There's literally so much about Zappa that's interesting it's unreal. He's one of the most original and diverse musicians ever and he's so massively underrated.
Yes totally agree. I went to see the full performance of 200 Motels - and hour 20 of mind blowing contemporary symphonic music, which ranks with any serious composer - and he managed to release in excess of 50 studio rock albums - breathtaking.
The problem is that he is as much known for his interviews as for his music, and even then, you will find it difficult to find more than a minority at any group gathering who've even heard of him.
That smile on Frank's face, listening to the Tuvan throat singers playing with The Chieftains and Johnny 'Guitar' Watson, is a beautiful thing to behold and a lovely coda to this tribute.
This documentary quite literally changed my life. A lonely kid in Irish boarding school, this gave me a new passion. Since then, I've been to LA multiple times, met various Zappa-related people, rubbed shoulders with the family and put his music at the center of my life (while obviously having a life of my own and trying to become as uncompromising as I could be, inspired by Frank, in what I do). Thank you Frank. Music is the best.
I would love it if you listen to the Music of my current band SOC puppets. I would be very interested to hear what you have to say about it. There is a variety of style ( like Frank's ) so please skip around on the playlist. Thank you.
I discovered Zappa in the early 1970's around overnite sensation, hot rats etc.Every album we listened to was unforgettable.Frank's guitar playing on Hot rats was phenomenal.
I was one of the fortunates to see Frank Zappa @ the celebrity theatre in Phoenix,Az in the round it was called, a revolving stage, he was by himself and it was like watching an invisible band ! He was that genius to make that work. INCREDIBLE showing of the most innovative musician of our time !
I saw this on the BBC Late Show when it was first broadcast. What is sad is that these kinds of programmes were a regular part of broadcasting back when the BBC took the arts seriously.
That was when society took 'the arts' seriously. It took a long time for the BBC to recognise artists like Zappa as worthy, but they did. They watched the public interest and slowly worked out what was cool, as opposed to what was popular. The problem came with MTV and EDM. The BBC, I think, also made an excellent documentary on the evolution of Hip Hop back in the late 80's, early 90's maybe, but creativity has become poor. Music is lame, dance is predictable, computers have sucked the soul out of life. I know there are scenes, things going on, genius at work, but it's difficult for any creative people to get exposure now. Nobody encourages talent anymore. The money sits and waits until somebody does all the hard work, financing themselves, and then they sign them up, wring them out and drop them as soon as interest fades. Artists are forced to replicate whatever they've done, again and again, until the public loses interest. There's no history being made. No catalogue of product, just a bunch of social media audio visual moments. We need another 'Punk Rock' era. Something that will revolutionise music, dance, fashion and art, liberating it from the Tik Tok system, breaking away from Universal Music Group and the DRM death grip. Viva la revolution! I won't be here to see it, but I wish you all the best. Break out of this mental societal prison, you deserve better and more. You can't buy it for your mobile device. You need to get out there and shape it. Those who can create, need your support in person. It's a tribal thing. 💓
No! You summed things up very well. In fact I'm about to read this to my fifteen year old daughter as you've articulated what I've been trying to explain to her for several years!
I have a pretty wide variety of music from the late 60’s to the 1990’s. Despite never attending a Frank Zappa concert. I do remember hearing that he would a concert starting at midnight on either Halloween or New Years Eve. Those concerts were legendary. Seeing Lou Reed introduce Frank Zappa into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was truly inspiring. I’ve seen Lou Reed live at the Felt Forum. But people need to remember that NYC had some many varied Music Venues. I can think of around at least 8 off the top of head. Music was fun and had no boundaries back then. But NYC had some many pockets of almost every Ethnic Group. Seeing Todd Rundgren, Roxy Music, Queen at Avery Fisher Hall. Every weekend was wide open to see who ever was touring. Of course the clubs were big back the to, the Limelight, CBGB’s , the Mudd Club was popular and the Talking Heads were always coming up with something different. All I can say is that it was an Amazing Era to be young and willing to travel to the Lowe Eastside. Going downtown was like’ Walking through the looking glass, you were definitely not in Kansas anymore’ . Even Radio City Music Hall had David Bowie for 6 nights. The list just was endless, the Electric Circus on St. Marks Place had these New Years Eve Parties. I really don’t miss it, it was a unique time and experience that needed to participate in to fully appreciate it, so yes I am happy to say Yes I was part of this era. The price of Concert tickets have ruined the whole experience, few people can afford them. When The Rolling Stones played MSG for 6 nights in 1975, and the seats in the Red section of the Garden was $12.50. Today you cannot park your car for that amount of money, just a shame.
I love his guitar playing the most. He can make it speak to you and evoke so many different emotions. One of my biggest inspirations when I heard him as a kid in the eighties I was blown away.
I read in one of his biographies that Frank believed in this theory of the eternal present. In which case: he is still 50 years old, his band is still rehearsing, he’s still touring, he’s also in the studio recording Freak Out in 1966, The shoes you are wearing are currently being constructed in a sweatshop in Vietnam, etc. etc. Pretty wild idea.
Wow, how did this little gem get buried in the TH-cam soup? With all the Zappa stuff I've been watching over the years, I'm surprised I've never encountered it, or had it offered up. Cool, in any event, glad it resurfaced, never tire of this man's genius, I could have stood watching 200 Motels too... :D
@@jessicas.2477 LOL, you misunderstand, I _found_ it on the internet, I _missed_ it on the television. To be fair, I mostly use a pc, ie, this phone has talk and text, unless I'm on the wifi, I have to use it for "work" (caregiver), soon as I don't need it for that, I'll probably go back to not using it at all, or just get a flip phone. I more or less detest mobile tech, but it's a necessary evil anymore.
I admit it. I am almost 63 years young. I have heard of Frank Zappa. I have have never heard his music... until now. I am hooked. The guy was on another level... eccentric, eclectic and electric. Another artist to add my eclectic collection of music from mid-13th century to the present day including Bulgarian chalga* [Български чалга]. * a pop-folk music genre that is popular in many Balkan and Slavic countries.
Welcome! I’m 44, and I’ve been hanging out here for about 35 years, but there’s still so much more to explore. Joe’s Garage is my favorite album, check it out. It’s the only album that features Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, and I’m convinced that he is the best drummer that ever lived. Don’t miss out on the Bruce Bickford claymation stuff. “You can’t do that on stage anymore” ought to keep you busy for a while. What else? Apostrophe is great, and so is a side of Beefheart’s “Trout Mask Replica,” use as needed as a palette cleanser. In about ten years, you’ll start to feel like you’re making a decent dent in the catalog. Damn, he was prolific!
@@jeanmarieboucherit7376This is a documentary about Zappa. Learn something instead of puking up stupid labels, trying to reduce Zappa to a dumb political ideology that doesn't fit at all. He pissed off a lot of right wing idiots throughout his career. He had his own mixture of ideas about politics that didn't fit neatly into anybody else's ideology; some of it like disdain for war makers was excellent, other ideas like a flat tax, and "smokers rights" and "tobacco is my favorite vegetable" were just Frank having no idea what he was talking about, and being provocative anyway.
I remember the day that Frank passed. It was during my first semester in college...That was a sad day. But he left us a HUGE catalog of music that takes a lifetime to go through and appreciate. I'm still going through live recordings that I've never heard before. He was just such a prolific genius. I wish he were still with us to comment on the modern day political & cultural landscape. I'm certain he'd have a lot to say today.
Was during my first semester in college as well. The local rock station had played selections from Apostrophe and Overnight Sensation the day after he passed. Was my first time ever hearing his music and I've been hooked ever since.
AS a typical Zappa fan who has played guitar since the early 60s his music and way of thinking and looking at the world has been the greatest influence on my life in ways I am still learning to understand. I am so grateful I lived at a time when i was able to witness his career from Freak Out to now as there are still projects being released. I love what his family has been doing to keep his music out there. What a guy. Its so wonderful he was so fanatical about recording so much of his projects and preserving them as well as doing so many interviews and having so much video of his works including much behind the scenes. Jeez we are so lucky to have whatever it is that makes us appreciate him that other people just don't have..There are no words I can type that will do justice...so I'll stop now
You were so lucky to be around when he was touring and making this amazing music. I'm too young to have experienced this and it is one of the few musical regrets I have. His music was introduced to me by my big brother, and, along with Beefheart, is the only musical taste we share! I love him deeply, and his death was devastating to me as a teenager. Miss you Frank...
I'm not sure that there is such a thing as a "typical" Zappa fan. We're mostly a bunch of oddball and misfits, and the things we as individuals identify with in Frank's music and persona are likely to be similarly individualistic.
I was born the year Zappa died, never got to see him but have always appreciated his frank(no pun intended), unapologetic , satirical attitude alongside his amazing musical creations. I have had the chance to see Dweezil in Zappa plays Zappa which I am extremely grateful for. This documentary brought tears to my eyes as there are very few unique never mind you genius people in the world today. If someone is unique it’s like because they are trying to hard and it’s trendy, frank was so unique but didn’t have to try to be that way , he was just naturally himself and himself was unique. ✌️✌️
Poignant but also very beautiful. That moment, when he could call upon all those wonderful musicians, in a world class studio he had built himself, a whole industry he had built up around him all in the service of his music, must have been a tremendously satisfying experience. And here he was making more of it, with a mixture of musicians and styles such that the like would never be heard again. What an achievement.
Yes, we miss him! It is deeply saddening that someone like Frank would never be signed these days...record executives are too obsessed with 'markets' and 'image' and their own greed to sign someone as original as him. The only person I could even compare to Frank Zappa would be Aphex Twin...not in terms of music, but in terms of originality and a willingness to defy categorisation and image defined music. R.I.P Frank; taken too soon, and never to be replaced...we love you Mr. Zappa...
I can’t thank my brother enough for turning me on to Frank as an adolescent in the early 70’s. Life changing and still to this day in 2019 influences my life almost every day.
My brothers also turned me on to him in the early '70s, but I was about 5 years old. When they'd take off I'd put those records on. They were just funny at first until years later when I figured out the genius of him and his band(s)!
Frank's description of the audience is hysterical. You could tell the 1st timers apart from the rest because of the never blinking mouth open expressions of what the hell's going on. Definitely a different kind of experience, Frank was 1 of a kind.
I was wasn't a Zappa fan, didn't understand it & he was intimidating but now I'm older & wiser I am getting it now & it's really classical music. It's so intricate with amazing musicians who worked for a weekly wage & no drugs. I find it's a bit of Steely Dan-ish & jazz & satirical opera. Yup I like it & might seek his vinyls.
Thanks for posting this. I haven't seen it since it was first broadcast, it was wonderful to watch again. Such a great performer, sadly missed. Thanks again.
I discovered Frank when walking home one day...some records (literally) fell off the back of a truck. Hot Rats and Zoot Allures were amongst them. Still two of my favourites.. although he hardly put out any dud albums
I was lucky to see him perform in Portsmouth and London in the early seventies. Missed seeing him three times because he was pulled off the stage! He is a true Postmodernist composer. There is no one - I repeat - no one who can touch him musically alive today: Jazz, Blues, Rock, Classic, Pop; edgy and let's not forget his poetry, satire, political and social comment he was able to blend all this disparate genres and elements to produce sublime music that will live on for ever.
There's a great version of "Montana" on TH-cam from Dweezil and the Zappa Band with Rachel Flowers guesting on guitar and scat vocals. It's awesome, guaranteed to put a smile on your face even if you've had a really bad day.
+DrumSolVanIsle I have a fair quantity of TV from the 80s and 90s on VHS now on DVD and there is some good old stuff. Now it is dancing contests, cake baking contests and fake documentaries made by Oxbridge people looking down their noses at unemployed people. And of course there is the endless propaganda that is the news.
I never met Frank Zappa personally, but 50 some years later I have come to understand the true man that he was. I Discovered that he had the nuts to say things that no one would say at the time, he spoke up with intelligence with people that thought they were more intelligent than he was. needless to say he made fools of them all. I watched him at the congressional hearings and that was such a farce, he made them look like children that lost their toys in the sand. Not knowing the man personally has had a severe effect on me. I have met a lot of influence people in my life, but I have never met one with the intellect of Frank. When I first read about the naming of his children my first thought was how will they go through life with those names, now I see it as a badge of honor because their mother and father saw beyond the closed minded people of the time. I just found out today that Frank had died. It hurts like hell. My sincere condolences to the family, and I do mean it from the top and bottom of my heart. He will live on in some of us who hold the same values. Happy Zappa to all.
Arthur Sid so true! My dad listened to Zappa on reel to reel when I was growing up. As a kid, I didn’t get it at all. Now, today, Zappa is one of my favorite humans! Such a genius!
At first the funny songs were the attraction. As I got older, the sheer genius of his music took over. He was truly unique, and the world is a lesser place for him not being in it. Luckily, his music lives on.
Frank Zappa! I've yet to discover a musician like him... I listen to many artist's, but I would listen to Frank hours more than others, I could listen to him solo all day!
How many solo albums did he do and how many albums did he do with the band mothers. The Wikipedia is confusing for this artist. He has 102 albums wow. But can anyone do the math? As in studio albums.
Thank you. Great show. Because of Frank, (knew him briefly) I came to the conclusion that one of the key tactics used to control the masses through media by the powers that be, is "Never display what the sheep have in common, and focus ONLY on their differences. Because of this, there will always be fear, feeding off confusion, and there can never be peace.
Thanks for preserving...and thankyou Frank Zappa......1200 + items by Frank some with 9 minute solos!!! this stuff will be rediscovered over and over again. A true master.
FZ the man and his music is a HUGE topic. This documentary does an exceptional job of handling it. Happy to see the 200 Motels and Yellow Shark get a respectful nod. The compositional side of FZ's music has been getting significant TH-cam coverage recently -- utterly astounding. My pet FZ take is that his only peer in American music is Duke Ellington (right down to the musician-specific inspired compositions).
I too have just discovered this. I missed it because I had moved to France. Great stuff. I was amazed by the soirée with the Chieftains, the theoat singers and Johnny Guitar Watson. Paddy Maloney (the Chieftain's piper) swapping ideas with Frank is something that I never expected to see. From 1970-1973 we had a little group of us in Macclesfield (Ian Curtis lived just around the corner) who lurved Zappa and Captain Beefheart.
Frank Zappa is still the only musician to sneer at his own industry and yet be beloved by so many,a real hero of mine ,a true genius and satirist that will never be equaled.
You helped me understand the crazy world and enjoy it by embracing the potentially frustrating task of loving misguided children. Myself included! Accept and lovebthe dancebof life!
Why not? If it's inevitable, don't worry and fight about it, manage your dosages of craziness to a comfortable level. "Freedom is comfort in the yoke." Just know the yoke our bodies, chemicals, mass, entropy, interdependent systems, etc.) learn the dance and surf in general leisure and enjoyment. Walk in Beauty...in front, beside, behind...walk in it. Acknowledge it...see it...muse it...we're MUSE-icians!, be aMUSED, not abused by your attitude! That's our one choice really
I see Jesus' philosophy as very well-representedbin the Kama Sutra, golden rule applied to one of the most beautiful intimacies among infinite intimacies available to us - aesthetic, artistic, intellectual, social, sexual, personal, physical, etc.
Great to watch, very well made, too. At 9:27 he perfectly describes how I feel about Charlie Parker's and his own music: "without certain musical clues, it all sounded like ... noodles to me". Still looking for those clues ... I know they're out there somewhere.
Feel sorry for u about Bird...If you're lookng for clues, take a Jazz appreciation class...Parker was/is incredible. Try inventing an idiom Millions than imitate and copy
Thanks so much for posting this...I was a devotee of Varese at an early age and Zappa was the only other person I got to meet with my ears that liked him to.
Frank was a musical genius that definitely worked from a very large Musical Palate who used great musicians that could play the complex musical parts, and the lyrics were full of social and personal satire and sexually repressed themes.He was a true uncompromising musician that left huge body of work behind. You either dig it or you don't.
I still have my original Freakout! album I purchased in the 60's. Was a fan of Frank's even in the early days. My favorite is the Joe's Garage series, especially 'Catholic Girls'.
Saw Zappa live numerous times... Never the same concert and it always seemed like he was fighting his guitar. Zappa wins, the guitar did not have a chance!
Before you make a smart comment about 'tracking' please read the notes that come with the video. It was an 18 year-old tape, had to wind and rewind it about 15 times to get it to play at all. The issue is not tracking but degradation of the RF on the tape after all that time.
2013 - 1993 = 20 year old tape but that assumes the actual giant spool of magnetic tape was manufactured in 1993. Maybe not. If a little streaking at the bottom is so annoying, the viewer can always download it and CROP IT in Handbrake.
Thank you for recording this for the future. I also try to archive as many tapes as I can. Tapes are lost by the tons every year to either the tape degrading or people who just throw them away. It's important pieces of our history that NEED to be preserved. Its a slice of life of our culture at the time it was made. It is important that we digitize everything and save it for whoever may want or need it in the future.
Amazing thank you. I always wondered who he was influenced by. Well his whole history. I recently show him on a 50’s Jack Par show and he was almost scientific about melody even using a bicycle to show you can make music on anything you can make noise with. He was so far over Jack Par’s head that all Jack could do was try and make jokes. Zappa was and still is ahead of his time. Thank you.
I also taped this Documentary onto VHS at the time, sadly my tape seems to be long lost now so it was really great to see it again. Thanks for posting.
I've so lost interest in music, but now and then seeing some of the old stuff is enjoyable.. my personal favourite, still..is 200 motels...big Swifty...grand wazoo.🎵oh yes thank you for posting this, very enjoyable.🎵
Composer! yeah, greatly expanded my mind too as well as understanding cognitive code phrases like, "going to be a mental toss flycoon... -yes, i am" , -fz
i don't throw the term "genius" around very often, but i can confidently say frank zappa is truly a musical genius and overall a very sharp guy. i was 10 when he died so didn't get to see him live but ive seen quite a few zappa plays zappa shows and dweezil has got the good genes too.
+anarchitect420 Just wanted to say how wonderful that there's a young person who 'gets' this man's genius. I saw him in the 70's in a concert in Germany. We had to hitch hike to it and I'll never forget it!
+Eva Wilhelm awesome, thanks! That really sounds like an adventure you had when you saw him, what year was it? My fave era is with Napoleon Murphy Brock.
Dweezil is a good embodiment of Frank, obviously because of his blood relationship but also has some unique guitar chops to add his own personal flair on already very unique music.
Myself, I was quite delighted to go see Dweezil back in July of 2016 during the 50th anniversary tour of Freak Out and getting to listen to songs such as It Can't Happen Here.
Um no he didn't. He was an iconoclastic composer, which is what's interesting. He was not however particularly aware of actual compositional principles.
Good Noodling vs Bad Noodling and Mean sounding chords! That pretty much sums it up rock and fusion :) so bummed never got to see him..had the chance in 88 but wasn't in the know.
I was blessed at 12 years old in 1970 to inherit ABSOLUTELY FREE and WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY from my step-brother who burned his draft card and went to Canada (actually Cleveland) and my first LP purchase was BURNT WEENY SANDWICH. I was hooked! It reminded me a bit of Carl Stalling who did the Warner Brothers cartoon music. I saw the last Mothers Of Invention gig in Chicago and attended six shows in total. I truly believe that in 100 years from now he'll be considered the greatest 20th-century composer. He was certainly the most prolific and inventive. R.I.P. FZ
There will never be another musician more original than Frank Zappa. He was his own man his entire life, and his music reflected it
I’ve seen others right here on youtube
Hì hi Indian I am from Europe😊❤❤🎉
😂Ĺhi ǰYČARĹ😊 YOU You are so simpa
Ĺ😊MAJ̌A
To me he was in his on way I consider him a genus .
@@markwilliams1579 laff out LOWD
When I was a teenager, my stepbrother and I listened to Frank Zappa albums and I was immediately traumatized. I thank him for it.
"Between Frank Zappa and Mad Magazine, I was 'ruined' !" Guitarist Kenny Vaughn
I had the same with Primus.
But I didn't relent.
There's literally so much about Zappa that's interesting it's unreal. He's one of the most original and diverse musicians ever and he's so massively underrated.
Yes totally agree. I went to see the full performance of 200 Motels - and hour 20 of mind blowing contemporary symphonic music, which ranks with any serious composer - and he managed to release in excess of 50 studio rock albums - breathtaking.
So isn't rust in peace.
I don't think he was underrated when he was alive.
Underrated by whom?
The problem is that he is as much known for his interviews as for his music, and even then, you will find it difficult to find more than a minority at any group gathering who've even heard of him.
That smile on Frank's face, listening to the Tuvan throat singers playing with The Chieftains and Johnny 'Guitar' Watson, is a beautiful thing to behold and a lovely coda to this tribute.
One of my favorite things about Frank is that he looked like his music
Tru dat.
That's funny, and Stanley very true, like when someone looks like their dog, or vice versa!
I also believe that Frank and his music smell alike
The truest statement i have ever read
Zappa was a living musical art project! ❄️😂❄️🌍❄️
This documentary quite literally changed my life.
A lonely kid in Irish boarding school, this gave me a new passion. Since then, I've been to LA multiple times, met various Zappa-related people, rubbed shoulders with the family and put his music at the center of my life (while obviously having a life of my own and trying to become as uncompromising as I could be, inspired by Frank, in what I do).
Thank you Frank. Music is the best.
I would love it if you listen to the Music of my current band SOC puppets. I would be very interested to hear what you have to say about it. There is a variety of style
( like Frank's ) so please skip around on the playlist. Thank you.
I discovered Zappa in the early 1970's around overnite sensation, hot rats etc.Every album we listened to was unforgettable.Frank's guitar playing on Hot rats was phenomenal.
I was one of the fortunates to see Frank Zappa @ the celebrity theatre in Phoenix,Az in the round it was called, a revolving stage, he was by himself and it was like watching an invisible band !
He was that genius to make that work.
INCREDIBLE showing of the most innovative musician of our time !
I saw this on the BBC Late Show when it was first broadcast. What is sad is that these kinds of programmes were a regular part of broadcasting back when the BBC took the arts seriously.
before they were forced to make sales a priority
That was when society took 'the arts' seriously. It took a long time for the BBC to recognise artists like Zappa as worthy, but they did. They watched the public interest and slowly worked out what was cool, as opposed to what was popular.
The problem came with MTV and EDM. The BBC, I think, also made an excellent documentary on the evolution of Hip Hop back in the late 80's, early 90's maybe, but creativity has become poor. Music is lame, dance is predictable, computers have sucked the soul out of life.
I know there are scenes, things going on, genius at work, but it's difficult for any creative people to get exposure now. Nobody encourages talent anymore. The money sits and waits until somebody does all the hard work, financing themselves, and then they sign them up, wring them out and drop them as soon as interest fades. Artists are forced to replicate whatever they've done, again and again, until the public loses interest. There's no history being made. No catalogue of product, just a bunch of social media audio visual moments.
We need another 'Punk Rock' era. Something that will revolutionise music, dance, fashion and art, liberating it from the Tik Tok system, breaking away from Universal Music Group and the DRM death grip.
Viva la revolution! I won't be here to see it, but I wish you all the best. Break out of this mental societal prison, you deserve better and more. You can't buy it for your mobile device. You need to get out there and shape it. Those who can create, need your support in person. It's a tribal thing. 💓
Holy Cow! I went off on a rant there, didn't I. 😮
No! You summed things up very well. In fact I'm about to read this to my fifteen year old daughter as you've articulated what I've been trying to explain to her for several years!
@@michaelparker3709 you should repost that as a comment not just a reply.
Great video, Frank was such an incredible talent and one of a kind musician who passed away way too soon rip.
Agreed
I have a pretty wide variety of music from the late 60’s to the 1990’s. Despite never attending a Frank Zappa concert. I do remember hearing that he would a concert starting at midnight on either Halloween or New Years Eve. Those concerts were legendary. Seeing Lou Reed introduce Frank Zappa into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was truly inspiring. I’ve seen Lou Reed live at the Felt Forum. But people need to remember that NYC had some many varied Music Venues. I can think of around at least 8 off the top of head. Music was fun and had no boundaries back then. But NYC had some many pockets of almost every Ethnic Group. Seeing Todd Rundgren, Roxy Music, Queen at Avery Fisher Hall. Every weekend was wide open to see who ever was touring. Of course the clubs were big back the to, the Limelight, CBGB’s , the Mudd Club was popular and the Talking Heads were always coming up with something different. All I can say is that it was an Amazing Era to be young and willing to travel to the Lowe Eastside. Going downtown was like’ Walking through the looking glass, you were definitely not in Kansas anymore’ . Even Radio City Music Hall had David Bowie for 6 nights. The list just was endless, the Electric Circus on St. Marks Place had these New Years Eve Parties.
I really don’t miss it, it was a unique time and experience that needed to participate in to fully appreciate it, so yes I am happy to say Yes I was part of this era.
The price of Concert tickets have ruined the whole experience, few people can afford them. When The Rolling Stones played MSG for 6 nights in 1975, and the seats in the Red section of the Garden was $12.50. Today you cannot park your car for that amount of money, just a shame.
Totally agree, those times were the best at least musically. We could buy $5/7/10 seats, miss those days.
I love his guitar playing the most. He can make it speak to you and evoke so many different emotions. One of my biggest inspirations when I heard him as a kid in the eighties I was blown away.
An hour of pure joy, listening to Frank, his band and commentators; sadly taken from us but much loved.
Frank would have turned 80 years old yesterday 12/21/ 20. I've grown to appreciate his more complex avant guard music.
My God you are right! Still thiink of him as a guy in his early 50s.
Me and him share a birthday :(
I read in one of his biographies that Frank believed in this theory of the eternal present. In which case: he is still 50 years old, his band is still rehearsing, he’s still touring, he’s also in the studio recording Freak Out in 1966, The shoes you are wearing are currently being constructed in a sweatshop in Vietnam, etc. etc. Pretty wild idea.
Wow, how did this little gem get buried in the TH-cam soup? With all the Zappa stuff I've been watching over the years, I'm surprised I've never encountered it, or had it offered up. Cool, in any event, glad it resurfaced, never tire of this man's genius, I could have stood watching 200 Motels too... :D
I've seen pieces of it scattered about the interwebs but to see this is really great. Zappa was a genius and I'm glad he had influence on my life
I have it on videotape somewhere, having watched it when it was first broadcast. I no longer have anything to play it on mind…
You missed it because you were too busy poking your phone!
@@jessicas.2477 LOL, you misunderstand, I _found_ it on the internet, I _missed_ it on the television. To be fair, I mostly use a pc, ie, this phone has talk and text, unless I'm on the wifi, I have to use it for "work" (caregiver), soon as I don't need it for that, I'll probably go back to not using it at all, or just get a flip phone. I more or less detest mobile tech, but it's a necessary evil anymore.
@@jessicas.2477OK that’s just a weird scolding sort of comment that won’t help anybody.
The program that got me into Zappa, aged 18. Sadly too late to see him live. 21+ years later I'm still and addict!
I admit it. I am almost 63 years young. I have heard of Frank Zappa. I have have never heard his music... until now. I am hooked. The guy was on another level... eccentric, eclectic and electric. Another artist to add my eclectic collection of music from mid-13th century to the present day including Bulgarian chalga* [Български чалга].
* a pop-folk music genre that is popular in many Balkan and Slavic countries.
Welcome! I’m 44, and I’ve been hanging out here for about 35 years, but there’s still so much more to explore. Joe’s Garage is my favorite album, check it out. It’s the only album that features Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, and I’m convinced that he is the best drummer that ever lived. Don’t miss out on the Bruce Bickford claymation stuff. “You can’t do that on stage anymore” ought to keep you busy for a while. What else? Apostrophe is great, and so is a side of Beefheart’s “Trout Mask Replica,” use as needed as a palette cleanser. In about ten years, you’ll start to feel like you’re making a decent dent in the catalog. Damn, he was prolific!
Start at Freak Out! and move forward 1 album at a time.
He was so completely and terribly intelligent. RIP Frank, you are terribly missed.
Zappa is sometimes described as a right wing musician.
Yes he was his own man plus he wrote all the music plus for all the instruments too !
@jeanmarieboucherit7376
I would classify him (if possible) as more of a Libertarian. I think their symbol of a porcupine fits his personality well.
He was totally fluent in music and turned himself into quite a credible musical composer later in life!
@@jeanmarieboucherit7376This is a documentary about Zappa. Learn something instead of puking up stupid labels, trying to reduce Zappa to a dumb political ideology that doesn't fit at all. He pissed off a lot of right wing idiots throughout his career. He had his own mixture of ideas about politics that didn't fit neatly into anybody else's ideology; some of it like disdain for war makers was excellent, other ideas like a flat tax, and "smokers rights" and "tobacco is my favorite vegetable" were just Frank having no idea what he was talking about, and being provocative anyway.
Frank Zappa died 21 years ago today on the 4th December 1993. Still greatly missed.
Frank had many fabulous accolades and achievements, but....
"The best moustache in recorded history" Matt Groening
..... will take some beating.
Edward Thomas
I'm still partial to Dali's mustache.
Edward Thomas I believe he actually said, "The greatest moustache in American history." He's got a better case with that.
3replybiz
My brothers birthday. He's a big Zappa fan ironically.
***** I think you can quite literally consider that splitting hairs...
Frank's legacy lives on always through the musicians that still can actually play their instruments.
Love live Frank Zappa.
AMEN..THE ANGELS ACTUALLY PLAY HARPS
And that legacy continues thanks to Dweezil despite the Zappa Estate (thanks to the late Gail) trying to crush it.
@@gcrauwels941 Zappa had amazing musicians with him.
I remember the day that Frank passed. It was during my first semester in college...That was a sad day. But he left us a HUGE catalog of music that takes a lifetime to go through and appreciate. I'm still going through live recordings that I've never heard before. He was just such a prolific genius. I wish he were still with us to comment on the modern day political & cultural landscape. I'm certain he'd have a lot to say today.
Was during my first semester in college as well. The local rock station had played selections from Apostrophe and Overnight Sensation the day after he passed. Was my first time ever hearing his music and I've been hooked ever since.
He would have albums to say.
Alternatively, were he still alive, the political and cultural landscape might have been less ravaged through his insight and influence...
@@michellalonde4966, "between Frank Zappa and Mad Magazine, I was 'ruined' !" Guitarist Kenny Vaughn
@@BayouMaccabee u hav to wonder what type of suite Frank would have dedicated to Trump..”Rumper Trumpalstillskin”?
AS a typical Zappa fan who has played guitar since the early 60s his music and way of thinking and looking at the world has been the greatest influence on my life in ways I am still learning to understand. I am so grateful I lived at a time when i was able to witness his career from Freak Out to now as there are still projects being released. I love what his family has been doing to keep his music out there. What a guy. Its so wonderful he was so fanatical about recording so much of his projects and preserving them as well as doing so many interviews and having so much video of his works including much behind the scenes. Jeez we are so lucky to have whatever it is that makes us appreciate him that other people just don't have..There are no words I can type that will do justice...so I'll stop now
Hey you're doing just fine.... .keep going! :)
You were so lucky to be around when he was touring and making this amazing music. I'm too young to have experienced this and it is one of the few musical regrets I have. His music was introduced to me by my big brother, and, along with Beefheart, is the only musical taste we share! I love him deeply, and his death was devastating to me as a teenager. Miss you Frank...
I'm not sure that there is such a thing as a "typical" Zappa fan. We're mostly a bunch of oddball and misfits, and the things we as individuals identify with in Frank's music and persona are likely to be similarly individualistic.
I was born the year Zappa died, never got to see him but have always appreciated his frank(no pun intended), unapologetic , satirical attitude alongside his amazing musical creations. I have had the chance to see Dweezil in Zappa plays Zappa which I am extremely grateful for. This documentary brought tears to my eyes as there are very few unique never mind you genius people in the world today. If someone is unique it’s like because they are trying to hard and it’s trendy, frank was so unique but didn’t have to try to be that way , he was just naturally himself and himself was unique. ✌️✌️
I have loved this documentary since it was first broadcast-the moment where he talks about having another soiree is so poignant. RIP Mr Zappa.
Poignant but also very beautiful. That moment, when he could call upon all those wonderful musicians, in a world class studio he had built himself, a whole industry he had built up around him all in the service of his music, must have been a tremendously satisfying experience. And here he was making more of it, with a mixture of musicians and styles such that the like would never be heard again. What an achievement.
Thanks for sharing this. We will never see anybody like Frank again. My hero.
We will never have another like FZ...he was truly a musical genius. The world is a much sadder place without Frank in it.
Yes. But the world is a better place because he was in it and will linger forever.
Zappa will never die as long as we have this to tell us more of what we didn’t know ?
"there's gotta be an album in there someplace"...
God, how we miss you, Frank
Yes, we miss him! It is deeply saddening that someone like Frank would never be signed these days...record executives are too obsessed with 'markets' and 'image' and their own greed to sign someone as original as him. The only person I could even compare to Frank Zappa would be Aphex Twin...not in terms of music, but in terms of originality and a willingness to defy categorisation and image defined music. R.I.P Frank; taken too soon, and never to be replaced...we love you Mr. Zappa...
I died at that part “2000$ dildos that you can plug into your computer” hahahaha
He was so original of a genius that u didn’t know he was that until later which for me was weird because I had all his albums !
I can’t thank my brother enough for turning me on to Frank as an adolescent in the early 70’s. Life changing and still to this day in 2019 influences my life almost every day.
My brothers also turned me on to him in the early '70s, but I was about 5 years old. When they'd take off I'd put those records on. They were just funny at first until years later when I figured out the genius of him and his band(s)!
" Between Frank Zappa and Mad Magazine, I was 'ruined' !" Guitarist Kenny Vaughn
google forgot this had been reviewed and enjoyed earlier while thanking you kindly because Frank Zappa made sense to me. 👁🐬
Frank's description of the audience is hysterical. You could tell the 1st timers apart from the rest because of the never blinking mouth open expressions of what the hell's going on. Definitely a different kind of experience, Frank was 1 of a kind.
So glad I had Frank's music in my life when I was young. So sad he has now gone. Irreplaceable. x
I was wasn't a Zappa fan, didn't understand it & he was intimidating but now I'm older & wiser I am getting it now & it's really classical music. It's so intricate with amazing musicians who worked for a weekly wage & no drugs. I find it's a bit of Steely Dan-ish & jazz & satirical opera. Yup I like it & might seek his vinyls.
Seeing the footage filmed close to his death is unbelievably heartbreaking.
Be happy for his life and what he gave to us with the time he had. That's what I focus on and think about instead.
Thanks for posting this. I haven't seen it since it was first broadcast, it was wonderful to watch again. Such a great performer, sadly missed. Thanks again.
I discovered Frank when walking home one day...some records (literally) fell off the back of a truck.
Hot Rats and Zoot Allures were amongst them.
Still two of my favourites.. although he hardly put out any dud albums
I was lucky to see him perform in Portsmouth and London in the early seventies. Missed seeing him three times because he was pulled off the stage! He is a true Postmodernist composer. There is no one - I repeat - no one who can touch him musically alive today: Jazz, Blues, Rock, Classic, Pop; edgy and let's not forget his poetry, satire, political and social comment he was able to blend all this disparate genres and elements to produce sublime music that will live on for ever.
"Montana" continues to be both one of Zappa's best songs and one of my all-time favorites
Is that a Sears poncho?
"What is this shit" -Ike Turner
@@nisbend
...
There's a great version of "Montana" on TH-cam from Dweezil and the Zappa Band with Rachel Flowers guesting on guitar and scat vocals. It's awesome, guaranteed to put a smile on your face even if you've had a really bad day.
Music is the best! It cannot be stated enough times that the world GREATLY misses this man.
Extremely pleased to see this video! This production is outstanding in my opinion, and is when watched today, a warm reminder of mid nineties BBC.
+DrumSolVanIsle I have a fair quantity of TV from the 80s and 90s on VHS now on DVD and there is some good old stuff. Now it is dancing contests, cake baking contests and fake documentaries made by Oxbridge people looking down their noses at unemployed people. And of course there is the endless propaganda that is the news.
Oh for the days when our licence fee was well spent?
I never met Frank Zappa personally, but 50 some years later I have come to understand the true man that he was. I Discovered that he had the nuts to say things that no one would say at the time, he spoke up with intelligence with people that thought they were more intelligent than he was. needless to say he made fools of them all. I watched him at the congressional hearings and that was such a farce, he made them look like children that lost their toys in the sand. Not knowing the man personally has had a severe effect on me. I have met a lot of influence people in my life, but I have never met one with the intellect of Frank. When I first read about the naming of his children my first thought was how will they go through life with those names, now I see it as a badge of honor because their mother and father saw beyond the closed minded people of the time. I just found out today that Frank had died. It hurts like hell. My sincere condolences to the family, and I do mean it from the top and bottom of my heart. He will live on in some of us who hold the same values. Happy Zappa to all.
The rock (music)world would be a much less interesting place without ZAPPA in it.
Proud to be a zappa fan.
Arthur Sid me too
Arthur Sid so true! My dad listened to Zappa on reel to reel when I was growing up. As a kid, I didn’t get it at all. Now, today, Zappa is one of my favorite humans! Such a genius!
SAME!!!!
At first the funny songs were the attraction. As I got older, the sheer genius of his music took over. He was truly unique, and the world is a lesser place for him not being in it. Luckily, his music lives on.
Simply....a genius
Frank Zappa! I've yet to discover a musician like him... I listen to many artist's, but I would listen to Frank hours more than others, I could listen to him solo all day!
Bruce Smith Just Brilliant Bruce.
+Ziggy “Frappanised” Zappada You never met Sun Ra
Hugh Jazzole' No, I don't know who Sun Ra is? Is he a musician?
How many solo albums did he do and how many albums did he do with the band mothers. The Wikipedia is confusing for this artist. He has 102 albums wow. But can anyone do the math? As in studio albums.
+bulltrunch anyway this guy is awesome with his fun cool voice. The guy is just awesome. :)
Thanks for sharing this fabulous documentary. You're a gent
Wow, you're his agent!!
Thank you. Great show. Because of Frank, (knew him briefly) I came to the conclusion that one of the key tactics used to control the masses through media by the powers that be, is "Never display what the sheep have in common, and focus ONLY on their differences. Because of this, there will always be fear, feeding off confusion, and there can never be peace.
Sounds like the essence of Trumpism to me!
Thanks for uploading the video!!
I loved it!!
RIP Frank
The song was black napkins now that I remember ! It was perfect !
Just listened to black napkins..and dweezil and Steve vai..on zombie wolf..incredible.
Frank was very intelligent and if we had him leading i feel things might not be so bad RIP Frank
@@happyguyx1 there WAS a Zappa for President campaign in the 70’s
Thanks uploader, loved watching this.
Such an interesting, likable character.
GG Frank Zappa.
Highly gifted, intellectual, original, emotional and most misunderstood musician!
Thank you, Thank you for uploading this.
Thanks for preserving...and thankyou Frank Zappa......1200 + items by Frank some with 9 minute solos!!! this stuff will be rediscovered over and over again. A true master.
Thank you for being, Frank.
thank you for being frank, charles.
FZ the man and his music is a HUGE topic. This documentary does an exceptional job of handling it. Happy to see the 200 Motels and Yellow Shark get a respectful nod. The compositional side of FZ's music has been getting significant TH-cam coverage recently -- utterly astounding. My pet FZ take is that his only peer in American music is Duke Ellington (right down to the musician-specific inspired compositions).
Wow, what a gem. Thanks for posting this!
I too have just discovered this. I missed it because I had moved to France. Great stuff. I was amazed by the soirée with the Chieftains, the theoat singers and Johnny Guitar Watson. Paddy Maloney (the Chieftain's piper) swapping ideas with Frank is something that I never expected to see. From 1970-1973 we had a little group of us in Macclesfield (Ian Curtis lived just around the corner) who lurved Zappa and Captain Beefheart.
i wasn’t even thought of when he died but i miss him. he was a true musical genius.
Thank you for posting this clip. It's great. Much appreciated.
What a genius. Genuine. Sincere. Last bastion of sanity. Love you, Frank!
Frank Zappa is still the only musician to sneer at his own industry and yet be beloved by so many,a real hero of mine ,a true genius and satirist that will never be equaled.
Pimp C
Well put .
Frank was playing chess and everyone else was playing checkers.
that is absolutely an inaccurate statement. Prince took on his industry ...and ultimately it may have cost him his life. Frank?
"hi boys and girls, I'm Jimmy Carl Black & I'm the Indian of the group"
Dickie's Such An A Hole
Hi Carl 👋
You helped me understand the crazy world and enjoy it by embracing the potentially frustrating task of loving misguided children. Myself included! Accept and lovebthe dancebof life!
Why not? If it's inevitable, don't worry and fight about it, manage your dosages of craziness to a comfortable level. "Freedom is comfort in the yoke." Just know the yoke our bodies, chemicals, mass, entropy, interdependent systems, etc.) learn the dance and surf in general leisure and enjoyment. Walk in Beauty...in front, beside, behind...walk in it. Acknowledge it...see it...muse it...we're MUSE-icians!, be aMUSED, not abused by your attitude! That's our one choice really
I see Jesus' philosophy as very well-representedbin the Kama Sutra, golden rule applied to one of the most beautiful intimacies among infinite intimacies available to us - aesthetic, artistic, intellectual, social, sexual, personal, physical, etc.
So glad I came across this! I recorded this when I was about 14 and watched it over and over!
Great to watch, very well made, too. At 9:27 he perfectly describes how I feel about Charlie Parker's and his own music: "without certain musical clues, it all sounded like ... noodles to me". Still looking for those clues ... I know they're out there somewhere.
Frank once said”Jazz is not dead, it just smells funny”
Feel sorry for u about Bird...If you're lookng for clues, take a Jazz appreciation class...Parker was/is incredible. Try inventing an idiom Millions than imitate and copy
Thanks so much for posting this...I was a devotee of Varese at an early age and Zappa was the only other person I got to meet with my ears that liked him to.
Frank was a musical genius that definitely worked from a very large Musical Palate who used great musicians that could play the complex musical parts, and the lyrics were full of social and personal satire and sexually repressed themes.He was a true uncompromising musician that left huge body of work behind. You either dig it or you don't.
You can't be scared when it gets too real. You've got to dig it while it's happening."It Just Might Be a One Shot Deal.
I still have my original Freakout! album I purchased in the 60's. Was a fan of Frank's even in the early days. My favorite is the Joe's Garage series, especially 'Catholic Girls'.
My day is a happy one thanks to this.
Saw Zappa live numerous times... Never the same concert and it always seemed like he was fighting his guitar. Zappa wins, the guitar did not have a chance!
Before you make a smart comment about 'tracking' please read the notes that come with the video. It was an 18 year-old tape, had to wind and rewind it about 15 times to get it to play at all. The issue is not tracking but degradation of the RF on the tape after all that time.
2013 - 1993 = 20 year old tape but that assumes the actual giant spool of magnetic tape was manufactured in 1993. Maybe not. If a little streaking at the bottom is so annoying, the viewer can always download it and CROP IT in Handbrake.
All I can say is thanks for the upload! I've never seen this documentary before and I'll deal with a little bit of age degradation.
Thank you for recording this for the future. I also try to archive as many tapes as I can. Tapes are lost by the tons every year to either the tape degrading or people who just throw them away. It's important pieces of our history that NEED to be preserved. Its a slice of life of our culture at the time it was made. It is important that we digitize everything and save it for whoever may want or need it in the future.
Whats a tape?
I’m enjoying it, thank you.
Thanks for posting. Classic. Miss that Mother.
“The mystery man came over, he said, hey! I’m outta sight!”. Cheers, Frank!
I wrapped a newspaper round my head so it looked like I was deep 😜
I saw this a long time ago, thanks for sharing it.
Amazing thank you. I always wondered who he was influenced by. Well his whole history. I recently show him on a 50’s Jack Par show and he was almost scientific about melody even using a bicycle to show you can make music on anything you can make noise with. He was so far over Jack Par’s head that all Jack could do was try and make jokes. Zappa was and still is ahead of his time. Thank you.
By far, the most insightful documentary on Uncle Frank,... thank you Brits for your courage and sensitivity. 🙏❤🎶
Zappa, the most rock’n’roll non rock’n’roll guy …. A true musical genius and paradox
I also taped this Documentary onto VHS at the time, sadly my tape seems to be long lost now so it was really great to see it again. Thanks for posting.
Really enjoyed this. He was such an interesting musician and person. Thanks for posting.
Thank you for tuning it up and sharing this!
I've so lost interest in music, but now and then seeing some of the old stuff is enjoyable.. my personal favourite, still..is 200 motels...big Swifty...grand wazoo.🎵oh yes thank you for posting this, very enjoyable.🎵
Thanks for this.
imo
One of my all-time favorite musicians regardless of genre...
imo
Taped this off TV back in the early 90s... wore the tape out. Totally shaped my life to date.
Blew my mind too back then and I couldn't get a replacement either......
Composer! yeah, greatly expanded my mind too as well as understanding cognitive code phrases like, "going to be a mental toss flycoon... -yes, i am" , -fz
"Between Mad Magazine and Frank Zappa, I was 'ruined'!" Guitarist Kenny Vaughn
Radio station WNCW (listener supported out of Western North Carolina) has a weekly show "Frank on Fridays ". Highly recommended.
It seems crazy yeah, but uncle Frank is the closest to a sane human being yer ever gonna hear. Study, kids; study.
"Study kids, study".......like all these wannabe rockstar kiddies in "rockschool" these days....?
He'd be handing out verbal slaps left and right, I bet. The whole worlds gone crazy in his absence.
I love tripping on Frank’s guitar solos, thanks to the mastering gurus, but I saw the Mother’s once in person.
i don't throw the term "genius" around very often, but i can confidently say frank zappa is truly a musical genius and overall a very sharp guy. i was 10 when he died so didn't get to see him live but ive seen quite a few zappa plays zappa shows and dweezil has got the good genes too.
+anarchitect420 Just wanted to say how wonderful that there's a young person who 'gets' this man's genius. I saw him in the 70's in a concert in Germany. We had to hitch hike to it and I'll never forget it!
+Eva Wilhelm awesome, thanks! That really sounds like an adventure you had when you saw him, what year was it? My fave era is with Napoleon Murphy Brock.
Dweezil is a good embodiment of Frank, obviously because of his blood relationship but also has some unique guitar chops to add his own personal flair on already very unique music.
Myself, I was quite delighted to go see Dweezil back in July of 2016 during the 50th anniversary tour of Freak Out and getting to listen to songs such as It Can't Happen Here.
A great documentary. Thank you so much for posting it. I'll definately be sharing it.
Thanks for this upload he was a fantastic individual best regards.
Thanks for posting. BBC always has the best documentaries on musicians
great documentary, thanks for uploading it
Thank you for uploading! Very much enjoyed it, and some interesting stuff I hadn't heard about/seen before.
Zappa was incredible- technical, improvisational, experimental, humorous and totally unpretentious about it.
"There's gotta be an album in there someplace"... LMMFAO!!! I miss you Frank, wish you were still here Brother!!!
Frank understood music history, theory, composition, production and improvisation better than anyone.
Frank? Friend of yours?
Yeah, better than Bach even
Um no he didn't. He was an iconoclastic composer, which is what's interesting. He was not however particularly aware of actual compositional principles.
He said himself he never been so much in tonal music
@@boxychubbo6922what an absurd useless statement lol
Thanks so much ❤
Frank Zappa. Just the name is a signature of the time! Rest In Peace Mr. Zappa!
I remember watching this, 20 odd years ago. was lucky to see him play live late '80s also in Birmingham UK.
The first album I ever bought was Freakout. The strangeness of my musical tastes continues into my mid 60's. "Who are the brain police?"
"help i'm a rock" was the first song i ever of his. i'd rather be a cop than a rock. help i'm a cop.
Good Noodling vs Bad Noodling and Mean sounding chords! That pretty much sums it up rock and fusion :) so bummed never got to see him..had the chance in 88 but wasn't in the know.
36:46 sec, Dweezil Zappa is holding the guitar that Jimi Hendrix lit on fire during the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival.
yea Dweeze found it under a stairwell and had it restored and you can see Dweeze showing off the guitar on one of Norm's Rare Guitars videos
Thank you for this post. What a great man. He is so magnificent.
I was blessed at 12 years old in 1970 to inherit ABSOLUTELY FREE and WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY from my step-brother who burned his draft card and went to Canada (actually Cleveland) and my first LP purchase was BURNT WEENY SANDWICH. I was hooked! It reminded me a bit of Carl Stalling who did the Warner Brothers cartoon music. I saw the last Mothers Of Invention gig in Chicago and attended six shows in total. I truly believe that in 100 years from now he'll be considered the greatest 20th-century composer. He was certainly the most prolific and inventive. R.I.P. FZ
Excellent comment!
Thank you for the video.Their will never be anyone like him a true innovator.Although different His views did have a lot of valid points.