Don Van Vliet 1941 - 2010

So Captain Beefheart aka Don Van Vliet has gone to his reward. Don is incredibly important to me, to this blog, to how I listen to music and see things. How many times in life do we ever meet a true original? Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band may not be the easiest to get into at first, but once The Captain and his pesky band of bearded freaks work their broken blues mojo, there's just no escape -- you've been booglarized for life. Rest well old friend, amid the dust and the wind.

Some links:

(1966)

(1968)

(1969)

(1972 or so) This slays...

John French's Tribute to Don Van Vliet

Dangerous Minds

Captain Beefheart's Ten Commandments of Guitar Playing

Other Folks Remember Beefheart at Soundspike

(BBC documentary)

(on Letterman circa '82) "You wanna be a different fish, you gotta jump out of the school."