Considered by many to be a substandard effort due to the circumstances of its release (producer Bob Krasnow, the owner of Blue Thumb, the label which debuted with this album, remixed the album while Don Van Vliet and crew were off on a European tour, adding extraneous sound effects like heartbeats and excessive use of psychedelic-era clichés like out-of-phase stereo panning and flanging), 1968's Strictly Personal is actually a terrific album, every bit the equal of Safe As Milk and Trout Mask Replica.
Opening with "Ah Feel Like Ahcid," an a cappella blues workout with its roots in Son House's "Death Letter," the brief (barely 35 minutes) album is at the same time simpler and weirder than Safe As Milk had been.
Working without another songwriter or arranger for the first time, Captain Beefheart strips his idiosyncratic blues down to the bone, with several of the songs (especially "Son of Mirror Man/Mere Man") having little in the way of lyrics or chords beyond the most primeval stomp.
Krasnow's unfortunate sound effects and phasing do detract from the album at points, but the strength of the performances, especially those of drummer John French, make his efforts little more than superfluous window dressing.
Strictly Personal is a fascinating, underrated release.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ah Feel Like Ahcid | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, Captain Beefheart | Play | 03:05 | 7 MB | 13 MB |
| 2 | Safe As MilkCaptain Beefheart, Don Van Vliet | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, Captain Beefheart | Play | 05:27 | 12 MB | 29 MB |
| 3 | Trust UsCaptain Beefheart, Don Van Vliet | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, Captain Beefheart | Play | 08:09 | 18 MB | 40 MB |
| 4 | Son of Mirror Man - Mere ManDon Van Vliet | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, Captain Beefheart | Play | 05:20 | 12 MB | 27 MB |
| 5 | On TomorrowCaptain Beefheart, Don Van Vliet | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, Captain Beefheart | Play | 03:26 | 7 MB | 19 MB |
| 6 | Beatle Bones 'N' Smokin' StonesDon Van Vliet | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, Captain Beefheart | Play | 03:17 | 7 MB | 15 MB |
| 7 | Gimme Dat Harp BoyCaptain Beefheart, Don Van Vliet | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, Captain Beefheart | Play | 05:04 | 11 MB | 28 MB |
| 8 | Kandy KornCaptain Beefheart, Don Van Vliet | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, Captain Beefheart | Play | 05:06 | 11 MB | 28 MB |
| 38 mins | 89 MB | |||||
| 38 mins | 203 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Captain Beefheart | Composer, Guitar, Harmonica, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 2 | Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band | Primary Artist |
| 3 | John French | Drums |
| 4 | Jerry Handley | Bass |
| 5 | Bob Krasnow | Producer |
| 6 | Bill Lazerus | Engineer |
| 7 | Bob Lazerus | Producer |
| 8 | Mark Marcellino | Keyboards |
| 9 | Alex St. Clair | Guitar |
| 10 | Antennae Jimmy Semens | Guitar |
| 11 | Gene Shiveley | Engineer |
| 12 | Don Van Vliet | Arranger, Composer, Vocals, Writer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |