BLUEJEANS & MOONBEAMS

If this site was swampbluesarchives.com I suspect this album would have a much higher rating. All but two of the tracks are nice swampy blues based songs, which lend themselves well to Don Van Vliet's raspy vocals. These songs, for what they are, are not bad at all. But hardly progressive. Or prog.

Now, for the remaining two tracks. These drag the album down. "Further Than We've Gone" is a bland ballad, where The Captain appears to be trying to become the next Joe Cocker. As if we needed another one. IMHO, thoseguys who sound like they are all screamed out, and just have little strands of decimated vocal cords left have no business trying to sing songs like this. Cocker, Stewart, Seger, all of you. Just stop. It doesn't work.

And on the title track, "Bluejeans & Moonbeams", Beefheart's voice doesn't sound so bad, but the song is so dry and maudlin, it bores to tears.

Just two stars, for lack of progness.

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Posted Saturday, June 20, 2009 | Review this album | Report (Review #221969)

Generally I like blues. It means , that I can't hate this album.

Captain Beefheart recorded blues album with second-league musicians. His charisma didn't let to kill this album till death, but common feeling is sad enough. Music is very simplistic itself, and is played not at the high level of musicianship. Songs sound uninspired. Just imagine suburbs blues bar Thursday night's band.

Not to much moments there remind Capt.'s great early years. And it's sad... " Further Than We've Gone " is a ballade, almost with tears. Even more sad...

One of his worst works, happily this album is still not the end. Just Magic band missed it's magic for a while...

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Posted Friday, January 29, 2010 | Review this album | Report (Review #263318)

In principle, there's some tolerable music on this album. It happens when neither the Captain nor the backing singers are singing. (Yes, there are backing singers, and yes, it's a disaster. "Oooh, Captain Captain" is not something I ever want to hear on a Beefheart record.) With the entire Magic Band departing after Unconditionally Guaranteed, Bluejeans and Moonbeams sees the Captain fronting an all-new lineup, the much-derided Tragic Band. The thing is, they do a decent bluesy folk-rock backing - and then the Captain comes along and wrecks it by drawling out some of the most insipid lyrics he's produced. The album threatens to come alive with the opening number, Party of Special Things to Do, the only song displaying Beefheart's usual lyrical inventiveness, but even this is sabotaged by lacklustre production.

If it were all-instrumental, then maybe it'd merit two or three stars, but I have to give it one star simply because it's a badly thought-out album that was based on a fundamentally unworkable idea - making Captain Beefheart sing love songs in front of a soft rock band. Either go for the avant-garde audience and get some musicians in who can bring Beefheart's vision to life, or head for the mainstream - in which case Beefheart is the last person you want onboard. Build on a bad premise, end up with a [&*!#]ty album; it's that simple.

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Posted Sunday, September 18, 2011 | Review this album | Report (Review #526591)

There's been a lot of sustained kerfuffle and belligerent dismissal surrounding this record. As such, this was the last Beefheart album I listened to; after the cheerful banality of Unconditionally Guaranteed, I needed weightier meat. So it was on to the glories of Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller), ... (read more)

Report this review (#465567) | Posted by Lozlan | Monday, June 20, 2011 | Review Permanlink

"Bluejeans & Moonbeams" is one of the top 5 most underrated albums! Yeah, musically is totally different and less complex from, say, "Lick My Decails Off, Baby" or "Trout Mask Replica", but still is as good as those albums, in my humble opinion. It becamed one of my personal favourites from the C ... (read more)

Report this review (#133533) | Posted by JethroZappa | Friday, August 17, 2007 | Review Permanlink

I have to say that dog3000's review pretty much says everything I would have done. Observatory Crest is OK, fairly chilled but unspectacular. The rest is pretty forgettable and bland. I'm not a full-on Capain fan; try as I might I can't get into Trout Mask Replica but at least it has an edge and ... (read more)

Report this review (#98290) | Posted by zedkatz | Saturday, November 11, 2006 | Review Permanlink

This should be one of the last Beefheart albums you purchase. There are a couple decent tunes, but the Cap'n just sounds uninspired here. I guess the music biz was just getting him down by this point -- he compromised and made a couple MOR-ish records of unchallenging music. "Unconditionaly ... (read more)

Report this review (#50534) | Posted by | Friday, October 7, 2005 | Review Permanlink

I can never understand the people who slag off this album? It is actually a very beautiful and poignent moment in Beefheart's career in my opinion. I think people who knock it are either those who are not generally fans of beefhearts work, or those who would have prefered him to stick to his o ... (read more)

Report this review (#40042) | Posted by | Saturday, July 23, 2005 | Review Permanlink

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