lxxxiii. CAPTAIN BEEFHEART: Clear Spot

lxxxiii. CAPTAIN BEEFHEART (Don Van Vliet) (1941-2010)

Clear Spot (1972)
CB, vocals, harmonica
Zoot Horn Rollo (Bill Harkleroad), guitar, slide guitar, mandolin
Rockette Morton (Mark Boston), guitar, bass
Ed Marimba (Art Tripp), drums, percussion
Oréjon (Roy Estrada), bass
Milt Holland, percussion
Russ Titelman, guitar
The Blackberries, backing vocals
(3:40)

From Clear Spot.

Beefheart and especially the band members were hungry. Yes for food and shelter, but also -- particularly Beefheart -- greater commercial success.

Trout Mask Replica (see Post iii)-- the masterpiece produced by Frank Zappa -- didn't sell very well, despite the producer's name-check. The music was (and still is) too dense for most people.

So the Captain went to Ted Templeman, a well-known and respected producer (Van Halen, The Doobie Brothers, Van Morrison) and the result was an album filled with the typical Van Vliet weirdness tied up in a quite palatable rock 'n roll package.

The album originally came in a clear plastic sleeve so you could see the vinyl through the "clear spot."

The title tune is a satisfying rocker, with CB singing his "Chicago blues" voice loud and CLEAR. In spots.