ZOOGZ TOOSDAY: Son Of Puke

It's the (slight) return of Zoogz Toozday!

Like a cross between cartoon soundtracks and free jazz, side 1 of this 1987 cassette-only release is a sprawling smorgasbord of countless samples and snippets of prior Rift releases mixed into a 44 minute sound-collage. Hear the album Trouser Press called: "patience-defying"! Casios, Chipmunk voices, backwards voices, video-game-like bloops 'n' bleeps, some things resembling actual rock music, and what sounds like 5 records playing at the same time...Fun stuff!

Side 2 is a found tape Zoogz claims was rescued from a garbage bin. It's a side of a polite jazzy group apparently called the Transients covering Beatles and (some fairly obscure) solo Beatle songs. That story might be more believable if the voices weren't so obviously sped-up. And then there's their, er, "cover" of "Revolution No. 9" which gives it all away. Still, judging by this set, Zoogz & Co. could have worked as a Holiday Inn lounge band. And who knows, maybe they did.

Zoogz Rift: "Son of Puke" - in 2 files, Side 1 and 2, just like a real tape.

Much thanks to maniac Michael B. for sending this rarity our way.

The GTO's "Permanent Damage"

I (and my family) now own the Frank Zappa family cat. Said cat was given to us by the queen of the groupies, Pamela Des Barres. No, I'm not making this up.

Frank Zappa died over 20 years ago, his wife Gail just died last year, and as you may have heard, there has been a much-publicized and unpleasant squabble amongst the four Zappa children. But one thing Ahmet, Moon Unit, Dweezil, and Diva can agree on is: no-one wants Gail's cat.

Enter Miss Pamela. The best-selling author of "I'm With The Band" has known the Zappa  family since Frank's old band the Mothers of Invention ruled the Sunset Strip in the late '60s.  Ms. Des Barres used to babysit the Zappa kids, and Frank produced and played on the one and only album by des Barres' groupie-group, the GTOs, aka Girls Together Outrageously. 

But Pamela couldn't keep the kitty. He did not get along with one of Des Barres' other cats so she put the word out that the Zappa-cat was free to a good home. Instead, he ended up in mine. Kidding! But yeah, my wife learned of this thru the social-media grapevine, and now we own Bongo. Who I hope is not named after the Zappa/Captain Beefheart album "Bongo Fury," because a furious cat who has not been de-clawed suggests another Zappa album title: "Weasels Ripped My Flesh."

But he seems fine, so let's celebrate the arrival of the newest member of the family with this true cult classic of an album. Des Barres and her fellow scenesters were most certainly not trained singers, but I wouldn't have it any other way - their daffy enthusiasm is a beautiful thing to behold. And in any case, they receive sympathetic assistance from not only The Mothers, but Davy Jones of the Monkees, Jeff Beck, and an out-of-place Rod Stewart. Tho just about anyone normal and mainstream would sound out-of-place on this unselfconsciously kooky mixture of gossipy, sometimes lurid spoken word (subjects include: Beefheart's choice of foot-wear, and foxy 11-year-old boys who resemble Brian Jones), guest appearances (a kinda creepy Rodney Bingeheimer), and surprisingly catchy eccentric pop songs. Day-glo earworms!

The GTO's "Permanent Damage" (1969; liner notes from the album:)
1.

	"The Eureka Springs Garbage Lady" (lead vocal: Miss Christine)	3:47
2.	"Miss Pamela and Miss Sparky discuss STUFFED BRAS and some of their early gym class experiences"	2:10
3.	"Who's Jim Sox?" (Spoken: A B.T.O. is the opposite of a G.T.O. only they get in there more - sexually, than we do. It means, Boys Together Often, Only, Occasionally, Organically, Outrageously. All those O’s.)	0:18
4.	"Kansas and the BTO's"	1:12
5.	"The Captain's Fat Theresa Shoes" (This is a song about a pair of crazed shoes CAPTAIN BEEFHEART wears.)	1:56
6.	"Wouldn't it be Sad if There Were No Cones?" (Miss Pamela & Sparky discuss the manner in which local Hollywood soul brothers make sexual advances in front of the Whisky a Go Go.)	1:11
7.	"Do Me in Once and I'll Be Sad, Do Me in Twice and I'll Know Better (Circular Circulation)" (This is a reasonably abstruse love song with a gentle bum in it.)	2:19
8.	"The Moche Monster Review" (Miss Pamela gives us an insight into the behavior of “the other breed” who drive “soft cars”… the sexual advances they make toward girls while they’re hitchhiking.)	1:46
9.	"TV Lives" (A brief word about television. This song is nearly as absurd as the medium it describes.)	1:03
10.	"Rodney" (Rodney Bingenheimer is one of the more unique figures of contemporary social history. The G.T.O.s have put together an unusual piece which includes the voice of Mr. Bingenheimer as he comments on the lyrics which have been written about his peculiar exploits. This “song” might give you a broad view of the scene in Hollywood as it relates to the Sunset Strip’s foremost male groupie.)	3:42
11.	"I Have a Paintbrush in My Hand to Color a Triangle (Mercy’s Tune)" (This is a song about a lovers’ triangle which involves Brian Jones, Bernardo B.T.O. and Mercy.)	2:11
12.	"Miss Christine's First Conversation With the Plaster Casters of Chicago" (In this episode we find our exotic Yugoslavian maiden explaining her moral viewpoint after reading a short segment of Cynthia Plaster Caster’s diary.)	0:57
13.	"The Original GTO's" (Miss Lucy and Miss Johna were the originators of G.T.O.ism two years ago. In this sequence we find them inside a piano kissing each other & having a cosmic-level discussion.)	1:05
14.	"The Ghost Chained to the Past, Present, and Future (Shock Treatment)" (Miss Mercy explains her personal philosophy. Lead vocals: Mercy and R.S. (Rod Stewart).)	1:45
15.	"Love on an Eleven Year Old Level" (For some reason, the G.T.O.’s are preoccupied by the memory of Brian Jones. In this song they discuss their mutual admiration for an 11 year old boy who happens to look like Brian… and also has a couple of other things going for him.)	1:18
16.	"Miss Pamela's First Conversation With the Plaster Casters of Chicago" (Cynthia and Miss Pamela find that they have a “fave rave” in common, and proceed to compare notes on their relationship with him. Some semantic difficulties toward the end of the conversation provide a convenient transition to the next piece of material.)	1:31
17.	"I'm in Love with the Ooo-Ooo Man" (In real life, the OOO OOO Man is Nick St. Nicholas from Steppenwolf. Miss Pamela sings the lead vocal on this very special song of love. I have no idea what the rubber chicken suit with the beak is.)	3:27

Notes

The G.T.O.’s write all their own lyrics & no subject matter covered by these lyrics was suggested by any outside source. The choice of subjects is a reflection of the girls’ own attitudes toward their environment. The G.T.O.’s hope you like their album. — Frank Zappa

The Mystic Knights Of The Oingo Boingo: "Forbidden Zone"

Back in the days of Los Angeles' wild-n-whooly pre-punk "Freak Scene", The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo were filling large theaters with their outrageous performances. And if you think that name sounds familiar, yes indeed, Danny Elfman would eventually inherit the group from brother Richard and pare it down to the hugely successful band Oingo Boingo, who would then in turn serve as the springboard for Elfman's even huge-er career as a soundtrack composer. Somewhere in the world right now, the theme to "The Simpsons" is playing.

But this was Elfman's first score, and possible his best, an utterly weird, wacked-out, and wonderful assortment of short instrumentals ("Factory" wouldn't sound out of place on The Resident's "Commercial Album"), and theatrical vocal numbers from Elfman (as the Devil); star Susan Tyrrell, an actual Oscar nominee who made the admirable decision to toss away movie-star life to make films with the likes of Andy Warhol and John Waters; and - yes! - Herve Villachaize, the little fella with the thick accent who played Tattoo on Fantasy Island, who can be heard in the "Finale."

Also featured: "Yiddishe Charleston", which sounds just like its title: a Jewish boogie-woogie; the Dr. Demento swing-era standard "Pico and Sepulveda," and the amusingly flatulent nonsense vocals of performance artists The Kipper Kids (one of whom is married to Bette Midler?!) sung over some vintage jazz novelties. All of which perfectly complements big brudder Rick Elfman's hysterically surreal, non-PC classic midnight movie. The year was 1977: Richard was retiring from the group to pursue a video career, and Danny was ready to steer it from its glam-era theatrical origins into New Wave rock band territory. Nothing here really sounds like Oingo Boingo, tho. Much to this album's credit, it doesn't really sound like anything you've heard before. 

Various versions of this soundtrack have been released over the years. This is the most complete.

The Mystic Knights Of The Oingo Boingo: "Forbidden Zone" soundtrack

ROBERT WILLIAMS "Late One Night"

Former drummer for Captain Beefheart's Magic Band, Robert Williams, followed up his debut solo EP with this 1982 full-length. He's still joined by some Zappa/Beefheart sidemen, (e.g.: Bruce Fowler's mighty trombone) but he's deffo moving towards a more commercial New Wave direction here. On side 2 that works just dandy. "Gotta Be Nice," featuring Danny Elfman and two Go-Gos (Charlotte Caffey and Jane Wiedlin), should have been playing out of every store in the Galleria. "Grinding The Gears," featuring Hugh Cornwall of The Stranglers, is likewise killer. The tribal throb of "Hungry" is reminiscent of Adrian Belew's classic "Big Electric Cat."

Side 1 is a bit problematic, however, what with it's blatant Police-isms sounding desperate for KROQ airplay. And William's sometimes corny lyrics (on both sides) can be an issue. And yet, amidst all the late-period Devo synths, hard rock gee-tars, and four-on-the-floor beats (this guy once played Beefheart's notoriously tricky rhythms?) is a wacked-out cover of Beatle George's "Within You Without You," complete with hazy sitar-ish sounds, odd time signatures, and an incongruously funky poppin' bass. You can take the boy out of '70s prog...

Perhaps A&M Records wasn't the suitable label for this album. Or perhaps Williams lacked an outrageous enough personality (and stage name) to make it as a New Wave punker. But whatever the reason, with neither the Freak Scene nor the Valley Girls buying this album, it died a quick death, never getting a digital reissue. My 99 cent used vinyl copy was in great shape. Williams would not make another solo album for many years.

ROBERT WILLIAMS "Late One Night"

Robert Williams: Buy His Records

Anyone who played in Captain Beefheart's Magic Band is of course an automatic A-lister in the avant/strange music world. So it's no wonder that late-period Magic Band member Robert Williams' debut solo release, a four-song EP from 1981, is chock-a-block with strange music superstars: a couple of DEVOs, a slew of Zappa/Beefheart sidemen, even Robbie Krieger of the Doors. And the music is quite nice, too, moving into (slightly) more commercial New Wave territory with its' integrity intact.

But unfortunately for Williams, his 1997 public humiliation on the hugely popular (and still running) "Judge Judy" show is what he will always be best known for, at least until reissues of "Doc At The Radar Station" knock Bruno Mars off the charts. Williams toured with PiL, and attempted to sue no less than Johnny "Lydon" Rotten himself. To put it in strictly legal terms, he did not win.The complete episode is no longer available on-line, and the short clips that are up don't do it justice, so you'll just have to trust me when I say that it was one of the most howlingly funny moments in TV history. 

Poor li'l fella. He does deserve to remembered for his music, not just with the Cap'n, but on his solo records, and with Eazy Teeth, who made one great experimental synth-punk single in 1980 that featuredTito Larriva from the Plugz on vocals, included here. Also: 2 tracks from his fine 1998 album that is in print, "Date With The Devils Daughter": "Hello Robert," which features some hysterical (in all senses of the word) answering machine messages from Wild Man Fischer, and "Frank and Don and Me", feat. guitarist Jeff Morris Tepper from his Magic Band days. Not bad for a "nudnik."

Robert Williams - Buy My Record + bonus tracks

The Roto Rooter Good Time Christmas Band

"Bernie Green plays More Than You Can Stand In Hi Fi" is back on line.

This cheerfully eccentric band of refugees from the UCLA jazz program made just this one  1974 album, perhaps never fully realizing their potential.  Their role models, Spike Jones and His City Slickers, and the Bonzo Dog Band, were only just getting warmed up on their first releases. Tho they suffer a bit from the "we're so wacky!!" affliction, but they get a pass, as there are far too few musical anarchists like this who have the chops to play jazz and classical but make the noble decision to throw away all artistic 'credibility' in the name of eclecticism and absurdist humor. And the Roto Rooters were def on the right track, showing a healthy irreverence towards classic rock ("Purple Haze") and classic classics ("The Sabre Dance"), covering campy oldies like Shirley Temple's "On The Good Ship Lollipop" and singing cowboy Roy Roger's signature sign-off song "Happy Trails." (Supposedly Van Halen got the idea to end their shows with "Happy Trails" from these guys.) For some reason folkie label Vanguard Records put this one out. Granted, they also released Perrey & Kingsley's Space Age Moog-sterpieces, but still, a strange choice, and perhaps no surprise that this album sold about 12 copies before dropping off the planet.  (My recently-purchased copy was still in the shrink-wrap!) 

 If we extend the definition of the pre-punk L.A. 'Freak Scene' beyond Zappa's immediate circle of outsiders and oddballs (Wild Man Fischer, Cap. Beefheart, The GTO's, etc). we'll find plenty of like-minded loonies that followed in their wake, inc. The Los Angeles Free Music Society, the art/music axis of Mike Kelley/Jim Shaw/Destroy All Monsters, radio host/music archivist Dr. Demento, The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, Zoogz Rift, the Rhino Records label, and these chaps. What the 'freaks' had in common was a rejection of the SanFran 'hippie' attitude, a love of old-timey musics, jazz /improvisation and avant-classical, and a whacked-out sense of humor. They may have liked some psych rock, but had no interest in being 'mellow', they were in-your-face cynical smart-asses. Raised on 'Mad' magazine, they were among the first to realize that the 20th century had already produced a huge slew of ignored pop-cultural waste - monster movies, thrift-store records, bad TV - just waiting to be creatively recycled. 'Avant-tarde,' decades before that phrase was coined. Jazz music had just died after the glorious supernova of electric Miles, H. Hancock, etc, and had quickly settled into it's current bland 'smooth-jazz' zombie-fied afterlife, rock had not yet experienced the punk Big Bang that would create a viable DIY culture, and the classical avant-garde was snugly tucked into it's academic ivory tower. There wasn't much 'alternative' culture at the time - you had to swim in the mainstream, or quickly sink into obscurity. And much of the above-mentioned stuff was indeed pretty obscure. Even the 'famous' names like Captain Beefheart never rose above the club/mid-size venue level, and certainly never came near the Top 40.

But there was one glimmer of independence - the afore-mentioned Dr. Demento show. A Sunday night radio show from LA specializing in comedy/novelty records that became a fixture on virtually every American FM rock station, "The Dr. Demento Show" was geared towards youngsters, and admittedly featured plenty of sophomoric yuks. But it was also a free-form free-wheeling forum for strange and forgotten sounds of any era or genre, from old 78s to unsolicited demos. Barry Hansen (Dr. D.) would actually listen to anything that hit his mailbox. The RRGCB sent in one such tape and became the first of his discoveries, quickly becoming the house band for the show. Their version of a Dr. D. hit, the great Big Band oddity "Pico and Sepulveda" (included on this album) became the program's theme song. They also provided incidental music for the show, such as the weekly top ten/Funny Five jingles. For lots of videos (inc. an otherwise unwaxed cover of "Jollity Farm") check out their

inactive blog

inactive Facebook 

And they don't play any Christmas songs.

The Roto Rooter Good Time Christmas Band

A1	Fanfare/Buick LeSabre Dance
A2	Martian March
A3	On The Good Ship Lollipop
A4	Hungarian Dance No. 5
A5	South Of The Border
A6	Love Me
A7	Pico & Sepulveda
A8	The Band Played On (And On)
B1	Swamp Lake
B2	Purple Haze
B3	The Beer Bottle Polka
B4	Marianne
B5	Overture & The Rite Of Spring
B6	Happy Trails To You/March Of The Cuckoos

ZOOGZ TOOZDAY: Early Rarities

Zoogz Toozday is back, for one post - a large collection of early recordings from the late Zappa/Beefheart-inspired-bandleader-gone-punk/ comedian/ crank/ mad genius Zoogz Rift. We featured an album of Zoogz with his band The Amazing Shitheads every Tuesday for a while there, then super-awesome generous reader myxsoma laid some more on us, and, once again, he has gifted us with 3 bootlegs taken from cassettes of Zoogz and various enthusiastic cohorts chronicling his earliest recordings, some going all the way back to 1973: "The first two are apparently from his band "Zobus" which was his earlier band before the Shitheads." All 3 volumes contain text files with useful notes. Longtime sidemen Richie Hass (vibes) and Scott Colby (slide guitar) are featured. Sound quality varies, but is generally pretty good, considering.

The first folder "Zobus - the first demo - 1973" is the early stuff. In 1973 Zoogz would have been a mere 20 years old, and still in New Jersey, before he made his name in Los Angeles. If you're used to the thorny complexities of Rift's music, this stuff may surprise you - it's as much garage-rock as anything else. His style may not have gelled yet, but his attitude certainly had: the punk-before-punk "Rock 'n' Roll" has him and his bandmates howling: "I'm sick and tired of rock 'n' roll, so fuck you!" Elsewhere, there's "Jugular Vein," a Sun Ra-like freeform freakout; a latin music/Santana parody; an almost respectable bit of fusion with the not-so-respectable title "Not Drenched In Farts;" tape tomfoolery; Moog mania; and an acapella shouter, with the band exclaiming: "We've run out of ideas!" Fun, funny, and certainly unpredictable. The man was well on his way.

"Zobus 1975-1977 - Lovely Girl demo and rehearsals" is the next folder, and it's sounding better, more professionally recorded. "Would You F-I-B to the FBI" is a brilliant oddity, a Chipmunk-style novelty that turns into a circus waltz. "Tits and Ass" is cool, if a bit too obviously derivative of its inspirations: Zappa-esque lyrical crudity + Beefheartian growly vox and bluesy rock. Some of the soloing on the 6+ minute instro "Can't You See That B Can Be C Flat ?" is questionable, but is more than made up for with "Inside My Head There's A Vacuum," a live (but well-recorded) 17-minute groover from their last Jersey show before heading west. It's a downright sample-able funk-fest, with some real tasty Haas marimba solos, and spoken word nuttiness: "What do you think it's gonna be like when we finally get to California and show them our avant-garde weird music to the record companies?" "It's not gonna be any different."

"1978-1979 - Outtakes and alternates" features versions of a number of songs that did get released on a proper Zoogz album, "Idiots on the Miniature Golf Course", as well as songs that didn't make the album, inc. another version of "Would You F-I-B to the FBI", and the cowboy piss-take "The Man Who Slugged Your Mother" (did county bands ever actually use vibraphones?) No longer known as Zobus, they're Zoogz Rift's Micro Mastodons, and their playing is as tight as a drum. Loony guitarist John Trubee is now on board. Next stop: SST Records, and '80s college-rock notoriety.

Zoogz Rift - rarities

Funny (or not) - just as I was listening to this stuff today, I checked my email, and learned that Mediafire had taken down two albums from this blog. Two of those Zoogz Rift albums that I posted couple years ago.  What timing.  I'll try to get 'em back up soon.

Wild Man Fischer: "Wildmania!"

Paranoid schizo/sometimes homeless outsider legend Larry "Wild Man" Fischer sang the first ever release on L.A's pioneering maverick indie label Rhino Records, "Go To Rhino Records" in 1975, when Rhino was still just a record store, not yet the music-biz monster it would become. A version of that song is included on this 1977 album, the first LP Rhino ever released. And this Thursday here in L.A., Beyond Baroque is hosting a 2nd Annual (there was one last year, why was I not informed?!) Wild Man Fischer Pep Rally, which promises "live readings, performances, and rare film clips." Not sure what that's all about (readings?), but it's free.  Doubt I'll be able to make it, so if any of you-all do go, I expect a report, all right?

The late, great Fischer is in a good mood here. Parts of this album were allegedly recorded in the stands of Dodger Stadium during a baseball game.  Hmmm... Tho there's some crude rock backing on a few songs, many of these songs are sung acapella, just the way Frank Zappa discovered Fischer in 1968 when he was walking down the Sunset Strip hollering his songs at the top of his lungs. The 2-disk album that resulted, "An Evening With Wild Man Fischer" (never digitally re-issued) can be found elsewhere in blogland. In '75, Fischer hooked up with crazed pre-punkers Smegma for an awesome album, available HERE courtesy of PCL Linkdump. Then came the Rhino era - after this release Fischer hooked up with those wacky "Fish Heads" kids Barnes and Barnes for some excellent late '70s/'80s albums. Most of Wild Man's stuff seems to be out-of-print.  Actually, a lot of that wacked-out early Rhino stuff is OOP - we may have to focus on 'em in the future. So much weird music out there, and I am but one man!

Wild Man Fischer: "Wildmania!"

1. My Name Is Larry

2. Jimmy Durante

3. I Light the Pilot

4. Josephine

5. Do the Wildman

6. I'm a Truck

7. Sir Larry

8. Who's Your Favorite Singer?

9. Go to Rhino Records

10. Handy Man

11. Disco in Frisco

12. Do the Wildman (And Other in Dances)

13. I'm Selling Peanuts for the Dodgers

14. I'm the Meany

15. Wild Man Fischer Impersonation Contest

16. Guitar Licks

17. What Do You Think of Larry?

18. Young at Heart

19. My Name Is Larry (Reprise)

Captain Beefheart Karaoke Party: "Clear Spot"

As with the "Lick My Decals Off" post from a couple years ago, here are the instrumental tracks from a Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band album. In this case, it's the 1972 release "Clear Spot." An oddity in the good captain's catalogue, this one alternates the usual mad genius of songs like "Big Eyed Beans From Venus," (one of my favorite songs ever, not just by Beefheart) with attempts to be normal and commercial, tho there's nothing as egregious here as his mid-70's "Tragic Band" period. My eyes popped out when I was scanning the booklet to a recent Buckwheat Zydeco album, and saw a Captain Beefheart writing credit.  Yep, Buckwheat covered the perfectly presentable soul 'n' horns workout "Too Much Time" (tho the instro version is not featured here.)

In any case, it's another opportunity to revel in the complexity of the musical arrangements. Sing along with the Cap'n!

Captain Beefheart: "Clear Spot" Instrumental Tracks

1. My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains
2. Clear Spot
3. Crazy Little Thing
4. Dirty Blue Gene
5. Big Eyed Beans From Venus
6. Frying Pan
7. Sun Zoom Spark
8. Nowadays A Woman's Gotta Hit A Man
9. Low Yo Stuff
10. Booglarize

ZOOGZ TOOZDAY

The six hours of Zoogz Rift & His Amazing Shitheads mega-post from earlier this year is back on-line.

ZOOGZ-APALOOZA

Last year I posted 10 albums, one a week, by the late, great Los Angeles loony Zoogz Rift and his Amazing Shitheads.  Our best-est new pal in the world myxsoma has sent us eight, count 'em, EIGHT more albums from the mad genius, including some tracks from his hopelessly rare (and awesome) first album.

Tho he's usually considered to be a disciple of Zappa and Beefheart, Rift himself has said that it's more complicated then that: throw in The Bonzo Dog Band, punk, free jazz, retarded novelty records, avant-classical, etc., etc. The hilarious, crazed, uninhibited nature of His Zoogzness can't readily be compared to anyone else.

WARNING: some tracks are missing from the earlier albums. These are not all complete, at least not the first two or three albums.  And it's all 128kbps. But I'm not complaining at all - it's still a whopping 6 hours of music, and it all rules. Some of these were cassette-only releases that Zoogz didn't want to re-issue when he went big time (by indie standards) signing to SST Records.  I have no idea why.  It's all really, really good, with every album flying off into myriad, highly original directions - from blues played on xylophones, to crazed rants, to atmospheric instrumentals. Some individual songs, however, were rescued from these tapes for his more high-profile album releases, so there are a few (but not a lot of) duplicates if you downloaded all those other albums.


Zoogz1: INTERIM RESURGENCE (1985),
VILLAGERS (1992)
Zoogz2: from WITH NO APPARENT REASON (1976),
 MUSIC SUCKS (1982)
 Zoogz3: FIVE BILLION PINHEADS CAN'T BE WRONG (1996), SCHOOL OF THE CRIMINALLY INSANE (1999)

Zoogz4: BOHEMIAN BUDDHA (2000)

Zoogz5: BORN IN THE WRONG UNIVERSE (2003) + a 45 minute long track from "school of the criminally insane" that I couldn't fit onto 'Zoogz3.'

Much thanks to myxsoma - go check out his lovely music, videos for his music, his nutty YouTube channel, and dig the video (right) he posted of Zoogz' song "Bowl of Gregmar" featuring a photo autographed by the man himself.

Big Eyed Beans From Venus

Yes, Virginia, there really is a Captain Beefheart tribute band. Even more improbably, they're really good. And you thought tribute acts were all cheeseball 'classic rock' bar bands.

As the Southern Shelter guy says: "Big Eyed Beans From Venus have obviously put in tons of work (there’s really no way to half-ass Beefheart’s music)."

This Athens, GA crew even got actual Magic Band members to sit in, like Rockette Morton, who played on early classics like "Trout Mask Replica." Dig this 20 song show, recorded live, with excellent sound quality:

Big Eyed Beans From Venus 11/16/06 @ Five Spot

R.I.P. Wild Man Fischer

Damn, we've been losing too many strange/outsider greats lately - in the last six months or so, Captain Beefheart, Zoogz Rift, and now Larry "Wild Man" Fischer have died. Fischer was the paranoid schizophrenic Frank Zappa introduced to the world in the late '60s when he discovered Larry walking down the Sunset Strip hollering his songs at the top of his lungs. He was 66, way too young, but he had heart problems, and a difficult life.

Fun-To-Know Fact: Rhino Record's first ever release was a single of Fischer bellowing out acapella "Go to Rhino Records/on Westwood Boulevard!" Apparently he used to hang around the now-closed store all day. Would there have been a Rhino label without Fischer?

PCL Linkdump has a great post: links to the documentary about Fischer that came out a few years ago, and two whole albums for your downloading pleasure, including an early Zappa-era one, "An Evening With Wild Man Fischer", and one recorded with Smegma in 1975 when those infamous crazies were still in Pasadena in the Los Angeles area before they absconded to Oregon. When I first wrote about this post, I said that the Smegma album "features a fantastic 15 minute destruction of Gladys Knight & The Pips' "Midnight Train to Georgia."


Here's a Wild Man Fischer mashup by RIAA from the "Schizophonia Suite" EP:

Kill Your Merry Go Round: featuring Wild Man Fischer's "Merry Go Round" and "The Wild Man Fischer Story," Lou Reed "Kill Your Sons" (inspired by Reed's teenage shock therapy treatments); C Dott "Merry Go Round"

R.I.P. ZOOGZ RIFT

Planet Earth just got a little more boring. Zoogz is dead at age 57 after a long illness. We posted 10 big albums by the man last year.

R.I.P. ZOOGZ RIFT

UPDATE 4/4/11: Ah, poop, the excellent performance from the 'Uncle Floyd' show was taken down. So here's another Zoogz vid, a great devolved cover of Olivia Newton-John's 'Physical':

CAPTAIN BEEFHEART KARAOKE PARTY

One of the indisputable giants of weirdo music, Captain Beefheart, died this past December, as most of you doubtless know. Some have said that since he'd been retired from music for so long, his death shouldn't be much of a shock. But I've been listening to Beefheart so much in recent years that he did feel like an immediate presence - he's the rare artist from my boyhood that I listen to more now then I did then. Took me a while to fully absorb him. After I got increasingly into Delta blues and free jazz, then I could see where the good Captain was coming from.
As a belated tribute, here's a pretty good sounding (as bootlegs go) collection of instrumental mixes of his 1970 "Lick My Decals Off Baby" album. I love the opportunity to really hear The Magic Band's twisted, knotty instrumental skillz in all their glory. Don't be put off by the horn skronk on the first two tracks - they get a-rockin' and a-rollin' shortly thereafter.

Captain Beefheart &The Magic Band: "Lick My Decals Off Baby" (instrumental mixes)

1. Japan In A Dishpan
2. Japan In A Dishpan (take 2)
3. Woe Is A Me Bop
4. Space Age Couple
5. Petrified Forest
6. Flash Gordon's Ape #2 [some vox on here, actually]
7. Doctor Dark
8. I Love You, You Big Dummy
9. Japan In A Dishpan (bass and Drumbo version)
10. Flash Gordon's Ape
11. Lick My Decals Off Baby
12. Japan In A Dishpan (take 4)
13. Bellerin' Plain
14. Clouds Are Full Of Wine
15. Big Toe #25
16. The Buggy Boogie-Woogie
17. Flash Gordon's Ape #1

• Captain Beefheart - Vocals, clarinet, saxes, harmonica
• Zoot Horn Rollo - Guitar, glass finger guitar
• Rockette Morton - Bassius-o-pheilius
• Drumbo - Drums, broom
• Ed Marimba - marimba, percussion, broom

ZOOGZ TOOZDAY 10: War Zone

New to Zoogz? Start HERE.

We've come to end of our brief survey of the wildly prolific and imaginative Zoogz Rift. Remember, you can now send away for an inexpensive set of his (almost) entire output if this has whet your appetite. I certainly would be interested to hear what albums like "FUCK GOD, FUCK YOUR MOTHER, FUCK ALL YOUR BULLSHIT AND FUCK YOU" are like.

This 1990 collection starts with "Kasaba Kabeza," a groovy funk instrumental that gets increasingly twisted. The sax/trombone interplay towards the end of this song suggests a particularly woozy brand of Minimalism. Even at 19 minutes this track isn't too long. One of Zoogz' best.

"Bowl of Gregmar" could be white-boy bar-band blues, were it not for the misanthropic lyrics and industrial-grade guitar solos. "You Can Count On Us" is a savage, funny Traveling Wilburys parody, tho I doubt that today's kids know who they are/were. No matter, proceed to the boss title track, a pogo-riffic instrumental that could almost be early Devo with a jazzy horn section. Top stuff.

This album is subtitled: "Music For Obnoxious Yuppie Scum." Does that mean that he thinks that obnoxious yuppie scum would actually like this music? Give this album to your BMW-driving Wall Street friends today!

Zoogz Rift: War Zone

ZOOGZ TOOZDAY 9: Torment

New to Zoogz? start HERE. We're in the home stretch - I only have one more album of his after this.

Torment is right. This 1989 release kicks off with a track by a clearly frustrated Rift bemoaning his increasingly diminished place in the music industry, and other songs boast primo pissed-off rants. "Dead Planet Earth" features a plethora of ethnic percussion and even a rain stick - Zoogz goes "world-beat"! "The Secret Marines Sex Kitten Beach Party," one of the most uproariously surreal spoken-word + music tracks Rift has ever done, recounts a boy's hilariously gruesome trip to the doctor.

The Tom Waits-ish "Meet Me at Stinky's" is a new direction for Rift, as is "Low Life," for overdubbed pianos (and no other instruments). "Let A Man Come In And Eat The Popcorn, Pt. 47 & 93" is a James Brown parody/tribute. And "Defecation Rainbow" is a helluva title, isn't it?

Apart from the usual furious punk/jazz instros with their blistering guitar work and Jonathan "Mako" Sharkey's synth mayhem, there are some songs that could almost be normal rock ballads. The instro "Candy Girl" is as happy and catchy as it's title would suggest - bubblegum fusion?

Zoogz Rift & his Amazing Shitheads - "Torment"

ZOOGZ TOOZDAY 8: "Murdering Hell's Happy Cretins"

(New to Zoogz? Start HERE) If you thought Zoogz was getting soft with last week's offering, this 1988 release should reassure you that Mr. Rift has not mellowed. The first half of this smokin' album is live in Europe, reprising favorites like "Heart Attack," "Mongoloid Middle America," and "When My Ship Rolls In."

Then the studio half: the lovely instro "Puke Island Paradise;" then the title track, one of Rift's trademark rants, this time directed at the likes of pretty-but-empty-headed bimbos; "Tender Romance Sequence," more of a skit than a song, is nutty x-rated surrealism; the film "Freaks" gets sampled; "A = a" is one of Rift's most furious rockers; trombones, vibes, and shrieking guitars prance merrily about and a good time is had by all. Zoogz himself has said that it's "containing some of my best studio work." It certainly makes this cretin happy.
Zoogz Rift "Murdering Hell's Happy Cretins"

ZOOGZ TOOZDAY 7: (Nonentity) Water III

Don't know Zoogz? Start HERE! But even if you do think you know him, you'll be surprised by this 1988 album - there's no spoken word surrealism, no screaming fits, no rude language. There is alot of nice singing, some Tim Buckley covers (!?), and plenty of instrumental action that is no longer zigging and zagging at break-neck tempos. No, The Amazing Shitheads come off almost like a loose jam band here.

The eminently hummable "When My Ship Sails In," written by band member John Trubee, is as gorgeous a melody as Zoogz ever recorded. The closeset thing here to the old surrealism is the title of the 20+ minute jam "The Enigmatic Embrocation Of Mrs. Compost Heap," and the fact that accordionist Rocky Howard keeps derailing the proceedings to quote from songs like "The Godfather Theme" and "Beer Barrel Polka." Accordion polka on a Zoogz Rift album? That might be the most shocking thing he's ever done. But I guess even misanthropic paranoid cynics have their good days.

Zoogz Rift: (Nonentity) Water III
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ZOOGZ TOOZDAY 6: Water II (At A Safe Distance)

Don't know Zoogz? Start HERE! Otherwise, let's dive into a 1987 release that, although it's pretty quirky by the usual standards, is as close to a straight-ahead punk/rock album as anything Zoogz & His Amazing Shitheads ever did.

A few songs are pretty out there, however. And the nearly-7 minute epic "Ah Peek In Duh Devil's Secret Hell Files" is waaaay out there, one of the nuttiest things I've ever heard from Zoogz. At one point, he even parodies Beefheart and Zappa's style to most amusing effect. And the impressive title song, for (at least) three electric guitars and no other instruments is some kind of demented string quartet/chamber music.

Zoogz Rift: Water II (At A Safe Distance)

We're only skimming the surface with all these Zoogz posts - he released far more music then I have in my collection. Although this stuff is out of print, Rift himself, thru his son Aaron, is selling for ridiculously low prices a data cd and dvds containing most everything he ever recorded. Faithful reader Steve took the plunge (all right, no more water puns) and sent away for them: "I've received everything from Aaron as advertised! ...I've found that the dynamic range is a bit better than the generally available album rips." He also reports that there are numerous bonus tracks for each album, although, strangely, one track that was originally on an album might be missing (or was it's title changed?). It's bare-bones (no art work), but considering how much you get for so little money, I'd still say it's a great deal. And since Zoogz has so many health issues, I'm sure he could use the money.

(Thanks, Steve!)