Frank Zappa, opinions?

EDITED!


Edited by cacho - March 24 2009 at 10:16

The Mothers of Invention: Great stuff
Frank's jazz-fusion albums: Great aside from the filler
The stuff in-between: Not too great...

There is no truly bad Zappa album.  There are some that just about scrape bottom, e.g., the Flo & Eddie years, but even on those there are moments that somehow, almost in defiance of Zappa's worst impulses, manage to redeem the entire album, or at least save it from what used to be cut-out bin oblivion.  Now that being said, I think there is a reason that Hot Rats and One Size Fits All generally get top billing:  they are, for Zappa albums, generally accessible to a newcomer to his music.  I mean, I sort of enjoy Thing Fish (it has its moments, after all), but I don't think I'd necessarily recommend that as a starting point. 

Maybe my favorite artist. I like most of his stuff. Also some of the more controversial/ low rated albums like Thing-Fish and The Man from Utopia. I´ve started from an end with my reviews of his discography and the next one is Apostrophe. I´m looking forward to writing that one shortly.

All sorts of people will try to convince you that One Size Fits All is the climax of what the Mothers did. 

cacho wrote: That would be perfect to put on the artist page of Frank Zappa for newcommers! Except for the part that Roxy & Elsewhere is accesible Be-Bop Tango accesible?

Aw, thanks!

...well, yeah, you're right... not so much the 'Be-Bop Tango'... although of course it does have a useful beginner's lesson in rhythm!  ("...that's a pedestrian beat...")

'Cheepnis' and 'Village of the Sun' ought to appeal pretty widely though!

Ah... Frank Zappa.  I pretty much became an instant fan the first time I heard his music.   It was absolutely what I needed right then: something fiercely intelligent, cynical, complex, controversial, different, and above all, Fun.  With A Capital 'F'.

Recently I've been somewhat less interested in his music than I used to be.  I think that's because my needs have changed: subject-matter wise, I want to hear hopeful music now, not so much an incisive summary of all that's stupid and frustrating in the world.  But musically, it's still amazing.  Listen to other people's music, then come back to Zappa, and you suddenly realise how densely-packed it is with ideas, how streamlined it sounds, how invincibly disciplined!

In common with many super-intelligent types, Zappa seems to have combined the attention span of a gnat (sometimes he swaps genres more than once during one song, and a lot of people complain that his albums don't 'flow' or have a 'narrative' to them) with the most incredibly obsessive, zealous devotion and application to his craft (composing, playing, recording).  This mixture of fickleness and monomania gives his music a very distinctive feel.  It's not for everyone.  And he puts many people off with his more off-colour moments in the humour department.  But at its best, his music is utterly sublime - and it doesn't get old.  Albums I've listened to hundreds of times still feel fresh to me after a few years of listening.

A notable exception for me is 'Hot Rats'.  Everyone always recommends 'Hot Rats' but I tend to think of that as a misleading starting point.  It's... Zappa for people who don't like Zappa.   Someone recommended 'Roxy & Elsewhere': yes!  That's an outstanding record.  Excellent songs, amazing playing, and Frank's onstage persona is very entertaining!   Accessible but brilliant.

There is only one Zappa, his name is Frank, later Uncle Frank. While not a huge fan, my first hometown concert was Zappa and it was a guitar fest, no vocals, simply breathtaking! One of my first records was Chunga's Revenge , a delirious , at times puzzling set of music and tunes, namely Peaches in Regalia as well as Transylvanian Boogie. The title cut is no shab job either! The Mothers with Mud Shark and the ridiculously tight (no pun intended) Dinah-Moe Hum , made quite an impression back in the days when sex , was , well , sort of a new still taboo subject!  Roxy and Elsewhere (with a title like that how can I say no  -see avatar) only confirms the genius . Huge influence on a multitude of musicians worldwide, his irascible behaviour and sharp intellect is sorely missed in a world so full of apathy . In everything, just look at the news!

my opinion of Frank, simply put:

I love Zappa.  I think between the mans more rock outfitted bands, classical, and jazz he is a musical genious.  I got into him through We're Only In It for the Money