Frank Zappa
Country of origin:
U.S.
Type of music generally:
Experimental rock
Status:
Frank Zappa died in 1993. Most recent release, Zappa '88: The Last U.S. Show (live, 2021)
See also:
The Official Zappa site
Comparisons:
Captain Beefheart, King Crimson had a similar-ish aesthetic
Covers/own material:
Own
General comments:
I've lost count of how many Frank Zappa albums I have. Apostrophe' was the first album I *ever* bought (I was about 10, I think). What can I say, the man was a friggin' genius. And funny as hell. Dammit, I'm gonna miss 'im. (dixon@physics.Berkeley.edu)"watermelon in easter hay". wow. what a great piece of music. i usually introduce it to people as "the world's only existential guitar solo". although skeptical at first, everyone always agrees after they hear it. (woj@smoe.org)
Recommended first album:
Hard call, as he changed style over the years
Recordings:
See The Official Zappa site or the All Music Guide, or this fan site (this is the simplest/clearest version), for a full discography—it's long
The Yellow Shark
Release info:
1993—Barking Pumpkin/Rhino
Availability:
Wide
Ecto priority:
Recommended
Group members:
Frank Zappa—conductor, performer
Guest artists:
Michael Gross—trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn, piccolo trumpet
Wolfgang Stryi—clarinet, bass clarinet, tenor sax, contrabass trombone
Todd Yvega—synclavier assistance
Herman Kretzschmar—piano, celeste, harpsichord, voices
Uwe Dierksen—trombone
Friedemann Dahn—violoncello
William Formann—trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn, piccolo trumpet
Rumi Ogawa-Helferich—percussion, cymbalom
Franck Ollu—horn
Jürgen Ruck—banjo, guitar
Claudia Sack—violin
Veit Scholz—bassoon, contrabassoon
Hilary Stuart—violin, voices
Michael Svoboda—trombone, euphonium, didjeridu, alphorn
Mathias Tacke—violin
Detlef Tewes—mandolin
Ellen Wegner—harp
Ueli Wiget—piano, cello, harp, harpsichord
Andreas Bottger—percussion
Daryl Smith—tuba
Dietmar Wiesner—flute
Peter Rundel—violin, conductor
Produced by:
Frank Zappa
Comments:
To be honest, I'm still warming up to this album, but I felt it necessary as a matter of principle to include something by Frank on my year's best list, owing to his untimely passing. But anyway, the album has a few bits that worked for me right away, most notably "Welcome to the United States," which made me laugh uproariously. Ya gotta hear it, especially if you're a non-US resident who's ever had to fill out that stupid card ("Were you involved in any way in persecutions associated with Nazi Germany?"). (dixon@physics.Berkeley.edu)
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