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Captain Beefheart | |
|---|---|
 Beefheart performing at Convocation Hall, Toronto, 1974 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Don Glen Vliet |
| Also known as |
|
| Born | January 15, 1941 Glendale, California, U.S. |
| Died | December 17, 2010 (aged 69) Arcata, California, U.S.[1] |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
|
| Instruments | |
| Years active | 1964–1982 |
| Labels | |
| Formerly of | |
| Website | beefheart |
Don Van Vliet (/væn ˈvliːt/; born 'Don Glen Vliet';[2] January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist known by the stage name Captain Beefheart.[3] 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, and Vliet’s gravelly singing voice with a wide vocal range.[4][5]
Known as an enigmatic persona, Beefheart frequently constructed myths about his life and was known to exercise extreme, dictatorial control over his supporting musicians.[6] Although he achieved little commercial success, he sustained a cult following as an influence on an array of experimental rock and punk-era artists.[7]
He began performing in his Captain Beefheart persona in 1964, when he joined the original Magic Band line-up. The group's 1969 album Trout Mask Replica would rank 58th in Rolling Stone magazine's 2003 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[8][9][10]
Beefheart eventually formed a new Magic Band with a group of younger musicians and regained critical approval through three final albums: Shiny Beast (1978), Doc at the Radar Station (1980) and Ice Cream for Crow (1982). In 1982, he retired from music and pursued a career in art. His abstract expressionist paintings and drawings command high prices, and have been exhibited in art galleries and museums across the world.[11][12][13][14]
- ^ Billboard 2011, p. 135.
- ^ "Don Glen Vliet's birth certificate at Beefheart.com". Retrieved July 18, 2011.
- ^ MacAskill, Ewen (December 18, 2010). "Captain Beefheart, who has died aged 69, was provocative and unpredictable". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
- ^ "Captain Beefheart: Biography : Rolling Stone". www.rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on October 26, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
- ^ Barnes 2011, p. 256.
- ^ Barnes, Mike; Paytress, Mark; White III, Jack (March 2011). "The Black Rider". Mojo. Vol. 208. London: Bauermedia. pp. 65–73.
- ^ Harris, John (August 4, 2006). "Mission: unlistenable". The Guardian. London, England. Retrieved April 28, 2010.
- ^ "58 Trout Mask Replica". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 16, 2006. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
- ^ Smotherman, Michael. "Message from Michael Smotherman". beefheart.com. Captain Beefheart Radar Station. Retrieved April 2, 2025.
- ^ Ratliff, Ben (December 17, 2010). "Don Van Vliet, 'Captain Beefheart,' Dies at 69". The New York Times.
- ^ Barnes 2011, p. 446.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
ftwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ McKenna, Kristina (July 29, 1990). A Crossover of a Different Color Archived October 1, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Johnston, Maura (December 17, 2010). "Captain Beefheart Dead at Age 69". RollingStone.com. Retrieved December 17, 2010.