SHINY BEAST (BAT CHAIN PULLER)

As far as I'm concerned, this was the best album Don Van Vliet ever made. The song are more polished than ever, without losing any of that wierness that permeates most of The Captain's music. Perhaps this is because a good portion of this music was originally recorded for the first Bat Chain Puller album, lost in a maze of lawsuits between Van Vliet's friend, Frank Zappa, and Herb Cohen. Anyway, my theory is that instead of having to rely on rough outlines and vocal noises, this band had fully fleshed out musical ideas to start with, and therefore go take it much further than usual.

Most of this album is high points, but my favorite here is "Ice Rose", so technically complex that it sounds like it could have come from a Zappa album.

Other great songs are "Tropical Hot Dog Night", "You Know You're A Man", "Bat Chain Puller" and the slow blues of "Swamp Lies".

If you are afraid to delve into the Beefheart catalog because of his weirdness ans abrasiveness, I suggest you start here.