The world never knew an artist like Captain Beefheart. And frankly, they never will again. Don Van Vliet, the mainman behind Captain Beefheart was a brilliant, if not strange artist from the ’60s. The band released several classic albums on Zappa’s Warner-distributed label, Straight Records. Among those classic albums are The Spotlight Kid, Lick My Decals Off, Baby, and Clear Spot.
The Spotlight Kid is Captain Beefheart’s sixth studio release. It was issued in 1972 on Reprise Records. It was a bit of a departure from Captain Beefheart’s previous offerings. The ten-track album didn’t fare as well as its well-known predecessors like Trout Mask Replica, and Safe As Milk, and even met with opposition from the band recording with Don Van Vliet for several reasons. Personally, I liked it.
The other two albums on this reissue calendar are Lick My Decals Off, Baby (1970), a well-loved classic, the band’s fourth, and Clear Spot (1972), a Reprise Records issue that followed The Spotlight Kid.
These three titles are all being reissued via Rhino Records, with a calendar date of September 25. These three titles are likely being liberated from the previously released Captain Beefheart Box, Sun Zoom Spark 1970 to 1972, issued on November 11, 2014. Those albums were remastered for that release.
