Beefheart Orbit | Illustration for The Austin Chronicle
Illustration of the late, great Don Van Vliet, aka Captain Beefheart, which accompanied Michael Ventura’s column “Letters at 3am” in the Austin Chronicle. I used to think of Beefheart as an impenetrable musical morass; I later discovered how remarkable gifted he was as a song creator through songs like My Head is My Only House Unless It Rains and I’m Glad.