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Don Van Vliet (born January 15, 1941 in Glendale, California), is a musician and painter, best known under the pseudonym
Captain Beefheart.
Vliet's output is rooted in blues music and rock music, but his idiosyncratic, diverse approach largely defies classification. Much of his work was conducted with a rotating assembly of musicians called the
Magic Band. He was mainly a singer, but Vliet was a capable harmonica player, and occasionally played noisy, untrained, free jazz influenced saxophone.
Among the most important of "underground rock" musicians, Captain Beefheart's legacy is one of poor record sales, critical acclaim, and a devoted following. His many admirers include
Beck,
Tom Waits,
Woody Allen, PJ Harvey, Peter Christopherson of Coil,
David Lynch,
David Byrne of Talking Heads, Michael Balzary (a.k.a. Flea), Matt Groening and Devo.
Vliet's music has been vastly influential. BBC disc jockey John Peel stated, "If there has ever been such a thing as a genius in the history of popular music, it's Beefheart ... I heard echoes of his music in some of the records I listened to last week and I'll hear more echoes in records that I listen to this week."
http://www.beefheart.com/zigzag/articles/genius.htm
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