Notes & Comments - Zappa In New York
13 March 1978, 101:53 min
Live at Palladium, New York, Christmas week 1976
Discography
| Notes & Comments
ZAPPA IN NEW YORK
Notes and Comments
ver.28-Jun-1996
put together by
Vladimir Sovetov
lyrics transcribed
by alas :-(
unknown netter
with
FZ vs. Warner Brs. Story
or
Lather/Laether/Leather
Special Appendix
special thanks
to
ulrich@sfu.ca (Charles Ulrich)
John Henley
Bill Lantz
jonno
Titties & Beer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was the blackest night
There was no moon in sight
You know the stars ain't shinin'
'Cause the sky's too tight
I heard the scarey wind
I seen some ugly trees
There was a werewolf honkin'
'Long the side of me
I'm mean 'n I'm bad, y'know I ain't no sissy
Got a big-titty girly by the name of Chrissy
Talkin' about her 'n my bike 'n me...
'N this ride up the Mountain of Mystery, Mystery
# From: Zack.....A Dangerous Person <102040.1674@CompuServe.COM>
# Y'know, It wasn't until I sat down and actually listened to the TEXT
# of L'histoire du Soldat that I finally realized the Stravinsky-Titties and
# Beer connection. When it hit me, I giggled till I pissed my pants, then
# went out and beat up a scientologist.
#
# From: Bill Lantz
# The comparison is correct but stretched. Given Frank's love for the work
# and the fact he served as narrator (I believe) in the early 70's to a
# performance of the piece, I think the tie-in is evident. But here is the
# actual story - lifted from the Stravinsky Works Home Page
# ("http://www.u.arizona.edu/~jkandell/music/strav/files/Stravinsky.html#45)
# ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
# Scene 1: A soldier, on his way home on leave is accosted by an old man (the
# devil in disguise) who attempts to push a book on him. The soldier protests
# that he hasn't any money to buy the book. The old man assures him that the
# book will bring him wealth untold and that he will gladly exchange it for
# the soldier's cheap old fiddle. Recognizing a good bargain, the Soldier
# agrees but soon finds he can't make heads or tails of the book. The devil
# proposes a simple solution: come stay at my house for a few days (where I
# have good foods, cigars and drink) and you can teach me to play this fiddle
# while I teach you the ways of the book. The soldier agrees and soon finds
# that the old man was as good as his word. Scene 2: Satisfied, the soldier
# finds himself back on the road, but as soon as he reaches his village, he
# discovers that he wasn't at the devil's house for just three days, three
# years have passed. His fiance has married and has children, his friends and
# family run from him in horror, thinking that he is a ghost. Disgusted, and
# realizing who the old man really is, he throws the book away, but the devil,
# disguised as a cattle merchant, appears and convinces him to take up the
# book again and make his fortune. Scene 3: The soldier is indeed wealthy,
# but all his wealth can't please him since he has lost the only things that
# matter: his family and his fiance. The devil, this time disguised as an old
# woman, appears to sell him his fiddle. But when the soldier finds he can no
# longer play it, he throws the fiddle away again and tears the book to
# shreds. Scene 4: The Soldier comes to a town where the kings daughter is
# ill and a reward of the princesses hand has been offered to whoever can cure
# her. A fellow soldier in a bar convinces the soldier to give it a shot. The
# soldier again meets the devil and they play cards. The soldier, in the
# progress of the game, realizes that the only way to win back his old life
# is to lose all his money to the devil. The devil falls defeated and the
# Soldier triumphantly reclaims his fiddle. Scene 5: The Soldier finds he is
# able to cure the princess of her illness with his music. At the close of
# the scene he makes the devil dance a jig to his tune. Scene 6: The
# newlyweds are happy as they have never been. The princess begs to be
# introduced to the Soldier's family, but the soldier, who realizes that to
# leave the kingdom would put him again under the spell of the devil, refuses.
# But he can't resist the temptation of his wife's charms and so agrees. As
# they cross the frontier, the inevitable happens and the devil dances his
# triumphant dance.
#
# From: ivester@utkvx.utk.edu (Stan Ivester)
# It might be interesting to compare this song to "The Floppy Boot Stomp" by
# Captain Beefheart (on Bat Chain Puller). Both are album-openers, and the
# lyrics of both have to do with summoning up the devil. Don's song is more
# evocative and bluesy while Frank's is obviously played (very well) for
# laughs. The idea of calling up the devil (accidentally or otherwise) is
# itself a very old folklore theme.
#
# Technical Notes (thanks to Bill Lantz )
#
# From: jayjones@aztec.asu.edu (Jay Jones)
# It [L'Historie du Soldat] is more often performed as a concert piece
# without narration. A performance of note took place on July 15, 1966, at
# Lincoln Center with Elliot Carter as the soldier and John Cage as the devil,
# John Cage upstaged everyone and stole the show, according to Aaron Copland.
# The terms opera buffa and secular oratorio do not apply in regards to
# Histoire because there is no singing. So, I think a burlesque or narrative
# is a better description, also burlesque is another term for vaudeville, and
# FZ referred to the Flo and Eddie band as a vaudeville band so there you have
# my 2 cents worth.
#
# From: Vladimir Sovetov
# And my 2 kopecks :-)))
# _The Real Frank Zappa Book_ p.116
# "Once I regained mobility, I decided to go back on the road - with the
# band. The band with Mark and Howard didn't exist anymore - they all had
# to go out a get other jobs during the year I couldn't work.
# The first post-wheelchair appearance was as a RECITER, in a perfomance
# of Starvinsky's L'Histoire du soldat at the Hollywood Bowl, conducted by
# Lukas Foss"
Well he just got out his floss
'N started cleanin' his fang
So I shot him with my shooter
^^^^^^^
Said: BANG BANG BANG
# From: Kimmo Pyykko
# Just a "street name" for a gun, I'd guess this refers to a pistol.
#
# From: John Henley
# Just rhyming slang for "gun". The type of person narrating this story
# would probably have a handgun, commonly known as a "Saturday Night Special"
# - a cheap weapon whose sole reason for existing is to hurt or kill another
# person.
"Man, You can't fool me...you ain't that bad...
I mean you shoulda seen some of the souls I had...
Why there was Milhous Nixon 'n Agnew, too...
^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^
'n both
of those suckers was worse 'n you..."
# From: John Henley
# Spiro T. Agnew. Vice-president under Nixon, who was faced with
# indictment by a grand jury for having accepted bribes from construction
# contractors while serving as Governor of the state of Maryland. This did
# not come out until both of them had been re-elected as Pres and Vice-pres;
# Agnew, seeing that the game was up for him, resigned. This was about 6
# months to a year before Nixon was forced out. Agnew never went to prison.
"Wait a minute...a tinge of doubt crosses my mind...when you say...
that you want to make a deal with me..."
"That's very, very true
I'm only interested in two things
"Yeah?"
See if you can guess what they are"
"I would think...uh...let's see, maybe Stravinsky..."
^^^^^^^^^^^^^
#
# Just innocent mockery or another evidence of L'histoire-Titties connection?
#
# From: Bill Lantz
# More evidence I think.
#
# From: John Henley
# I don't have the text of Soldier's Story but I've seen a TV production
# and I don't know what this "connection" is supposed to be, other than that
# the devil figures in both tales. I always figured that when FZ said he was
# only interested in 2 things, and Terry says one of them is Stravinsky, they
# are only stating a fact about FZ.
"I'll give you two clues. Let go of your pickle"
"What?"
"Let go of your pickle!"
^^^^^^^^
# From: ulrich@sfu.ca (Charles Ulrich)
# A pickle is a cucumber (or some other food item) that has been soaked in
# saltwater or vinegar. In ZINY, "pickle" is clearly meant to refer to Terry's
# penis. I've never heard the word used this way, but it is undeniably what is
# intended. "Let go of your pickle!" thus means, "Stop masturbating!"
# ("To let go" means "to release", so "Let go of it!" means "Release it!" or
# "Put it down!"
#
# From: John Henley
# "Pickle" is common American slang for "penis", especially as applied to
# infant or small boys by their squeamish mothers. Older males usually
@ discard it in favor of "dick" or somesuch.
"I'm not holding my pickle"
"Well, who's holding your pickle then?"
"I don't know...she's out in the audience...
Hey Dale, would you like to come up here and hold
^^^^
my pickle to satisfy this weird man out on the stage?"
# From: Kimmo Pyykko
# Dunno if they were married, but she was at least his girlfriend at the
# time.
#
# From: Bill Lantz
# Not excatly certain but I heard an interview with FZ somewhere (or was it
# Dale herself?) that spoke about her sneaking in to rehearsals and hanging
# out until she 'weeermed' her way in.
#
# From: cglass@vunet.vinu.edu (CUCFAN)
# Dale met Frank in an all-night deli in Boston when he was in town
# sometime in 1975. He told her that if she was ever in L.A. to come over
# to the studio and she could sit in on a session. When she turned up
# one day, Frank was working with the band, which included Terry. They
# were attracted to each other right away and got together. Dale continued
# to live in Boston for a little while but relocated to L.A. soon after
# that. Terry quit Zappa's band during rehearsals for the Fall 1978 tour,
# and Terry & Dale got married in 1979. They formed Missing Persons with
# Warren in 1980. Missing Persons and the Bozzio marriage both broke
# up in 1986.
She said "I got me three beers and a fistful of downs
and I'm gonna get ripped, so fuck, you clowns!"
^^^^^^^^^^
# From: Bill Lantz
# Alcohol plus barbituates equals instant fucked-up and black outs.
Then she gave us the finger, it was rigid and stiff
#:-)))
# o
# O
# oOOO That gesture I believe
# ( O
# \ (
#
#:-)))))
# From: John Henley
# You got it. Not a bad graphic, there.
I Promise Not To Come In Your Mouth
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
# From: Vladimir Sovetov
# On half-official semi-bootleg Lather ( see Appendix ) this tune
# was named Lather!
#
# From: John Henley
# This melody could actually appear on any Muzak station, or in any
# cocktail-jazz-lounge, and fit right in - but FZ ensured that would never
# happen by giving it such a title.
# The take which appears on the ZINY compact disc is not the same as the
# one used on the original LP. Not entirely, anyway.
Punky's Whips
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
# Historical Note
#
# In libel suit scary Warner Brothers decided without asking Frank consent
# to remove the song from original DiskReet 2D 2290 2LP release.
# Among most known results of the unauthorised action were end of 9 years of
# FZ-WB collaboration and Lather 4LP contoversy. For details see Appendix
# below.
I can't stand the way he pouts
("Cause he might not be pouting for me!)
# Pouts forth? Was Punky Meadows real name Ronnie?
#
# From: ulrich@sfu.ca (Charles Ulrich)
# "Poot" is a slang word for "fart" (and one that I myself have never
# encountered outside of FZ's work). "Pout" is a regular, everyday word
# meaning "to protrude the lips in an expression of displeasure or sulkiness"
# (American Heritage Dictionary). The two words are different both in
# spelling and in pronunciation.
#
# From: John Henley
# A "pout" is a facial expression denoting displeasure, most often used
# by young children when they have been thwarted by their mommies. Have you
# ever seen a kid with a big frown, and lower lip thrust out farther than
# upper lip? That's a pout.
#
Isn't it romantic, Punky?
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
# From: John Henley
# Please note that at this point, the band plays the melody of the
# 1930s pop tune "Isn't It Romantic?"
Punky, Punky, give me your lips
To die on... I promise not to come in your mouth
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
#CC
# See previous tune
#
# From: Bill Lantz
# see above pouting definition.
I ain't really queer
But if he ever get near
Steven Tyler would PAY to see!
^^^^^^^^^^^^
# From: johan_wikberg@ssco.se (johan wikberg)
# Lead singer of Aerosmith - notoriously gay and straight at the same time :)
# (real name Talarico). I've always wondered why he had no say-so on this tune
# being released or not. Maybe Aerosmith were not as hot as Angel in 76-77?
#
# From: John Henley
# Lead singer of Aerosmith, who looks like Mick Jagger. In other words,
# he too has a big pouty mouth.
He's been havin' a rash
That keeps the girl away
Skin doom is what the doctors say.
# Is it some factoid from Japanese fanzine in question? Seems to be more
# like Michael Jackson story.
#
# From: John Henley
# Well, I never heard "skin doom" before this, but please remember that
# these concerts happend in 1976, when MJ was still a member of the Jackson
# 5, and whatever fanzine you're talking about probably didn't exist.
# Zappa's kids were in school by then, I think, and maybe he heard it from
# them.
#
# The fanzine was metioned in liners notes, John.
# "A song about Terry's lithoeroticization via a Japanese fanzine called
# ONGAKU." So the question remains. What had plagued Punky Meadow?
I wonder if Punky's rehearsin' today
I'll just go over, 'n hear him play
His hair is so pretty... I'd like to bite his neck
I've heard a rumor he's more fluid than Jeff Beck
^^^^^^^^^
# The appropriate quote
# From: Robert Moore
#
# Q: Jeff Beck?
# FZ: One of my favorite guitar players on the planet. From a melodic
# standpoint and just in terms of the conception of what he plays, he's
# fabulous. I like Jeff.
#
# This is the second of 2 Frank Zappa interviews which were
# transcribed from an imported CD called "The Frank Zappa Interview
# Picture Disk".[Baktabak, BAK 2019, England] According to my closest
# estimation based on the interview's context, it must have been
# conducted sometime in early to mid 1984.
#
# From: Vladimir Sovetov
# Very interesting also that Terry Not Gay Bozzio later played side
# by side with fluent Beck. Check out _Guitar Shop_ album of JB.
Honey, Don't You Want A Man Like Me?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He was the Playboy Type (he smoke a pipe)
His fav'rite phrase was "OUTA-SITE!"
He had an Irish Setter
^^^^^^^^^^^^
# Named Fido? Or it wasn't popular dogs name among Playboy Types
It was a singles bar, a Tuesday night
^^^^^^^^^^^
# singles bar - for persons seeking social companion
# The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English
The moon was dim, the band was tight
They did the bump together
^^^^
# From: John Henley
# Favorite dance of the discotheque era, mostly involving a man and
# woman bumping their hips together side-by-side. Described pretty well in
# Freddie King's song "Boogie Bump".
#
#CC
# From: jonno
# And of course our "Disco Boy" from Zoot Allures does the bump as well!
#
# Zoot Allures. _Disco Boy_
#
# Disco boy, do the bump every night, 'til the disco girl
# who's really right, gonna fall for your line,
# and feed you a box full of chicken delight.
What a splendid sight,(Ren-nen-nen-nen) her teeth were white
The drinks were cheap (it was Ladies Nite)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
He was glad that he met her
# From: ulrich@sfu.ca (Charles Ulrich)
# Thursday (or some other weeknight), women are admitted to the club free,
# but men have to pay to get in.
#
# From: John Henley
# There aren't so many of them now, what with campaigns against drunk
# driving, date rape, men in general, etc. But in the 70s bars usually had a
# once-or-twice-a-week "Ladies Night" where women would be admitted without
# cover charge, or sold drinks at half-price. Men tended to assume that
# these were the best nights to pick up girls, and the bars thought that too.
#
# From: Bill Lantz
# Bar ploy to attract ladies in for free and therfore more paying men to
# clubs. Or at the very least special drink prices for the ladies for the same
# tactic.
She was an office girl ("My name is Betty")
Her fav'rite group was HELEN REDDY
^^^^^^^^^^^
(They discussed the weather)
# From: Robert Lumley-Sapanski
# Helen Reddy was not a group but a female singer whose one claim to fame
# was her hit single,"I Am Woman". She was not a very good singer but
# happened along with that song at the right time and I'm sure she felt
# very good about herself....as did her bank account. She recorded a few
# more songs and went the Las Vegas etc route. "if I had to, I could do
# anything....I AM WOOOOMAN!" She is not to be confused with Alice Cooper
# or Helen Waite........yer uncle bob.
#
# From: paulhinr@nando.net (Paul Hinrichs)
# ... unlike Twisted Sister, Helen Reddy was not a group, she was a
# woman (although her hit single, containing the lyrics, "I am woman, hear me
# roar in numbers too big to ignore" might give the impression she actually
# was a group).
#
# From: "L. Hirsch"
# She had a big hit in the early 70's with "Delta Dawn". You know ...
# "Delta Dawn .. what's that flower you got on .. could it be a faded rose
# from days gone byyyyyyyyy ..." I have no idea if she's still around though.
#
# From: Vladimir Sovetov
# On _Does Humore Belong In Music_ version of that song Helen R.'s name
# was substituted in live call-and-ask manner for TWISTED SISTER's. Funny
# audience participation second in great concert video.
#
# From: johan_wikberg@ssco.se (johan wikberg)
# She can be heard singing backup vocals on the track "True Confessions" on
# the self-titled 1978 solo album of Gene Simmons, bass player with Kiss.It's
# still in print (this is NOT to say I recommend it).
#
# From: John Henley
# Helen Reddy's first hit in the USA was "I Don't Know How to Love Him"
# from Jesus Christ Superstar; I believe her record was released before the
# JCS album came out over here.
Later on they went off to where the music was soft,
The candles were drippy, they saw a REAL HIPPY
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Who delivered their dinner
# From: Bill Lantz
# Insert hippie riff here (D cord with the pinky flailing around on the high
# G note).
#
#BTW:-)) From: Vladimir Sovetov
# It seems that I read sometime ago that there was sort of a restaurant
# facility in L.A. run by real hippy family. It called if my memory serve
# me Great American Food Company. Something like this. Is it really so?
He took her home to a motor court
^^^^^^^^^^^
She wouldn't kiss him, he tried to ignore it,
#Is it just another word for motel?
#
# From: John Henley
# Yes, an archaic name.
#
# From: Bill Lantz
# Lots' of them here in Arizona. They are usually specially apportioned
# neighborhoods - sometimes private - for motor homes! Life in the USA.
But it made him angry!
angry, it made me angry, it made me so angry I could have killed that
lousy BITCH!)
He called her a slut, a pig and a whore
A bitch and a cunt and she slammed the door
^^^^^^
# From: Vladimir Sovetov
# A REPUBLICAN in _Does Humore Belong In Music_ version of the song.
# For discussion of Frank political views see _Broadway The Hard Way_ N&C.
He just got in his car
But the battery's dead
So he asks to use the phone
And she gives him some head
^^^^
And that's the end of the story
# From: John Henley
# "To give head" means to perform oral sex.
The Black Page Drum Solo/Black Page #1
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
# From: spb0377@OCVAXA.CC.OBERLIN.EDU
# In a recent post, Jeff Miller mentions that, according to Mike Brecker,
# "The Black Page" received its title because of the amount of notes on the
# manuscript "page." Has FZ or anyone else been quoted about this title?
#
# From: natola@coos.dartmouth.edu (Mark A. Natola)
# I remember reading once that the title for TBP came from a comment by
# Terry "Ted" Bozzio when he saw the sheet music.
#
# From: zolar@mindvox.phantom.com (Ron Meckler)
# I once saw an original manuscript of The Black Page at Don Preston's
# house. He explained that that was exactly the reason why it go its title.
# There were tons of notes!!
#
# From: smuth@teal.csn.org (Stephen Muth)
# I think the blackness from the black notes filling up the paper page
# is the correct interpretation, but am unable to substantiate with others'
# quotes and whatnot.
# The score can be found in the Feb 1987 Keyboard magazine, along with
# a piece of UNRELEASED vinyl containing some of FZ's (and Tommy Mars' ?)
# synclavier work.... a short interpretation of the music.
#
# From: eijkhout@cupid.cs.utk.edu (Victor Eijkhout)
# The score can be found in the Feb 1987 Keyboard magazine,
# This is quite a good joke: it's printed on darkish green paper, and if
# you try to photocopy it, it comes out as .... a *black* *page* ...
# Pretty effective copy protection. With the copier on the lightest
# setting it still comes out blurred.
#
#CC
# From: demery@natlab.research.philips.com (David Demery)
# >Which of the YCDTOSA discs has a recording of The Black Page?
#
# Vol. 4 - `84 band (ska version)
# Vol. 5 - `82 band (reggae version)
#
# Other versions are on:
# Zappa In New York (hard version)
# Zappa In New York (easy version)
# Baby Snakes
# Make A Jazz Noise Here (new-age version)
# As An Am
The Illinois Enema Bandit
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And now folks it's time for
Don Pardo
~~~~~~~~~
To deliver our special
Illinois Enema Bandit-type announcement
Take it away, Don
# From: headly@AccessPoint.North.Net (Headly Westerfield)
# I am an American and even I do not understand the importance of Don Pardo
# in popular culture. By all rights Don Pardo should just be a nameless
# voice with NBC, an American network. He annouces for the network. But
# his name came into public usage when on a particular gameshow (I can't
# remember which one) the gameshow host would say, "Don Pardo, tell her what
# she's won!" Ever since then the words and persona of"Don Pardo" has been
# fodder for comedians (Weird Al, amany others), and other popular culture
# outlets. Don Pardo is now an Icon.
#
# From: thawley@fcca.csi.com (Todd Hawley)
# Well, he was the announcer for years on the Original "Jeopardy" w Art
# Fleming in the 60s & 70s (I guess that's when it was on). That's where I
# knew him from. He also was the announcer on SNL when it first started;
# Gilda Radner even did a bit about Pardo's house & family & Pardo did it
# in his usual game-show announcer voice. Those of you here in the Bay Area
# that listen to KFOG know him as the original announcer for Dave Morey's
# "10 at 10."
#
# From: robert@kannon.sybase.com (Robert Garvey)
# I think the album was recorded around the time Frank did an appearance
# on Saturday Night Live, during which he'd performed "I'm the Slime" and
# "Approximate/The Purple Lagoon", the latter while John Belushi cavorted
# as the Samurai Jazz Musician. Members of the horn section on Live in
# New York are from the Saturday Night band, Lou Marini and Tom Malone.
# Frank probably hit on the idea of adding Don Pardo for the sophisticated
# narration in the concert(s) during while at NBC for Saturday Night Live.
# Yes, I'd agree that Don's place in American popular culture merited his
# inclusion in Frank's entertainment plans.
"This is a true story
About a famous criminal
From right around Chicago
This is the story of
Michael Kenyon
A man who's serving time at this very moment
For the crime of armed robbery
It so happened, that at the time of the robbery
Michael, decided to give his female victims
A little enema
Apparently, there was no law against that
But his name lives on
Michael Kenyon
THE ILLINOIS ENEMA BANDIT!"
# From: drstephens@aol.com (DrStephens)
# For all those who love FZÒs song about the Illinois Enema Bandit, I
# thought you would be interested in this update which appears in the current
# issue (number 79) of the _Fortean Times: The Journal of Strange Phenomena_
# on page 7. They reference the information appearing in this article as
# coming from the Associated Press (5 April 1975) and correspondence with
# former FBI agent John Finley.
# ÓThe chronicles of crime feature few more desperate characters than
# Michael Kenyon, a petty criminal who forcibly administered enemas to at
# least two dozen victims, mostly female students, between 1965 and 1975.
# Face hidden behind a ski mask, he would break into a woman's room, tie her
# up and get to work with his rubber tubing. Part of his ritual was to steal
# a single item from each victim; then, leaving the student trussed and
# terrified, he would sometimes phone the police to boast about his crime.
# ÓThe Enema Bandit first struck while studying at the University of
# Illinois. Kenvon committed a dozen assaults between 1965 and 1969 before
# graduating with a degree in accountancy. From college he joined the army,
# before taking to cleaning people out for a living as an employee of the
# Intemal Revenue Service. As he was posted around the country enema attacks
# occurred in Los Angeles, Manhattan (Kansas) and Norman, Oklahoma. On one
# occasion he administered an enema to a girl in a train travelling to
# Florida.
# ÓBy May 1974, the Bandit was back on home turf, attacking several
# University of Illinois co-eds in a single night. The police made little
# headway in tracing the culprit until Kenyon was arrested in connection
# with two robberies near Champaign, Illinois, in April 1975. Someone
# noticed that the method of breaking and entering was identical to that of
# the Enema Bandit and Kenyon was charged with armed robbery and battery. He
# served six years in prison and was paroled in 1981.
# ÓFormer FBI agent John Finley, who researched the case for FT, notes that
# Kenyon was a subscriber to Enema Digest, a specialist magazine for
# devotees of water sports. There is no record of further enema assaults
# since 1981.Ô
# Anyone who is interested in strange and unusual phenomena, should get a
# subscription to the _Fortean Times_. I highly recommend it. It contains
# some really amazing stuff, and much of it is really funny. The magazine
# is published in Britain, but can be found on some newstands in the states.
The Illinois Enema Bandit
One day he'll have to pay
One day he'll have to pay
The police will say, *"You're under arrest!"*
And the judge would have him for a special guest
The D.A. will order a secret test
And stuff his pudgy little thumbs in the side of his vest
Then they'll put out a call for the jury folks
And the judge would say, *"No poo-poo jokes!"*
^^^^^^^
# From: John Henley
# "Poo-poo" is a childish expression for "shit", in this context.
#
# From: Bill Lantz
# A really bad joke along the lines of "What was Beethoven's last movement? -
# The brown thing under the piano bench" But I'm not sure that even qualifes
# as a joke.
The Purple Lagoon/Approximate
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
# Here is a interesting FZ comments on Approximate from Grand Wazoo's
# tour programme ( Sept. 1972).
#
# From _Viva Zappa_ by p.113
#
# "Approximate
#
# In this selection each musician can choose the tone pitch they want to
# play. In the whole piece, there are only a few bars in which pitch is
# indicated (and these are introduced for the sake of contrast). The rest
# of the score is made up of triplets and crotchets linked by little X's.
# These are markers that show by their positions the approximate register
# for each instrument. The piece can be performed by ahy number of musicians
# greater than four. The general pattern is a single part that corresponds
# to all the instruments in C and F (including percussion). To this, another
# single part is added for instruments in B flat and E flat. The electric
# bass and bass drum have separate parts which are nonetheless linked to
# the others."
#
# From: ulrich@sfu.ca (Charles Ulrich)
# crotchets (i.e. quarter notes)
FZ vs. Warner Brs. Story
or
Lather/Laether/Leather
Special Appendix
--------------------------
# Voice of Frank
# From: Frank Zappa - A Visual Documentary By Miles. p.74.
#
# "There was one track that got removed, 'Punky's Whips'. They [Warner
# Brothers took it out. First of all they had no right to temper with
# the tapes. Secondly they didn't pay me for any off the stuff I delivered
# to them. I mean, they so far in breach of the contract and they're just
# so grossly unfair. For instance, that track 'Punky Whips' is 12 minutes
# and 37 seconds long. It's most of the side. They took it out because they
# didn't have the permissions from Punky Meadows to use it. Then they have
# the audacity to go ahead and release the album with 12 minutes missing.
# There was something in one of the papers over here complaining about
# how short the album was. It wasn't my fault. I didn't have any control
# over it. I think Herb Cohen was the one who took it out. [Zappa:1974]"
#
# *** And here starts the real aff-z FZ vs. WB story
#
# From: biffyshrew@aol.com (Biffyshrew)
# (representing Michael P. Dawson - Compositeur Americain)
#
# Uhhh...errr....uhhh.....well, you know....ummmm...
# I wouldn't go so far as to say that "initial releases" of ZINY were
# complete. I've always understood this to be sort of a "butcher cover"
# deal (reference to the suppressed 1966 Beatles LP cover). The company
# pressed some copies with "Punky's Whips," thought better of it almost
# immediately, and substituted the "Re-1" version. Some copies apparently
# did slip through the cracks, although I've never seen one myself.
# Certainly they did not constitute more than a tiny fraction of the
# "initial release"--it's not like you could walk into any record store on
# March 3, 1978 and find an uncensored copy. (It's also worth mentioning
# that copies with "Punky's Whips" listed on the cover are reportedly much
# more common than copies with "PW" in the grooves, and even those are
# pretty damn rare.) One story I've heard is that the biggest source of
# ZINY with "Punky's Whips" was a cassette version available in quantity in
# NYC cutout bins. Does anybody know for sure if ANY copies of the DiscReet
# ZINY with "Punky's" EVER appeared as regular store stock, as opposed to
# cutouts? I doubt it, but don't know for sure.
# So the following is my GUESS at the sequence of "Punky" events:
#
# Spring 1977: Warners refuses to issue ZINY, claiming "Punky's Whips" may
# be libelous. Impasse. Lawsuits.
#
# Summer-Fall 1977: Zappa assembles Lather, consisting mainly of material
# previously delivered to Warners, and offers it to Mercury/Phonogram.
# Warners puts legal pressure on Mercury to prevent the release.
#
# Early 1978 (?): Zappa, momentarily unable to release any new product,
# plays Lather in its entirety on KROQ-FM, Los Angeles. Let a thousand
# bootlegs blossom.
#
# Winter 1978 (now here comes the guessing part):
# Warners/DiscReet/Herbiecohen, having prevailed in the Lather fight, decide
# they'd better consolidate their investment by releasing the Zappa material
# they have on hand. Someone belatedly realizes that "Punky's Whips" still
# might be a problem, production is halted and the album is resequenced
# (note "Re-1" on labels of first disc). "Original" copies are dumped on
# cutout distributors.
#
# March 1978: ZINY is finally released. Dr. Demento latches onto "Titties
# And Beer" (later rechristened by him "Beepies And Beer" ["Really? You
# have to say that?"--FZ]), giving FZ some uncharacteristically regular
# airplay. The world rolls on...
#
# But Biffy, you cry! That can't be right! The way you've reconstructed
# events, Warners' actions are inconsistent and illogical! You make it
# sound like their left hand didn't know what their right hand was doing!
# Well, yeah.
#
# * * *
# *** And now ZINY (initial release) part of a mystery
#
# From: lantz@primenet.com (Bill Lantz)
# The vinyl copy I have with Punky's is K 96204 Made in the UK. It's on
# Discreet. I heard only a handful made it to US counters while slightly more
# than that made it to UK stores. My copy and the one I mentioned that's at
# PDQ in Tuscon are not cutouts.
#
# From: biffyshrew@aol.com (Biffyshrew)
# Thanks for pointing that out! I had totally forgotten about the U.K. vs.
# U.S. issue. This begs the question: do any *U.S.* vinyl copies with
# "Punky's Whips" even exist? I now think they do not. Mother People's
# discographical scholar Zomby Woof wrote this in 1984: "Fortunately for
# record collectors, a first pressing of unedited copies were salvaged in
# England before being recalled prior to official release. In the U.S.,
# cassettes of the unedited album also reached some stores, (many were found
# years later in the cutout bins) before being recalled."
# BTW, British/European cutouts are not necessarily marked. I have, for
# example, some U.K. Island cassettes (King Crimson, Eno) salvaged from
# Wherehouse cutout bins in the late '70s; these have no drill holes or
# other markings. The same is true of vinyl, or was at the time.
#
# *** And here goes Lather/Laether/Leather side of a plot :-))
#
# From: caveman@vnet.ibm.com (Keith Shiner)
#
# >1. Were there both a BOOT and Test Pressing of this?
# Yes.
# >2. If so, can the difference be easily seen?
# Yes. The bootleg has a B&W cover with an Edison records design. AFAIK
# the test pressings have no packaging, although I understand boxes WERE
# manufactured, the cover reportedly being similar to Joe's Garage.
# >3. What is a fair market value of each (if both exist)?
# The test pressing was selling for about $500 minimum in the '80s. God
# knows what it's worth now. I'll refrain from speculating what would be a
# "fair" price for the bootleg, and only pose a question: would you feel
# that much better off paying $XX.00 for a bootleg LP set, as opposed to
# getting a tape version (no less "official" than the boot) virtually free
# via tape trading networks?
#
# From: Jeffo
# When Frank was having trouble with WB in the late 70s, he went on a radio
# show and played the tapes of his proposed, but held up release, a 4LP set
# called "Leather." He did it specifically to annoy WB, telling the
# listeners something like "Here it is, folks-free. You can't beat this
# price." Warners sued him again.
# Chunks (and small pieces) of "Lather" are scattered on albums into the
# '80s. "Zappa in New York," "Studio Tan," "Sleep Dirt," and "Orchestral
# Favorites" provide most of "Lather," but there have been a number of
# alterations and additions to the tracks intended to be on "Lather":
#
# --"Lather" has a handful of tracks that have never seen official release:
# the original studio version of "For the Young Sophisticate," and the '76
# band's renderings of "Tryin' To Grow A Chin" and "Broken Hearts Are For
# Assholes," as well as a collage called "Duck Duck Goose" and an
# instrumental called "Down in de Dew."
# --About two minutes are cut out of "Lather"'s version of "Titties &
# Beer."
# --A different performance of "Punky's Whips" appears on "Lather"; it
# seems to have almost no guitar until the scorching solo at the end.
# --"I Promise Not To Come In Your Mouth" is titled "Lather" and is a
# slightly different performance, with a few extra bars of Eddie Jobson
# Moog.
# --"Flambay" is cut short and, like "Spider of Destiny," has no Thana
# Harris vocals (does anyone know when they were recorded?).
#
# Along with Warner Brothers' release of most of "Lather" in a different
# format, small portions of it (and allusions to it) have surfaced on "Sheik
# Yerbouti" (e.g. the two dialogue tracks), "Joe's Garage" (e.g. "Crew Slut"),
# "Tinsel Town Rebellion" (e.g. "Easy Meat"), "SUAPYG," and even "Thing-Fish,"
# which contains Terry Bozzio's trademark "ulp, ulp, ulp" noises.
#
# ~Date: 1976, 1977
# Loc: Various Studio and Live Recordings
# Length: ~100 min
# Catalog: Zappa srz-4-1500; unreleased
# Musicians: Various
#
# Regyptian Strut
# Naval Aviation In Art
# A Little Green Rosetta
# Duck Duck Goose (aka Ship Ahoy)
# Down In De Dew
# For The Young Sophisticate
# Tryin' To Grow A Chin
# Broken Hearts Are For Assholes
# The Illinois Enema Bandit
# Lemme Take You To The Beach
# Revised Music for Guitar and Low Budget Orchestra
# RDNZL
# Honey Don't You Want A Man Like Me
# The Black Page #1
# Big Leg Emma
# Punky's Whips
# Flambay
# The Purple Lagoon
# Pedro's Dowry
# Lather (aka I Promise Note To Come In Your Mouth)
# Spider of Destiny
# Duke of Prunes
# Filthy Habits
# Titties and Beer
# One More Time For The World
# The Adventures Greggary Peckary
#
# My copy of the 4LP set has fantastic sound quality, just a notch below
# Frank's own studio release stuff. A real gem, I'm not sure I'd sell it for
# any price, at least any price that would ever be likely offered.
#
# From: biffyshrew@aol.com (Biffyshrew)
# I keep trying to tell everyone (probably in vain) that the popular story
# that Warners hacked Lather into the above mentioned albums is backwards.
# Frank cobbled Lather together from ZINY, ST, SD and OF AFTER Warners
# initially refused to release them. Here's that story again:
#
# Warners refused to put out Zappa In New York the way FZ wanted (i.e., with
# "Punky's Whips"). Zappa claimed breach of contract and sued. He delivered
# masters for three further albums--Studio Tan, Hot Rats III (later retitled
# Sleep Dirt) and Orchestral Favorites--to fulfill his contract, but Warners
# also refused to issue these at the time (still 1977). Since FZ's contract
# with Warners stipulated that albums were to be released in the US within
# six weeks of delivery of masters (six months in Europe), and Warners was
# just sitting on these four albums, FZ considered himself free to shop the
# tapes to another label. ONLY THEN did he reconfigure most of the material
# from these albums (plus a few other items) into the four-LP Lather set (or
# "Laether," if you want to try to preserve that umlaut), which he tried to
# release on Halloween 1977 via Mercury/Phonogram. Warners' lawyers put a
# stop to that, but as David said, Mercury did get as far as making test
# pressings. Warners eventually put out the original albums, starting in
# March 1978 with the butchered version of Zappa In New York.
# This is how the Warners albums came to include stuff that wasn't even on
# Lather, such as "Time Is Money," "Bogus Pomp" and "Strictly Genteel."
# (Lather also contains some material that wasn't on the Warners albums, and
# one or two tracks that are on both appear in different versions.) This is
# also why Zappa In New York has a "real," Zappa-approved cover and liner
# notes, but ST, SD & OF do not--Zappa delivered only tapes of those three
# albums, no covers or liner notes, so Warners hired Gary Panter to slap
# together the packaging.
#
# From: caveman@vnet.ibm.com (Keith Shiner)
# ...and if my mind hasn't faded completely, this is also about the time that
# about ALL of Frank's LPs disappeared from the racks. About the only thing
# you could buy was ST, SD & OF. I also remember Frank saying in an interview
# I read, "Don't buy these LPs! Record copies and pass them around" or some
# such thing.
#
# From: mudshark@bway.net
# I lived in Buffalo, NY, in the seventies, and had the opportunity to
# meet Frank at radio station WBUF the afternoon before his performance
# at the Buffalo Auditorium, or whatever it was called. Anyway, he
# walked into the station carrying a test pressing of Lather and played
# selections of it for about an hour. I am sure that several test
# pressings were made and had circulated among radio station personnel.
# I tend to doubt that there is one lone source for the bootleg.
# More importantly, it was really interesting watching Frank listen to
# his own music. He was clearly and visibly completely immersed in his
# music; he sat listening with his eyes closed, I could see the outline
# of his pupils sort of swimming in time through his eyelids. Watching
# Frank and listening with him was an immensely memorable experience,
# as you can imagine. He was extremely warm and approachable, and
# seemed truly appreciative of his fans. When I said to Frank that I
# had been listening to him since Freak Out!, he paused a beat, then
# replied. "my....you must have a lot of endurance!"
#
# From: tony pfarrer
# With regard to "Lather," I might just mention that as of September 1977 FZ
# was touring the U.S. "in support of" that album, and had even had T-shirts
# made with its logo/title, selling them at the shows. I regret to this day
# that I did not buy one of those shirts.
#
# From: bsallee@tpd.dsccc.com (Bill Sallee)
# Hello Zappa fans,
# I am reading "Everything You Need to Know About the Music Business" by
# Donald Passman, a noted music industry lawyer. In his book he give a
# historical overview of the reasons for current clauses in modern music
# contracts concerning length of contract and number of albums to be
# delivered.
# Paraphrasing the section:
# Three entertainers are responsible for the current wording. First was
# Olivia Newton-John whose contract was written for a number of years with a
# number of albums. She stopped recording and when her five years were up,
# successfully sued to be released from her five year contract that the
# record company had extended unilaterally pending delivery.
# The wording was changed to tie length of contract to a specific number
# of albums, which worked for a while until one day, after having had no
# contact with his record company for six years, Dean Martin, whose star had
# grown much dimmer, showed up with an album and asked for the rather large
# sum of money he was entitled to under his contract which was still valid
# even though the record company had hoped he had disappeared.
# So they changed the wording again to allow the record company to
# terminate the contract if the entertainer did not deliver an album within a
# two year period from the previous album. This worked fine until one day
# Frank Zappa walked into Warner Brothers (Dean Martin's label also) with
# four albums under his arm and announced that he was completing his
# obligation and terminating the contract.
# Current wording provides for maximum and minimum periods between delivery
# of albums.
Previous Album |
Discography |
Next Album
