I love ya, ya big dummy.
Just heard that the Captain, Captain Beefheart, Don Van Vliet, has died, due to complications from multiple sclerosis.
I'm upset about this one. Here is a man that, while he wasn't young (69 when he died) certainly wasn't old, in this day and age. And even though he no longer made music, he was a great painter, and was the type of person who would always have something to give, artistically.
It's funny that he dies now, just when I have gotten to know all of his material. In the last three months I've bought 4 Beefheart LPs, so I could hear them on vinyl. Some of the best musical moments I have had have been in the past half year, listening to the Captain, and getting to know his music.
His music is not for the faint of ear or heart; the Captain made uncomprimising music, and that's why his music was so great. Trout Mask Replica is an album that has taken me literally years to appreciate, and now I couldn't imagine living without it. One day it clicked, and then I needed to hear everything the man had done.
Anyone who reads this, if you haven't heard the Captain, I think you should. Start off with Safe As Milk, his first album. It's a blues record, but with the Captain's sensibility and the touch of his Magic Band. Listen to "Electricity". You listen yet? The Captain had a voice unlike any other, and that's just a fact. Now work your way through his catalogue.
The Captain was in touch with himself and nature. He wasn't conventional. He made the kind of music that I appreciate, the music that challenges and takes time to work its way into us. And when it does, it really hits home.
All my heroes* are going. RIP Don Van Vliet.
*12/21/10 - Here's what the Captain had to say about heroes: Speaking about jazzman Eric Dolphy, "Well, he moved me, but he didn't move me as much as a goose, say. Now that could be a hero, a gander goose could definitely be a hero, the way they blow their heart out for nothing like that." Love the Captain!
Also, when describing his music, he said that the art of Franz Kline was probably the best representation of what he was trying to do. He singled out this painting, Kline's No.7:
"...it's just totally speed and emotion that comes out of what he does."
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