Captain Beefheart

[mr-mungo]

Does anyone know any bassists that played in the Magic Band? Can any one play any bass lines from the Magic Band? How would you play, if you were the bassist? ANy thoughts or ideas would be great, thanks

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

Apparently for Trout Mask Replica - they went off into the wilderness for many months and practiced endlessly with no distractions - from interviews I've read it sounds horrendous and not something I would want to go through.

I saw Beefheart play live in Brighton with the magic band and went to talk to him afterwards with friends. It was clear that he was completely out of his head and had no concept of what was going on around him in the real world - we could only conclude that he was tripping on LSD or similar - but he still managed to perform...

Although throughout the gig he stared at the clock in the hall and berated it - when not singing!!

 

[mr-mungo]

Apparently for Trout Mask Replica - they went off into the wilderness for many months and practiced endlessly with no distractions - from interviews I've read it sounds horrendous and not something I would want to go through.

I saw Beefheart play live in Brighton with the magic band and went to talk to him afterwards with friends. It was clear that he was completely out of his head and had no concept of what was going on around him in the real world - we could only conclude that he was tripping on LSD or similar - but he still managed to perform...

Although throughout the gig he stared at the clock in the hall and berated it - when not singing!!

Small world: I think my uncle was at that gig! Brighton Centre, 1972, or something like that. He said it was the best gig he'd ever been to. He didn't mention the clock though. Was the Captain nice, despite the trippiness?

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

Totally mad - off his head - and quite frightening if he stared at you! I was a young kid and was scared - but my friends insisted on going backstage - it was the 70s but was later than 72, as the first gig I ever went to was in 1973!

 

[mr-mungo]

His music scared me when I was younger, before I "got it". Thats a great story though, the masochist in me is slightly jealous haha.

The bass doesnt have much of a presence in the Beefheart mix... or is that just me?

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

I think they are all just playing things that are not what any other instrumentalist would play - they are deliberately avoiding anything "normal" or conventional - it's harder to keep up than you might think - it's so easy to fall back on cliches you learn or licks that fall naturally under your hand. Beefheart drilled all that out of them!

The bass is there but is no more or less prominent that any other instrument. Which is unusual, as at the time, most rock bands filled out the sound by boosting the bass!

 

[Orangeclawhammr]

Captain Beefheart had several bassists. Jeerry Handley was bassist on the first album, SAFE AS MILK, although one of my friends insisted that Ry Cooder played the bass solo on "Abba Zaba". Rockette Morton (Mark Boston) played in what is soten referred to as the "Trout Mask Replica Band", which was teh band on TROUT MASK REPLICA through UNCONDITIONALLY GUARANTEED. Eric Drew Feldman and Richard "Midnight Hatsize" Snyder played bass on SHINY BEAST, DOC AT THE RADAR STATION, and ICE CREAM FOR CROW.

I play solo bass and sing at open mics and have performed "The Old Fart at Play" a few times. My music teacher worked out the bass part where I play E-B-E-F through the whole thing. I do not use the steel finger picks that all Beefheart bassists use.

I got to see the Captain twice when Eric Drew Feldman was with him. Feldman switched between keys and two Silvertone (?) basses and a Jazz bass. He is real short and could barely reach the first position when he played the Jazz bass. IIRC, he kept the finger picks on when he played synth and piano.

I am not real good at figuring out parts yet. OK, I can't do it at all, s oI can't help you there.

Just remember what the Captain says, "A squid eating dough in a polyethyline bag is fast 'n' bulbous. Got me?".

Jack

 

[RickC]

Here's some cool footage from Cannes in 1968. I think that's Rockette Morton. Shortly after the 2:00 mark, you get a good look at the Framus Star bass.



/rick