says, "Everyone has a freak flag, so fly your freak flag proudly." So that's kind of the way I am.

Related terms

fly the freak flag

References

Jimi Hendrix (lyrics and music) (1967), “If 6 Was 9”, in Axis: Bold as Love, performed by The Jimi Hendrix Experience: “They're hoping soon, my kind will drop and die / But I'm going to wave / My freak flag high, high ow!”
David Crosby (lyrics) (1970), “Almost Cut My Hair”, in Déjà Vu, performed by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: “But I didn't and I wonder why / I feel like letting my freak flag fly”

[1] Jimi Hendrix (lyrics and music) (1967), “If 6 Was 9”, in Axis: Bold as Love, performed by The Jimi Hendrix Experience: “They're hoping soon, my kind will drop and die / But I'm going to wave / My freak flag high, high ow!”

[2] David Crosby (lyrics) (1970), “Almost Cut My Hair”, in Déjà Vu, performed by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: “But I didn't and I wonder why / I feel like letting my freak flag fly”