Search - Fast N Bulbous :: Pork Chop Blue Around the Rind

Beefheart as composer/arranger? Yes. Listen and believe.

Troy Collins | Lancaster, PA United States | 01/26/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The brainchild of saxophonist Phillip Johnston and former Beefheart guitarist Gary Lucas, Fast N' Bulbous is their instrumental Captain Beefheart Project. Lucas played with Don Van Vliet's seminal Magic Band from 1980-1984, when Beefheart decided that a life spent painting alone in the desert was more appealing than the music biz. Johnston has loved Beefheart ever since his youthful exposure to 1969's "Trout Mask Replica," and with Lucas decided to form an instrumental unit to cover Beefheart's tunes.



The Captain's raspy, surreal vocals have been transposed into horn charts and the original arrangements have been extended to incorporate sections for improvisation. The whole effort draws obvious parallels to what's been happening in the Downtown East Village scene since the early Knitting Factory days. On first listen one may even be reminded of George Cartwright's long standing group Curlew, among other stalwarts.



The tunes, mostly brief, have a consistency and matter of fact-ness to their execution that is spot on in their delivery. There is no filler on this album, no fat on this pork chop. All the participants get a chance in the limelight and no one overstays their welcome. Naturally Lucas and Johnston get the lion's share of the spotlight, as it is their project, still one can't help but be bowled over by Lucas' endlessly inventive guitar stylings. Backed by a horn section that at times invokes an Appalachian marching band, Lucas's lysergic slide guitar excursions blend with the ensemble to create an unholy amalgam of American music. There is a surprisingly rootsy character to many of these arrangements, as "Veteran's Day Poppy" and "Kandy Korn" both embody a folksy sensibility one wouldn't immediately identify with Beefheart's music.



Hearing Beefheart's signature, counterpoint-laden, psychedelic Blues tunes arranged for an instrumental jazz band reveals the intricacies of Beefheart's writing. The polyrhythmic shuffles and crazed counterpoint provide the perfect structural platform for a group of seasoned improvising musicians to launch from. At once joyous and challenging, "Pork Chop Blue Around The Rind" is that rare tribute album that reaches beyond its source material to create something new and perhaps even greater than the sum of its parts."

Hearts Full Of Beef

Graham R. Lewis | Charleston, IL USA | 03/01/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Not much I can add to the last excellent review, except BUY THIS NOW! If you're a Beefheart fan, you're in for a truly "Beefy" treat. I wish all tribute albums were half this interesting and, dare I say,...original."

Fast 'N' Bulbous resurrects the Magic

Annie Bones | Victoria, BC Canada | 10/02/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This review comes to you from a true Captian Beefheart fan, and as this astonishing CD release by Fast'N'Bulbous encompasses the heart and soul of the Beefheart style, I assure you that no old veteran of the Beefheart phenomenon will be disappointed by Pork Chop Blue... That said, these captivating horn renditions revisted by the veterans of the ole "Magic Band" themselves, have the spice of electrifying delivery, the bounce of big brass band brawn, the zainyness of lurid jazz, like New Orleans' better days, caught by a brilliant seat-of-the-pants level of perfect timing and tight riffs. This music has not only been preserved, but it has evolved! What can I say but, I cried when I first heard it, and I danced up a storm too. It's sexy, exciting, and very well recorded. Turn it up! This is GREAT PARTY MUSIC! Thank You and Bless you Gary Lucas and Phillip Johnston and all of the F'N'B Band - for you have at long last soothed my woeful Beefheart longings!"