Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - The Legendary A&M Sessions (1984) EP, Recorded in 1966

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Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - The Legendary A&M Sessions (1984) EP, Recorded in 1966

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Before gaining a cult with his avant-garde excursions in the late '60s, Captain Beefheart wielded a much more traditional sort of blues-rock. That's not to say that these two obscure mid-'60s A&M singles (packaged together on this five-song EP, which adds a previously unreleased track from the same era) aren't well worth hearing. The Captain's Howlin' Wolf-like growl led a tough outfit that ranked among the best early American blues-rock groups, and among the few that could reasonably emulate the Rolling Stones' toughness. Produced, unbelievably enough, by future Bread leader David Gates, this reissue includes their regional hit cover of Bo Diddley's "Diddy Wah Diddy." The best track, though, is "Moonchild," their shameless derivation of Howlin' Wolf's "Smokestack Lightning." Featuring wailing harmonica, stomping riffs and adventurous, quasi-psychedelic production, it was actually written by Gates himself. To think that the same man was also responsible for "If" and "Baby I'm A-Want You" blows the mind.

Review by Richie Unterberger, Allmusic.com

This CD contains the first ever "official" release of "Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band" (later changed to "Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band") and Don Van Vliet's first official song release, "Who Do You Think You're Fooling". What an entrance. All of the songs, except maybe "Moonchild", showcase the skills of the early Beefheart: his amazing gravel-textured engine-roaring vocals that sound like a voice singing through fire; the skippy rock rhythms and catchy twangy guitar riffs; and the first stirrings of Van Vliet's ultimate lyrical direction.

The first four songs were released in 1966 on two separate 45 rpm singles after the band grabbed a deal with the then neophyte label A&M. The first of these, a cover of Bo Diddley's "Diddy Wah Diddy", is an unappreciated rock and blues masterpiece. The imposing fuzz bass adds a touch of psychedelia to the mix, but the song feels more like blues rock than "Incense and Peppermints". Its Van Vliet composed B-Side, "Who Do You Think You're Fooling", feels like the Beefheart to come. The same can be said for "Frying Pan", another Van Vliet composition, with its skippy and catchy melodies. Strangely, "Frying Pan" served as B-Side to the less inspired "Moonchild" written by David Gates, who produced the A&M sessions and later fronted the group Bread. The song sounds like a blatant attempt at a 1960s hit. Complete with mysterious lyrics that don't add up to much and gratuitous reverb-drenched vocals. It's by no means terrible, but it lacks the energy of the other songs on the CD. The final song "Here I Am I Always Am" was lost for decades in a vault and first released with this collection (originally on a vinyl EP in 1984). It's one of the CD's best songs. The plucky guitars presage the future, and it's hopelessly catchy and addicting. Also, listen closely to the lyrics: a few Beefheartisms lurk there.

Though the 1966 singles spawned no hits, they did vibrate the cochleas of one John Peel, then working in California. Peel managed to get "Diddy Wah Ditty" on rotation, but sales didn't follow. Not long after "Moonchild" flopped, The Magic Band and A&M split.

This is a great collection of songs, and a great start to an amazing recording career that didn't end until Van Vliet's self-imposed musical exile in 1982. As this CD proves, he came in as he went out: with a huge bang.

Review by ewomack, Amazon.com

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Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - The Legendary A&M Sessions (1984) EP, Recorded in 1966

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Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - The Legendary A&M Sessions (1984) EP, Recorded in 1966

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Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - The Legendary A&M Sessions (1984) EP, Recorded in 1966

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