Any Frank Zappa fans?

Manfred-Klose · 2008-06-23T13:53:57+00:00

I noticed theres a lot of frank zappa fans on guitar forum. I'm new to his music, would anyone recommend a certain album i should get?, the album that would...

Any Frank Zappa fans?

bENDER

I love The Zappa, he was a crazy musical genius!!!

Fav. Songs......that I've heard ?

Muffin Man!!!
Catholic Girls
Don't Eat That Yellow Snow
Jewish Princess

My Dad has the Baby Snakes DVD and like 10 LP's.......that's ware I heard most of the songs.....

Midinut

Got my hands on a double DVD Zappa Plays Zappa ... it's awesome. This concert was devised by Dweezil Zappa for his papa. He has some serious musos performing including Steve Vai. Vai actually does some serious solos which for a change sounds bloody good to my bass ear!

AlanRatcliffe

That is a good concert - killer lineup. Dweezil is himself a great guitarist (taught by Eddie van Halen and Michael Angelo) and has really nailed his dad's stuff. Doesn't have the compositional chops (who does?) but has pulled together the right musicians to pull off the material properly.

Vai shows his stuff well in the Zappa songs, because Frank wrote all his parts for him ( he called Vai's playing "stunt guitar"). It's rarely just shredding over a band backing, but usually part of the composition. One notable "shredfest" is Stevie's Spanking, where the two trade off and Zappa keeps up with Vai surprisingly well and wipes the stage with him tonally. ?

Another good one, if you get the chance to see it is the Zappa's Universe tribute concert with a bunch of ex-Zappa band members.

DaFiz

Yeah... Black Napkins is a piece that I listen to often enough. ?
I'll listen to it again. ?

Rudolf

Erm..why I never head of this Zappa character? Something's amiss. Anyone tell me what's their "most" famous "most" familier "most" overplayed song?

Ray

Weasels Rip My Flesh

Rudolf

Thanks Ray!

I'll check into it tonight, looks like I need to get a wiff of this stuff.

AlanRatcliffe

Rudolf wrote: Erm..why I never head of this Zappa character?

I don't know. Why haven't you? No excuses now... ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Zappa

While he was probably one of the most prolific and influential composers, guitarists, satirists, recording engineers of the last century, he never got much radio airplay. This was partly because he was so far from being politically correct it was funny. He was so controversial that even his instrumentals are restricted from airplay. While his music is often transcendent, his lyrics cater mostly for the lowest common denominator with songs about groupies, sex, sex with groupies, sex with penguins (in bondage), devices, and he mercilessly lampooned politicians, gays, Jews, Catholics, TV evangelists, men, women, druggies, stupid people - a real equal opportunity offender.

A real musical genius, his work is highly regarded in every genre, from classical through rock to jazz, and his band was regarded as a training ground for the world's best musicians like Steve Vai, Adrian Belew, Mike Kenealley, George Duke, Ruth Underwood, Vinnie Colaiuta, Chester Thompson, Aynsley Dunbar, Chad Wackerman, Terry Bozzio, Warren Cuccurullo, Stephene Grapelli, L Shankar, Walter and Randy Brecker. He also played with everyone at some time or another from John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Al DiMeola, Tom Waits, Captain Beefheart, Van Morrison, Alice Cooper and Carlos Santana to Paul Simon, Steven Stills, Sting and Joni Mitchell.

Something's amiss. Anyone tell me what's their "most" famous "most" familier "most" overplayed song?

A song called Montana, which is fairly tame. Some of his tracks like "Don't Eat the Yellow Snow" are often played on "Twisted Tunes" type shows.

DaFiz

My Guitar Wants To Kill Your Mama - Frank Zappa would have some famous guitarists accompanying him on this one (Satriani, Vai & Johnson) :?

Rudolf

Well I had a listen to the last three mentioned tracks just now....Dunno what can I say? Interesting? Bwhahaha

CDee

Rudolf wrote: Well I had a listen to the last three mentioned tracks just now....Dunno what can I say? Interesting? Bwhahaha

Any guy that names his children "Dweazel" and "Moon Unit" must be an interesting guy... ??? ???

Rudolf

Yikes! The defence rests your honour.

AlanRatcliffe

...don't forget his two youngest - Diva Thin Muffin Zappa and Ahmet Emuukha Roden Zappa

People make a lot of fuss about my kids having such supposedly 'strange names', but the fact is that no matter what first names I might have given them, it is the last name that is going to get them in trouble. - Frank Zappa

"Consider for a moment any beauty in the name 'Ralph' - In an interview with Joan Rivers who had just asked him why he gave his children such odd names.

Ray

Rudolf wrote: Well I had a listen to the last three mentioned tracks just now....Dunno what can I say? Interesting? Bwhahaha

Well Rudolf, dont say nuffin 'til you listen to muffin man! Take a listen to album 'Bongo Fury' wif another oke called Captain Beefheart. Yissie oke, this takes me back to when I uz jus' a boy in mid seventies. Carry on talkin people, you're makin me cry. And all I can do is look at my old elpees 'cause my turntable is bust.

DaFiz

The crux of the biscuit is the apostrophe. After Black Napkins comes "The Torture Never Stops"... interesting lyrics...
Stinkfoot... :?

AlanRatcliffe

DaFiz wrote: "The Torture Never Stops"... interesting lyrics...

...interesting fretless guitar parts too.

Squonk

How about some of the earlier Albums.
"the Grand Wazoo" I really enjoyed this album. I also enjoyed the Albums with Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan (excuse me if my long term memory gets this wrong) "Another Band from LA" "200 Motels" "Filmore East" their vocals were quite interesting. I think they did an album as "Flo and Eddie". Originally part of "the Turtles" "happy together"
I also enjoyed "Roxy and Elswhere"

Rock2Rich

Thank

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Rudolf

Ray: LOL...I don't think I'll become a fan of the Zappa anytime soon but I'll give it to him the musical composition and definitely the guit playing is great. You can send those LP's this way? I'll give them a listen for you on my deck if you want? Hah

Bob-Dubery

Rudolf wrote: Well I had a listen to the last three mentioned tracks just now....Dunno what can I say? Interesting? Bwhahaha

Zappa's one of those guys who has a lot of output and worked in a lot of different genres, so it can be a bit bewildering to the newcomer - especially if your first exposure is to one of his more "out there" works. Good places to start might be Apostrophe, the live Roxy And Elswhere, or Joe's Garage (if you can stand the dismal theme and the unrelenting potty humour).

The lyrics can be one thing, the music is often another. Zappa can go for cheesy rock 'n roll or doo wop parodies, but he can also unleash music of rare sophistication. He is himself a very fine guitar player, and his bands generally included players of a very high caliber - and they needed chops to be able play some of those compositions.

I wouldn't say that you have to like Zappa, but if you want to have a broad appreciation of rock guitar then you need to pay him some attention. He is much, much more than just a satirist.