NBC is celebrating 50 years of SNL musical guests tonight. The late Hal Willner was the guy who got Miles Davis and Captain Beefheart booked on the show. He called these two the “disaster” appearances, with Miles turning his back to the cameras the whole time, and with the dead silence at the end of Ashtray Heart when the Magic Band performed.

Willner felt bad, saying nobody clapped before the applause sign flashed, and a person in the balcony yelled “shit” in the silence when the song ended. They showed a segment of the performance including the end, with the dead silence and bleeped-out “shit” as the captain bowed with his hat in hand.

My friends and I lived in a NY City dormitory. The girls we hung with were upset that we stayed in to see that, instead of heading out for fun. We thought it was great!

I saw three of the 1981 performances, luckily, in NY.

I think it's one of the best tracks, the horns are absolutely incredible, the marimba solo is incredible, the part where it sounds like an ape is crazy, etc.

He also played the opening melody from it in a solo during When Big Joan Sets Up in the Detroit Tubeworks live performance

it's SO difficult, the recording quality is not that good so I've mostly been working from the instrumental version. I need to analyse the music theory of the song for my dissertation but I can't without a decent transcription and there isn't one online so I gotta do it :/

some observations so far:

- it opens in this ambiguous kinda C# tonal centre, with a bunch of dissonance (so much so that I cant actually pick out some of the individual notes). then there's a polytonal guitar melody in C major on top of the C# that helps transition to A minor at 0:19. abrupt move to A major at 0:38. then it all falls apart when that DAMN CLARINET comes in cuz it's so loud I cant tell for the life of me where the tonal centre is

- there's a nice polyrhythm at 0:23, one guitar is playing in 9/4, the other is in 4/4. another polyrhythm at 0:38, one guitar is in 6/4 the other is in 4/4.

- I cannot make out the bass part whatsoever. Except for the first couple of bars. it's nearly silent...?

It’s fascinating. That is all.

The first 22 seconds alone are literally incredible, so much happening in such a small time frame. I just wanted to share and get some love for this song, it was my favorite song hands down from TMR the first time hearing it. Thank you for reading and tell me what you think!?

It’s not showing for me on Apple Music or Spotify.

Trout mask replica seems to be unavailable on YT music, is it the same for anyone else? I was listening to it this morning. Seems still available on Spotify.

Someone snagged my copy of Safe As Milk several years ago so I've finally replaced my stolen copy. This is the first US reissue of Safe as Milk from 1970.

This version is not a favorite among CB fans but I'm just happy to have the record again. I don't have the budget to get an original issue anytime soon so this is the closest I will get.

According to Captain Beefheart Radar Station, "it was remastered in a very unsatisfying way. The lead guitar suddenly disappears during the second stanza of Dropout Boogie and the fade in to Abba Zaba is completely botched"

I just listened to Big Eyed Beans from Venus and I think that song could be in the running for the best one that showcases him and the band the best.. just wanted to hear your opinions 👍

Pachuco Cadaver - I swear at some points in the song I was picking up on the same kind of thing as the song Blister in the Sun by Violent Femmes

Moonlight on Vermont - There is a part in this song about religion obviously but there is a part that sounds like a Bible song that goes, "Jesus loves me yes I know, for the Bible tells me so" I have to give credit to a harp player on youtube that brought this to my attention.

I'm Gonna Booglarize You, Baby - Stop by Michael Bloomfield is very similar

Just wanted to discuss and get anyone's thoughts on all this, it interested me.

What's a song you've found yourself listening to like crazy recently?

https://open.spotify.com/album/59QIOPSAr5E2ZKharqJUff?si=RXsXJyz0QQSeRlgym8RxrQ

I’m writing my dissertation on trout mask replica and im somewhat lacking in sources, most info comes from blogs and newspapers and I don’t know if they’re all reputable!

I‘ve read beefheart: through the eyes of magic, kevin courrier’s book on trout mask replica, and songs in the key of Z - im wondering if there’s any other good ones I can buy. As well, if there are any archives of documentaries about him or TMR because most ones on YouTube are poorly cropped or low quality, or have audio removed in parts.

If Don were alive today then he would be diagnosed with ADHD while in grade school, and then later OCD and BPD. He would hate the effects of the meds, but eventually the people who loved him would convince him that it was for the best, it was the only way he could stay stable enough to be a member of society. He'd spend the rest of his life in a medicated fog, before the effects of diabetes and obesity resulted in an early death. All hail progress.

I have listened to all the albums for sure a few times through but the higher up ones I have obviously listened to more but I'd like to hear your feedback so I can dive in again to them with your recommendations/favorite songs in mind. Thanks and rock on 🤘

1 Trout Mask Replica 2 Shiny Beast 3 Mirror Man 4 The Spotlight Kid 5 Clear Spot 6 Lick My Decals Off, Baby 7 Safe As Milk 8 Doc At The Radar Station 9 Strictly Personal 10 Bluejeans and Moonbeams 11 Ice Cream For Crow 12 Unconditionally Guarenteed

I bought this book 46 years ago, outside on the street, after a Magic Band concert at NYC’s Bottom Line. 1978. It has lots of lyrics, article reprints, and some drawings. It’s darned cool.