Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Captain Beefheart
Label: Buddah Records
Released: 1967
Runtime: 33:40
Rating: 4/5
American experimental musician, vocal chameleon, composer, painter and social satirist Don Van Vliet, better known as Captain Beefheart, was without a doubt one of the most colorful figures of the early progressive rock movement that blossomed in the second half of the sixties, and he picked up plenty along the way from his good friend Frank Zappa. From 1967 to 1982, when he decided to retire from music, this sadly late artist recorded twelve studio albums with his band The Magic Band, and a few of them are still considered gems of outstanding eclecticism and sonic vision.
Through most of his career, Captain Beefheart cunningly blended rock, psychedelic rock, blues, avant-garde music and free jazz, and in his often absurd and grotesque lyrics he loved to unleash biting social satire, something only the one-of-a-kind Zappa could top. The two were great friends and, at the start, musical rivals too, and they helped each other at several key points in their careers. Without Frank’s label and production assistance, Don would surely have been in deep trouble in the late sixties.
After a string of early singles, Beefheart truly shocked the music world for the first time in 1967 with the very interesting and innovative debut »Safe As Milk,« and he held his band under absolute but highly effective control, which quickly earned him a ‘reputation’ as an uncompromising dictator who changed band members almost constantly. The best-known member of the Magic Band lineup that recorded »Safe As Milk« was the then barely twenty-year-old guitar virtuoso Ry Cooder, who later became a hugely respected solo musician. Cooder and second guitarist Alex St. Clair Snouffer were among the main architects of the guitar-driven approach of Beefheart’s early Magic Band.
»Safe As Milk« was a thoroughly eclectic and, for its time, provocative mix of blues rock and psychedelic rock, with a strong emphasis on Delta blues on some tracks, while Beefheart’s band already sowed a few odd time signatures and chaotic improvisations on their debut. Throughout his career, Van Vliet boasted a stunning vocal range and an unusually eclectic tone of voice: one moment he could sing like a nightingale, the next he sounded like an irritated drunk in the middle of withdrawal, and then like an old tin can someone had tied to a car bumper and dragged along on a drive.
The very first track on »Safe As Milk,« »Sure ‘Nuff ‘N Yes I Do,« with Don sounding like some village oddball who just caught a case of sunstroke, was a vivid example of experimentally spiced-up Delta blues, straight out of New Orleans, which Beefheart and his gang also practice on some of the other »Safe As Milk« compositions. »Zig Zag Wanderer« is a rhythmically promising piece with elements of blues rock and rock’n’roll, where Don’s tireless vocal yapping is joined by well-coordinated backing vocals. On »Call On Me« a pleasant guitar melody is mercilessly smothered by Don’s chameleon-like vocal mannerisms.
»Dropout Boogie« is a goofy boogie experiment where Don delivers the most vivid vocal impression of an irritated goblin, while a melodic arrangement fights its way through smudgy, distorted guitar passages. The melancholic ballad »I’m Glad,« where Don proves he can sing with a ‘normal’ approach whenever he wants, is the most subtle moment of the whole album, and the gentle vocal harmonies and touching central arrangement play an important part in building its contemplative atmosphere.
The classic »Electricity« is one of the most innovative and experimental moments on »Safe As Milk,« as Don goes big on experimenting with distorted vocals, something he would do many more times in his career. During the recording of the final version of this experimental classic, Beefheart reportedly even blew out a microphone while singing. According to Don, this single was to ‘blame’ for the co-owner of A&M Records refusing to sign Beefheart, since »Electricity« supposedly had too negative an effect on his teenage daughter. There’s another juicy detail about this song. Don supposedly once took one step too many off the stage in the middle of playing »Electricity« at a gig and belly-flopped headfirst straight down into the grass. By Don’s account, he had spotted a girl in the crowd who turned into a goldfish right before his eyes (he probably watched Disney’s version of Pinocchio for too long the day before). Because of Beefheart’s unpredictability, this ‘incident’ made Ry Cooder leave the band.
»Yellow Brick Road« is a goofy blues rocker with ‘cowboy’ guitar passages, while Don sounds like some vagabond who just suffered a nasty hangover. »Abba Zaba,« dominated by scattered guitar lines and plenty of avant-garde rhythmic touches, is one of the better-known pieces on »Safe As Milk.« The song’s title comes from the name of Beefheart’s favorite candy bar. »Plastic Factory,« where Don’s brutal vocal performance recalls a foul-mouthed factory worker, is an energetic blues rocker with experimental rhythmic nuances.
»Where There’s Woman,« where Mr. Beefheart sounds like someone whose heart just broke from disappointment, is a real ‘lament of a wailing bird’ with avant-garde touches. »Grown So Ugly« is one of the more promising and lyrically grotesque experiments, where Don’s goofy vocal mannerisms reign amid scattered bluesy guitar lines. The closing psychedelic adventure »Autumn’s Child,« with no shortage of wild vocal experimentation and subtle acoustic guitar passages amid its melancholic-chaotic atmosphere, is definitely among the most memorable moments on »Safe As Milk.«
American experimental music scenes in the second half of the sixties mostly trailed far behind the early British prog rock scene, but thanks to inimitable artists and geniuses like Captain Beefheart and Frank Zappa, they could proudly point to some visionary studio achievements, and »Safe As Milk« was one of them. It was still a heavily blues-oriented experiment, since with his later records Beefheart would shake up the sound of his Magic Band even more, but his debut can stand shoulder to shoulder with the early albums of Zappa and his The Mothers Of Invention when it comes to the innovation of its individual musical ideas, if not its provocativeness and eclecticism.
Lineup
Don Van Vliet – vocals, harmonica, bass marimba, arrangements
Ry Cooder – guitar, bass guitar (“Abba Zaba” solo), percussion
Alex St. Clair Snouffer & St. Clair – guitar, bass guitar, backing vocals
Jerry Handley – bass guitar, backing vocals
John French – drums, percussion, backing vocals
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Milt Holland – percussion, tambourine
Samuel Hoffman – theremin
Taj Mahal – percussion
Russ Titelman – guitar
Production
Richard Perry and Bob Krasnow
Track List
1. Sure ‘Nuff ‘N Yes I Do (2:15)
2. Zig Zag Wanderer (2:40)
3. Call On Me (2:37)
4. Dropout Boogie (2:32)
5. I’m Glad (3:31)
6. Electricity (3:07)
7. Yellow Brick Road (2;28)
8. Abba Zaba (2:44)
9. Plastic Factory (3;08)
10. Where There’s Woman (2:09)
11. Grown So Ugly (2:27)
12. Autumn’s Child (4:02)
