TREMOLO AS ONLY EDDIE PEABODY COULD SUPPLY IT

Here's Eddie Peabody, one of an army of now-forgotten musicians who get lumped into the dismissive "novelty" category. Once upon a time, "entertainers" were often technical virtuosos as well. In those days, you couldn't just strut around like an underwear model with bedroom eyes as pyrotechnics explode in the background; people expected you to be able to play your instrument. I'm only dimly aware of this "genre," if you can call it that, but fortunately I have a cadre of informants who are always happy to enlighten me about this kind of stuff. Enjoy, and be sure and watch Eddie's right hand (grainy youtube quality, regrettably!) for insight into plectrum tremolo technique. (thanks to the anachronistic George Welling for passing along this gem.)
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CAPTAIN BEEFHEART'S TEN COMMANDMENTS FOR GUITARISTS

Captain Beefheart's various guitarists, especially the divine Bill Harkleroad and Jeff Cotton, played some of the most memorable guitar parts in rock history. The blend of blues, counterpoint, syncopation, dissonance, and distorted timbres on "Trout Mask Replica" is an essential frame of reference for many artists. Any time you hear a rock band where the guitarists are working on rhythms, overdriven rather than high-gain distortion tones, counterpoint, dissonance, etc. rather than speed-based fluidity, there's a pretty good chance they have been listening to the Captain and his various Magic Bands.

I'm not going to get into the issues of authorship of Captain Beefheart's compositions here, but I will say this--

1. All of the musicians deserve a lot of the credit for Beefheart's sound, because of the hard work and creativity they brought to the music.

2. It seems likely to me that without Beefheart's irrational combination of self-confidence, willful perversity, ideas about combining elements of Bo Diddley, Chicago blues and free jazz, controlling personality, etc. none of that music would have ever happened.

So, I recognize the Captain's genius. It may or may not be possible to achieve results using his suggestions below. I like the idea of practicing in a traditional manner, but I am intrigued by his tips, so here they are!

(incidentally, one of the things that led me to doing these guitar instruction blogs was my plan to transcribe and analyze a lot of the guitar parts from the Trout Mask album. I've come to believe that this is a project which, at least in the short term, is not the best use of my time; I do have one interesting transcription I've done, though (Dali's Car). I hope to get to that project one day, but in the meantime I'd love to get feedback from anyone who is interested in transcriptions of Beefheart guitar, and who wouldn't be scared off by the prospect of paying for something like that. if anyone knows of any transcriptions online, please let me know also.)

Captain Beefheart's Ten Commandments For Guitarists 1. LISTEN TO THE BIRDS. That's where all the music comes from. Birds know everything about how it should sound and where that sound should come from. And watch hummingbirds. They fly really fast, but a lot of times they aren't going anywhere. 2. YOUR GUITAR IS NOT REALLY A GUITAR. Your guitar is a divining rod. Use it to find spirits in the other world and bring them over. A guitar is also a fishing rod. If you're good, you'll land a big one. 3. PRACTICE IN FRONT OF A BUSH. Wait until the moon is out, then go outside, eat a multi-grained bread and play your guitar to a bush. If the bush doesn't shake, eat another piece of bread. 4. WALK WITH THE DEVIL. Old delta blues players referred to amplifiers as the "devil box." And they were right. You have to be an equal opportunity employer in terms of who you're bringing over from the other side. Electricity attracts demons and devils. Other instruments attract other spirits. An acoustic guitar attracts Casper. A mandolin attracts Wendy. But an electric guitar attracts Beelzebub. 5. IF YOU'RE GUILTY OF THINKING, YOU'RE OUT. If your brain is part of the process, you're missing it. You should play like a drowning man, struggling to reach shore. If you can trap that feeling, then you have something that is fur bearing. 6. NEVER POINT YOUR GUITAR AT ANYONE. Your instrument has more power than lightning. Just hit a big chord, then run outside to hear it. But make sure you are not standing in an open field. 7. ALWAYS CARRY YOUR CHURCH KEY. You must carry your key and use it when called upon. That's your part of the bargain. Like One String Sam. He was a Detroit street musician in the fifties who played a homemade instrument. His song "I Need A Hundred Dollars" is warm pie. Another church key holder is Hubert Sumlin, Howlin' Wolf's guitar player. He just stands there like the Statue of Liberty making you want to look up her dress to see how he's doing it. 8. DON'T WIPE THE SWEAT OFF YOUR INSTRUMENT. You need that stink on there. Then you have to get that stink onto your music. 9. KEEP YOUR GUITAR IN A DARK PLACE. When you're not playing your guitar, cover it and keep it in a dark place. If you don't play your guitar for more than a day, be sure to put a saucer of water in with it. 10. YOU GOTTA HAVE A HOOD FOR YOUR ENGINE. Wear a hat when you play and keep that hat on. A hat is a pressure cooker. If you have a roof on your house the hot air can't escape. Even a lima bean has to have a wet paper towel around it to make it grow.

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