Captain Beefheart is, shall we say, an acquired taste, meaning if you play his music in a room of 100 people, about 98 will run for the exits, one will be driven insane and one will actually like it. Now that you've been warned, The Dust Blows Forward is a stellar two-CD retrospective of the man's work, starting with his debut single, Diddy Wah Diddy, a conventional garage-rock number, before gradually moving into more Beefheartian territory -- deconstructed, avant-garde blues, seemingly free-form but played with feral intent by The Magic Band, topped by Beefheart growling surreal, wordplay. Beefheart hasn't recorded since '82, leaving a void that may never be filled.

Track Listing DISC 1
  01.Diddy Wah Diddy
  02.Frying Pan
  03.Electricity
  04.Abba Zaba
  05.Beatle Bones 'N Smokin' Stones
  06.Safe As Milk
  07.Moonlight On Vermont
  08.Ella Guru
  09.Old Fart At Play
  10.Sugar 'N Spikes
  11.Orange Claw Hammer
  12.My Human Gets Me Blues
  13.China Pig
  14.Lick My Decals Off, Baby
  15.Woe - Is - Uh - Me - Bop
  16.I Wanna Find A Woman That'll Hold My Big Toe Till I Have To Go
  17.The Smithsonian Institute Blues (Or The Big Dig)
  18.I'm Goin Booglarize You Baby
  19.Click Clack
  20.Grow Fins
  21.When It Blows Its Stacks
  22.Little Scratch
  23.Big Eyed Beans From Venus
  24.Golden Birdies
  MPEG Sample
 
  DISC 2
  01.Nowadays A Woman's Gotta Hit A Man
  02.Low Yo Yo Stuff
  03.Too Much Time
  04.My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains
  05.Clear Spot
  06.Upon The My-O-My
  07.Party Of Special Things To Do
  08.Sam With The Showing Scalp Flat Top - Frank Zappa / Captain Beefheart /The Mothers
  09.Debra Kadabra - Frank Zappa / Captain Beefheart / The Mothers
  10.Hard Workin' Man (Main Title) - From The Film Blue Collar
  11.Bat Chain Puller
  12.The Floppy Boot Stomp
  13.Tropical Hot Dog Night
  14.Owed T' Alex
  15.Hot Head
  16.Ashtray Heart
  17.Sue Egypt
  18.Making Love To A Vampire With A Monkey On My Knee
  19.Ice Cream For Crow
  20.The Past Sure Is Tense
  21.Light Reflected Off The Oceans Of The Moon