Captain Beefheart And The Magic Band* - Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller)

Rock

Blues Rock, Avantgarde

1978

Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) was released July 1978 in only the USA & Canada. It did not appear in the retail European market until 1980. A highly anticipated album, this official release is in fact a mix of new songs and a 'remake' of material from an album that never saw official release, entitled "Bat Chain Puller", hence the sub-title.

The original "Bat Chain Puller" was begun after Vliet's renewed association with Zappa on "Bongo Fury" and funded by Zappa. However, the resultant tapes were retained by Zappa due to legal 'asset & financial wrangles' resulting from his management & business departure from Herb Cohen in 1976. The "Bat Chain Puller" tapes (which have a different band line-up) remain in the ZFT vaults, although 'quality' & 'poor' bootlegs have appeared.

Issues of "Shiny Beast" on the Virgin label have the album's title below the image, which has a border rule. Text layout & color is also different on this label's remastered version. Three artworks by Vliet were used for the sleeve design. "Green Tom" painting on the cover (1976), an untitled color sketch on a bread bag (1976) on back cover, and a line illustration on the back of the inner sleeve (1976) - also used on CD disc.