| Clear Spot | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 1972 | |||
| Recorded | autumn 1972 | |||
| Studio | Amigo Studios, LA | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 37:11 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Producer | Ted Templeman | |||
| Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band chronology | ||||
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Clear Spot is the seventh studio album by Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band. It was originally released on LP in 1972 in a clear plastic sleeve.
Beefheart's third album Trout Mask Replica established him as a critically acclaimed artist, but it sold poorly. For this album Beefheart wanted more commercial success—hence his decision to work with the respected team of producer Ted Templeman and engineer Donn Landee, who created hits for the Doobie Brothers and Van Morrison.[ citation needed ]Clear Spot gathers together much of the lyrical material that Beefheart had created or formulated at the beginning of The Spotlight Kid recordings.
Bassist Roy Estrada, formerly with the Mothers of Invention and Little Feat, joined the band on this album and is credited as "Oréjon" (big ears) on the album's sleeve while noted session percussionist Milt Holland also contributed percussion. This is also the first studio album without longtime drummer John “Drumbo” French, with Art Tripp (alias Ed Marimba) now serving as sole drummer.
The original United States release of the album was in a specially-produced clear plastic sleeve. The title Clear Spot was embossed on the front, with the record clearly visible inside without a liner. This reflected the title: a clear cover with the black vinyl disc as a visible spot. The original concept was for the disc to be of clear vinyl, but this was abandoned due to financial constraints. The album did eventually see a clear vinyl release for its 50th anniversary reissue in 2022. [3]
The package also included a white card insert, with the band name and credits. For the UK this was a single weight card, but in the US issues this was back-to-back card with rounded corners at the bottom. The printed insert shows a photo of Beefheart and band members in the control center of the Planetarium of Griffith Park Observatory, Los Angeles, California. Griffith Park and the neighboring Los Angeles Zoo had inspired the young Beefheart (born Don Glen Vliet). [4]
For vinyl LP reissues a more traditional black-on-white printed sleeve was employed.
On CD, the album is now available only as a "two for one" with its predecessor The Spotlight Kid , giving an overview of the work created when the band resided in Felton (near Santa Cruz, California) and Trinidad in Humboldt County. Separately, the two albums are only available as vinyl LP reissues.
In 2015, Rhino Records remastered and re-released this album, along with The Spotlight Kid, The Spotlight Kid Outtakes, and Lick My Decals Off, Baby in a 4xCD compilation titled Sun Zoom Spark, rendering these albums available after being out-of-print for many years. [5]
In 2022, a double LP 50th anniversary edition of the album was released by Rhino Entertainment, for Record Store Day 2022. The second LP contains studio outtakes, alternate versions and previously unreleased instrumental rough mixes from the Clear Spot sessions. [6]
Clear Spot reached No. 191 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. It did not chart in the U.K.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [7] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B+ [8] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [9] |
In March 2005, Q magazine placed "Big Eyed Beans from Venus" at number 53 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks. [10] "Her Eyes Are a Blue Million Miles" was featured on the soundtrack of the 1998 film The Big Lebowski , and was later covered by the Black Keys and the Washington D.C.-based band Shortstack. The title track has been covered by Painted Willie and by Mark Lanegan. The Tubes released a faithful cover of "My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains" on their 3rd LP Now in 1977. Everything but the Girl also recorded the same song.
It was voted number 126 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums 3rd Edition (2000). [11]
All tracks are written by Don Van Vliet and arranged by Bill Harkleroad
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Low Yo Yo Stuff" | 3:41 |
| 2. | "Nowadays a Woman's Gotta Hit a Man" | 3:46 |
| 3. | "Too Much Time" | 2:50 |
| 4. | "Circumstances" | 3:14 |
| 5. | "My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains" | 2:55 |
| 6. | "Sun Zoom Spark" | 2:13 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 7. | "Clear Spot" | 3:40 |
| 8. | "Crazy Little Thing" | 2:38 |
| 9. | "Long Neck Bottles" | 3:18 |
| 10. | "Her Eyes Are a Blue Million Miles" | 2:57 |
| 11. | "Big Eyed Beans from Venus" | 4:23 |
| 12. | "Golden Birdies" | 1:36 |
Don Van Vliet was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as the Magic Band, he recorded 13 studio albums between 1967 and 1982. His music blended elements of blues, free jazz, rock, and avant-garde composition with idiosyncratic rhythms, absurdist wordplay, a loud, gravelly voice, and his claimed wide vocal range, though reports of it have varied from three octaves to seven and a half. Known for his enigmatic persona, Beefheart frequently constructed myths about his life and was known to exercise an almost dictatorial control over his supporting musicians. Although he achieved little commercial success, he sustained a cult following as an influence on an array of experimental rock and punk-era artists.
Mallard was the name of an American band featuring ex-members of Captain Beefheart's Magic Band.
Trout Mask Replica is the third studio album by the American band Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band, released as a double album on June 16, 1969, by Straight Records. The music was composed by Captain Beefheart and arranged by drummer John "Drumbo" French. Combining elements of R&B, garage rock, and blues with free jazz and avant-garde composition, the album is regarded as an important work of experimental rock. Its unconventional musical style, which includes polyrhythm, multi-octave vocals, and polytonality, has given the album a reputation as one of the most challenging recordings in the 20th century musical canon.
John Stephen French is an American drummer and former member of Captain Beefheart's Magic Band, where he was known by the nickname Drumbo. He was the principal drummer on several of Beefheart's albums, including 1969's Trout Mask Replica, for which he also acted as arranger. He later released several albums as a solo artist as well as with the collaborative group French Frith Kaiser Thompson.
Lick My Decals Off, Baby is the fourth studio album by American musician Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band, released in December 1970 by Straight and Reprise Records. The follow-up to Trout Mask Replica (1969), it is regarded by some critics and listeners as superior, and was Van Vliet's own favorite of his albums. In his words, the title credo of the album was an encouragement to "get rid of the labels", and to evaluate things according to their merits.
Ice Cream for Crow is the twelfth and final studio album by Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band, released in September 1982. After it was recorded, Don Van Vliet retired from music to devote himself to a career as a painter. It spent two weeks in the UK album charts, reaching number 90, but failed to make the Billboard Top 200.
Unconditionally Guaranteed is the eighth LP by Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band, originally released in 1974. It was recorded at Hollywood Sound, Los Angeles.
Bluejeans & Moonbeams is the ninth LP by Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band, originally released in 1974. Despite its uncharacteristically mainstream sound the album failed to chart.
The Spotlight Kid is the sixth studio album by Captain Beefheart. Released in 1972, it is the only album credited solely to Captain Beefheart rather than Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band, although every member is featured, and its material is considered part of the band's repertoire. Often cited as one of the most accessible of Beefheart's albums, it is solidly founded in the blues but also uses instruments such as marimba and jingle bells that are not typical of that genre. The incarnation of the Magic Band on this album was Bill Harkleroad and Elliot Ingber, guitars; Mark Boston, bass; John French, drums; and Art Tripp, marimba. Session drummer Rhys Clark substituted for French on one track, "Glider".
Strictly Personal is the second album by Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band. It was originally released in October 1968 as the first album on the Blue Thumb Records label. It was released nearly a year after the band had taken to the studio to record the follow-up to 1967's Safe as Milk.
Safe as Milk is the debut studio album by American music group Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band, released in June 1967 by Buddah Records. A heavily blues-influenced work, the album features a 20-year-old Ry Cooder, who played guitar and wrote some of the arrangements.
Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) is the tenth studio album by American band Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band, released in October 1978 by Warner Bros. Records. The album emerged from production difficulties surrounding Bat Chain Puller, an album Captain Beefheart recorded for DiscReet and Virgin Records in 1976. DiscReet co-founders Herb Cohen and Frank Zappa feuded over the production of the album, because Cohen funded the production with Zappa's royalty checks. Captain Beefheart recorded a new album titled Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) due to Zappa withholding the master tapes of the original Bat Chain Puller album.
The Magic Band was the backing band of American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Captain Beefheart between 1967 and 1982. The rotating lineup featured dozens of performers, many of whom became known by nicknames given to them by Beefheart. Ex-members of the Magic Band formed the short-lived group Mallard in 1974. The Magic Band reformed in 2003, without Beefheart.
The Lost Episodes is a 1996 posthumous album by Frank Zappa which compiles previously unreleased material. Much of the material covered dates from early in his career, and as early as 1958, into the mid-1970s. Zappa had been working on these tracks in the years before his death in 1993.
Rockette Morton is an American musician, best known as a bassist and guitarist for Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band in the 1960s and 1970s.
Alex St. Clair was an American musician.
Arthur Dyer Tripp III is an American retired musician who is best known for his work as a percussionist with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention and Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band during the 1960s and 1970s. Thereafter, Tripp retired from music. He attended an accredited chiropractic college in Los Angeles from 1980 through 1983, graduating with his Doctor of Chiropractic degree. He currently practices in Gulfport, Mississippi.
The following is a list of official releases by American musician Captain Beefheart. With various line-ups of musicians called The Magic Band, Beefheart released a total of 13 studio albums recorded between 1967 and 1982, after which he left music to concentrate on a career in painting, as Don Van Vliet. His catalogue has since been augmented with extra releases including an EP and various compilations of live material, studio outtakes and greatest hits releases.
I'm Going to Do What I Wanna Do is a live album from Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band. In support of the US release of his album Shiny Beast , Beefheart and the band undertook a promotional club tour. On Saturday 18 November 1978 they performed at My Father's Place in Roslyn, New York. My Father's Place was located under a motorway bridge, held about 200 people and the patrons sat at long tables and could dine whilst listening if they wished. The show was recorded and mixed directly to two-track tape. The tape was used for a radio broadcast on WLIR-FM on 11 December 1978. Rhino Records made the album available for download, after a limited release on CD. Released by Rhino on 4/22/23 on 2 vinyl LP's, limited to 5000, for Record Store Day.
Mallard is the eponymous debut by the group Mallard, who formed after tensions between them and Captain Beefheart exploded, causing them to leave his band. It was reissued as a CD with the band's other album, In a Different Climate, added on.
Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band (1964–1982)
The Magic Band (2003–2017)
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