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In June 2020, to keep himself amused during the pandemic lockdown, Gary wrote about his five favourite Beefheart albums. We’re pleased to present them here on the Radar Station —————————————————- CAPTAIN BEEFHEART: I’LL GIVE YOU A BUNCH OF FIVES 5-count them-5 seminal albums by CAPTAIN BEEFHEART AND THE MAGIC BAND As a follow-up to my 3 Part Tribute to the one and only DON VAN VLIET a/k/a CAPTAIN BEEFHEART just completed on Facebook, as promised here are my 5 recommended favorites of the 11 studio albums Don released with his truly MAGIC BAND. I’m gonna dole them out as the week progresses, okay? I’ve alreadyRead More →

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In: Blog, Tributes
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A beat by beat dissection of this song from Lick My Decals Off Baby. For the past few years musician Tony Malone and his Beefheart Project Toronto have been working on covers of many of Don’s songs from across all his albums. Their intention was to be respectful to the originals as possible but present them in a different way. To understand how to play the songs Tony had to deconstruct them by stripping them down to each beat, riff and rhythm. The band then learned their parts and reconstructed the song. To give an idea of the work involved in the original composition ofRead More →

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In: Discography, Official albums, Sun Zoom Spark 1970 to 1972
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Song List Disc 1 – Lick My Decals Off, Baby (1970) [as original release] Disc 2 – The Spotlight Kid (1971) [as original release] Disc 3 – Clear Spot (1972) [as original release] Disc 4 – Out-takes 1. Alice in Blunderland – Alternate Version 2. Harry Irene 3. I Can’t Do This Unless I Can Do This/Seam Crooked Sam 4. Pompadour Swamp/Suction Prints 5. The Witch Doctor Life – Instrumental Take 6. Two Rips in a Haystack/Kiss Me My Love 7. Best Batch Yet – (Track) Version 1 8. Your Love Brought Me To Life – Instrumental 9. Dirty Blue Gene – Alternate Version 1Read More →

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In: 1971 Detroit Tube Works, Grow Fins, Multimedia
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Hmmm… is this the very best surviving clip of Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band? I think it could be. Copies of this amazing footage have circulated for many years amongst collectors but the quality has not been the best. Now that Reelin In The Years have gained ownership of the film they have made it available but you have to put up with their watermark throughout … it’s definitely worth it for the superior quality: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUa5DcDmc48 Recorded on 15 January 1971 at WABX Studio, directed by Chuck Reti. (Incorrectly dated on the video). Available on the enhanced disc of Grow Fins but not in suchRead More →

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In: Lick My Decals Off Baby, Lyrics, Outtakes
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Well well well well Why do you taste so well? Oh no no no That ain’t the kind of smell Sky ain’t blue, we’re living in hell Well well well well well Well well well well The grounds need attending And you aren’t attending to them well Well well well well Why do you taste so well? You don’t taste so well You don’t taste so well Well well well well Who poisoned you? Well well well well You don’t taste anymore so well You don’t taste anymore so well Well well well well well well The grounds need attending to And you aren’t treatingRead More →

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Space-age couple Why don’t you flex your magic muscle? Space-age couple Why do you hex your magic muscle? Space-age couple Why do you hustle ‘n bustle? Why don’t you drop your cool tom-foolery ‘n shed your nasty jewelry? Cultivate the grounds They’re the only ones around. Space-age couple Why don’t you flex your magic muscle? Hold a drinking glass up t’ your eye after you’ve Scooped up a little of the sky ‘n it ain’t blue no more. What’s on the leaves ain’t dew no more. Space-age couple Why don’t you jus’ do that? Why don’t you jus’ do that? (1970) Originally made available atRead More →

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In: Lick My Decals Off Baby, Multimedia
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Well this is pretty special. A television advertisement was made, shown, audiences were angered and then it was banned. As Ry Cooder comments in The Artist Formerly Known As Captain Beefheart, nowadays it could be an ad for toothpaste. Read the full story: Metromedia Refuses To Air Captain Beefheart TV Commercial – Charges Album Title ‘Obcsene’Read More →

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In: Lick My Decals Off Baby, Lyrics
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Human Bark ‘n Beautyless hide from beauty Bow your eyes ‘n heads to the duty of the dead’s Suck the ground Breathe life into the dead dinosaurs Let the past demons rear up their heads ‘n belch fire into the air of now The rug’s wearing out that we walk on Soon it will fray ‘n we’ll drop Dead into yesterday Must the breathing pay for those who breathe in ‘n don’t Breathe out There’d be no game, brother, if no one would play As for your games count me in all that can see, Breathe in ‘n out hungry today ‘n eat hearty tomorrow OrRead More →

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In: Lick My Decals Off Baby, Lyrics
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Rather than I want to hold your hand, I wanna swallow you whole ‘n I wanna lick you everywhere it’s pink ‘n everywhere you think Whole kit ‘n kaboodle ‘n the kitchen sink Heaven’s sexy as hell Life is integrated, Goes together so well ‘n so on Well, I’m gonna go on ‘n do my washing Well, now you may think I’m crazy but I want you to Lick my decals off baby ‘n I don’t want you to be lazy ’cause it’s drivin’ me crazy ‘n this song ain’t no sing-song It’s all about the birds ‘n the bees ‘n where it went allRead More →

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In: Lick My Decals Off Baby, Lyrics
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I wanna find me a woman who’ll hold my big toe till I have to go I wanna find a blue swirl plastic ocarina About five miles long And play with them sweet potatoes all night long ’cause them yams have all them eyes that yawn ‘yearn down yonder below the ground ‘n their golden hair is ah dirty brown I wanna find me a woman that’ll hold my big toe till I go I wanna hold me a woman that’ll find my big toe Till I have to go ‘n sow my last sweet potato. (1970) Originally made available at Justin Sherill’s Home PageRead More →

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In: Lick My Decals Off Baby, Lyrics
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You jumped when the air hit your eyes You wanted t’ go back but there wadn’t none Now you been going back for so long That you think there is one It makes me laugh to hear you say how far you’ve come When you barely know how to use your thumb So you know how t’ count t’ one You messed in the sky picked a banana an’ threw it At the sun You saw a flash in the water now there ain’t one You brought back somethin’ that wasn’t there You brought back somethin’ that wasn’t fair Pull back the adhesive tape You’reRead More →

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Mama, mama, here come Doctor Dark Horse clippin’, clappin’ ‘n his ol’ hooves makin’ sparks Black leather lady Lord carried her bags The hell horn, hell horn, hell horn Horn rim crimped Glasses look out on the pale hell bent Moon milk run O’ lady go home Lord they done cookin’ done Black lady Black leather lady Done had a white, white, white poor son Mama, mama, here come Doctor Dark Horse clippin’, clappin’ ‘n his ol’ hooves makin’ sparks Gotta git me who I want to God, Lord knows I’ve got to oh see that Doctor Dark Mama, mama, here come Doctor Dark HorseRead More →

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The clouds are full of wine Not whiskey or rye ‘n the sky is full of bluebrains, Bluejays, mermaids Bluebrains, bluejays, bluebirds, mermaids bluejays, bluebirds, rainbows ‘n the night is full of rhinestones, Pinecones, telephones ‘n the sky is full of rhinestones, pinecones, telephones Wolfhowls, milkcows Shadows to some hows ‘n the clouds are full of wine Not whiskey or rye ‘n the sky is full of bluebrains, Baboons, rhinos, fools ‘n buffoons ‘n my eyes are full of bloodbones, Snowcones, serenaders ‘n sen-n-n-oritas ‘n so on… Melodies that go on, go on, Go on, go on, go on, go on, Go off, go off,Read More →

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Oh that buggy boogie woogie sweeps me off my feet What this world needs is a good retreat What this world needs is a good two dollar room ‘n a good two dollar broom One day I was sweepin’ down by the wall I bumped a mama spider ‘n the babies begin’ to fall Off o’ my broom Now I gotta keep on sweepin’ ‘n sweepin’ ‘fore they fill the room Now that buggy boogie woogie sweeps me off my feet I gotta keep on sweepin’ ‘n sweepin’ Seems like I could keep on sweepin’ ‘n sweepin’ ‘n there’s still too many feet What thisRead More →

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Come on down t’ the big dig Come on down t’ the big dig Come on t’ the big dig Singin’ the Smithsonian Institute blues Singin’ the Smithsonian Institute blues The way it’s goin’ La Brea tar pits I know you just can’t lose The new dinosaur is walkin’ in the old one’s shoes Come on down t’ the big dig Can’t get around the big dig This may be premature but if I’m wrong You can just say it’s the first time I was happy t’ be confused Singin’ the Smithsonian Institute blues Alll you new dinosaurs Now it’s up t’ you t’ chooseRead More →

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Parapliers the willow dipped Rolled roots gnarled like rakers This hollow hole don’t hold no jokers or fakers Don’t fall by no jokers or fakers Puller down to the stirrin’ hay acres Parapliers pinches uh levy ‘n pulled way thru the toe Foothills, locomotives walked ‘n sugar beets rolled Down the tracks Sunburn bounce soot off the black smokestacks Parapliers pinched up slow down the sky Blue ‘o’ poured the engineer’s voice Whstlin’ down low ‘n piped like clacks By the ol’ scarecrow ‘n pots ‘n pans burn the fireman’s hands till the Kettle leaped fire round the belly ‘o’ The bayou boy bums withRead More →