@@lesblatnyak5947 amazing! It's incredible just to have witnessed this on a video; can't get my head around seeing this live! Great memory to share-thanks!
George Duke came into Zappa's band as a classically trained pianist. He played jazz with Jean-Luc Ponty who brought Duke to Frank's attention. George Duke had no interest in synthesizers, coming from the trained pianist perspective. He also never sang a note. Frank wanted George to learn the synthesizer, but he was not interested. Frank bought a unit for him and set it up on his keyboard rig and asked him to just play around with it in his spare time. George did and soon learned of its capabilities and fell in love with it, becoming one of the greats on the instrument. A little prodding by Frank turned George Duke into the synth giant that he became. As to singing, George also told Frank he didn't sing. Frank fed him one line of this song at a time. Sing this line. Go ahead. Now sing this. On and on until George felt comfortable singing. Frank hired the best musicians that he could find and then pushed them further out of their own comfort zones to make them even better musicians when they left. Napoleon Murphy Brock was one of the very few who didn't have to audition to be in the band. Frank saw Nappy playing in Hawai'i and introduced himself. He told him right then to come see his band play when he returned to L.A. and if he liked what he heard, he was in the band. Nappy never heard of Frank and asked him who he had in his band. "Jean-Luc Ponty and George Duke, among others." Nappy said, "If you have those cats in your band, you must be a hell of a musician." Nappy saw them play and joined. No audition. By contrast, watch any video of Zappa musicians talking about their grueling audition. Frank threw impossible note combinations at them to play, sight-reading requirements, etc. and many said they were sure they didn't pass, until Frank assured them that they did. It was a hell of a band. The various incarnations over his touring career were all stellar but this particular band is generally regarded by fans as the best of them all. R.I.P. Tom Fowler, bass player in this band.
Saw a show w project object w nappy, Ike Willis and lenny White in st Louis a few years back. Met nappy and got his autograph, really nice guy. Talked to him a few mins. Class act. Ike came into the ladies room in the stall next to my girl. I was pissed when she told me, when I figured out it was him it was almost an honor, lol. Good times
Best band I ever saw. I saw them at two straight Halloween shows and in Passaic, NJ. I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time. R.I.P Tom Fowler
"What did I just listen to. God!" Yes, he was a genius, a god of musical rhythms, melodies, and sounds. He is the most important composer of the modern era. No one else comes close. Keep going, for the rabbit hole is deep, but well worth it. Great review.
Inca Roads is incredible. WILD ride for sure (prog rock). This song is a spoof on those who don't believe the Inca could have made all their roads and suspension bridges by themselves. They did not need aliens from outer space to show them how. It is ironic. Great solos. How they are so tight is a miracle. Yes, their chemistry is like no others.
As Zappa said: “This song is hard to play, hard to sing and hard to mix”. So they didn’t do it very often on this tour. Plus, it was always evolving. From the live shows I have heard, this may be the first time the finished version was played.
So far no-one's mentioned the writer/producer of the animation - "the amazing" Mr Bruce Bickford. For Phil's attention: much of this performance made it to the album track (on One Size Fits All), but for the album there were some overdubs and a solo cut in from a different gig (for which refer to volume 2 of the Stage series). Incidentally Inca Roads evolved in public over the span of a year and a half - it was originally an instrumental and can be heard in its most basic form on either the compilation The Lost Episodes or early-1973 live bootlegs (Durham University, Raleigh, is a good one).
So check out the Grand Wazoo, for yourself. True story: Deep Purple, Smoke on the Water. "Frank Zappa and the Mothers were at t eh best place in town"... etc. Some asshat fan tackled Zappa, he fell offstage broke is leg, ended the tour. So, while in wheelchair, frank composes the all instrumental Grand Wazoo, and has his band (who are all on salary) perform record and perfect it instead of touring. it rocks in a very jazzy way. George Duke is on that one as well.
I saw Uncle Frank over 35 times in and around NYC. I first saw Uncle Frank in 1974 when I was fourteen,I was standing directly in front of him at his greatest concert at the Ritz in lower east side of NYC. Uncle Frank was the greatest musical mind that ever walked this Earth..
Once you know this song well enough and you can start to dig into the individual pieces, you can begin to appreciate how truly special this performance is. Frank’s solo is the most beautiful solo I’ve ever heard. Every single note and line is part of a stream of consciousness from Frank’s mind to his guitar. It’s flawless and criminally underrated. That said, your reaction is on point. You are a quick study for sure, and eloquent too. Inca Roads can scare some people off. I’m glad you’re not one of them. I’m here for the Frank. Subbed. Let’s keep it going! Happy 4th if you are here in the USA! As soon as I figure out how to buy you coffee I got you. Please let us watch you react to Watermelon in Easter Hay from the Joe’s Garage album. You will not be disappointed.
Great reaction to what sounds like essentially your second listen to a challenging and hard to categorize, sometimes polarizing artist. Probably one of his most popularly successful periods as a recording artist. Looking forward to more on your channel. Cheers 🍻 👏🏼 👏🏼 😊🤙🏼🎶🔥❤️🍁❤️✨️🕊
Frank Zappa has one of the greatest guitar tone. Love his sound and his solos are so good there isn't a word for how amazing he sounds and plays guitar
Frank's instrumental only Big Band Music is equally amazing. Try Waka-Jawaka, or Big Swifty for a trip into music you have never even thought would exist.
Watching this thing again is like an event! Has to be one of your best reaction videos, despite the incredible complexity of this music and the added claymation video which is mind bending, to say the least!
I've showed this music video to friends while on shrooms, the clay animation is so great along to frank zappa, lol we play a lot of zappa when were on shrooms now. BTW you don't need shrooms to love and listen to Frank Zappa. BTW I am not trying to make others to take shrooms or drugs
Vocals by George Duke, and some scatting by George and Napoleon Murphy Brock - Percussion by Ruth Underwood - This was his best band IMHO. So talented. The clay animation is a distraction I think. I want to see these guys performing. Another great reaction!!!
Agree with both points. Best band to ever grace a stage. Sure do wish there was a version of this video where we could watch that entire guitar solo. It’s sublime. I have to believe it’s in the vault somewhere.
The lyrics are a satire of a book that was popular at the time called Chariots of the Gods which postulated that aliens and flying saucers were the old gods and that ancient civilizations made monuments to them
That's really cool! I do remember the whole Chariots of the Gods thing when it was big. Leave it to Frank Zappa to make it a target for satire! Love and miss him, he was a huge talent!
Right! There's quite a roster of musicians in Frank's band; I'm sure the knowledgeable Zappa fans will tell you who is performing the lead vocals here.
Welcome to Zappa's universe, the deepest most eclectic wonderful rabbit hole one could fall into.You might want it to slow it down a little bit, at the pace you're doing you're going to rip through the really good stuff in 4 or 5 years. P.S. George Duke didn't sing a note when he joined the band, Frank brought it out of him.
I can you feeling daunted just before giving your take on this incredibly complex performance, but, I have to say Philip, from what I'm hearing so far, you're doing your usual fine job with it!
J adore zappa vous devriez aussi écouter muffin man ! Zappa est un musicien classique contemporain extrêmement doué et prolifique il a été beaucoup censuré aux usa, donc il a été obligé de s auto produire ce qui fait de lui une exception zappa avait compris le monde dans lequel nous vivons il n a pas cessé de nous avertir sur la propagande des media et de la santé mentale de la population, et nous y sommes !
Come on Zappa fans! You guys can have your expert input on this program as to what we should be listening to with Frank Zappa! We all know, even those of us novices, that his discography is so complex and lengthy that the input of real fans who were there with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention from the beginning can aid us greatly with coffee suggestions to Philip. Fan reaction has been bigger than I expected. . .a lot of views on Philip's first Zappa program. Looks like Zappa reviews would do well on this channel! Just sayin!
Sounds like you already know. All good. I already requested. One thing I’ve learned is you can’t turn someone’s channel into a Zappa channel, as much as some people would like it. YT Zappa reactors tend to have a short shelf life. Hoping Phillip can stay the course and become a real fan.
@@GoodCorporateRobot he describes himself as an "open book", and displays a real eagerness to learn new music. In speaking with Philip I know these Zappa reactions are a real challenge, but he invests energy and stays with it, and I'm very surprised at his abilitiy to "get" what he just heard. I know he's definitely motivated for more Zappa, but he needs suggestions from long-term Zappa fans who can point out the key tracks/performances in all of the different stages of Frank's incredible career. Hopefully, with baby steps, this channel might be able to be a home for Zappa lovers, fitting them right in with the incredible diversity Philip has alreaady achieved on his channel.
It's not your fault, but I am so sick of that animation. It totally ruins the video in my opinion. I want to see these excellent musicians performing, not a claymation animation. I had to stop watching immediately when the animation started. I wish you had been pointed to or had chosen another version of this excellent Zappa song. I would have like to see your reaction, but not to this version of the song.
RIP Tom Fowler on bass who passed away yesterday 7/2/2024
No kidding! Wow, timely reaction to this song!
Saw him play this. 🙏
@@lesblatnyak5947 amazing! It's incredible just to have witnessed this on a video; can't get my head around seeing this live! Great memory to share-thanks!
Oh? I didn't know.
@lesblatnyak5947 I kno 16:01 w I have! I've been to lots of Frank's shows since the mid seventies
George Duke came into Zappa's band as a classically trained pianist. He played jazz with Jean-Luc Ponty who brought Duke to Frank's attention.
George Duke had no interest in synthesizers, coming from the trained pianist perspective.
He also never sang a note.
Frank wanted George to learn the synthesizer, but he was not interested. Frank bought a unit for him and set it up on his keyboard rig and asked him to just play around with it in his spare time. George did and soon learned of its capabilities and fell in love with it, becoming one of the greats on the instrument. A little prodding by Frank turned George Duke into the synth giant that he became.
As to singing, George also told Frank he didn't sing. Frank fed him one line of this song at a time. Sing this line. Go ahead. Now sing this. On and on until George felt comfortable singing.
Frank hired the best musicians that he could find and then pushed them further out of their own comfort zones to make them even better musicians when they left.
Napoleon Murphy Brock was one of the very few who didn't have to audition to be in the band. Frank saw Nappy playing in Hawai'i and introduced himself. He told him right then to come see his band play when he returned to L.A. and if he liked what he heard, he was in the band. Nappy never heard of Frank and asked him who he had in his band. "Jean-Luc Ponty and George Duke, among others."
Nappy said, "If you have those cats in your band, you must be a hell of a musician."
Nappy saw them play and joined. No audition.
By contrast, watch any video of Zappa musicians talking about their grueling audition. Frank threw impossible note combinations at them to play, sight-reading requirements, etc. and many said they were sure they didn't pass, until Frank assured them that they did.
It was a hell of a band. The various incarnations over his touring career were all stellar but this particular band is generally regarded by fans as the best of them all.
R.I.P. Tom Fowler, bass player in this band.
well said. saved me a bunch of typing....
And George had the most beautiful voice you could imagine.
Saw a show w project object w nappy, Ike Willis and lenny White in st Louis a few years back. Met nappy and got his autograph, really nice guy. Talked to him a few mins. Class act. Ike came into the ladies room in the stall next to my girl. I was pissed when she told me, when I figured out it was him it was almost an honor, lol. Good times
Best band I ever saw. I saw them at two straight Halloween shows and in Passaic, NJ. I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time.
R.I.P Tom Fowler
Ruth Underwood is amazing. Still is. Frank was and always will be a hero to me. My favorite guitarist.
"What did I just listen to. God!" Yes, he was a genius, a god of musical rhythms, melodies, and sounds. He is the most important composer of the modern era. No one else comes close. Keep going, for the rabbit hole is deep, but well worth it. Great review.
RIP Tom Fowler...
George Duke on keyboards and vocals.
Inca Roads is incredible. WILD ride for sure (prog rock). This song is a spoof on those who don't believe the Inca could have made all their roads and suspension bridges by themselves. They did not need aliens from outer space to show them how. It is ironic. Great solos. How they are so tight is a miracle. Yes, their chemistry is like no others.
Hard to believe that anyone could perform that song live and do it perfectly.
As Zappa said: “This song is hard to play, hard to sing and hard to mix”. So they didn’t do it very often on this tour. Plus, it was always evolving. From the live shows I have heard, this may be the first time the finished version was played.
Tell me that Frank doesn't have just the most amazing band and arrangement for live performance! Amazing!
So far no-one's mentioned the writer/producer of the animation - "the amazing" Mr Bruce Bickford.
For Phil's attention: much of this performance made it to the album track (on One Size Fits All), but for the album there were some overdubs and a solo cut in from a different gig (for which refer to volume 2 of the Stage series). Incidentally Inca Roads evolved in public over the span of a year and a half - it was originally an instrumental and can be heard in its most basic form on either the compilation The Lost Episodes or early-1973 live bootlegs (Durham University, Raleigh, is a good one).
This is my favorite Zappa tune.
So check out the Grand Wazoo, for yourself. True story: Deep Purple, Smoke on the Water. "Frank Zappa and the Mothers were at t eh best place in town"... etc. Some asshat fan tackled Zappa, he fell offstage broke is leg, ended the tour. So, while in wheelchair, frank composes the all instrumental Grand Wazoo, and has his band (who are all on salary) perform record and perfect it instead of touring. it rocks in a very jazzy way. George Duke is on that one as well.
George Duke. . .vocals and keyboard work stellar and phenomenal in this performance!
Il chante parfaitement juste ce qui est juste prodigieux
Dig Zappa's "One Size Fits All."
Peace on earth.
i will check it out
I saw Uncle Frank over 35 times in and around NYC. I first saw Uncle Frank in 1974 when I was fourteen,I was standing directly in front of him at his greatest concert at the Ritz in lower east side of NYC. Uncle Frank was the greatest musical mind that ever walked this Earth..
I know: listen to it fifty more times...like me!
Once you know this song well enough and you can start to dig into the individual pieces, you can begin to appreciate how truly special this performance is. Frank’s solo is the most beautiful solo I’ve ever heard. Every single note and line is part of a stream of consciousness from Frank’s mind to his guitar. It’s flawless and criminally underrated. That said, your reaction is on point. You are a quick study for sure, and eloquent too. Inca Roads can scare some people off. I’m glad you’re not one of them. I’m here for the Frank. Subbed. Let’s keep it going! Happy 4th if you are here in the USA!
As soon as I figure out how to buy you coffee I got you. Please let us watch you react to Watermelon in Easter Hay from the Joe’s Garage album. You will not be disappointed.
Chester Thompson on drums, Ruth Underwood on marimba & a lot more percussion and Tom Fowler on base. Great reaction!
How could you fail to mention the late-great George Duke on keyboards and vocals, not to mention Napoleon Murphy Brock on flute and vocals?
@@Le_Serviette_Noir George Duke was already mentioned in an earlier comment and he only asked for the other three (and GD).
@@jonasolsson2256
Ok. Your comment came up first.
Tom Fowler just passed two days ago.
Ed Mann died on May 31 and Tom Fowler. Sad times.
Great reaction to what sounds like essentially your second listen to a challenging and hard to categorize, sometimes polarizing artist.
Probably one of his most popularly successful periods as a recording artist.
Looking forward to more on your channel. Cheers 🍻 👏🏼 👏🏼
😊🤙🏼🎶🔥❤️🍁❤️✨️🕊
Frank will always engage your humdrum
The drummer is Chester Thompson (Ruth is the percussionist). Chester left Zappa to go with Genesis. Both bands blow my mind.
Frank Zappa has one of the greatest guitar tone. Love his sound and his solos are so good there isn't a word for how amazing he sounds and plays guitar
George Duke is fantastic on the keyboards-that solo I am just picking up now is nothing short of amazing!
George Duke on vocals/keyboards
that band is just fantastic, top level everything
💯 agree
Even if you expect the unexpected, you'll get blown out of your socks!
You get it! Great reaction!
You dont multi-task when listening to Zappa, YOU JUST LISTEN!
Zappa Lives!
yes sir
@@PhiliminizzyReacts Not saying you were multi-tasking 🙂, just that you'll cheat yourself if you are when listening to Zappa!
Zappa Lives!
Welcome in our rabbit hole!
Zappa Lives!
Vocals: the late, great, George Duke.
Frank's instrumental only Big Band Music is equally amazing. Try Waka-Jawaka, or Big Swifty for a trip into music you have never even thought would exist.
Grand Wazoo
Watching this thing again is like an event! Has to be one of your best reaction videos, despite the incredible complexity of this music and the added claymation video which is mind bending, to say the least!
Glad you enjoyed it
@@PhiliminizzyReacts loved it!!!
I've showed this music video to friends while on shrooms, the clay animation is so great along to frank zappa, lol we play a lot of zappa when were on shrooms now. BTW you don't need shrooms to love and listen to Frank Zappa. BTW I am not trying to make others to take shrooms or drugs
I get the distinct feeling this is going to be an awesome reaction program!
Now you have finally heard real music.
Vocals by George Duke, and some scatting by George and Napoleon Murphy Brock - Percussion by Ruth Underwood - This was his best band IMHO. So talented. The clay animation is a distraction I think. I want to see these guys performing. Another great reaction!!!
Agree with both points. Best band to ever grace a stage. Sure do wish there was a version of this video where we could watch that entire guitar solo. It’s sublime. I have to believe it’s in the vault somewhere.
The lyrics are a satire of a book that was popular at the time called Chariots of the Gods which postulated that aliens and flying saucers were the old gods and that ancient civilizations made monuments to them
That's really cool! I do remember the whole Chariots of the Gods thing when it was big. Leave it to Frank Zappa to make it a target for satire! Love and miss him, he was a huge talent!
So Graham Hancock was right allalong 😢
Breathtaking, ain't it?
Right! There's quite a roster of musicians in Frank's band; I'm sure the knowledgeable Zappa fans will tell you who is performing the lead vocals here.
This is the song that made get into his music Big fan since
Welcome to Zappa's universe, the deepest most eclectic wonderful rabbit hole one could fall into.You might want it to slow it down a little bit, at the pace you're doing you're going to rip through the really good stuff in 4 or 5 years. P.S. George Duke didn't sing a note when he joined the band, Frank brought it out of him.
Alix777 states its George Duke on vocals and keyboard for Frank's band.
I can you feeling daunted just before giving your take on this incredibly complex performance, but, I have to say Philip, from what I'm hearing so far, you're doing your usual fine job with it!
J adore zappa vous devriez aussi écouter muffin man ! Zappa est un musicien classique contemporain extrêmement doué et prolifique il a été beaucoup censuré aux usa, donc il a été obligé de s auto produire ce qui fait de lui une exception zappa avait compris le monde dans lequel nous vivons il n a pas cessé de nous avertir sur la propagande des media et de la santé mentale de la population, et nous y sommes !
Come on Zappa fans! You guys can have your expert input on this program as to what we should be listening to with Frank Zappa! We all know, even those of us novices, that his discography is so complex and lengthy that the input of real fans who were there with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention from the beginning can aid us greatly with coffee suggestions to Philip.
Fan reaction has been bigger than I expected. . .a lot of views on Philip's first Zappa program. Looks like Zappa reviews would do well on this channel! Just sayin!
Sounds like you already know. All good. I already requested. One thing I’ve learned is you can’t turn someone’s channel into a Zappa channel, as much as some people would like it. YT Zappa reactors tend to have a short shelf life. Hoping Phillip can stay the course and become a real fan.
@@GoodCorporateRobot he describes himself as an "open book", and displays a real eagerness to learn new music. In speaking with Philip I know these Zappa reactions are a real challenge, but he invests energy and stays with it, and I'm very surprised at his abilitiy to "get" what he just heard. I know he's definitely motivated for more Zappa, but he needs suggestions from long-term Zappa fans who can point out the key tracks/performances in all of the different stages of Frank's incredible career. Hopefully, with baby steps, this channel might be able to be a home for Zappa lovers, fitting them right in with the incredible diversity Philip has alreaady achieved on his channel.
The George Duke catalog is dear to me
It's "Blew me away" Brother. "Blew me off" is an entirely different thing. Uh Ummm.... 😂
Bruce
sorry, but I like the record version much better, even though I can move my fingers through most of it, which tells you how tightly it is composed
True. Animation distracts from the real star, that is the music.
George Duke
You have fallen down a rabbit hole
1973,?
You do definitely look worn out by the end of the video! You had to work hard to follow this one!
I did! but loved every second listening to it
It's not your fault, but I am so sick of that animation. It totally ruins the video in my opinion. I want to see these excellent musicians performing, not a claymation animation. I had to stop watching immediately when the animation started. I wish you had been pointed to or had chosen another version of this excellent Zappa song. I would have like to see your reaction, but not to this version of the song.
ZAPPA... ZAP-PA... Not ZEH-PUH.... Jeez!!!!
George Duke