Captain Beyond (album)

Last updated
Captain Beyond
Captain Beyond.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedJuly 1972
Recorded1972
Studio Sunset Sound Recorders, Hollywood
Genre
Length35:10
Label Capricorn
Producer Captain Beyond
Captain Beyond chronology
Captain Beyond
(1972)
Sufficiently Breathless
(1973)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [1]

Captain Beyond is the debut album by Captain Beyond, an American rock supergroup featuring former members of Iron Butterfly, Deep Purple, Johnny Winter. Released in 1972, the album cover for the U.S. release included 3-D artwork (using lenticular printing). The album was dedicated to the memory of Duane Allman, who Captain Beyond drummer Bobby Caldwell had played with in an informal capacity. [4]

Contents

Captain Beyond is unique among guitar-driven hard rock albums in that it contains a wide range of influences, including Latin and jazz, often with various time signatures and a broad range of dynamics within the same song. Most of the album consists of three medleys of tightly arranged interconnected songs. The first starts with "Dancing Madly Backwards (on a Sea of Air)" and ends with "Myopic Void". The second starts with "Thousand Days of Yesterdays (Intro)" and ends with "Thousand Days of Yesterdays (Time Since Come and Gone)". The third starts with "I Can't Feel Nothin' (Part 1)" and finishes the album. Songs flow directly into each other without any lag time between selections, a feature that is shared with other more progressive bands of the era such as The Moody Blues and Jethro Tull.[ citation needed ]

All of the songwriting was credited to lead vocalist Rod Evans and drummer Bobby Caldwell. However, the songs were in fact written by the group as a whole. Due to their still binding contracts with Iron Butterfly, guitarist Larry Reinhardt and bassist Lee Dorman could not be listed as songwriters on this record for legal reasons. [5]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Bobby Caldwell and Rod Evans

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Dancing Madly Backwards (on a Sea of Air)"4:02
2."Armworth"1:48
3."Myopic Void"3:31
4."Mesmerization Eclipse"3:48
5."Raging River of Fear"3:47
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Thousand Days of Yesterdays (Intro)"1:16
2."Frozen Over"3:46
3."Thousand Days of Yesterdays (Time Since Come and Gone)"3:57
4."I Can't Feel Nothin' (Part I)"3:06
5."As the Moon Speaks (to the Waves of the Sea)"1:27
6."Astral Lady"0:58
7."As the Moon Speaks (Return)"1:57
8."I Can't Feel Nothin' (Part II)"1:46

Personnel

Captain Beyond

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deep Purple</span> English rock band

Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1967. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, but their musical approach has changed over the years. Originally formed as a psychedelic rock and progressive rock band, they shifted to a heavier sound with their 1970 album Deep Purple in Rock. Deep Purple, together with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, have been referred to as the "unholy trinity of British hard rock and heavy metal in the early to mid-seventies". They were listed in the 1975 Guinness Book of World Records as "the globe's loudest band" for a 1972 concert at London's Rainbow Theatre and have sold over 100 million albums worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steppenwolf (band)</span> American rock group

Steppenwolf was a Canadian-American rock band that was prominent from 1968 to 1972. The group was formed in late 1967 in Los Angeles by lead singer John Kay, keyboardist Goldy McJohn, and drummer Jerry Edmonton, all formerly of the Canadian band the Sparrows. Guitarist Michael Monarch and bass guitarist Rushton Moreve were recruited via notices placed in Los Angeles-area record and musical instrument stores.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iron Butterfly</span> American rock group

Iron Butterfly is an American rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1966. They are best known for the 1968 hit "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", providing a dramatic sound that led the way towards the development of hard rock and heavy metal music. Although their heyday was the late 1960s, the band has been reincarnated with various members with varying levels of success with no new recordings since 1975. Their second album, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (1968), remains a best-seller, and Iron Butterfly was the first group to receive an In-House platinum album award from Atlantic Records. Their music has found a significant impact on the international rock scenes, influencing numerous acts such as Black Sabbath, AC/DC, Rush, Alice Cooper, Mountain, Uriah Heep, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, Slayer, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, and Queens of the Stone Age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rod Evans</span> English singer

Roderic Evans is a retired British singer known as the original vocalist of the rock band Deep Purple.

Captain Beyond is an American rock supergroup formed in Los Angeles in 1971. Consisting of former Deep Purple singer Rod Evans, former Johnny Winter drummer Bobby Caldwell, former Iron Butterfly guitarist Larry Reinhardt and former Iron Butterfly bassist Lee Dorman, the band had an eclectic style bridging elements of hard rock, progressive rock and jazz fusion with space rock. They released three albums between 1972 and 1977.

<i>Dawn Explosion</i> 1977 studio album by Captain Beyond

Dawn Explosion, the third and final album by Captain Beyond, was released in 1977. While the band had broken up four years before, Warner Bros. Records signed a deal with the band's original label, Capricorn Records, and contacted the band members asking them to reunite. Original member Bobby Caldwell returned on drums, but original lead vocalist Rod Evans could not be contacted after extensive enquiries: Captain Beyond held auditions, and selected Willy Daffern to replace him.

<i>Sufficiently Breathless</i> 1973 studio album by Captain Beyond

Sufficiently Breathless, the second album by Captain Beyond, was released in 1973 and features a jazzier, smoother sound than its predecessor, reminiscent of mid-1970s Santana. The medley format of the first album is retained only for the last six minutes of Sufficiently Breathless: "Voyages of Past Travellers" flows directly into "Everything's a Circle", which in turn is actually two distinct songs despite being listed under a single title. Original drummer/songwriter Bobby Caldwell had been replaced by Marty Rodriguez and Guille Garcia in the band.

Bobby Caldwell is an American drummer, songwriter, producer and arranger who co-founded the rock bands Captain Beyond and Armageddon during the early 1970s. Prior to these projects he played on seminal Johnny Winter albums such as Live Johnny Winter And and Saints and Sinners. Caldwell was also the drummer on Rick Derringer's All American Boy, which produced the classic-rock radio staple "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo", a song originally written by Derringer and recorded by the band, Johnny Winter And, with Derringer's brother, Randy Z on drums. He also played with John Lennon, Ringo Starr, The Allman Brothers Band, and Eric Clapton. Caldwell and Rick Derringer recorded "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo" at Caribou Ranch in Colorado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ron Bushy</span> American drummer (1941–2021)

Ron Bushy was an American drummer best known as a member of the rock band Iron Butterfly and as the drum soloist on the band's iconic song "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", released in 1968 although performed in the band's earlier appearances. Bushy was the only member of the group to appear on all six of its studio albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Dorman</span> Musical artist

Douglas Lee Dorman was an American bass guitarist best known as a member of the psychedelic rock band Iron Butterfly. After replacing Jerry Penrod following Iron Butterfly’s debut album, Dorman had four stints with the group; 1967 to 1971, 1977 to 1978, 1978 to 1985, and from 1987 until his death in 2012. Shortly after his first departure from Iron Butterfly in 1971, Dorman co-founded the band Captain Beyond with ex-Deep Purple lead vocalist Rod Evans, Dorman’s Butterfly band mate Larry Reinhardt, and Bobby Caldwell. Dorman was raised in St. Louis, Missouri, and moved to San Diego in the 1960s. He began playing bass guitar in his teens. While recording In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, Dorman assisted Erik Brann with the arrangement of Brann's song "Termination," and was given a co-writing credit.

<i>Metamorphosis</i> (Iron Butterfly album) Iron Butterfly album

Metamorphosis is the fourth studio album by Iron Butterfly, released on August 13, 1970. It reached number 16 on the US charts. Mike Pinera and Larry "El Rhino" Reinhardt became members of Iron Butterfly in the early part of 1970.

<i>Evolution: The Best of Iron Butterfly</i> 1971 compilation album by Iron Butterfly

Evolution: The Best of Iron Butterfly is the fifth and first greatest hits album released in 1971 by American rock band Iron Butterfly. Songs come from four of their albums: Heavy, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, Ball and Metamorphosis.

<i>In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida</i> (album) 1968 studio album by Iron Butterfly

In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is the second studio album by the American rock band Iron Butterfly, released in June 1968. It is most known for its title track, a 17-minute composition which occupies the whole of Side B.

<i>Armageddon</i> (Armageddon album) 1975 studio album by Armageddon

Armageddon was the only album released by British/American progressive rock group Armageddon in 1975. It features vocalist Keith Relf, Martin Pugh, Louis Cennamo, and Bobby Caldwell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silly Sally</span> 1971 single by Iron Butterfly

"Silly Sally" is a song by Iron Butterfly that was released as a single in 1971 after the departure of Doug Ingle. Mike Pinera and M. Jones wrote "Silly Sally" in an attempt to keep the band together. Though the usual B-side is "Stone Believer", it has also been issued with "Butterfly Bleu" on the B-side. The single did not chart and in 1971 Iron Butterfly disbanded.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larry Reinhardt</span> Musical artist

Larry "Rhino" Reinhardt was an American rock guitarist who played with Iron Butterfly and Captain Beyond. At one time Reinhardt was known by the nicknames "El Rhino" and "Ryno".

<i>The Deep Purple Singles As and Bs</i> 1978 greatest hits album by Deep Purple

The Deep Purple Singles A's & B's is a compilation album of singles released by the English hard rock band Deep Purple. It was released on vinyl in October 1978. An updated version of the album was issued on CD in 1993 and contains the complete collection of Deep Purple's UK singles, recorded and released from 1968 to 1976 by the Mk I, II, III and IV line-ups of Deep Purple. In 2010 EMI released another double CD compilation album called Singles & E.P. Anthology '68 – '80. It contains all songs as herein plus 15 tracks. The song "Kentucky Woman" is present in the album version, which is 38 seconds longer than the single edit.

Rhinoceros was an American rock band established in 1967 through auditions conducted by Elektra Records, rather than organic formation by musicians. The band, while well respected in many circles, did not live up to the record label's expectations. It was also poorly received by fans, producing a slow selling debut album and two even less successful LPs before breaking up. One reviewer commented, "Despite the fact that the band could not live up to the expectations that were raised by Elektra Records' publicity machine, Rhinoceros' contributions to rock still deserve more credit than subsequent rock histories give it."

<i>All American Boy</i> (Rick Derringer album) 1973 studio album by Rick Derringer

All American Boy is the debut solo studio album by American rock musician Rick Derringer, released in October 1973 by Blue Sky Records. "Joy Ride" and "Time Warp" are instrumentals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida</span> 1968 single by Iron Butterfly

"In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" is a song recorded by Iron Butterfly, written by band member Doug Ingle and released on their 1968 album of the same name.

References

  1. 1 2 Ofjord, Michael. Captain Beyond allmusic.com. Retrieved on 2011-08-25.
  2. "10 proto-metal albums you should definitely own". louder. 19 August 2021. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
  3. Hayes, Craig (15 February 2023). "The Best Proto-Metal Albums From Metal's Rowdiest Progenitors". PopMatters. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
  4. "Interview: Bobby Caldwell". Rock Choice. May 22, 2010. Archived from the original on February 25, 2011., refer to 10:00-12:00.
  5. "The Captain Beyond Story". The Unofficial (European) Captain Beyond Website. Archived from the original on May 2, 2001.

Album Design - Pacific Eye and Ear