thirdform

pass the sick bucket
I listened to 3 minutes of it and it sounded like frank zappa on crystal meth. Given I hate the straight Frank Zappa...
 

poetix

we murder to dissect
I have an abiding soft spot for Zappa. I had a big enough Zappa phase as a teen that I actually had a poster of Zappa, sitting on the toilet, in my room at uni. Got me laid a lot, that did.

Nowadays it's mostly about liking the guitar soloes, which is almost certainly not the thing about Zappa Ben Watson likes.

But, I dunno, Zappa was just very emphatically his slightly grotesque self, would not be persuaded by anything or anyone to tone it down. Horrible, arrogant, self-regard - maybe. But I also take it as fighting one's corner, demanding that there be a place in the world for something as misshapen as oneself, to the point of spamming the world with as much of oneself - meticulously archived, every live show taped and indexed - as one possibly can.

I like that Ruth Underwood (the Mothers' fantastic xylophone player) remembers him with great affection and gratitude. He was often shitty about women, and sometimes a shit to them, but he always made room for fellow-travellers whoever they might be.
 

thirdform

pass the sick bucket
Sure, but there are better composer/improviser types who stuck to their guns and were much more uncompromising. Fred Frith for one.
 

luka

Well-known member
its not really the same thing is it. i cant stand Zappa i think it's the worst music in the world but i dunno
 

luka

Well-known member
people who like Zappa like him partly becase hes naughty. they partly like him cos his enture body of work is a dense and allusive and self-referential text they can pore over and interpret in detail as Ben does in his Zappa book. they partly like him cos of the muscianship and fancy guitar solos. they partly like him as a kind of guru figure who guides them on their path through life.
 

luka

Well-known member
for some people that sort of silliness and anti-reverence is important, specially when theyre young. all that mocking and sneering. different people need different things dont they. it depends a lot on what youre starting point is
 

thirdform

pass the sick bucket
for some people that sort of silliness and anti-reverence is important, specially when theyre young. all that mocking and sneering. different people need different things dont they. it depends a lot on what youre starting point is

Sounds very Gus this.
 

thirdform

pass the sick bucket
this is not an attack btw. I don't think Gus likes Zappa. But it's a similar kind of personality that is drawn to Zappa.
 

WashYourHands

Cat Malogen
Zappa is the tits, fuck the haters

Moving to Montana soon,
gonna be a dental floss tycoooon


It's a miserable Friday night
I'm so lonely
And nobody'll give me a ride
To the Grateful Dead concert...oh rats!
I got to be free
Free as the wind
Free is the way
I got to be
Maybe I'm lost
Maybe I sinned
I got to be
Totally free

 

IdleRich

IdleRich
Kinda funny (to me) that this thread has suddenly resurfaced and it's got me in it worrying about people being certain and confidently stating facts, and I just said something very similar in another thread that came to the fore. At least I'm consistent I guess.
 
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