Zappa was and remains an under appreciated political/cultural genius savant…talk about gone too soon…if he didn’t die young “they” would have had to murder him.
Wikipedia highlights of why the Musical Sage died:
Accident, attack and aftermath
On December 4, 1971, Zappa suffered his first of two serious setbacks. While performing at Casino de Montreux in Switzerland, the Mothers’ equipment was destroyed when a flare set off by an audience member started a fire that burned down the casino. Immortalized in Deep Purple’s song “Smoke on the Water”, the event and immediate aftermath can be heard on the bootleg album Swiss Cheese/Fire, released legally as part of Zappa’s Beat the Boots II compilation. After losing $50,000 (equivalent to $302,000 in 2017) worth of equipment and a week’s break, the Mothers played at the Rainbow Theatre, London, with rented gear. During the encore, audience member Trevor Howell pushed Zappa off the stage and into the concrete-floored orchestra pit. The band thought Zappa had been killed—he had suffered serious fractures, head trauma and injuries to his back, leg, and neck, as well as a crushed larynx, which ultimately caused his voice to drop a third after healing.
This attack resulted in an extended period of wheelchair confinement, making touring impossible for over half a year. Upon return to the stage in September 1972, Zappa was still wearing a leg brace, had a noticeable limp and could not stand for very long while on stage. Zappa noted that one leg healed “shorter than the other” (a reference later found in the lyrics of songs “Zomby Woof” and “Dancin’ Fool”), resulting in chronic back pain.
Meanwhile, the Mothers were left in limbo and eventually formed the core of Flo and Eddie’s band as they set out on their own.
During 1971–72 Zappa released two strongly jazz-oriented solo LPs, Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo, which were recorded during the forced layoff from concert touring, using floating line-ups of session players and Mothers alumni. Musically, the albums were akin to Hot Rats, in that they featured extended instrumental tracks with extended soloing.
Zappa began touring again in late 1972. His first effort was a series of concerts in September 1972 with a 20-piece big band referred to as the Grand Wazoo. This was followed by a scaled-down version known as the Petit Wazoo that toured the U.S. for five weeks from October to December 1972.
In 1990, Zappa was diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer. The disease had been developing unnoticed for ten years and was considered inoperable. After the diagnosis, Zappa devoted most of his energy to modern orchestral and Synclavier works. Shortly before his death in 1993 he completed Civilization Phaze III, a major Synclavier work which he had begun in the 1980s.
In 1991, Zappa was chosen to be one of four featured composers at the Frankfurt Festival in 1992 (the others were John Cage, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and Alexander Knaifel). Zappa was approached by the German chamber ensemble Ensemble Modern which was interested in playing his music for the event. Although ill, he invited them to Los Angeles for rehearsals of new compositions and new arrangements of older material. Zappa also got along with the musicians, and the concerts in Germany and Austria were set up for later in the year.
Zappa also performed in 1991 in Prague, claiming that “was the first time that he had a reason to play his guitar in 3 years”, and that that moment was just “the beginning of a new country”, and asked the public to “try to keep your country unique, do not change it into something else”.
In September 1992, the concerts went ahead as scheduled but Zappa could only appear at two in Frankfurt due to illness. At the first concert, he conducted the opening “Overture”, and the final “G-Spot Tornado” as well as the theatrical “Food Gathering in Post-Industrial America, 1992” and “Welcome to the United States” (the remainder of the program was conducted by the ensemble’s regular conductor Peter Rundel). Zappa received a 20-minute ovation.
G-Spot Tornado was performed with Canadian dancer Louise Lecavalier. It was his last professional public appearance as the cancer was spreading to such an extent that he was in too much pain to enjoy an event that he otherwise found “exhilarating”.[11]:371 Recordings from the concerts appeared on The Yellow Shark (1993), Zappa’s last release during his lifetime, and some material from studio rehearsals appeared on the posthumous Everything Is Healing Nicely (1999).
Death
Zappa died, after his long battle with prostate cancer, on December 4, 1993, just 18 days before his 53rd birthday at his home with his wife and children by his side. At a private ceremony the following day, his body was buried in a grave at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery, in Los Angeles. The grave is unmarked. On December 6, his family publicly announced that “Composer Frank Zappa left for his final tour just before 6:00 pm on Saturday”.
He doesn’t get much recognition for his incredible guitar skills either.
Jimmy Torpedo
March 26, 2018 9:16 am
I wish Frank was still around.
I would love to hear his take on affairs now.
I think he was the first to say, “Politics is show business for ugly people”
My favorite: “Communism will never work people like to own stuff.”
Simplistic truth boiled down to single sentence brevity.
Martel's Hammer
March 26, 2018 10:03 am
With the Trump betrayal on Omnibus we shall likely be seeing some kind of brick wall (just not a border wall) soon. The Deep State is in panic and aggressively defending its ownership of the USA from the peasants. But the long arc of history does indeed bend towards freedom and autonomy of the individual but seldom does it go in a straight line.
Trump left us or was co-opted by Mueller (certainly Stormy is no threat based on last night)…brace for impact. Frank “weasels ripped my flesh” Zappa was indeed awesome. Anybody remember Ice Cream for Crow from Captain Beefheart?
Miles Long
March 26, 2018 3:04 pm
“… we get to sit around at home & watch this thing begin , but I bet there wont be many live to see it really end.”
Written over 50 years ago during the Watts riots in the mid 60s & included on the 1st Mothers album. No metaphors in this one, just Frank.
His old man was in army G-2, then after the war he stayed in intelligence for the government. Frank knew what he was talking about.
In a word: articulate.
Zappa was actually a genius in his own right, but doesn’t get the credit for it as he should be.
Zappa was and remains an under appreciated political/cultural genius savant…talk about gone too soon…if he didn’t die young “they” would have had to murder him.
Why do you think he died so young ?
Wikipedia highlights of why the Musical Sage died:
Accident, attack and aftermath
On December 4, 1971, Zappa suffered his first of two serious setbacks. While performing at Casino de Montreux in Switzerland, the Mothers’ equipment was destroyed when a flare set off by an audience member started a fire that burned down the casino. Immortalized in Deep Purple’s song “Smoke on the Water”, the event and immediate aftermath can be heard on the bootleg album Swiss Cheese/Fire, released legally as part of Zappa’s Beat the Boots II compilation. After losing $50,000 (equivalent to $302,000 in 2017) worth of equipment and a week’s break, the Mothers played at the Rainbow Theatre, London, with rented gear. During the encore, audience member Trevor Howell pushed Zappa off the stage and into the concrete-floored orchestra pit. The band thought Zappa had been killed—he had suffered serious fractures, head trauma and injuries to his back, leg, and neck, as well as a crushed larynx, which ultimately caused his voice to drop a third after healing.
This attack resulted in an extended period of wheelchair confinement, making touring impossible for over half a year. Upon return to the stage in September 1972, Zappa was still wearing a leg brace, had a noticeable limp and could not stand for very long while on stage. Zappa noted that one leg healed “shorter than the other” (a reference later found in the lyrics of songs “Zomby Woof” and “Dancin’ Fool”), resulting in chronic back pain.
Meanwhile, the Mothers were left in limbo and eventually formed the core of Flo and Eddie’s band as they set out on their own.
During 1971–72 Zappa released two strongly jazz-oriented solo LPs, Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo, which were recorded during the forced layoff from concert touring, using floating line-ups of session players and Mothers alumni. Musically, the albums were akin to Hot Rats, in that they featured extended instrumental tracks with extended soloing.
Zappa began touring again in late 1972. His first effort was a series of concerts in September 1972 with a 20-piece big band referred to as the Grand Wazoo. This was followed by a scaled-down version known as the Petit Wazoo that toured the U.S. for five weeks from October to December 1972.
In 1990, Zappa was diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer. The disease had been developing unnoticed for ten years and was considered inoperable. After the diagnosis, Zappa devoted most of his energy to modern orchestral and Synclavier works. Shortly before his death in 1993 he completed Civilization Phaze III, a major Synclavier work which he had begun in the 1980s.
In 1991, Zappa was chosen to be one of four featured composers at the Frankfurt Festival in 1992 (the others were John Cage, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and Alexander Knaifel). Zappa was approached by the German chamber ensemble Ensemble Modern which was interested in playing his music for the event. Although ill, he invited them to Los Angeles for rehearsals of new compositions and new arrangements of older material. Zappa also got along with the musicians, and the concerts in Germany and Austria were set up for later in the year.
Zappa also performed in 1991 in Prague, claiming that “was the first time that he had a reason to play his guitar in 3 years”, and that that moment was just “the beginning of a new country”, and asked the public to “try to keep your country unique, do not change it into something else”.
In September 1992, the concerts went ahead as scheduled but Zappa could only appear at two in Frankfurt due to illness. At the first concert, he conducted the opening “Overture”, and the final “G-Spot Tornado” as well as the theatrical “Food Gathering in Post-Industrial America, 1992” and “Welcome to the United States” (the remainder of the program was conducted by the ensemble’s regular conductor Peter Rundel). Zappa received a 20-minute ovation.
G-Spot Tornado was performed with Canadian dancer Louise Lecavalier. It was his last professional public appearance as the cancer was spreading to such an extent that he was in too much pain to enjoy an event that he otherwise found “exhilarating”.[11]:371 Recordings from the concerts appeared on The Yellow Shark (1993), Zappa’s last release during his lifetime, and some material from studio rehearsals appeared on the posthumous Everything Is Healing Nicely (1999).
Death
Zappa died, after his long battle with prostate cancer, on December 4, 1993, just 18 days before his 53rd birthday at his home with his wife and children by his side. At a private ceremony the following day, his body was buried in a grave at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery, in Los Angeles. The grave is unmarked. On December 6, his family publicly announced that “Composer Frank Zappa left for his final tour just before 6:00 pm on Saturday”.
He doesn’t get much recognition for his incredible guitar skills either.
I wish Frank was still around.
I would love to hear his take on affairs now.
I think he was the first to say, “Politics is show business for ugly people”
https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/frank_zappa
My favorite: “Communism will never work people like to own stuff.”
Simplistic truth boiled down to single sentence brevity.
With the Trump betrayal on Omnibus we shall likely be seeing some kind of brick wall (just not a border wall) soon. The Deep State is in panic and aggressively defending its ownership of the USA from the peasants. But the long arc of history does indeed bend towards freedom and autonomy of the individual but seldom does it go in a straight line.
Trump left us or was co-opted by Mueller (certainly Stormy is no threat based on last night)…brace for impact. Frank “weasels ripped my flesh” Zappa was indeed awesome. Anybody remember Ice Cream for Crow from Captain Beefheart?
“… we get to sit around at home & watch this thing begin , but I bet there wont be many live to see it really end.”
Written over 50 years ago during the Watts riots in the mid 60s & included on the 1st Mothers album. No metaphors in this one, just Frank.
The words are here: http://www.lyricsfreak.com/t/the+mothers+of+invention/trouble+every+day_20484663.html