Zappa Quest
Posted by: garyi on 28 September 2001
Now those of you that listen will be aware that of the 70 odd Cds he did only a handful are any good, what I want is the musical ones. I have Burnt Weeny, Hot Rats, waka Jawaka and Grand Wazoo amongst others.
Has he any others in this vein?
Also what other music exists like this?
cheers.
Posted on: 28 September 2001 by Ron The Mon
"One Size Fits All" is a must!!
Ron The Mon
P.S.
Search farther down The Music Room page for a thread called "the man with the weird beard".
Posted on: 28 September 2001 by Stephen Bennett
he's still releasing albums - not bad for a dead man.
Uncle meat is wonderful
I love We're only in it for the money' too, but it's an aquired taste.
Regards
Stephen
Posted on: 28 September 2001 by Todd A
I am now, have been for years, and always will be very fond of Shut Up N' Play Yer Guitar. No silly lyrics, just some fine solos and back-up music. The sequel discs (Guitar) is good, but not quite as much so.
Posted on: 28 September 2001 by garyi
I have all the titles you suggest there and then some more, what I was hopeing for would be some zappa master peice I was unaware of in the jazzy vein, I.E. hot rats or waka jawaka, this is the music I love the most, thing with Zappa is you just don't know what you will get, for instance I find Joes Garage to be a load of pants, yet people thinks its great.
Doesmore Zappa jazz exist that isn't a live take?
Posted on: 29 September 2001 by garyi
Cheers Met, I think the jazz news is just a compilation?
will piss some cd shop off today by having a listen to some.
Cheers.
Posted on: 01 October 2001 by Andy Moore
quote:
Now those of you that listen will be aware that of the 70 odd Cds he did only a handful are any good,
No Zappa fan could ever agree with that!
quote:
Have tou got Make A Jazz Noise Here and Best Band You Never Heard? They were (I think) the last major touring band he put together,
You can also include Broadway the Hardway as it was the same band/tour. The band self-destructed through petty argument and never reached the US, hence the title of 'Best band...'
Anyway, my favourites include Roxy &elsewhere, Apostrophe', One Size Fits All, Overnite Sensation (you gotta love that 72-74 band!). Ahead of their time is a stunning account of the MOI in the 60's, good tunes plus a real sense of atmosphere and stage play. Grand Wazoo is good in a sub-Hot Rats way (along with Burnt Weeny sandwich and Chungas revenge.)
I am particularly keen on his classical and synclavier work, The Yellow shark is astounding (check out the acoustic version of G-Spot Tornado!!) and Civilisation Phase III is one of the densest pieces of music you will hear, hard work but amazing- with beautiful tunes, freaky dialogue, mad percussion.. everything Zappa was about distilled onto 2 CDs.
Arf.
Andy.
Posted on: 01 October 2001 by dave simpson
Any follow-up release to Yellow Shark?
live from n.c.,
dave
Posted on: 02 October 2001 by Martin M
Sort of, its called 'Everything is Healing Nicely' and features Zappa and the Ensemble Modern. Its a little 'rough around the edges' but worth getting. However, it is not available from normal music shops. In the US go to Barfko Swill at
www.zappa.com, or in the UK
www.gandsmusic.com.
The packaging is superb, the best I've seen excepting other Zappa CD from Barfko 'Zappa plays Zappa' which comes in a leatherette digipak with a fake bushy Zappa moustache stuck on the front! Again, available at the same place as above.
Posted on: 02 October 2001 by dave simpson
Thanks for the tip and link Martin !
dave
Posted on: 11 October 2001 by Andy Moore
Garyi
quote:
I have all the titles you suggest there and then some more, what I was hopeing for would be some zappa master peice I was unaware of in the jazzy vein, I.E. hot rats or waka jawaka, this is the music I love the most, thing with Zappa is you just don't know what you will get, for instance I find Joes Garage to be a load of pants, yet people thinks its great.
Doesmore Zappa jazz exist that isn't a live take?
Although not strictly a Zappa album you might want to hunt down a copy of Jean Luc Ponty's King Kong album. All tracka bar one were written by Zappa, and a members of the Mothers play on it.
It was recorded around the time of the Hot Rats era, but as it is a 'real' jazz album (on Blue Note) it has a very different sound to Zappa's own recordings. It's worth finding for the Zappa completist and is better than Shankar's 'Touch me there'.
Andy
Posted on: 11 October 2001 by Michael Dale
The original version of Sleep Dirt does it for me every time. My vinyl copy is pretty worn out now. A few years ago I rushed out and bought the CD release only to find it's got vocals all over it! In it's original form though it's one of Zappa's finest instrumental albums.
Also, the Ryko CD of "In it for the money" has original bass and drums, not the horrid 80's cod reggae stuff that appeared on previous CD issues. And it's available on vinyl from Ryko. Yippee!!!
Posted on: 12 October 2001 by garyi
No thats a bit extreme for me, spiders and all that....
Posted on: 18 October 2001 by garyi
Cheers Met, is this on line or in store, I ain't any where near an HMV.
Posted on: 18 October 2001 by Martin M
quote:
The original version of Sleep Dirt does it for me every time. My vinyl copy is pretty worn out now. A few years ago I rushed out and bought the CD release only to find it's got vocals all over it! In it's original form though it's one of Zappa's finest instrumental albums.
Yeah, grim isn't it. And the drums were re-recorded too.
Anyway, the good news. The CD of Lather has the original versions of the tracks from Sleep Dirt on it. If you don't have this CD, get it. Its highly recommended (by me). The sound quality of the Live In New York tracks is tranformed too back to fabuluous clear quality of the original vinyl (not the shouty, bangy versio on the New York CD).
Posted on: 18 October 2001 by David Tribe
Red Trumpet (
WWW.redtrumpet.com ) has a large selection of Zappa CD's from Japan. I have not had much chance to listen to my first batch yet, but a quick comparison with my standard Rycodisc copy of "Hot Rats" makes me think that the import sounds a bit better. The difference is not "golden shafts from on high" different, and heck, it might be the $30.00 US per disk talking. The packaging is first rate. Each disk has reproductions of the original record jackets and inner sleeves and any applicable extras. ( Freak Out! had a map of some freak-friendly locations in 1966 Los Angeles.)
While not " Jazzy in the Kenny-G sense " 
, a must have Zappa album IMHOP is "Weasels Ripped My Flesh". WRMF is a collection of Mothers of Invention material from the 1967-1969 some is live, some studio. This album really gives a sampling of the breadth of FZ's musical interest. Check out the straight ahead cover of Little Richard's "Directly From My Heart To You" no parody here, FZ liked R and B. The title cut is a live two minute cacophony; really annoying but interesting if you listen to all of the little sounds that go into creating that one big grating sound. In between the two extremes you will find some really odd, sometines polyrythmic, sometimes catchy, and I think challenging music. I don't think that the sound quality is half bad for the complexity, the era, and I would guess the budget. Oh yeah, the album also contains one of my favorite FZ guitar solos. At a mere 2:35, "Get A Little" a nasty little live solo obviously played at the end of a set. Check out the audience reaction when it is over.
The album cover is also great. I rember as a youngster, feeling a combination of unease and curiosity when I encountered it and "Hot Rats" in the record bins at our local drug store.
Sorry for blathering on. I'm outta here!
DCT
Posted on: 25 October 2001 by Top Cat
...but I have to add that every Zappa album is worth having. If I had to go back to just a handful:
One Size Fits All
Sheik Yerbouti
Apostrophe/Overnite Sensation (combo CD - cheating here )
Broadway the Hardway
...eh, I could go on and on.
I'm most of the way through completing both a CD- and Vinyl* 'full house' of Zappa, although not all the recent releases were available on vinyl...
John
* PS. Important you do this if possible as some of the vinyl is of a different composition than the CD - BtHW is a good example with the Confinement Loaf rap, etc. Also, the non-remastered Man From Utopia is preferable to the remixed version (you know, with Louije and the Wise Guys)...
Posted on: 28 October 2001 by garyi
come on john, surely 200 motels could be left out, I got it second hand on vinyl but feel the money would have been better spent on a beer!
Posted on: 28 October 2001 by garyi
Met this is one of those albums where I probably didn't get that far if you know what I mean, but I will pull it up once the stereo is set back up. we are doing the kitchen at the mo which is connected to the living room which is literally covered in kitchen stuff, so I packed the stereo up, theres something satisfying about removing leads and dismantling SBLs don't you think? However I am missing music big style at the mo!
BTW the record cost me about 2 quid (or a beer) however the condition is nothing to write home about
Posted on: 30 October 2001 by Top Cat
Agree with you there - they are a good example of 'seemed like fun at the time' but alas in several cases they spoil otherwise great tracks. However, if you're a true Zappa nutter (as I am) you have to accept the 'whole' as it's all part of
conceptual continuity and the
big picture.
The same goes for many things in Zappa's work: the Chad Wackerman drum sound, Synclavier, sofas, poodles, political references, zircon encrusted tweezers, underpants, etc. etc. - they are part of the greater tapestry and whether or not you like them is moot in the uncompromising eyes of 'no commercial potential'...
John
Posted on: 30 October 2001 by garyi
I thought that most of zappas stuff was on his own label, lets be honest after the free 70s most music companies would not have put up with the likes of Joes Garage with some of that content and no 'hit singles' Mind you I lurve this album, and not just for watermelons!
Update on the kitchen, what a bitch! I had to fit coving around the celing, I think I wasted about 5 metres of it, and now we are into the cutting of the solid wood tops, I have trashed no less than five blades, don't let anyone tell you that Ikea is crap, their natural wood tops are rock solid! And at 80 quid for 2.4 metres of it you cannot go wrong. Can't wait to finish and set the system back up though, have the new travis album and the midi stereo we have set up at the moment sounds like its playing in the next room!
Mind you I have OS 10.1 for the mac now so the isub is up and running...
Posted on: 31 October 2001 by garyi
I didn't know about the recording company problems, I remember from one of his vidoes certain rouble he encoountered, but lets face it, its not main stream!
We have fitted the kitchen units and doors, it looks fantastic! But buy god I am knackered!
Posted on: 12 December 2001 by Markus
I'm pretty sure I know what the Plastercasters took their casts of.... but I wouldn't discuss it in mixed company nor post it on this forum!
Am I close?
