Zoot Horn Rollo
Bill Harkleroad (born January 8, 1949), known professionally as Zoot Horn Rollo, is an American guitarist. He is best known for his work with Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band. In 2003, he was ranked No.
Zoot Horn Rollo

Alastair Thompson · CC BY 3.0
- Name
- Zoot Horn Rollo
- Birth Name
- Bill Harkleroad
- Born
- 8 January 1949
- Birthplace
- Palmdale, California, United States
- Occupation
- Musician, instructor, producer
- Nationality
- United States
- Fields
- experimental rock
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Documentary summary
Bill Harkleroad (born January 8, 1949), known professionally as Zoot Horn Rollo, is an American guitarist. He is best known for his work with Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band. In 2003, he was ranked No.
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wikidata · Q220343 · wikipedia · Zoot Horn Rollo
In this article
Biography
Biography
62 in a Rolling Stone magazine list of "the 100 greatest guitarists of all time".
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Zoot Horn Rollo • Birth Name — Bill Harkleroad • Alias — Zoot Horn Rollo • Born — 8 January 1949 • Birthplace — Palmdale, California, United States • Instrument — Guitar, mandolin, accordion • Genre — Experimental rock, rock, blues • Occupation — Musician, instructor, producer • Years Active — 1968–present • Label — Straight, Reprise, Proper • Website — http: www.zoothornrollo.com/
Early life
Early life
Born in Hawthorne, California, Harkleroad was trained as an accordionist as a child but changed to guitar in his teens.
Career
Career
In nearby Lancaster, California, he became involved in local bands. With a future member of the Magic Band, Mark Boston, he joined a band named B.C. & The Cavemen (with Ernie Wood, vocals/guitar and Bruce Newkirk, drums). The two later played in the group Blues in a Bottle along with the future Magic Band guitarist Jeff Cotton. He joined the Magic Band in 1968 after the departure of Alex St. Clair. In March 2005, Q placed "Big Eyed Beans from Venus" from Clear Spot at number 53 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks. After recording Trout Mask Replica and several further albums, he left in 1974, with several other band members, to form Mallard. His book, Lunar Notes, describes some of the tensions that contributed to the split between Captain Beefheart and the other band members. After the break-up of Mallard, Harkleroad had a limited involvement with the music community as a performer. He continued his involvement in another capacity, however, as a record store manager and guitar instructor in Eugene, Oregon. On November 27, 2001, he released We Saw a Bozo Under the Sea. In 2008, John French (a.k.a. Drumbo) released an album City of Refuge on which Harkleroad played guitar on all twelve tracks. In 2003, he was ranked No. 62 in a Rolling Stone magazine list of "the 100 greatest guitarists of all time". In 2013, Harkleroad contributed lead guitar to a psychobilly track on the Eugene-based band Cherry Poppin' Daddies album White Teeth, Black Thoughts.
Studio albums
Studio albums
• Year — Title — Notes — Magic Band personnel • 1969 — Trout Mask Replica — * Released on June 16, 1969 * Label: Straight — * John French * Jeff Cotton * Bill Harkleroad * Mark Boston * Victor Hayden • 1970 — Lick My Decals Off, Baby — * Released in December 1970 * Label: Straight — * John French * Bill Harkleroad * Mark Boston * Art Tripp • 1972 — The Spotlight Kid — * Released in January 1972 * Label: Reprise — * John French * Bill Harkleroad * Mark Boston * Art Tripp * Elliot Ingber • 1972 — Clear Spot — * Released in October 1972 * Label: Reprise — * Bill Harkleroad * Mark Boston * Art Tripp * Roy Estrada • 1974 — Unconditionally Guaranteed — * Released in April 1974 * Label: Mercury (US), Virgin (UK) — * Bill Harkleroad * Mark Boston * Alex St. Clair * Mark Marcellino * Art Tripp
Singles
Singles
• Year — Single — Album • 1970 — "Pachuco Cadaver" / "Wild Life" — Trout Mask Replica • 1972 — "Too Much Time" / "My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains" — Clear Spot • 1974 — "Upon the My-O-My" / "Magic Be" — Unconditionally Guaranteed
With Mallard
With Mallard
• 1975 Mallard • 1976 In a Different Climate
Solo
Solo
• 2001 We Saw a Bozo Under the Sea • 2014 Masks
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1949
Zoot Horn Rollo born at Palmdale.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Zoot Horn Rollo, horoscope for birth date 8 January 1949, born in Long Beach, with Astrodatabank biography - Astro-Databank. Astro.com. October 24, 2019.
- 2.Rolling Stone. 62: Zoot Horn Rollo. The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.
- 3.Rocklist.net.Q Magazine Lists. www.rocklistmusic.co.uk.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 1
- Harkleroad, Bill (1998). Lunar Notes: Zoot Horn Rollo's Captain Beefheart Experience. Interlink Publishing. .
References
Citations
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Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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