Captain Beefheart, one of the most innovative and original talents of the past five decades, has died at the age of 69, from complications brought on through multiple sclerosis.

Born Don Vliet, he took the name Don Van Vliet when he joined the Magic Band in 1965, before becoming Captain Beefheart when they signed to A&M in 1966.

Over the next two decades, he released some of the most important records of the era, with 1969’s Trout Mask Replica regarded by many as not only his finest work, but also among the greatest albums of all time. This was put out Frank Zappa’s Straight Records: Beefheart and Zappa became friends when both were teenagers.

In 1982, he retired from music after releasing the Ice Cream For Crow album and, with the onset of multiple sclerosis, was rarely seen in public again.

A talented painted and sculptor, he had a long association with the Michael Werner Gallery in New York.