It is common for me to hear someone to describe Frank Zappa as a musical genius.  Before his time.  Way underrated.

Why?

I never really have listened to much of his stuff...but in the past couple of days I have listened to a few of his songs.  It's pretty much goofy stuff along the lines of Weird Al Yankovic.  It's mildly entertaining but I am certainly not picking up anything revolutionary.

What am I missing here.

It's nothing like Weird Al Yankovic.

Zappa might not be to everyone's taste, but he was a great innovator and brilliant musician.
The "goofiness" is what kept him from the mainstream.

Mark

Yeah you are right...Weird Al was a bad analogy.  Al does parodies.

Zappa is still a goof though in my book.

Don't eat the yellow snow.

Dont eat the yellow snow. Seriously he made some interesting if not great in the day stuff depending on your tastes and state of stoneness.
On the other hand if you ever listened to his instrumental only stuff he WAS one of the finest guitarists to grace the planet.
One of my personal favs was steamy little jewish princess not to mention bobby brown. funny stuff.
GREAT GOOGELY MOOGELY

Can anyone recomend a few songs by Frank Zappa that are worth internet piracy?

I don't know...

But some of his kids are real nice. I sat next to Dweezle (SP?) and Moon at a Sam Kinison gig. I was there an hour early and so were they and we just chatted to kill time.

"Titties & Beer" from Zappa In New York.

Quoted: Can anyone recomend a few songs by Frank Zappa that are worth internet piracy?

Dinah-Moe Humm Lyrics

I couldn't say where she's coming' from,
But I just met a lady named Dinah-Moe Humm

She stroll on over, say look here, bum,
I got a forty dollar bill say you can't make me cum
(Y'jes can't do it)

She made a bet with her sister who's a little dumb
She could prove it any time all men was scum

I don't mind that she called me a bum,
But I knew right away she was really gonna cum
(So I got down to it)

I whipped off her bloomers'n stiffened my thumb
An' applied rotation on her sugar plum

I poked'n stroked till my wrist got numb
But I still didn't hear no Dinah-Moe Humm,
Dinah-Moe Humm

Dinah-Moe Humm
Dinah-Moe Humm
Where this Dinah-Moe
Comin' from
Done spent three hours
An' I ain't got a crumb
From the Dinah-Moe, Dinah-Moe, Dinah-Moe
From the Dinah-Moe Humm

I got a spot that gets me hot
But you ain't been to it
I got a spot that gets me hot
But you ain't been to it
I got a spot that gets me hot
But you ain't been to it
I got a spot that gets me hot
But you ain't been to it
'Cause I can't get into it
Unless I get out of it
An' I gotta get out of it
Before I get into it
'Cause I never get into it
Unless I get out of it
An' I gotta be out of it
To get myself into it

(She looked over at me with a glazed eye
And some bovine perspiration on her upper lip area
And she said...)

Just get me wasted
An' you're half-way there
'Cause if my mind's tore up
Then my body don't care

I rubbed my chinny-chin-chin
An' said my-my-my
What sort of thing
Might this lady get high upon?

I checked out her sister
Who was holdin' the bet
An' wondered what kind of trip
The young lady was on

The forty dollar bill didn't matter no more
When her sister got nekkid an' laid on the floor
She said Dinah-Moe might win the bet
But she could use a little ________ if I wasn't done yet

I told her...
Just because the sun
Want a place in the sky
No reason to assume
I wouldn't give her a try

So I pulled on her hair
Got her legs in the air
An' asked if she had any cooties on there

(Whaddya mean cooties! No cooties on me!)

She was buns-up kneelin'
BUNS UP!
I was wheelin' an dealin'
WHEELIN' AN' DEALIN' AN OOOOH!
She surrended to the feelin'
SHE SWEETLY SURRENDERED
An' she started in to squealin'

Dinah-Moe watched from the edge of the bed
With her lips just a-twitchin' an' her face gone red
Some drool rollin' down
From the edge of her chin
While she spied the condition
Her sister was in
She quivered 'n quaked
An' clutched at herself
While her sister made a joke
'Bout her mental health
'Till Dinah-Moe finally
Did give in
But I told her
All she really needed
Was some discipline...

Kiss my aura...Dora...
M-M-M...it's real angora
Would y'all like some more-a?
Right here on the flora?
An' how 'bout you, Fauna?
Y'wanna?

MMM...sound like y'might be chokin' on somethin'

Did you say you want some more?
Well, here's some more...

MMM, sure...listen
D'you think I could interest you
In a pair of zircon-encrusted tweezers?

MMM...tweezers!
Here, lemme sterilize 'em...
Gimme your lighter...

I couldn't say where she's coming' from,
But I just met a lady named Dinah-Moe Humm

She stroll on over, say look here, bum,
I got a forty dollar bill say you can't make me cum
(Y'jes can't do it)

I whipped off her bloomers'n stiffened my thumb
An' applied rotation on her sugar plum

I poked'n stroked till my wrist got numb
An' you know I heard some Dinah-Moe Humm,
Dinah-Moe Humm

Dinah-Moe
Dinah-Moe
Dinah-Moe
Dinah-Moe

Quoted: Can anyone recomend a few songs by Frank Zappa that are worth internet piracy?

Montana

Quoted: Dont eat the yellow snow. Seriously he made some interesting if not great in the day stuff depending on your tastes and state of stoneness. On the other hand if you ever listened to his instrumental only stuff he WAS one of the finest guitarists to grace the planet. One of my personal favs was steamy little jewish princess not to mention bobby brown. funny stuff. GREAT GOOGELY MOOGELY

We had a CC in boot camp that always responded to stupidity with "GREAT GOOGELY MOOGELY". It was hard not to laugh He always inserted that quote between "What are yall, a bunch of retards ? " and  "you fuckin' dumbasses are gonna pay for this one"  

Zappa music is not to everyones taste...However; his type of "ouside of the box" thinking is where people like Steve Vai come from.
Vai got his start working with Frank Zappa, and learned alot about "unconventional" musicianship from him.
It shows in Steve Vai's INCREDIBLE guitar work, and ability to make music out of sounds and teshniques that would not normally be considered musical.

Quoted: Zappa music is not to everyones taste...However; his type of "ouside of the box" thinking is where people like Steve Vai come from. Vai got his start working with Frank Zappa, and learned alot about "unconventional" musicianship from him. It shows in Steve Vai's INCREDIBLE guitar work, and ability to make music out of sounds and teshniques that would not normally be considered musical.

I may not be a Zappa fan, but I'm a Vai fan for sure (was listening to Passion and Warfare earlier tonight).  Now I may have to go revisit some Zappa stuff.....


Woody

Quoted: Quoted: Zappa music is not to everyones taste...However; his type of "ouside of the box" thinking is where people like Steve Vai come from. Vai got his start working with Frank Zappa, and learned alot about "unconventional" musicianship from him. It shows in Steve Vai's INCREDIBLE guitar work, and ability to make music out of sounds and teshniques that would not normally be considered musical. I may not be a Zappa fan, but I'm a Vai fan for sure (was listening to Passion and Warfare earlier tonight).  Now I may have to go revisit some Zappa stuff..... Woody

If you can get a copy of Zappa's "Us or Them", you'll hear lots of prime Vai. Zappa's genius is as a composer. He wrote every note, every nuance of his music, which was usually complex enough to require a small orchestra to perform. Way back when MTV first started out, when they were still all about music, they aired a Zappa concert. That one show won MTV a lot of viewers by itself (most of which tuned back out as MTV turned into what it did). Frank stood in front of the group, directing them as a conductor, and occasionally turning to face the audience to play a blistering guitar solo, then going back to being the conductor. It was one of those things musicians appreciated greatly, but the masses just didn't understand. 200 years from now, his music will be routinely disected and analyzed much as Bach, Mozart, etc. is today. He was a twisted genius.

Quoted: I may not be a Zappa fan, but I'm a Vai fan for sure (was listening to Passion and Warfare earlier tonight).  Now I may have to go revisit some Zappa stuff..... Woody

Zappa always had great players like Vai, Terry Bozzio, Adrian Belew, Ian Underwood, George Duke, Lowell George, the Brecker Brothers and other musicians.  Not to mention Zappa's own guitar prowess.

Biography
by William Ruhlmann

Frank Zappa was one of the most accomplished composers of the rock era; his music combines an understanding of and appreciation for such contemporary classical figures as Stravinsky, Stockhausen, and Varèse with an affection for late-'50s doo wop rock & roll and a facility for the guitar-heavy rock that dominated pop in the '70s. But Zappa was also a satirist whose reserves of scorn seemed bottomless and whose wicked sense of humor and absurdity have delighted his numerous fans, even when his lyrics crossed over the broadest bounds of taste. Finally, Zappa was perhaps the most prolific record-maker of his time, turning out massive amounts of music on his own Barking Pumpkin label and through distribution deals with Rykodisc and Rhino after long, unhappy associations with industry giants like Warner Brothers and the now-defunct MGM.

Zappa became interested in music early and pursued his studies in school, up through a six-month stint at Chaffey College in Alta Loma, CA. He scored a couple of low-budget films and used the money to buy a low-budget recording studio. In 1964, he joined a local band called the Soul Giants, which, over the course of the next two years, evolved into the Mothers, who played songs written by Zappa. The band was signed to the Verve division of MGM by producer Tom Wilson in 1966 and recorded its first album, a two-LP set called Freak Out!, which introduced Zappa's interests in both serious music and pop as well as his scathing wit. (Verve insisted on adding "of Invention" to the band's name.)

Subsequent albums extended the musical and lyrical themes of the debut, and they came frequently. Three albums, for example, hit the charts in 1968: We're Only in It for the Money, a Mothers album that made fun of hippies and Sgt. Pepper; Lumpy Gravy, a Zappa solo album recorded with an orchestra; and Cruising With Ruben & the Jets, on which the Mothers played neo-doo wop. Toward the end of the '60s, Zappa expanded the Mothers lineup, turning more toward instrumental jazz-rock, much of which displayed his technically accomplished guitar playing. But by the end of the decade, he had broken up the band.

In 1970, however, Zappa reassembled a new edition of the Mothers, featuring former Turtles lead singers Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan as frontmen. The lineup moved the group more in the direction of X-rated comedy, notably on the album Fillmore East: June 1971, but it was short-lived: during a performance at the Rainbow Theatre in London, Zappa was pushed from the stage by a demented fan and seriously injured.

While he recovered, Zappa released several albums, then he re-formed the Mothers with himself as lead singer and made pop/rock albums such as Over-nite Sensation that were among his best-selling records ever. By the end of the '70s, Zappa was recording on his own labels, distributed in some cases by the majors, and he had attracted a consistent cult following for both his humor and his complex music. (Zappa's band, in fact, became a training ground for high-quality rock musicians, much as Miles Davis' was for jazz players.)

In the '80s, Zappa gained the rights to his old albums and began to reissue them, at first on his own and then through the pioneering Rykodisc CD label. He wrote his autobiography and embarked on a world tour in 1988. That was the end of his live performing, except for such isolated appearances as one in Czechoslovakia at the invitation of its post-Communist president, Zappa fan Vaclav Havel. In late 1991, it was confirmed that Zappa was seriously ill with cancer. Nevertheless, his schedule of album releases continued to be rapid. Zappa died in December of 1993, with a number of posthumous releases to follow.

www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=ADFEAEE57316DA46AD7020D6993D459DB772D207DF53F68B0D2E4F42CFFB3F4D99117BB80BFF9187ECF239B666AEFE31A65A0FD586EA5CFCD56C3F399D9FDB&sql=11:3p8n1vajzzva~T1

Quoted: ...but in the past couple of days I have listened to a few of his songs.  It's pretty much goofy stuff along the lines of Weird Al Yankovic.  It's mildly entertaining but I am certainly not picking up anything revolutionary. What am I missing here.

You're hearing the music that Zappa did for mass consumption.  For each album that he did with humorous tunes, he'd release a bunch of albums of more serious music.  Closer to jazz or classical music, they were too far out to make it onto the airwaves, even back in the days of 1970s FM rock radio.

The first biography of Zappa was titled, "No Commercial Potential."  Zappa was talented enough to produce records with great music that didn't have mass appeal but smart enough to produce satirical, humorous records with commercial potential that paid the bills.

"the poodle bites"
"the poodle chews it"
"c'mon frenchie"





"Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers"

ETA: time to break out the Zappa CD's

You can get some (free) Zappa audio and video here -
blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2006/02/maybe_its_not_t.html

Some of the tunes are samples and some are full-length.  

ETA:  Actually, I think all the songs are full-length, the stream was just cutting out on one or two of the songs.  There are a couple of older records here - audio of the full albums.

It's always hard to believe Zapta was chemically straight and didn't use anything but coffee and cigarettes.

Maybe cause it take a lot of balls to go on national TV and play a bicycle . Or maybe it was his passion for fighting musical censorship even for people he personally couldn't stand .

One of the first people to realize Tipper Gore was a bookburning moonbat nazi.

Quoted: Can anyone recomend a few songs by Frank Zappa that are worth internet piracy?

The Illinois Enema Bandit, MudShark, Chunga's Revenge, to name a few.

Quoted: Quoted: Can anyone recomend a few songs by Frank Zappa that are worth internet piracy? Dinah-Moe Humm Lyrics

Is that a Mexican poncho or is that a Sears poncho?

Also look for "Billy the Mountain" from the album "Just Another Band From L.A."

jewish princess
idiot bastard son
po-jama people
why does it hurt when i pee

Frank was one hell of a Technical Guitarist.  Pirate the Overnite Sensation Album and the Song Billy the Mountain ( a full album side).  

Some "goofy" Zappa albums (CDs) that are my faves are Live at the Filmore East, Shiek Yerbouti, and Joe's Garage.  I saw Frank Zappa in concert in Boulder early 80s, it was a great show, he was either sitting on a stool playing guitar or directing the band ( about 10 members) this was for the Ship too late to save a drowning witch album.

Anybody here remember the 'Joe's Garage' albums? I loved to hear "Wet T-Shirt Nite", "Catholic Girls" etc. I think I've still got the cassette tape somewhere around here!

Sure, Zappa wrote songs like Yellow Snow, Titties n' Beer and Valley Girls but his true love was composing for symphonic orchestras.  In addition to his extraordinary guitar skills, he actually could read and write complex music.  Not many youth targeted musicians of the day had those skills.  Remember, only one of the Monkees could even play an instrument when they were number one on the charts.  Popularity does not equal talent in the music business.

Most of his serious music is unknown by the general public.  His musical talent is not be based on songs like the Illinois Edema Bandit and other "frat house" offerings.  To get a better understanding of what Zappa was about, listen to Zappa albums like Hot Rats, Lather, The Grand Wazoo,  London Symphony Orchestra, Vol. I & Vol. II, The Yellow Shark and EIHN - Everything Is Healing Nicely.

Zappa Family Web Site
www.zappa.com

And don't forget his autobiography!

he used to play NYC every Halloween, awesome

Stinkfoot is a great song

Apostrophe is a great album

I was around when he was. Most of the other musicians, yes I am one, who liked him were dopers. I guess his stuff sounded good when you were stoned.

See if you can find his cover of the Allman Brothers Whipping Post. Note for note perfect.

Joe's Garage
The Muffin Man
Titties N' Beer
Broken Hearts Are for Assholes
Jewish Princess
Baby Snakes
Don't Eat The Yellow Snow
Why Does It Hurt When I Pee?
Wet T-Shirt Night
Flakes

Zappa was brilliant and a true original.  He also has some ummm...interesting covers of other musicians.  Check out Ring of Fire, and Stairway To Heaven as interpreted by FZ!

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Can anyone recomend a few songs by Frank Zappa that are worth internet piracy? Dinah-Moe Humm Lyrics Is that a Mexican poncho or is that a Sears poncho? Also look for "Billy the Mountain" from the album "Just Another Band From L.A."

That reminds me...
I've gotta go down to the Ralph's on Sunset and pick up some Aunt Jemima Syrup, some Kaiser Broiler Foil, and a pair of blunt scissors.  

Frank's gravesite:

Westwood Memorial Park
Los Angeles
Los Angeles County
California, USA
Plot: Section D, #100 [unmarked]
GPS (lat/lon): 34.05823, -118.4416

Quoted: ... Stinkfoot is a great song ...

Frank Zappa - Stink Foot Lyrics
In the dark
Where all the fevers grow
Under the water
Where the shark bubbles blow
In the mornin'
By yer radio
Do the walls close in t' suffocate ya
You ain't got no friends . . .
An' all the others: they hate ya
Does the life you been livin' gotta go, hmmm?
Well, lemme straighten you out
About a place I know . . .
(Get yer shoes 'n socks on people,
It's right aroun' the corner!)
Out through the night
An' the whispering breezes
To the place where they keep
The Imaginary Diseases,
Out through the night
An' the whispering breezes
To the place where they keep
The Imaginary Diseases, mmm . . .

This has to be the disease for you
Now scientists call this disease
Bromidrosis
But us regular folks
Who might wear tennis shoes
Or an occasional python boot
Know this exquisite little inconvenience
By the name of:
STINK FOOT
Y'know, my python boot is too tight
I couldn't get it off last night
A week went by, an' now it's July
I finally got it off
An' my girl-friend cry
"You got STINK FOOT!
STINK FOOT, darlin'
Your STINK FOOT puts a hurt on my nose!
STINK FOOT! STINK FOOT! I ain't lyin',
Can you rinse it off, d'you suppose?"
Here Fido . . . Fido . . .
C'mere little puppy . . . bring the slippers
"Arf, arf, arf!" (crash-crumble-bump-bump-bump)
Heh heh heh . . . sick . . .

Well then Fido got up off the floor an' he rolled over
An' he looked me straight in the eye
An' you know what he said?
Once upon a time
Somebody say to me
(This is a dog talkin' now)
What is your Conceptual Continuity?
Well, I told him right then
(Fido said)
It should be easy to see
The crux of the biscuit
Is the Apostrophe(')
Well, you know
The man who was talkin' to the dog
Looked at the dog an' he said: (sort of staring in desbelief)
"You can't say that!"
He said:
"IT DOESN'T, 'n YOU CAN'T!
I WON'T, 'n IT DON'T!
IT HASN'T, IT ISN'T, IT EVEN AIN'T
'N IT SHOULDN'T . . .
IT COULDN'T!"
He told me NO NO NO!
I told him YES YES YES!
I said: "I do it all the time . . .
Ain't this boogie a mess!"
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
(POO-DLE . . . )
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
( . . . BITES)
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
(POO-DLE . . . )
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
( . . . BITES)
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
(POO-DLE . . . )
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
( . . . BITES)
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
(POO-DLE . . . )
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
( . . . BITES)
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES

Quoted: if you have to ask you just won't understand

count me in on the not understanding side.

hooray for song lyrics about pissy snow and stinky feet