Career
He is best known for his work with Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band. In 2003 he was ranked #62 in a Rolling Stone Magazine list of "the 100 greatest guitarists of all time". Born in Hawthorne, California, Harkleroad was trained as an accordionist as a child but switched to guitar in his teens.
In nearby Lancaster, California, he became involved in local bands.
Later the two played in the group Blues in a Bottle along with future Magic Band guitarist Jeff Cotton. He joined the Magic Band in 1968 after the departure of Alex Saint Clair.
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 disbanding of Mallard, he 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 (aka Drumbo) released an album City of Refuge in which Harkleroad was featured playing guitar on all twelve tracks.
In 2013, Harkleroad contributed lead guitar to a psychobilly track on the Eugene-based band Cherry Poppin" Daddies" album White Teeth, Black Thoughts.
