Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - Trout Mask Replica (1969) {2013 Zappa Records Remaster} (produced by Frank Zappa)

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - Trout Mask Replica (1969) {2013 Zappa Records Remaster} (produced by Frank Zappa)

Rock / Experimental Rock / Psychedelic

The Legends of Lancaster (California) converge. Two albums Produced by Frank Zappa are registered with the National Preservation Board (Library of Congress). This is one. Note: We here at UMRK determined that the TMR Master was damaged somewhere in the years of it's return orbit. The Vaultmeister created almost in its entirety a new Master from our own Vault safety copies. And as if that wasn't enough chocolate for your Sunday sundae, we had Bob Ludwig remaster the Work for you. What you now have available to you is the definitive TROUT MASK REPLICA. Be the judge. Be the jury. Be the bongo. Be the fury!!! The packaging is nearly identical to the original CD, save for the CD label (no track listing, less busy), the addition of a few notes in the booklet about the 2012 remaster, the credit “Arranged by DON VAN VLIET” now reads, “Written and arranged by DON VAN VLIET”, and some additional Zappa logos. Here are my initial impressions following some A/B comparisons. The recording itself is significantly louder than the previous version, making comparison a little trickier. Beyond that, to my ears the new version sounds noticeably better. Vocals and instruments are substantially more clear, distinct and dynamic, particularly the bass. The old version seems flatter and muddier compared to the new. I’m very glad the Zappa organization redid it. Trout Mask Replica is Captain Beefheart's masterpiece, a fascinating, stunningly imaginative work that still sounds like little else in the rock & roll canon. Given total creative control by producer and friend Frank Zappa, Beefheart and his Magic Band rehearsed the material for this 28-song double album for over a year, wedding minimalistic R&B, blues, and garage rock to free jazz and avant-garde experimentalism. Atonal, sometimes singsong melodies; jagged, intricately constructed dual-guitar parts; stuttering, complicated rhythmic interaction -- all of these elements float out seemingly at random, often without completely interlocking, while Beefheart groans his surrealist poetry in a throaty Howlin' Wolf growl. The disjointedness is perhaps partly unintentional -- reportedly, Beefheart's refusal to wear headphones while recording his vocals caused him to sing in time with studio reverberations, not the actual backing tracks -- but by all accounts, the music and arrangements were carefully scripted by the Captain (aided by John "Drumbo" French), which makes the results even more remarkable. As one might expect from music so complex and, to many ears, inaccessible, the influence of Trout Mask Replica was felt more in spirit than in direct copycatting, as a catalyst rather than a literal musical starting point. However, its inspiring reimagining of what was possible in a rock context laid the groundwork for countless future experiments in rock surrealism, especially during the punk/new wave era. Personnel: Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet) – lead and backing vocals, spoken word, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, musette, simran horn, hunting horn, jingle bells, producer (uncredited), engineer (uncredited) The Magic Band: Drumbo (John French) – drums, percussion, engineer (uncredited on the original release) Antennae Jimmy Semens (Jeff Cotton) – guitar, "steel appendage guitar" (slide guitar using a metal slide), lead vocals on "Pena" and "The Blimp", "flesh horn" (vocal with hand cupped over mouth) on "Ella Guru", speaking voice on "Old Fart at Play" Zoot Horn Rollo (Bill Harkleroad) – guitar, "glass finger guitar" (slide guitar using a glass slide), flute on "Hobo Chang Ba" Rockette Morton (Mark Boston) – bass guitar, narration on "Dachau Blues" and "Fallin' Ditch" The Mascara Snake (Victor Hayden) – bass clarinet, backing vocals on "Ella Guru", speaking voice on "Pena" Additional personnel: Frank Zappa – speaking voice on "Pena" and "The Blimp" (uncredited); engineer (uncredited); producer Doug Moon – acoustic guitar on "China Pig" Gary "Magic" Marker – bass guitar on "Moonlight on Vermont" and "Veteran's Day Poppy" (uncredited) Roy Estrada – bass guitar on "The Blimp" (uncredited) Arthur Tripp III – drums and percussion on "The Blimp" (uncredited) Don Preston – piano on "The Blimp" (uncredited) Ian Underwood and Bunk Gardner – alto and tenor saxophones on "The Blimp" (uncredited/inaudible) Buzz Gardner – trumpet on "The Blimp" (uncredited/inaudible) Richard "Dick" Kunc – speaking voice on "She's Too Much for My Mirror" (uncredited); engineer Cal Schenkel – album design Ed Caraeff and Cal Schenkel – photography tracklist: 01 - Frownland 02 - The Dust Blows Forward 'N The Dust Blows Back 03 - Dachau Blues 04 - Ella Guru 05 - Hair Pie- Bake 1 06 - Moonlight On Vermont 07 - Pachuco Cadaver 08 - Bills Corpse 09 - Sweet Sweet Bulbs 10 - Neon Meate Dream Of A Octafish 11 - China Pig 12 - My Human Gets Me Blues 13 - Dali's Car 14 - Hair Pie- Bake 2 15 - Pena 16 - Well 17 - When Big Joan Sets Up 18 - Fallin' Ditch 19 - Sugar 'N Spikes 20 - Ant Man Bee 21 - Orange Claw Hammer 22 - Wild Life 23 - She's Too Much For My Mirror 24 - Hobo Chang Ba 25 - The Blimp (Mousetrapreplica) 26 - Steal Softly Thru Snow 27 - Old Fart At Play 28 - Veteran's Day Poppy