In keeping with the general Beefheartian theme of recent posts, I recently found this video of the Mats/Morgan Band performing Captain Beefheart’s “Lick My Decals Off, Baby”.
Line Up:
Freddie Wadling – lead vocals
Morgan Ågren – drums
Denny Walley – guitar, vocals
Jimmy Ågren – guitar
Rolf Hedquist – bass
Mats Öberg – keyboards, harmonica, vocals
This is largely the same line-up that appears on Denny Walley’s album, Spare Parts (a blues album with backing by the Mats/Morgan band).
Click here for more information on the Mats/Morgan Band’s new CD and DVD release from Cuneiform Records, “Heat Beats Live/Tourbook 1991-2007“.
I’ve always liked what this band did. One can find the full cd at a reasonable price on ebay if they are patient. It was assembled to celebrate DVVs touring art show (Stand Up To Be Discontinued). Wadling is an interesting guy…kind of like Sweden’s Shane MacGowan. I have a cd retro of his career…but the name of his main band escapes me at the moment.
Indeed, a very interesting voice.
From Wadling’s MySpace Page:
“In the 1970’s, Freddie came into contact with the fledgling Gothenburg punk movement, and he joined one band after another, often as a bass player. At the end of the 70’s, he made several records with bands like The Leather Nun, Perverts and Liket lever (“The Corpse Lives” or more idiomatically, “The Living Corpse”). With Liket lever he sung the minor punk classic “Levande begravd” (“Buried Alive”).
During the early 80’s, Freddie sang in the cult band Cortex, who released two studio albums, out of which Spinal Injuries 1983 contained a song that would become one of his signatures, “The Freaks”. From the mid-eighties onwards, he was also one half of Blue for Two (with Henryk Lipp), whose very dark but highly melodic style gave Freddie an almost ideal forum of expression, particularly on the album Songs from a Pale and Bitter Moon, whose baleful desperation could stand as a symbol for Freddie’s and Henryk’s persistent obsession with madness, horror and anxiety. During the same period Freddie was also a recurring guest singer (to all intents and purposes a band member) with The Flesh Quartet, where the mood was often lighter, but nevertheless carried an edge. This is the source of Freddie’s popular rendition of “Over the Rainbow”.”
I just really damn enjoyed that.
oh yeah: this professionally assembled footage is all that has ever turned up…most believe it was all that was ever shot.
check out wadlings acoustic version of “let´s make the water turn black” (live in gothenburg 2004, it´s out there, somewhere)
great voice, although he at that time forgets the lyrics……
It’s great to see Denny Walley. I’m sure he has some interesting stories touring Bongo Fury with Frank & Don. I love Zappa’s tales of the Capt. carrying all his belonging in a paper bag & constantly leaving it behind while on tour.
And Matts & Morgan are always a pleasure to hear & watch.
I’m on a Beefheart kick right now, thanks urbanG. Boogerize You set me off!
[quote comment=”5584″]It’s great to see Denny Walley. I’m sure he has some interesting stories touring Bongo Fury with Frank & Don. I love Zappa’s tales of the Capt. carrying all his belonging in a paper bag & constantly leaving it behind while on tour.
And Matts & Morgan are always a pleasure to hear & watch.
I’m on a Beefheart kick right now, thanks urbanG. Boogerize You set me off![/quote]
I know just what you mean, Hugh. I first got into Beefheart via Zappa, but quickly fell in love with Don Van Vliet’s quirky nature and his “odd man odd” way of making music. Like Frank’s catalogue, I couldn’t get enough. That some of the musicians that played in the Mothers wound up in the Magic Band (Jimmy Carl Black, Art Tripp, Roy Estrada, etc) delighted me no end. It it any surprise that a Magic Band member (Denny Walley) went on to perform with FZ, and that guest musicians’ Mats & Morgan who performed with and for FZ would later perform Beefheart with Walley? There is something unique about all the conceptual continuities that pop up between Beefheart and Zappa don’t you think?
[quote comment=”5586″]There is something unique about all the conceptual continuities that pop up between Beefheart and Zappa don’t you think?[/quote]Very unique, indeed!
And Zappa is a great stepping-stone to the more outrageous style of Beefheart. It certainly helped my young ears when my older brother took me to see the Capt. when I was 17. I’d not heard a lick of Don’s music before that show. But, it pulled me in instantly.
I can’t imagine anyone loving Frank but hating Don’s music or vice versa. Both of these gents have produced some of the most interesting music of the 20th century.
Of course we got Roy E, Art T, Ingber, B. Fowler, Denny, and JCB that worked in both Zappa and Beefheart bands. Plus Ian Underwood rehearsed for a guitarist slot in the MB but it didn’t come to be.
Here’s an oddity that never made it to cd: Robert Williams (MB drummer) 1981 major label (A&M) solo ep BUY MY RECORD (the youtube vid actually uses the wrong album cover…the one pictured is the full-length follow up). The title cut features the super-group of Magic Banders Williams, Feldman, Teper, Walley, plus Albert Wing, Jeff Hollie (sax on Joe’s Garage) a singer by the name of Annerose Bucklers AND ???!!! (listen for yourself)
Art Barrow and Walt Fowler are also on the record but not on the great title cut.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYv6oY8Y23o