Page "Captain Beefheart" Paragraph 66

Van Vliet met Frank Zappa when they were both teenagers and shared an interest in rhythm and blues and Chicago blues .< ref name = Taylor > Steve Taylor They collaborated from this early stage, with Zappa's scripts for ' teenage operettas ' such as " Captain Beefheart & The Grunt People " helping to elevate the Van Vliet persona of Captain Beefheart.

In 1963, the pair recorded a demo at the Pal Recording Studio in Cucamonga as the Soots, seeking support from a major label.

Their efforts were unsuccessful, as " Beefheart's Howlin ' Wolf vocal style and Zappa's distorted guitar " were " not on the agenda " at the time.