Customer Reviews

Captain Beyond

5 star:		(151)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

... in the summer of 1972, standing in the record store, holding this album. Hmmm, Lee Dorman and Rhino. (I was an Iron Butterfly fanatic.) Hmmm, Rod Evans. (I was a Deep Purple fanatic.) And, who the heck was Bobby Caldwell? Johnny Winter had a drummer by that name. Was it the same one? I didn't buy the album that day, but about a week later, I did. I took it straight to a friend's house, and we had a listen. Needless to say, it just about took our faces off.

The album still has its effect. What an amazing display of power and finesse! Never before--and never again to my knowledge--has an array of diverse time signatures danced with such remarkable ease. Bobby Caldwell's highly aggressive but astoundingly tasteful drumming will stupefy you. I thought about mentioning a couple of specific spots on the album where he overwhelms me, but that's impossible because the guy never really stops overwhelming me! With today's preoccupation with trying to mimic a drum-machine (an ongoing trend for almost 20 years), I wonder if anybody knows how to play drums like this anymore. Guitarist Larry Reinhardt (Rhino) is as tasteful a player as one could ask for. We got a dose of his alluring style on Iron Butterfly's METAMORPHOSIS (a much overlooked gem, by the way). His playing is firm, to the point, and power-ridden. But, it also contains cosmic elements, overtones of otherworldliness, that I find irresistible. Lee Dorman is much underrated on bass. The power aspect of this music does not afford him the freedom to embellish with the endless variety he gave us with Iron Butterfly, but he does give us plenty of motion, along with maintaining the solid bottom needed for these driving rhythms. I've always loved the work of vocalist Rod Evans when he was with Deep Purple. Here, he is given the opportunity to really show off. His vocals are as energized as the rest of the band.

Another review points out that most of the reviews on this product page are written by us old folks. Yes, there are indeed many of us who have owned this album for 30-some years, and who are still infatuated by its brilliance. Great music stands the test of time. It rises above mere nostalgia. CAPTAIN BEYOND packs a wallop. What a combination of energy and sophistication! The music is well thought out--it's classy, but tailored to knock your socks off. If you have any idea of what it takes to make a band jell, I can almost guarantee that after the first four songs, you and your friends will be looking at each other with blank stares. "Juggernaut" does not even begin to describe this album.

Cheers,
Murray

And to think, when I bought this on a whim back in '72 at the age of 16, I, for many years, thought I was the only one who'd ever heard of this great band (even though it was made up of members of Iron Butterfly and Deep Purple!) So great to read all the other glowing reviews here - so I must add my two cents. What exactly is "Captain Beyond"?? An album still very much ahead of its time - hard rock, but not metal - spacey but not too "druggy" - acoustic before there was the term "unplugged" - jazzy without being jazz (this due to drummer Caldwell's unique and offbeat time signatures) - conceptual without being a "concept album", with each song flowing on into the next. And certainly one of the greatest guitar albums I've ever heard, due to the highly underrated Strat-master with the single-moniker name of Rhino (as a guitarist myself, I STILL can't figure out most of these riffs!) So what exactly does all this yin & yang add up to? One of the greatest "unknown supergroup" albums ever recorded. Still eminently listenable after 31 years (due in no small part to its excellent production values - it sounds like it could have been recorded yesterday!!) How many albums, even the better known "classics", can really say that? Of the thousands of albums I've ever owned, this is still in my Top Ten! Yeah, that good!

Born from the ashes of Deep Purple (vocalist Rod Evans) and Iron Butterfly (bassist Lee Dorman and guitarist Rhino) and adding an excellent if somewhat unknown drummer (Bobby Caldwell). This was one of the first "superbands" of their time. All members had achieved a great degree of fame in their former bands, but took their different stylistic approaches to produce the first truly great progressive hard rock album.

Their music was punctuated with a constantly shifting tempo with equally complex time signature changes. Their musicianship rivalled or surpassed that of the majority of their contemporaries. Unlike many groups with stellar musicians, their songs still flowed effortlessly together, never staying one place long enough to become stale or repeatative and never becoming overly self-indulgent.

From they acoustic "A Thousand Days of Yesterdays" to the loud and heavy "Frozen Over", the incredible dynamics that are the hallmarks of progressive hard rock music today are present. For an early 70's recording (2 years before I was born), the production work on this recording is nothing less than extraordinary. The album sounds incredibly clear and vibrant, with all the impact and power you'd expect from a modern production.

This album was ahead of its time and is still fresh to this day. Of the 2500 cd's in my collection, this is still my most favorite. If you are a fan of King's X, Dream Theater, Fates Warning or the like, you must have this album. If you are a fan of Deep Purple and Iron Butterfly and don't own this album, what are you waiting for?

God, where do I start? I borrowed this album (on cassette) from a friend of mine about two years ago, and it just grabbed me by the balls and refused to let go. Why nobody knows about this album is a mystery that I'll never understand. For those of you who don't know, Captain Beyond was a super group that consisted of singer Rod Evans (formerly Deep Purple), guitarist "Rhino" (formerly played with Duane Allman and Dickey Betts), bassist Lee Dorman (formerly of Iron Butterfly) and drummer Bobby Caldwell (formerly of Johnny Winter's band). All four of these guys are musical geniuses. Rod Evans is probably my favorite singer in the world (check out "Lalena" from Deep Purple's third album) and his voice can be both powerful and beautiful. "Rhino" cranks out guitar riffs that sound angry enough to kill, as well as some excellent solos. Lee Dorman's bass sounds like a monster awakening from the bowels of the Earth (listen to his playing on "Mesmerization Eclipse"). And Bobby Caldwell is one of the most gifted drummers that I've ever heard, and his massive, unique style only enhances this already stunning band.
There really is no way to categorize their style. There's no other band to compare these guys to because they're so unique. If I had to describe their style, I would probably say "psychedelic melodic jazz metal". They do a fascinating job of mixing psychedelia, heavy metal and even some jazzy stuff, and the mellow stuff is the icing on the cake. And I should mention the fluidity of the songs, they flow into each other wonderfully. The music is calm and lovely one minute, only to turn blistering and loud the next.

"DANCING MADLY BACKWARDS (ON A SEA OF AIR)": As soon as you hear the opening thump of Caldwell's drums, you know you're in for one hell of a ride. Great, trippy hard rock song. Rhino delivers some smoking riffage.

"ARMWORTH": An anti-war song. The lyrics are brilliantly constructed and very profound. The words are kind of hard to understand, though, so you should go to the Captain Beyond website and see all of their lyrics.

"MYOPIC VOID": An eerie atmosphere on this one, as Rod keeps repeating his euphoric chant ("I no longer saw colors, only gray") amidst a very haunting background.

"MESMERIZATION ECLIPSE": What a guitar riff! Rhino plays it with such power that it might just blow your speakers if you play it too loud! And when he's joined by Dorman's monstrous bass, that's it, you're in hard rock Heaven. That middle section simply KICKS A**!

"RAGING RIVER OF FEAR": Another riff based heavy rocker with another intoxicating middle section. These guys just never let up.

"A THOUSAND DAYS OF YESTERDAYS (INTRO)": Soft, quiet, beautiful, emotional acoustic song. Rod's vocals are very, very soothing. But beware, this is only the calm before the storm...

"FROZEN OVER": Wham! Another crushing riff comes in and you find yourself being blown away. Listen to the middle section, THIS is where Rhino plays the most angry, aggressive, furious guitar riff that I've ever heard. It's almost as if something pissed him off, and he took out his fury by playing that riff like a friggin' MONSTER.

"THOUSAND DAYS OF YESTERDAYS (TIME SINCE COME & GONE)": This is where the jazzy aspect of the band comes in. It's a fascinating, upbeat acoustic shuffle. The groove is so addictive that I promise you'll have this song stuck in your head for a long time.

"I CAN'T FEEL NOTHIN' (PART 1)": Back to heavy metal! Yet another glorious riff and some more great vocals from the main man Rod Evans.

"AS THE MOON SPEAKS (TO THE WAVES OF THE SEA)": The medley of this song and the next one is my favorite moment on the album. This tune is about as psychedelic as you can get. A total trip. The sound of wind blowing in the background begins, and then you're launched into the stratosphere with some really spaced-out vocals and guitar. The guitar that Rhino plays here sounds EXACTLY like a sitar, but I'm not 100% sure that it is. Evans' eerie vocals sound like they're from another universe, complete with some trippy echo. And then, before you know it...

"ASTRAL LADY": Pow! In comes another earth-shattering riff before you even have time to blink an eye! This riff is also the greatest riff that I've ever heard. No doubt.

"AS THE MOON SPEAKS (RETURN)": A continuation, but much more mellow and peaceful. Rod gives a tear-inducing vocal performance here, expressing more emotion in 20 seconds than most singers could in 20 minutes (you just have to hear the way he sings "As I think to the past, there's nothing left to see").

"I CAN'T FEEL NOTHIN' (PART 2)": Some more tripped-out vocals, but soon it starts to ROCK! They reprise the riff of part 1, and start to jam like madmen until the song fades out and you're left sitting there with your jaw on the floor.

I've never heard an album that was so perfect from start to finish as this one. BUY THE DAMN THING. BUT IT NOW.

This group consisted of ex-Deep Purple vocalist Rod Evans, ex-Iron Butterfly bassist Lee Dorman, drummer Bobby Caldwell and lead guitarist Rhino. The songs weave from one song into another and create one of the era's best progressive metal L.P.'s ever. Some may call it space rock but I'd prefer to call it progressive metal. Songs such as "Dancing Madly Backwards", "Myopic Void", "Thousand Days of Yesterday" immediatley let one know this band is unique not a copy of say Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, or Led Zeppelin. Rod Evans has deep vocals which many may remember from Purple's Hit "Hush". He is in top form with this band as is bassist Lee Dorman. Being an Iron Butterfly and Deep Purple fan for years I was immediatley attracted to this band when this L.P. was released. Hearing it remastered for the first time brings out the fine songs that this unfortunatley short lived group produced. If you enjoy late 60's early 70's rock such as Uriah Heep, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Grand Funk Railroad, etc. you owe it to yourself to pick up this masterpiece before it goes out of print. Highly recommended!

I used to be the webmaster for the official Captain Beyond website.

Like Murray, and most of the others who have written a review of this astounding record, I was intoduced to Captain Beyond at a rather wild party in 1974.

I won't apologise for being old and cantankerous.

First, some interesting facts, Rhino (aka Larry Reinhardt) revealed to me the true secret of the "outstanding production.."(which even Eddie Van Halen asked Rhino about)..the album was accidentally recorded out of phase.

This was due to a technical flaw in the studio engineering (physical wiring).The original album release featured a holographic 3 dimensional album cover, and the small 2D CD reproduction really doesn't do the record justice.

The person responsible for signing the band was Duane Allman (The Allman Brothers were signed to Capricorn at the time Captain Beyond were working on demo versions of the record at Rhino's L.A. home.)

Allman heard the demo version and was knocked out and he was instrumental in signing the band.The guitar signature riff in "Layla" was not Clapton's idea, but Allmans.So Duane Allman was a catalyst for great music besides his own stellar work in the Allman Brothers.

This album is not a collection of songs, but a "song cycle" in which themes in one song are revisited later in others.The record is meant to be listened to as a whole, not as individual songs.

As a drummer, I can't say enough about the amazing talent of Bobby Caldwell.

Even Buddy Rich, (perhaps THE greatest drummer of all time), gave Bobby kudos for his abilities.No drum machine in the world can match the colors and textures, the power, the agression and ferocity of BC's drumming.As it should be.


By the way, Rhino told me that an entire section of the record's drum tracks on "side two" were erased accidentally, and Bobby had to rise to the challenge of reduplicating his original efforts on four songs

.No punch ins, the ENTIRE four songs with no breaks and no mistakes.This kids, is before the days of editing and correcting tracks on a computer, so what you hear is "human time".

Bobby was also responsible for writing "Thousand Days Of Yesterday", he is not credited because of contractual and legal problems.Yes, Bobby composed the track.

Rod Evans (who sang "Hush" with Deep Purple) is the muscular voice that weaves the record together vocally, the song "Raging River Of Fear" rocks as hard as any "Metal" song of today,but with more class and finesse.(Note from an old guy, there is a difference between powerful singing and screaming until the cords in your neck explode, which seems to be the feature of todays "metal"..)

The song "Armworth" is about a soldier loosing his limb in war, funny how Rod's lyrics are so relevant even today.

Rhino and Dormans guitar work are astounding, using the textures developed in performance with Iron Butterfly, "R and D" paint the record with solid rock, jazz, and acoustic embellishments that (IMHO) have not been heard before or since. (Guitarists, Rhino is using Martin guitars and Bouzoukis in acoustic passages)

Kids, listen to your elders, Jack Black knows nothing about Rock Schools, learn your lessons at Captain Beyond University.

If you love great riffs and excellent musicianship then buy this CD now.
It is over 30 years old but still sounds fresh. From Bobby Caldwell's opening drum beat to the very end this album is a classic. There are no comparisons to be made just buy it and crank it up loud. Soon you too will be "Dancing Madly Backwards"!

If you think Rod Evans disappeared after he was replaced in Deep Purple by Ian Gillan or "Hush" is the only thing he's ever done, then check out this CD. Putting a label on Captain Beyond's music is an impossible goal, but if I had to, I'd call it "Progressive Latin Folk-Rock Tinged Jazz". This isn't a typical supergroup of clashing egomaniacs. Riffmeister Rhino's guitar style ventures into Duane Allman territory, along with some Jimi Hendrix riffs thrown in. Bassist Lee Dorman is unfairly maligned for being a founding member of "Iron Butterfly". Bobby Caldwell, usually known for his tasty drumming, co-wrote the entire album with Rod Evans. The tracks are catchy, short, complex pieces that segue into each other, which give the album a nice flow instead of the typical endless jamming that dates other releases from the early Seventies.

Almost completely ignored by the radio playlists of the early seventies, Captain Beyonds seminal debut album nonetheless engendered a fervent cult following that still persists to this day. In recent years this following has called the band out of retirement to tour and perform again, and has even produced a tribute album.
Captain Beyond can be viewed as a supergroup of sorts, since most of the members of the original lineup came from hard rock legends. Guitarist Larry Rhino Reinhardt and bassist Lee Dorman were fresh off the dissolution of Iron Butterfly, while vocalist Rod Evans had unceremoniously been ousted from Deep Purple to make way for Ian Gillian. And while the music the new band made could certainly be categorized as hard rock, it was like quite nothing no other hard rock band at the time was making. It might best be categorized as speed prog.
The bands self-titled debut album issued at the beginning of 1972 consists ostensibly of thirteen separate tracks, but really has the feel of one long epi-suite. The sound relies mainly on an all-out blistering guitar and drum attack (Ironically it is Bobby Caldwell, the comparative unknown of the group, who really dominates the album with his frenzied drumming), yet with touches of virtuosity. Perhaps the albums most impressive feature, aside from the superb musicianship itself, is the seamless transition in playing from track to track and between different sections of the same track. These guys could musically turn on a dime on this release. Soft breaks featuring Dormans piano occasionally slow things down a bit, and provides a counterbalance of moments of beauty to the sometimes frightening aural tableau. One standout track (and one of the few real stand-alone tracks on the album), is the bludgeoning, earth-shaking, doomcrying Raging River of Fear. However, the albums true highlight is probably the suitelike structure which the second side mostly consists of. Lyrically, the record explores quasi-mystical themes without ever descending into hokum.
This remarkable debut album is the one that the bands fame, such as it is, principally rests on. However, there would be two more studio albums in the Captain Beyond catalog. The followup, 1973s Sufficiently Breathless, features more of the same style of music, but with more clearly delinated seperateness between the songs. Perhaps the band was seeking a more commercial direction. Certainly the gorgeous acoustic opening title track would have made a smash single. But it appears that that success eluded them, for the Captain went into hibernation for a few years.
They returned in 1977 with a new lead vocalist, Will Daffern, and an even more commercial effort called Dawn Explosion. Featuring a mainstream musical approach in contrast to the bands previous work, this is the album that Captain Beyond fans tend to dismiss as everything from a mistake to the unquestioned weak sister of the trio. However, to my ears, Dawn Explosion is anything but a weak album, being a decent straightforward hard-rock package full of solid and memorable songs. This was the last Captain Beyond studio album issued to date.
Oh, and as to the Rolling Stone Record Guide review, anyone who thinks that Captain Beyond sounds like a "wimpier version of the Eagles" (as Dave Marsh did), is a moron with no credibility.

To those of recent years that have commented APPROVINGLY of this first Captain Beyond album, You're right on !!!
I haven't commented till now, but I could have many years ago. I can't add anything to the heartfelt and well-put comments on this band's excellence. Obviously, some of us are of this 2nd half-century mark that have been around long enough to have heard, listened, and appreciated the likes of Deep Purple mark I and Iron Butterfly through to their Metamorphasis; enough to appreciate Rod Evans, Rhino, and the incomparable bassist Lee Dorman in a band together and with as good of results as they get here. I'm listening to it right now, 35 years later, and am still blown away. They just DO NOT make music like this anymore.