Movie: Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention: In the 1960s

I stumbled across this movie: Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention: In the 1960s on Netflix, where I am watching it online. It is fantastic. Interviewed are Jimmy Carl Black (just before he died), Bunk Gardner, Don Preston, and others. They talk about playing the music and recording it in great detail, which is the kind of stuff that I eat up. Gimme more, gimme more. There are also clips owned by the Zappa Family Archives. With so many rip-off, stupid music bios out there, it is nice to see one with meat on the bones.

I saw the same via netflix last week! Loved it.

Saw it a few months ago on Netfix.It's strange how he disbanded the Mothers after they worked so hard but I think he wanted to make more money and get on the radio. .He had some "hits" after he disbanded the Mothers so I guess it worked.Frank was amazing I sure miss him.Have you checked out Zappa does Zappa .Dwezil does a darn fine job of keeping Franks music alive.

Thanks for the "heads up". Heading for netflix now!

ZPZ put out an awesome DVD worth finding. Some good video clips at the zappaplayszappa.com site.

Find some amazing interpretations of FZ at this site: http://zappafan.net/csrv/
Some won't light you up, but a lot of it is really good.

When I was 14-15, my band's organist had an older brother who turned me onto Hendrix (he had to laugh at the look on my face hearing Foxy Lady), Moby Grape, and Zappa's Freak Out record. I was so moved by the line from Wowie Zowie, "I don't even care if you shave your legs." In a nutshell, this was Zappa. Until that moment, I had been pretty sure of the boundaries of music (stupidly, of course), and this broke through. I never thought music had boundaries again. Brain Police and Monster Magnetic were fine, but repetitive and boring. Still, I was impressed that he had gotten away with it. My favorite was "Any Way the Wind Blows," a song conceived and performed straight. There's a great 12-string line that ends on a downbeat in silence, but with the most beautiful reverb.

The albums that followed meant so much to me. My life in music can be traced to these records, since I was a rock guitarist and now am a composer. I just thought that combing the two had to be the coolest thing in the world. I know a number of other composers that began playing in rock bands.

After the original Mothers were fired, Zappa's other records generally did not move me. His compositional style seemed to stagnate and be predictable, and I really hated, HATED (oops, sorry for the caps) his stupid lyrics, raps, and vamps. I also grew weary of the way he battled any inane concept or point of view that he disagreed with. He seemed to just get on his high horse and put down everything. I didn't mind him putting down everything, but I did mind the effort he put into it. Of course, American consumer culture is dumb. There, it has been said. Why thump this idea into the ground over and over.

Sadly, I have come to think of Zappa as kind of a creep. Not someone that I would like to know. This saddens me because I was so deeply influenced by his music up until Apostrophe. Speaking of which, I am now watching "Frank Zappa: Apostrophe/Over Nite Sensation" on Netflix. It's great seeing interview with the musicians, but the music seems to lack heart. This is just me, of course.

Find some amazing interpretations of FZ at this site: http://zappafan.net/csrv/
Some won't light you up, but a lot of it is really good.

Wow, this is amazing. Thanks for the link.

"Apostrophe" was my induction to FZ so it holds a special place in my heart. That said my favorite period is early 70's ... Roxy and Elsewhere, Hot Rats and You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore vol. 2 - 'live' in Helsinki. I feel that this group of records had his best band.

Wow, this is amazing. Thanks for the link.

I know, right! If you register, you'll get an email when someone loads a new song.

Here's one of my musical breakthrough moments: My dad's a musician (he played with Jimmy Carl Black. "The guy's a machine," my dad says, "and could play a straight 4/4 so perfectly it would make you cry.") Anyway, when I was 15, my dad took me for a car ride and put in Zappa's Live at the Fillmore East album, after making me swear I wouldn;t tell my mom that I heard it. And then my dad laughed as I sat there, mouth open, wondering how anyone could make music that intense. It's still one of my favorite albums by anybody of all time. It's one of those experience that I will never forget, that sticks with me everytime I pick up my guitar. And I agree with what other folks are saying: it seems like he lost that bit of genius, that he became more interested in profanity for the sake of it, and lost that musical intensity, where everyone in the band is playing for their dear lives.

I love it. I'm going to check out the video.

I grew up on "Just Another Band From L.A." and still love that record to this day. I enjoy a light smattering of Frank Zappa's collected works, but find most of it too self indulgent, profane or just trying way too hard to be "out there".

That being said, Frank was obviously a genius and surrounded himself with even greater players. Most of it is just not my cup of tea, and I'm certain there was no greater fan of Frank than Frank. :razz:

I thought the film about the Mothers and the Apostrophe/Over Nite Sensationon Netflix were both really good.

I love FZ have all his albums. I gotta find this new movie thanks Larry.

Nice, I know what I'm watching on Netflix this weekend. Saw Frank at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood in the late 70's, never forget that show. I want to see and hear Dweezils show now.

I grew up on "Just Another Band From L.A." and still love that record to this day.

Sometime around 1981 or so I was on my way to work about 20 minutes late to begin with & listening to a radio station from Trenton State College. All of a sudden Billy The Mountain comes on & I'm transfixed as I drive the last 10 minutes of my commute.
I'm still captivated as I sit in my truck & try to listen to the rest of the song. Finally I come to realize I'm already 45 minutes late for work & I'm sitting in front of the office listening to the radio like I have nothing to do. So I tear myself away & go in to pick up my service requests.
My boss was in a pretty decent mood & was probably in a hurry to give me my work so he could disappear for the day. And I was in & out with a small ration of crap for being late & a pile of requests to sort out.
I got back into the truck & started it up so I could go park down by my shop where I'd be out of sight. And to my astonishment Billy The Mountain was still on the radio.
So I decided that it was one of the greatest things ever recorded & went out after work & bought the album. Still love it to this day.

Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention: In the 1960s

Did they happen to get the Joe Pyne Show stuff??

I remember vividly watching this when it happened, and it was much more influential that the Beatles on Sullivan for this little kid...

This is just me, of course.

Nah, it really isn't...

I could have written that post, but not as well as you... :wink:

I like his guitar soloing OK. The one particular thing I like about is his rhythms and groupings. Few improvising guitarists use as many different rhythmic durations (16th, 8th, dotted 8th, quarter, quarter tied to 16th, dotted quarter,...) in their solos. Also, as is well known, I think, he uses different kinds of tuplets, triplets, 4:3, 5-tuplets, 7-, 9-, 10-, 11-tuplets, many with different values within. He is truly playing by ear and conversing.

BTW, I could have sworn I heard "Any Way the Wind Blows" played by a Northwest band in the late sixties on the radio. Anyone else hear this?

FZ was the smartest and best comic ever in rock music.

I used to actually roll on the floor laughing at dont eat the yellow snow stink foot and many many of his songs.

When he died we lost a musical comedy genius and since then no one Im aware of has even attempted to be funny like Frank was. Ya I know someone is gonna say Weird AL but he just does parodys Frank actually wrote his own songs.

After watching MOI on Netflix I realized I have the first album. Didn't know it was their first until I saw the movie today. Cool. I used to listen to that album all of the time and got a Freak Out of my own going. My friends just didn't understand. Thanks for the info and I see there is 3 more Zappa vids to watch also!!!!!

Did they happen to get the Joe Pyne Show stuff??

I remember vividly watching this when it happened, and it was much more influential that the Beatles on Sullivan for this little kid...



Wow...
I just went and did a bit of searching around, and got this from Wiki:


"Pyne was rude and confrontational with guests, often attempting to throw them off, but there are stories of the rare times when someone got the better of him.

One famous tale is that he lost a verbal duel with Frank Zappa.

Pyne insulted Zappa by saying, "So I guess your long hair makes you a woman."

Zappa allegedly replied, "So I guess your wooden leg makes you a table."

While it sounds plausible, no one who was around at that time recalls it happening, nor is there any evidence that Frank Zappa was ever on the Joe Pyne Show.

Internet re-tellings of the story never say when it is supposed to have happened, strongly suggesting it is only an urban legend."


I saw this show, but I only remember the music and not the verbal exchange...

Although it does ring a bell... :wink:

I'd be interested in that. I'm a fan.

I bought all (well, most) of the FZ CD reissues on Ryko - started at Freak Out and stopped at Apostrophe. Then I got to work with old vinyl and could hear how the orginal mixes sounded. In the case of Reuben & The Jets, much better.

Now all I have after a huge purge is my vinyl copy of Overnite Sensation which is just great music, my favorite. Some of his dirtiest lyrics too. In this case, secondary to the music overall.

I'm with him about 1/2 of the time with the humour. The other 1/2 just grates after awhile but when he's on, he's on. He gets less funny as the albums progress. I can't think of anyone else in such contempt of his audience. The Bonzos are funnier, to me though clearly influenced by The Mothers (Can Blue Men sing The Whites?). Half his fans probably thought he was slamming someone else, not possibly them! (Yeah, right...)

The one early Mothers album I'm looking for on vinyl is my 2nd favorite, 'Burnt Weeny Sandwich'. The production on that one sounds so good to me. I love the big, Live sound it has. Very, very trippy too. Suspiciously trippy, coming from an avowed non-drugger like Zappa allegedly was!

I'll keep my eyes open for that flick.

When I was 14-15, my band's organist had an older brother who turned me onto Hendrix (he had to laugh at the look on my face hearing Foxy Lady), Moby Grape, and Zappa's Freak Out record. I was so moved by the line from Wowie Zowie, "I don't even care if you shave your legs." In a nutshell, this was Zappa. Until that moment, I had been pretty sure of the boundaries of music (stupidly, of course), and this broke through. I never thought music had boundaries again. Brain Police and Monster Magnetic were fine, but repetitive and boring. Still, I was impressed that he had gotten away with it. My favorite was "Any Way the Wind Blows," a song conceived and performed straight. There's a great 12-string line that ends on a downbeat in silence, but with the most beautiful reverb.

The albums that followed meant so much to me. My life in music can be traced to these records, since I was a rock guitarist and now am a composer. I just thought that combing the two had to be the coolest thing in the world. I know a number of other composers that began playing in rock bands.

After the original Mothers were fired, Zappa's other records generally did not move me. His compositional style seemed to stagnate and be predictable, and I really hated, HATED (oops, sorry for the caps) his stupid lyrics, raps, and vamps. I also grew weary of the way he battled any inane concept or point of view that he disagreed with. He seemed to just get on his high horse and put down everything. I didn't mind him putting down everything, but I did mind the effort he put into it. Of course, American consumer culture is dumb. There, it has been said. Why thump this idea into the ground over and over.

Sadly, I have come to think of Zappa as kind of a creep. Not someone that I would like to know. This saddens me because I was so deeply influenced by his music up until Apostrophe. Speaking of which, I am now watching "Frank Zappa: Apostrophe/Over Nite Sensation" on Netflix. It's great seeing interview with the musicians, but the music seems to lack heart. This is just me, of course.

There is a great book by Billy James; "Necessity is". It's from the band members, (not Frank) point of view. I loved the Mothers...lost interest later on. I still think that the early Mothers Do-Wop renditions are among the best R&R ever done. http://www.amazon.com/Necessity-Early-Years-Mothers-Invention/dp/0946719519/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277605529&sr=1-17

Frank did seemed to get bitter later on...sort of like George Carlin. Maybe different for different's sake isn't enough?