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Discount shipping on multiple LPs in same order. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The anti- bombastic psychedelic shamanism Captain Beefheart and the MAGIC BAND SAFE AS MILK \ USA - Buddah Records - ((psychedelic label)) -BDS 5063 MINTY CLEAN....a 44 year old vintage collectible issue in clean condition (see details below) First issued to the unsuspected public in 1968...Safe As Milk has a mixed reputation among enthusiasts for Captain Beefheart’s music -- and some would agree with our claim that it is an underrated masterpiece. Safe As Milk is the sedimentation of a process through which a distinctive sound was being born. Each instrument was beginning to operate in its own space. In Spring 1967, then, Safe As Milk was recorded with a Magic Band nucleus of Alx St. Claire (guitar), Jerry Handley (bass) and John French (drums), augmented by various musicians, notably Ry Cooder (guitar and bass) and Russ Titelman (guitar). "Sure ‘Nuff ‘N’ Yes I Do" opens the LP by placing the Magic Band firmly in the blues tradition, dropping quickly from a solo slide guitar accompanying the plaintive "I was born in the desert..." opening verse into a boastful blues derived from "Rollin’ and Tumblin’". "Zigzag Wanderer" is the first track to indicate that something more unsettling than electric blues is afoot. A fast track which establishes its own formal structure as it moves through precisely played sections. The call-and-response vocals recall the most adventurous of the A&M releases, "Moonchild." In the middle section the Captain’s vocals chew and snap at his words over a moving bassline, before the song pulls back full circle. "Call On Me" may seem like a retreat from the new territory opened by the preceding track. However it is more indicative of the progress that the Band were making. In the pre-LP demos, this had been a slow ballad; now it had been improved immeasurably by being speeded-up into a psoul song. It is followed by the first song from the LP which would find a place in the Magic Band's repertoire in later years, "Dropout Boogie." Blending the vocal delivery and attitude of the Mothers' "Brown Shoes Don't Make It" with the early Kinks, the song surprises by swerving into original space with the audacity of the strange but simple (string) harp-based instrumental break. Covering the song, the Edgar Broughton Band normalised the break by splicing in The Shadows' "Apache" in place of the original's uncomfortable timing. "I’m Glad" is the weakest song on the LP, although there are a couple of points where the Captain's phrasing shows that he could have been a mainstream vocalist - and he does so far more effectively than on the 1974 Unconditionally Guaranteed LP where the vocals remain earthbound. "Electricity" closes side one and is the stuff of legends. The song which had caused the split with A&M, the vocal performance which destroyed the microphone, a song guaranteed to get an extreme love it or hate it reaction. What has received less attention is the extent to which the song which appeared on the LP had been developed in the studio. One person involved in the Safe As Milk sessions describes the original song as a "psychedelic dirge"; there is a tape of the 1968 Magic Band playing a version extended into that direction. In the studio, the musicians added motifs to give the song more of a sense of development. If the song is remembered, inevitably, for the power of the cries of "Eee-lectri-ci-ty," it should also be remembered for the quality of that collaboration, possibly the first of many times when the Magic Band musicians would have the opportunity and even a duty to develop the music under the main theme. Another curio about this piece is the use of the theramin to provide a suitably "electric" accompaniment. The original idea was to use the sound of an electric saw cutting metal, but this didn’t work out. If it had, might "Electricity" have been the first piece of industrial music? Side two opens with a few moments of electronic jiggerypokery and then "Yellow Brick Road." This is one of the most subtle and accessible arrangements on the LP, with auxiliary percussion from Taj Mahal and Milt Holland and fine guitar lines. The song was released as a single and, who knows, the possibilities might even have been there... "Abba Zabba" is surely the stand-out track on the LP. Despite some versions of the LP blunting its impact by fading-in John French’s "African" drum pattern, they fail to undermine the strength of the track. The guitars slide and slither around the central vocal parts, the pace changes, drops to solo bass and drums before pulling back to the main song. Not surprisingly, the song remained in the repertoire of successive Magic Bands, although not always retaining the lightness of touch of the original LP version. The electric blues of "Plastic Factory" was one track which had survived since what was probably the projected LP for A&M records in 1966. It is unique in the Captain Beefheart ouevre in that one of the Magic Band musicians, Jerry Handley, actually got a co-writing credit. The two tracks which feature Russ Titelman on guitar, "Where There’s Woman" and "Autumn’s Child" are let down by unimaginative arrangements. They indicate just how much depth was added to Magic Band’s sound by Cooder’s twisting guitar lines. That said, the easily overlooked "Where There’s Woman" does have a well-paced and controlled vocal performance. Ry Cooder’s arrangement of "Grown So Ugly" is another oddity on the LP. The production really lets this track down, with naive stereo imaging and a lack of presence on the vocals. "Autumn’s Child" closes the LP with a song whose lyrical mood may anticipates "Pachuco Cadaver" on Trout Mask Replica. As with "Abba Zabba" and "Where There’s Woman," the song succeeds in sustaining itself across quieter more contemplative sections, even if the theramin fails to disguise rather dull accompaniment playing. In a 1967 radio interview, Frank Zappa recommended Safe As Milk for the rootedness of the lyrics: "Many of the lyrics that Don Van Vliet has manufactured for these tunes are stories about his early childhood." Surely that quality of particularity should have gained an audience for the record? And yet it seems to have been received with indifference in its home territory. Side one "Sure 'Nuff 'n Yes I Do" – 2:15 "Zig Zag Wanderer" – 2:40 "Call On Me" – 2:37 "Dropout Boogie" – 2:32 "I'm Glad" – 3:31 "Electricity" – 3:07 Side two "Yellow Brick Road" – 2:28 "Abba Zaba" – 2:44 "Plastic Factory" – 3:08 "Where There's Woman" – 2:09 "Grown So Ugly" – 2:27 "Autumn's Child" – 4:02 CONDITION: The Cover: VERY clean near M- very collectible, solid all around = not with the usual soil and dirt that the cream color cover attracts so easily, no delete marks ...the back cover is excellent, clean, no bends, no split seams, no writing The Vinyl: is all glossy M- TOP COPY both sides play graded excellent with no audio problems...both labels are clean A cool addition to anyone's music library! SEE: SELLERS OTher items for similar cool sounds for "head" people... EFFICIENT/CAREFUL GRADING All imperfections are noted both cover & record NOTE: All Items backed by money back guarantee! IF you have a problem PLEASE let us solve for you BEFORE leaving ANY negative feedback. Thanks! GRADING SCALE: M, M-, EX, VG++,VG+, VG, VG- M Completely clean, no marks M- Carefully used, looks clean, plays clean, shiny gloss, no marks EX Faint scuff or superficial mark, near M-, high gloss, plays clean VG++ Glossy with minimal scuffing or light mark playing very nice, clean VG+ a bit more scuff or markls still plays well with very minimal surface at worse VG more marks/scratches only minor, nothing deep, no loud clicks or pops this grade is abused by many, VG here does not mean "trashed" VG- surface noise present, will not have skips or jumps ALL PAYMENTS SHOULD BE MADE WITHIN 5 DAYS Of AUCTIONS END BIDDERS PLEASE = Do Not Bid If You Are Not Serious About Following Through The Transaction! ALL ITEMS GUARANTEED FOR WINNING BID - LESS SHIPPING!