I bought Safe As Milk when it came out over here on the budget Marble Arch label from Pye International (albeit bearing Pye International labels on the disc itself) in 1967 (sic?*) as a 10-track, omitting "I'm Glad" and "Grown So Ugly". I cannot stress how important this album was to me and I have owned several versions and played them till they fell apart. Ry Cooder featured on guitar and the earliest Beefheart I knew apart from finding him on some 'Gutbucket' compilation of earthy blues and then, Hobo Chang Ba, Trout Mask Replica came out and nothing ws ever quite the same again. The story about how Ry Cooder left the band at Tamalpais free open air concert is worth a read if only to try to imagine what might have been . . . . . . . sure nuff and yes, I do!

*there is conflict over when this came out over here in the UK and is published variously as 67, 69,  and a reissue in 70 (go figure?) but hey if you can remember the Sixties you weren't really there right?