Difficult Listening 11 - Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

For us fans of "outside the box" music, Captain Beefheart is the godfather. Musical eccentrics were nothing new but The Captain made it available to everyone. The internet has countless stories and evaluations of Beefheart, his music, and the harrowing, sometimes hilarious, conditions that led to the creation of this album. The TROUT MASK REPLICA album, first released in 1969, has been cited many times, by many reviewers in many countries as one of the most influential rock & roll albums of all times (well, so far anyway). The first US issue included an insert that opens to reveal all the lyrics. The lyrics are like surrealist poetry.

Going backward in time, the first album, SAFE AS MILK (1967) happened because the label thought they were getting a Blues band. Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band had a minor hit with a cover of "Diddy Wah Diddy" and more were hoped for. "Abba Zaba" was released as a single and was planned as the title for the album. A yellow and black checkered cover was designed. The candy company that makes Abba Zaba candy bars objected. The front cover was whited out and the name was changed to protect the innocent. The album wasn't off to a good start.