This was the end of the show for the musical Captain Beefheart. After this Don went of into the world of art, the art seen on the cover of the album behind the photo in fact.
The cd is remastered to great effect allowing aspects previously hidden to make themselves felt. The playing is of the usual high standard, an incredible standard really that was only obvious in live perfomance.
Mike Barnes provides superb liner notes which help to make sense of the album and the events surrounding its creation. To listen to this without some sort of guidance/assistance is like going to check out a movie whilst wearing a welders mask.
Basically this album was constructed from a mix of material from the late 60's up, reworked pieces from other albums and a handful of new recordings. It all hangs together fairly well. Some of the material here ranks along with Trout Mask for sheer avant garde approach and some is almost mainstream, well mainstream for Beefheart that is.
Ice Cream for Crow, Hey Garland, The Past Sure is Tense and Light Reflected off the Oceands of the Moon are, for me, the stand out tracks.