Captain Beefheart Discography

Magic Band Members' Discographies

Eric Drew Feldman

aka Black Jew Kitabu

As a young teenager Feldman had visited the Magic Band at the 'Trout' house in Woodlands Hills. In 1976 he was to join the band to play keyboards, accordion and bass after Don had sacked John Thomas for playing on the second Mallard album.

After the demise of the Magic Band Feldman has been in demand as a sideman and as a producer, playing with Pere Ubu, Snakefinger, Polly Harvey to name only a few.

He has regularly toured as part of Polly Harvey's band (playing bass and keyboards). In 2003 he was touring as part of the Residents band on their 'Demons Dance Alone' tour.

A band called 'kNIFE & fORK' is EDF's latest project - see below for more about this - has toured as support for P J Harvey.

Thanks to the Eric Drew Feldman Project website (which seems to have stalled at 1998) for a starting point to this discography. The following list of albums he has been involved with is not complete - if you can add anything please contact me steve@beefheart.com

Magic Band Albums

Knife & Fork

This band is a collaboration with San Franciscan bassist, vocalist and songwriter Laurie Hall plus Chris Sipe on drums, Sunshine Haire on guitar and Jennifer Hall on vocals. Visit the Knife & Fork website - www.knifeandforkmusic.com - for more info

2004 US CD Miserycord on Cutting Board Records
2004 Europe CD Miserycord on Diesel Motor Records

2000 UK CD Various Artists : The Hospital Radio Request List on Sink & Stove Records #2
Includes the track 'Wild' by EDF which has the 'Gimme Dat Harp Boy' riff appearing throughout. EDF was asked to contribute to this compilation by Polly Harvey sideman, John Parish, who also has a track on this excellent compilation.

Solo

1991US CD Various Artists : Passed Normal Vol. 4 on FOT Records
Includes the track 'One Stray Hair In The Beer' by Eric Feldman. Other contributors to this release include Snakefinger, Chris Cutler and Peter Blegvad

Robert Williams

1981 Robert Williams : Buy My Record on A&M SP-012401
EDF appears with his former Magic Band colleague playing on three of the four tracks on this mini album - mini-moog bass; mellotron; yamaha organ.

Snakefinger

Guitarist extraordinaire Phil Lithman, aka Snakefinger, had established a career in the UK on the club circuit, and along with ex-Mighty Baby guitarist Martin Stone recorded and performed as Chilli Willi & The Red Hot Peppers. He then moved to the US and became an integral part of the sound on the Residents early albums. His own unique vision was captured on a number of albums before his sudden death from a heart attack in 1987. Eric Drew Feldman appeared on some of his later albums and also toured with his live band.

Check out Hank Grebe's site which has some excellent photographs of EDF playing live with Snakefinger in Wisconsin - http://www.mediaspin.com/snakefinger1.html

1982 Snakefinger : Manual Of Errors on Ralph SN8203
Phil 'Snakefinger' Lithman (guitar, vocals) - George B. George (bass, vocals) - Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards, synthesizers) - Miguel Bertel (guitar, vocals) - Johnny B. Ryan (drums) Produced by Snakefinger and Eric Drew Feldman

1983 Snakefinger : Against The Grain on Ralph SN8353
A compilation album with five tracks that involve the band from 'Manual of Errors'.

1984 German vinyl Snakefinger : Snakefinger's History of the Blues Parts 1 & 2 on Rough Trade
Recorded live around Europe in Fall/Winter 1984, with Snakefinger and a band that included a three-piece horn section, performing historically faithful renditions of classic blues material originally performed by Muddy Waters, Bobby Blue Bland, Albert, Freddie, and BB King, etc. Eric Drew Feldman plays bass.

1986 Snakefinger's Vestal Virgins : Night of Desirable Objects
Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards, synthetics and vocals) - John Ryan (drums) - Miguel Bertel (guitar, vocals) - Ben Guy (bass, vocals) - Snakefinger (guitar, violin, vocales, bottles) Produced by Snakefinger, Howard Johnston and Eric Drew Feldman.

Clubfoot Orchestra

Having its origins in The Club Foot at 2520 Third Street in San Francisco in 1983, the Club Foot Orchestra has had a ever-changing personnel. It now specialises in providing original music in old style settings for silent movie classics such as 'Nosferatu', 'Metropolis' and 'Sherlock Junior'. Eric Drew Feldman played keyboards for a while when Snakefinger was also involved. They were both on the 'Wild Beasts' album but I'm unsure whether they recorded anything further with the Orchestra.

1986 US Vinyl Wild Beasts on Ralph Records. Feldman also produced one of the tracks.
199? US CD Wild Beasts/Kidnapped & More on Rastascan BRD013. The two Ralph vinyl releases get a CD issue.

Frightwig

1986 US Vinyl Faster Frightwig - Kill Kill on Caroline Records 1334.
This all girl band has EDF producing their album as well as contributing some keyboard work.

Low Flying Aircraft

1987 Low Flying Aircraft : Low Flying Aircraft on Subterranean Records SUB 60
EDF: guest synthesizers. Low Flying Aircraft are: David Cross (violin) - Keith Tippett (piano) - Jim Juhn (bass/guitar/perc) - Dan Maurer (drums).

Pere Ubu

1991 Pere Ubu : Worlds In Collision on Fontana Records
David Thomas (vocals) - Jim Jones (guitar, backing vocals) - Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards, computers & synthetics) - Tony Maimone (bass) - Scott Krauss (drums)

1999 Pere Ubu : Apocalypse Now on Cooking Vinyl COOK CD185
A live album actually recorded in December 1991 at Shuba's in Chicago. David Thomas (vocals, radio, swirl horn) - Jim Jones (acoustic guitar, rat pedal) - Eric Drew Feldman (honky tonk upright) - Tony Maimone (acoustic guitar, electric bass) - Scott Krauss (drums, percussion)

The Pixies/Frank Black

1991 The Pixies : Trompe Le Monde on 4AD/Elektra 61118-2
Black Francis (vocals, guitar) - Joey Santiago (lead guitar) - Kim Deal (bass, vocals) - David Lovering (drums). Additional musicians: Jeff Feldman (tablas and dumbek) - Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards and synthetics)

1993 Frank Black : Frank Black on 4AD/Elektra 61467-2
Frank Black (vocals, guitar) - Eric Drew Feldman (bass, keyboards, synthetics) - Nick Vincent (drums, percussion). Additional musicians: Joey Santiago (gtr) - Moris Tepper (gtr) - David Sardy (gtr) - Bob Giusti (d) - John Linnel (sax) - Kurt Hoffman (sax) Produced by Eric Drew Feldman and Frank Black.

As Frank Black explains in a 1993 interview for Mondo 2000: "I would show the arrangements to my colleague, Eric Feldman, and he would rehearse the music on the computer, using artificial sounds. That's how we laid out the map for the whole record. We then added a lot of real instruments to it--like real drums, real guitars."

1993 Frank Black on Hello Recording Club November 1993
Frank Black (vocals, guitar) - Eric Drew Feldman (bass, keyboards)

A 4 song CD originally available on subscriprtion only. The Hello Recording Club (later Hello CD of the Month Club) was the brainchild of They Might Be Giants' John Flansburgh. Once a disc had shipped to subscribers, it was out of print, and not sold as back catalog. Discs were issued in cardboard sleeve with stickers applied to the front.

1994 Frank Black : Teenager of the Year on 4AD DAD4009CD
Frank Black (guitar, vocals) - Eric Drew Feldman (bass, keyboards, synthetics) - Nick Vincent (drums, percussion). Additional musicians: Joey Santiago (gtr) - Moris Tepper (gtr) - Lyle Workman (gtr) Prduced by Eric Drew Feldman, Frank Black and Al Clay, except "Headache", "Big Red", and "White Noise Maker" produced by Eric Drew Feldman and Frank Black

2001 Frank Black : Dog In The Sand on Cooking Vinyl COOKCD 200

Stephen Yerkey

1994 Stephen Yerkey : Confidence, man on Heyday 038
Stephen Yerkey (vocal, acoustic guitars) - Eric Drew Feldman (Hammond B-3 on "Speak the Same to Everyone", keyboards on "The '600' Club" and "The Final Word", electric bass on "The Final Word").
Produced or mixed by Eric Drew Feldman.
2005 Stephen Yerkey : googlenatureboy

Custard

1995 Custard : Wisenheimer
Produced by Eric Drew Feldman
From the Custard website: "Eric Drew Feldman had met Custard while he was in Australia with Frank Black in October 1994. He liked [their previous album] Wahooti Fandango and Custard's dress sense. Plans for recording an album were put in place. Frank Black contributed several Fender Telecasters and a Vox amp. Eric had what amounted to an arsenal of equipment which he hauled into the studio."

1997 Custard : We Have The Technology
Produced by Eric Drew Feldman

dEUS

1996 dEUS : In A Bar, Under The Sea on Island 314-524 296-2
Tom Barman (vocals, guitar, samples, synthesizer) - Stef Kamil Carlens (vocal, guitar, double bass, bass, percussion) - Jules De Borgher (drums, percussion, bells) - Klaas Janzoons (vocal, talkback, piano, percussion, violin, low tuned violin, synthesizer) - Craig Ward (vocal, guitar, sax, percussion, mandolin, ukelele, slide guitar). Additional musicians: Rudy Trouve (vocal, piccolo, guitar, ukelele) - Didier Fontaine (vocal) - Scott McCloud (philosophy) - Eric Drew Feldman (Hammond, percussion, egg, shaker, piano) - Pieter Lamot (trombone) - The Smith Quartet - Dana Colley (saxophones) - Jim Brumby (rate and depth) - Bart Maris (trumpet) - Piet Jorens (piano, gong).
Produced by Eric Drew Feldman.

Katell Keineg

1996 Katell Keineg : Jet on Elektra Records
Katell Keineg (vocals, guitar) - Rob Laufer (guitar, bouzouki, lyre, tamburitza) - John Holbrook (guitar, percussion) - Ursula Snyder, Paul Tiernan (guitar) - Eric Drew Feldman (keyboards, bass, drum programming, percussion) - Robert Manos (bass, vocals, percussion, drum programming) - George Javori (drums, percussion, hand drums, guitar) - Timothy Hill (tanbur, tamboura, vocals, guitar) - Chris Cunningham.
Producers: Eric Drew Feldman, John Holbrook, Katell Keineg. Principally recorded at Ashewood House and Bearsville Studios, New York.

PJ Harvey

1995 P J Harvey : To Bring You My Love on Island Records
EDF plays keyboards

1996 P J Harvey & Eric Drew Feldman : Zaz Turned Blue on Lounge-A-Palooza on Hollywood Records
EDF performs and produces "Zaz Turned Blue" (originally performed by Mel Torme) on this various artists' theme album.

1998 P J Harvey : Is This Desire? on Island Records

Tripping Daisy

1998 Tripping Daisy : Jesus Hits Like An Atom Bomb on Island Records 524518
Eric Drew Feldman produces and mixes this Dallas, Texas band, as well as playing bass and keyboards on some tracks.

Reid Paley

1999 US CD Reid Paley : Lucky's Tune on Good Noise GN-0004

2000 US CD Reid Paley : Revival on E-Music EMUS-0002.
Second album from Reid Paley, friend and tourmate of Frank Black, who produced his debut. Eric Drew Feldman, who also plays calliope on one track and accordion on another, produced this one.

Blasco

1999 US This Is Next Year on Arena Rock Recordings.
EDF played hammond organ on the Phil Lynott song 'Don't Believe A Word' performed by Blasco on this compilation. Blasco also included Sam Fogarino (Ton Ups, Interpol...); drums - Jim Orr; bass - Andrew Megginson; toy piano - Paul Watson (Sparklehorse, FSK,...); cornet - F.A. Blasco : guitar, vocals .

Fear

???? US 7" Fuck Christmas on ???
???? US CD The Record on ???
EDF played bass on this one-off collaboration. The band were between bass players, and he (credited as Eric Kitabu Feldman) was a friend/room-mate of the drummer (Spit Stix aka Tim Leitch). The song is pretty basic hardcore punk.

Thanks to Julian Anthony for passing on info about this one

Polyphonic Spree

2004 CD Together We're Heavy on Good Records
Another production credit for EDF.

Charlotte Hatherley

2004 CD Grey Will Fade on Double Dragon Records
Charlotte is the guitarist from British band 'Ash', and this is her first solo project. Produced by Eric Drew Feldman, who also provides some keyboards and bass as well.

Help us out

If anyone is able to complete or update any of the information above, then please do get in touch.