Not all of his albums are available right now. I reccommend his first album "Safe As Milk" as a good place to start. "Clear Spot" is his catchiest and most accessible album. "Doc At The Radar Station" is also fantastic. "Trout Mask Replica" is his most famous album becuase it's a total mindfuck. It's sort of like those paintings that look like gibberish until you focus and a 3-D image emerges. But if you want an overview of his entire career, the Anthology I mentioned in my previous post is a good place to start.
I had no choice but to listen to safe as milk all the time as a kid, because everytime my parents and their friends got wasted, that album would go on full blast. I didnt really appreciate it till i was a bit older but its ok.
And that song Ice Cream for Crow is excellent.
People say im paranoid. Well, they dont say it, but i know that's what they are thinking.
I'd try The Spotlight Kid and Clear Spot. Both albums catch Beefheart in 1972, when he was fusing the weirdness of Trout Mask Replica and Lick My Decals Off, Baby with some good ole pimpmastah funk. Here's the Captain, from this period:
I've been a long time Cptn B fan but I sometimes wish I hadn't read about some of the ways Van Vliet treated his crew. Some of it sounds like a horror story, especially... ahh, but I really don't want to disparage the magic, which is what the end result of all that craziness was.
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
Dick Jones
Posts: 777
Comments
And that song Ice Cream for Crow is excellent.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwEKene6ha0
Then, when you're ready, you can venture this way:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFMjztFBSzM