Kapt. Kopter & the (Fabulous) Twirly Birds (1972) was the late Randy California’s first solo album after his initial stint as the guitarist and one of the original members in the psychedelic rock band, Spirit. This album charted, though didn’t receive that much attention at its initial release, though it was eventually certified gold in 1976. This album has a healthy mixture of originals and covers, which I’m excited to give a listen. Plus, I really dig Spirit, so I’m already pretty stoked to listen to this album. With that said, I’m going to jump on into the tunes.
“Downer” starts out with a bit of feeling out by the different instruments in the band, seemingly testing the directions this soundscape is heading. Holy smokes, there’s some absolutely delicious guitar work when the tune starts grooving along. Oh wow, this is sweet – the guitars have this distorted wah effect dripping into the soundscape, while the drums keep a super sturdy march going on around the soundscape, with the bass seemingly reverberating each drum beat with extra force. Oh wow, the band really takes this track pretty far out there into super improvisational-sounding territory while still keeping a super strong, rockin’ groove. This track hits some super tasty psychedelic flavors from many different instruments, though especially noticeable in the guitars during those tasty extended jams. This track is sweet – it almost sounds like Led Zeppelin meets 60s psychedelic rock groups like The Jimi Hendrix Experience (of which, Noel Redding plays on this track). Super groovy introduction to the album – I’m excited to hear more.
“Devil” starts out with a relatively mellow, tasty groove set with some galloping guitar lines and some super sturdy drums and a pulsing and grooving bass line in the soundscape. Oh wow, there are some sort of reverse effects from some instruments that bring in a sort of raga-inflected psychedelic air to the soundscape. The track is pretty melodious, with the guitar having a really tasty distortion while it gallops along. Oh wow, I really dig those sort of reverse guitar sounds – they really add an interesting dynamic to the soundscape. Sweet tune.
“I Don’t Want Nobody”, originally by James Brown, starts out really smokin’ with some super tasty guitar riff and hot drums that bring a fast-paced feel to this track. Oh wow, all the instruments sound like they’re firing on all cylinders in this rockin’ track. There’s a super tasty bluesy rock and roll sound to this track. The interesting percussion in this one is keeping me entranced while the guitar work seemingly hypnotizes me from the center of the soundscape. Oh wow, the different layers of percussion are super sweet – with mixes of chimes, jangles, snake hisses, cowbells, low kicks, and more – super groovy. Super tasty track.
“Day Tripper” starts out with the unmistakeable line from this track originally by The Beatles, only with more of a hard rock inflection that puts it somewhere in the territory of “Helter Skelter”. Oh wow, these improvisatory lines by California on the guitar are absolutely sweet, especially as the rest of the band forms some sweet jams circled around his playing. Wow, great and super tasty cover of this track.
“Mother and Child Reunion” has a super interesting feel to it right away, like the band slowly builds up this jam from a tasty, bopping sort of start. Holy smokes, the drums sound absolutely massive while the tambourine sort of keeps the traditional time from the side of the soundscape. Meanwhile, there’s a bunch of different, absolutely delicious guitar work laden with psychedelic effects and tasty distortion spread throughout the soundscape. The vocals seemingly serve as somewhat of a guiding beacon in front of the beating and bopping backdrop of the tasty bass and drums. Great track.
“Things Yet to Come” starts out some really tasty blues-inflected rock and roll guitar work. Oh wow, the percussion is absolutely awesome – the listener seems to be directly in the middle of the kit, with different flavorful strikes occurring all around the soundscape. Oh wow, the female chorus vocals bring a super intriguing flavor to both the track and the album. The guitar is super flavorful as it seemingly drips some improvisatory and exploratory lines into the soundscape. Though it’s been a while since I’ve listened to them, it vaguely reminds me of The James Gang. Oh wow, the pedal steel slide guitar is super tasty as it gradually warms throughout the soundscape. Holy smokes, all of the instrumentation drops out except for the drums and bass for a moment, and then only drums as the tasty groove keeps on going. Oh wow, the other instruments gently come in one at a time – the bass has some absolutely awesome tone, and really brings out a bunch of flavor in this soundscape. Holy smokes, this drums are keeping this tune flying down its proverbial train tracks. I can’t help but tap my desk along with this one. Oh wow, the track seems to be winding down a bit as things git taken to some relatively exploratory territory for a moment, but gradually starts coming back in as California weaves the guitar back into the tune for some absolutely delicious jams and guitar work. Holy smokes, this track is sweet. Oh wow, the outro to this track is super abstract – pitched way up and reversed – really awesome. Great track.
“Rain” is another tune that was originally by The Beatles, and this one really takes it pretty far out there almost immediately with different reverse effects and effects with a guitar that almost make it sound like a synth. Oh wow, when this track drops into the main melody some super tasty musical moments happen. Oh wow, this track is sweet. The effects on the vocals give a really nice psychedelic feel to the soundscape, which is only added to by the reverse guitar effects from one guitar and really grooving playing from the other guitar. The bass has some super tasty tone that really bops this tune upwards from the depths of the soundscape, especially as it follows the many crashes of the cymbals. Oh wow, there are some really sweet lines that get left hanging out for a moment, only for California and the band to reel them back in and incorporate them really nicely into the song. Holy smokes, this track is sweet. Oh wow, everything fades out for a moment and is super harmoniously brought back into the soundscape in a sort of reverse manner, reminiscent of “Strawberry Fields Forever”, also by The Beatles. Really great cover version of this tune.
“Rainbow” starts out with some super tasty and groovy reversed melting guitar lines with a sturdy bass line as the backdrop. This tune sounds like California picking up nearly right where he left off with the previous track, and expanding upon the previous track’s outro with a new groovy jam to send off and tie together the album. This was originally the final track of the album, the rest of the tracks are bonus tracks from reissues of the album. Oh wow, California gets some super tasty vocals in this track that hit some great resolving notes. Holy smokes, this guitar groove is super tasty. The bass line has a really great, fat sound too. Great track.
“Walkin’ the Dog” starts out like a smokin’ blues rock jam, reminding me of something like “Killing Floor”, a blues standard, which sounds like it’s gradually picking up steam and other instruments in a really wholesome way. There’s a great instrumental layer coming from some sort of pedal steel guitar. Holy smokes, this is sweet – the different guitars all seem to get some tasty licks into this track, which has almost taken on a bit of an r&b country sort of feel with the clapping, cowbell, pedal steel, and that little bit of a twang in the vocals. Great track.
“Live for the Day” starts out with some quick, staccato’d swishes from the guitar that gradually weave in some drums and bass into the soundscape. Oh wow, the pedal steel guitar and female vocals bring a whole bunch of great flavor to this track. The lead guitar reminds me a bit of John Mayer’s “Who Did You Think I Was?” with both the tone of the guitar and the sort of rockin’ bluesy groove. Oh wow, the different vocals hit some super great contrasting tones, being both super clean and getting pretty guttural at times. The pedal steel brings a really nice, sound of cleansing flavor in a certain manner to this track, with some great bass tone aiding this aspect, especially at the outro. Really sweet tune.
“Rebel” has a bit of a galloping, nearly desperado sort of sound with a ton of flavor in the gliding guitar lines in this one. The drums really serve the soundscape really well, seemingly following the lead of the guitar as it gradually moves the soundscape to new locations, with the bass guitar serving as some super gentle and flavorful connective tissue between the two instruments. Oh wow, I really dig this instrumental track. Oh wow, this track changes up really nicely to another movement towards the end of the song, giving the soundscape more of a dynamic feel than it already had. Oh wow, the tune sort of falls back into place at the beginning lines right at the end of the track. Really great instrumental jam and really nice way to tie the album together.
Wow, this album was pretty sweet. The guitar work was really awesome, and the rest of the instrumentation served each song extremely well, especially as they became jam conductors in the monstrous vehicles that were some of these songs that Randy California was driving any which direction with his guitar – going off-roading and speeding down the highway without any hesitation or sign he was out of his element. There are definitely a number of psychedelic rock elements throughout the album, as well as more traditional blues-tinged rock and roll, with a bit of raga rock sort of scattered throughout some of the extended jams. If you dig early 70s psychedelic rock and rock and roll music, you might want to consider checking out this album, especially if you’re a guitarist. There’s a ton of great jams throughout the album, and great rockin’ covers of songs from around the era, which only add to my interest of and desire to relisten to of the album. If you do decide to give this album a listen, I sincerely hope that you enjoy the listening experience at least as much as I did.
-A