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I was all set to celebrate the 70th birthday of Don Van Vliet, aka Captain Beefheart, on January 15th.  But then, like the artist he was, he died before his time.

He grew up southern California.  As a teen, he became friends with Frank Zappa.  They'd listen to R&B records late into the night while they ate day-old buns from his father's bread truck.

He showed a talent for painting and sculpture, but moved toward music, and started singing with the Magic Band in the 60s.  They recorded several albums, with little commercial success.

Frank Zappa, who'd been having a bit more success, produced Beefheart's magnum opus, Trout Mask Replica, in 1969.  Beefheart wrote the music quickly, but the band rehearsed for months, while living together in spartan conditions, not helped by Beefheart's harsh demands.  Later, Beefheart had a falling out with Zappa.  (He fell out with a lot of people.  Seemed to be hard to get along with.)

Nothing Beefheart ever did sold well (except when he performend on a couple Zappa albums), but he was critically respected and intensely admired by a small group of fans.  He gave up music in the early 80s, retiring to the desert to paint.

It's hard to describe his music. It starts with blues, but often goes far beyond. He would avoid repeating rhythms and musical phrases.  Too easy, I guess.  Here's a cut that's a bit different even for him--a cappella for one thing--but it's my favorite number from Trout Mask Replica, "The Dust Blows Forward 'n the Dust Blows Back."