The Magic Band

Throughout his recording career, the legendary Captain Beefheart relied on the Magic Band as his supporting ensemble. Personnel shifted across the years, which meant the group’s name simply denoted whichever musicians happened to be accompanying the Captain in any given period. That pattern held until 2003. Matt Groening, a devoted Beefheart admirer, was named curator of that year’s All Tomorrow’s Parties festival. He therefore suggested assembling a fresh incarnation of the Magic Band drawn from former Beefheart sidemen. The resulting lineup—John French (Drumbo) handling drums and vocals, Mark Boston (Rockette Morton) on bass, and Gary Lucas alongside Denny Walley on guitars—had never actually performed behind Captain Beefheart. Robert Williams took over the drum chair whenever Drumbo sang lead. In addition to appearing at the festival, the musicians taped a rehearsal that later surfaced as the 2003 album Back to the Front. Sundazed subsequently issued the 2005 live recording Oxford, UK-June 6 in 2011, documenting essentially the same personnel heard on Back to the Front.