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Definition:

To put it simply, I tag the more complex Pop or Rock tracks which features irregular rhythmic structures and odd time signatures as Prog. Almost always, other progressive forms of Country, Folk or Jazz and such-like usually stay within their primary genres.


The Jukebox Pick (of 1,029):

 The Blimp (Mousetrapreplica)

 (Don Van Vliet)

 Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band

 10 out of 10 “Utterly perfect” Prog

 From their album “Trout Mask Replica” released in June, 1969. Coming into that LP - had I lived the period - my position would have been that I trusted Beefheart completely; he had proven himself to have the right feel for the blues, and his appetite for messing around with genre-defying techniques was a healthy one. I'm guessing that nothing quite prepared fans for what they actually received when they picked up their copies; a surreal sensory onslaught, decidedly avant-garde, wilfully beyond genre, a world away from what had gone before. As far as my subjective feeling goes, it's extraordinarily good only in places, “The Blimp (Mousetrapreplica)” emerging as the major highlight for me, a rare moment of spontaneity in a notoriously regimental affair. The title itself, as well as lyrical fragments and the frenzied vocal delivery, allude to the Hindenburg disaster of 1937, specifically Herbert Morrison's live reporting of the event. The spoken word was performed by guitarist Jeff Cotton, with producer Frank Zappa interjecting at the beginning and at the end of the piece. He later recalled: “I was in the studio mixing some other tapes, and the band that's actually playing on 'The Blimp' is actually The Mothers Of Invention. The vocal was recorded by telephone. He [Van Vliet] had just written these lyrics, and he had one of the guys in the band recite it to me over the phone. I taped it in the studio, and recorded it onto the piece of tape that I had up at the time, which was my track, 'Charles Ives'!” Beefheart himself can be heard blowing away on hunting horn in the background, and he steps up for some conversation with his old buddy at the end. It's nice to hear he and Zappa making weird and wonderful music together, having fun and working harmoniously!


Some favourite artists:

Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Kinski, Marnie Stern

The Jukebox pick:

 

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