Best Ever Albums

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 23:05:50 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/30/2012 04:05

The wonders of the internet. I've just discovered this nugget from 1987 of a relaxed 46 year old Don chatting with fans during a US radio interview. It's in five parts:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29NPr1dKHFw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jkx_sJLG4IU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50Qmbcg3w0s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50Qmbcg3w0s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eg-3lO47vaI

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 11:40:40 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/29/2012 16:40

thejoj96 wrote:

TMR sucks balls. Most of his other stuff is good though.

I understand why some people think that.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 00:25:16 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/29/2012 05:25

Yourselfisntsteam wrote:

While I find Trout Mask Replica's legacy shows up in many places (some surprising), I agree with this, musical development is far to complex and cannibalistic to put the entire existence of genres on the shoulders of one musician or album.

I would suggest he was an important player in opening up the musical world for these (often raw and noisy) genres... at the very least I think Beefheart was in a sense a spiritual predecessor to punk and krautrock, a sort of symbolic founding figure (alongside Vu) in that alternative rock history that moves from krautrock to punk to post punk to noise-rock and indie and post-rock ect. But that is perhaps a far to linear reading of things.

It is interesting that many musicians cite him as an influence (not a meaningful fact by itself), but in a way no one has really attempted to step up and follow what Trout Mask Replica did. Some copied to primitivism, some the absurdity, some the complex interlocking guitars, but never a direct copy or following point.

While I accept the basic premise that music is far too nebulus to warrant the attributation of a wide ranging set of genres to one musician or album in general terms, I nevetheless do feel that an exception can be made with regards to Beefheart's formal development of rock music. In this sense, I rank TMR as important as Picasso's depiction of prostitutes in his masterpiece Le Demoiselles.

Just as the nature of the influence of Picasso's masterpiece produced a flood of cubist paintings of men with guitars and cafe tables rather than a flood of paintings of prostitutes, so TMR produced a flood of rock music that no longer adhered to any preconceived rules, rather than a flood of Trout Mask Replica's.

Both Picasso's and Beefheart's masterpieces must be viewed in their respective totalities, a particular fusion or unity of form and content. It's clear to me that the commonality between these two artists was their need to radically break with traditional forms of representation, their need to assault the conventional standards of beauty. To look at Les Demoiselles has the similar effect of listening to TMR, the visual and musical equivalent of a sharp slap to the face.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Jasonconfused — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 23:27:42 GMT

Author: Jasonconfused

Posted: 11/29/2012 04:27

Can we include Willie the Pimp? I know it's a Frank Zappa song but Beefheart steals the show on that one.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Anonymous — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 18:56:53 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 11/28/2012 23:56

Norman Bates wrote:

I can see where he would have influenced some post-punk (Pere Ubu most notably) and some experimental rock; but I'm not sure what you mean by "if it were not for Beefheart (...) for example (...) krautrock (...) and hardcore" would not exist. I'll give you hardcore if you are convincing enough (although I believe hardcore is one direct heir of '77 punk that has nothing to do with post-modern blues experiments), but surely Faust or Neu! don't have anything to do with Beefheart ?

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Anonymous — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 17:11:24 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 11/28/2012 22:11

TMR sucks balls. Most of his other stuff is good though.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Norman Bates — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:09:05 GMT

Author: Norman Bates

Posted: 11/28/2012 20:09

hairymarx1 wrote:

It could be reasonably argued that if it were not for Beefheart, then many progressive forms of rock music that we take for granted today - from, for example, what is euphemistically termed 'krautrock', through to post-punk, experimental and hardcore - simply would not exist.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 14:59:45 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/28/2012 19:59

Norman Bates wrote:

I'd rank "Abba Zabba" very high, maybe #1.

Yep, another gem. The Captain rarely put a foot wrong. I even think most of the stuff on the much derided Spotlight Kid is brilliant.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Norman Bates — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 14:03:34 GMT

Author: Norman Bates

Posted: 11/28/2012 19:03

I'd rank "Abba Zabba" very high, maybe #1.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Anonymous — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 10:21:52 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 11/28/2012 15:21

Borve Baunehoj wrote:

"tropical hot dog night, like two flamingoes in a fruit fight"

hairymarx1 wrote:

beautiful poetic imagery.

notsureifserious.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 10:19:03 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/28/2012 15:19

Borve Baunehoj wrote:

Just recently got around Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) and it definitely contains the best song about "tropical hot dog night, like two flamingoes in a fruit fight" I've ever heard

Beefheart wasn't given nearly enough credit by mainstream critics for his brilliant use of wordplay and beautiful, often rhythmic, poetic imagery.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 10:12:12 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/28/2012 15:12

PTLegz wrote:

I only have Trout Mask and Safe As Milk but they're both fantastic and I probably need to get more of his shit

Get everything except Bluejeans And Moonbeams and Unconditionally Guaranteed.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Anonymous — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 01:55:55 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 11/28/2012 06:55

Just recently got around Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) and it definitely contains the best song about "tropical hot dog night, like two flamingoes in a fruit fight" I've ever heard

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

PTLegz — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 00:40:06 GMT

Author: PTLegz

Posted: 11/28/2012 05:40

I only have Trout Mask and Safe As Milk but they're both fantastic and I probably need to get more of his shit

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 23:21:13 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/28/2012 04:21

mooseboy101 wrote:

i dont have favorite songs because i think his material is best listened to on an album in it's entirety

though mirror man is great

I agree Mirror Man is superb. I avoid complitations like the plague.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

mooseboy101 — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 23:14:30 GMT

Author: mooseboy101

Posted: 11/28/2012 04:14

i dont have favorite songs because i think his material is best listened to on an album in it's entirety

though mirror man is great

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 22:57:40 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/28/2012 03:57

Yourselfisntsteam wrote:

I haven't heard all of of Beefheart's discography, but some of my favourites not on your list would be:

I'm glad
Sweet Sweet Bulbs
Fallin Ditch
Steal Softly through Snow
The Smithsonian Institute Blues
Peon
Harry Irene

Few artists have produced such a high quality an varied body of work as Beefheart. I started out with 50 then rattled it down to 25. In truth I could of picked 100. In my view he has produced 8 albums that I regard as masterpieces - Safe As Milk, Mirror Man, Strictly Personal, Trout Mask, Decals, Shiny Beast, Doc and Crow.

Even the albums the fans slated stand up remarkably well as faithfull blues-based interpretations, AOR rock standards and ballads etc and were only done so largely on the basis that they were not regarded as classic albums in the Beefheartonian sense.

If it were anybody else other than the Captain who conceived, for example, Clear Spot or Spotlight Kid, impartial observers less familiar with the rest of his work would arguably have been a lot more forgiving. But then the Captain's standards were high. Artistically and creatively, he rarely compromised.

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

hairymarx1 — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 22:40:13 GMT

Author: hairymarx1

Posted: 11/28/2012 03:40

Defago wrote:

:love: I definitely need to listen to more of Beefheart's stuff. Seems like 4 albums isn't close to enough.

What were the four?

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Anonymous — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 22:32:42 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 11/28/2012 03:32

I haven't heard all of of Beefheart's discography, but some of my favourites not on your list would be:

I'm glad
Sweet Sweet Bulbs
Fallin Ditch
Steal Softly through Snow
The Smithsonian Institute Blues
Peon
Harry Irene

Re: Don Van Vliet: His Greatest 25 tracks?

Defago — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 21:17:03 GMT

Author: Defago

Posted: 11/28/2012 02:17

🥰 I definitely need to listen to more of Beefheart's stuff. Seems like 4 albums isn't close to enough.