Frank Zappa

[EmmSee]

Zappa was the man.

I arranged and performed bass on this medley of Zappa tunes, I'm sure some of you big fans will recognize all the tunes : Invalid Link Removed

Arrangement : Bass / Alto Sax / Drums

 

[Moo]

Listen to songs 10, 11, & 12 ("The Torture Never Stops part 2", "More Trouble every Day", & "Penguin In Bondage"), found on the live recording "The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life". These are some of my favorite examples of Scott's playing.

Thanks, I just listened to both discs. Scott sounds great all the way through. Is that all p-bass?

 

[fretlessrock]

I'm pretty sure that Scott played the same P bass on everything. FZ's bands were some of the first places that I heard a really full-range bass sound in a rock context. Not taking anything away from Scott, but Frank did a lot of building of signal chains for his players. Aside from being a pioneer in recording technology, composition, arrangement, and instrumentation, he was a genuis when it came to effects and amplification.

You can see Scott on the "Does Humor Belong in Music" video and he gets that same tone and plays a P bass throughout.

 

[VinceLovesF]

I love FZ!!
All the way....he's so great and I miss him too.........
Would have loved to see him in concert!

 

[zombywoof5050]

Thanks, I just listened to both discs. Scott sounds great all the way through. Is that all p-bass?

I'm pretty sure that's all P-bass on that CD. I have a bootleg video from the '88 tour though where he plays bass on a keyboard for at least one song ("Sofa").

I'm pretty sure that Scott played the same P bass on everything..

..You can see Scott on the "Does Humor Belong in Music" video and he gets that same tone and plays a P bass throughout.

Scott started using the Precision in 1984, prior to 1984 he played a Carvin.
And on the "Does Humor Belong In Music?" DVD, he does change to a Jazz (modded) for a couple of songs.

 

[Motoboy]

This thread got me to thinking...I've always loved Best Band but never listened to the other '88 stuff. I've had Make a Jazz Noise Here laying around for years, but never listened to it. It's playing right now and I'm floored!

What a solid mass of music!

Of course it's more from my latent trumpet training/appreciation than the bass stuff. Best Band had more stress on the bass IMO.

Does the Halloween DVD allow one to watch the musicians playing or is it like 200 Motels, Baby Snakes, and the Led Zeppelin videos where you might get 1.2 seconds of a musician playing (if you're lucky) and a bunch of graphics that were so en vogue in 1969?

 

[cowsgomoo]

I'm not too familiar with Zappa's later work, could someone suggest a tune or two that highlights Scott Thunes playing?

most of his particularly excellent playing is during the difficult scored sections of the harder tunes, it's his 'flawlessly executed parts of the orchestration' that really shine rather than any 'attention grabbing displays of virtuosity' if you get my drift... for example:

Make A Jazz Noise Here: Strictly Genteel, Sinister Footwear II, Alien Orifice

The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life: Zomby Woof, Inca Roads

You Can't Do That On Stage Any More 3: Drowning Witch


on The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life, my favorite bit of Scott is near the end of 'Andy' there's a chord vamp (C#m to F#m off the top of my head) and his playing over that is rather outstanding

I also love his accompaniment to FZ's 'Torture Never Stops' solo on that album too

 

[fretlessrock]

Frank wrote and arranged very differently from just about anyone else, and certainly anyone else in "rock music". Even in a small band the arrangements can have a lot of depth, and the bass spends a lot of time in the "back row". This is even more noticeable on the official live material where the mix makes this distinction even more pronounced. One reason that the live albums sound so amazing is that there was a massive digital multitrack rig at all of the later era shows. Most of the mixes make the band sound like a hyped up pit orchestra (not a complaint here, just an observation) regardless of what it sounded like FOH. So there are some amazing things going on with the bass on Broadway the Hard Way, Make a Jazz Noise Here, and TBBYNHIYL, but they aren't up front. This is also true of a lot of Tom Fowler's playing on YCDTOSA Phaze 2.

 

[zombywoof5050]

Does the Halloween DVD allow one to watch the musicians playing or is it like 200 Motels, Baby Snakes, and the Led Zeppelin videos where you might get 1.2 seconds of a musician playing (if you're lucky) and a bunch of graphics that were so en vogue in 1969?

I don't have the Halloween DVD, but from my understanding it is an Audio DVD, meaning no video at all (except for maybe a picture on the screen or something, not sure).

Edit: I just wanted to add that there is a video of the Halloween 1981 show, but it has not been released as a DVD (yet).

 

[bassmonkeee]

I just wish they'd hurry up and release the Roxy And Elsewhere DVD that's advertised on the Baby Snakes DVD.

 

[Wil Davis]

I don't have the Halloween DVD, but from my understanding it is an Audio DVD, meaning no video at all (except for maybe a picture on the screen or something, not sure).

Edit: I just wanted to add that there is a video of the Halloween 1981 show, but it has not been released as a DVD (yet).

The "Halloween" DVD is mostly audio, but there are a couple of "Trick or Treat" videos included:

(1) "Suicide Chump" (B&W)
(2) "Dancin' Fool" - live

There's also an radio interview FZ did with Mark Simone on Halloween eve, 1978.

- Wil

 

[Muzique Fann]

OK - now I'm confused. I've got a Halloween dvd and it was from an MTV produced thing. It was like their first live simulcast or something - they made a big deal about it. I think this is the '81 show but I can't remember the date off the top of my head?

 

[Muzique Fann]

Aha! Upon further review, it is indeed the '81 show. Just watched it again tonight. It's at the Palladium in NY and Frank is wearing this rediculous red 'mechanic suit'. He thanks "Butch and the Mongolians" among others in the beginning, hahaha. It's FZ, Ray White, Steve Vai "our little Italian virtuoso", Scott Thunes (looks like some Acoustic gear behind him?), Tommy Mars, Bobby Martin, Ed Mann & Chad Wackerman - some of my favorite FZ players! They trip out on how it's like the first 'live simulcast' ever or something. I wrote 10-31-89 on the disc like a dumbass. I also found my dvd of Zappa's SNL shows! The House on Freak Mountain!

Zomby Woof knows his stuff...

Movin' to Montana soon,
Gonna be a dental floss tycoon.

Zircon encrusted tweezers. etc...

 

[fretlessrock]

oooops! you are talking about a different thing. You have the halloween DVD that never got played on MTV. Nice!

The Halloween DVD-A is the recent Zappa.com release which is a DVD-A of the 1978 band in NYC. I ripped the audio over to CD and it sounds OK, but I would love to have a real DVD-A surround setup to get the full effect. The DVD-A is interesting because it is a "double quartet", two basses, drummers, guitars, and keys. Also, it is interesting because Frank isn't around to do the production, so it represents a different editorial approach. Solos that Frank wouldn't have kept, or used in full, are there. Plus a great guest spot by L Shankar.

Anyhow, Arthur Barrow *and* Patrick O'Hearn on this one.

 

[zombywoof5050]

The "Halloween" DVD is mostly audio, but there are a couple of "Trick or Treat" videos included:

(1) "Suicide Chump" (B&W)
(2) "Dancin' Fool" - live

Thanks for the info, Wil.
I don't have a DVD sound system, so I've held off on getting this one.

Zomby Woof knows his stuff...

Thanks, but I'm just a longtime fan who's picked up a bit of info along the way and like to help out when possible (trying not to spread too much misinfo).

oooops! you are talking about a different thing. You have the halloween DVD that never got played on MTV. Nice!

I've never heard of that one, I'd sure like to have it.

I had a party on the night of the original MTV Simulcast, to watch the show, and I also taped it, but my recording is not great quality and also has degraded over the years.

 

[courderoy guy]

I should say that you don't NEED a "DVD Audio" system to play these Zappa DVD's. Obviously it'll sound cooler with surround sound speakers and all, but the DVD's have a basic stereo track. So if you've got a DVD player hooked into your stereo (i use my stereo for movies, etc.) you can play the discs. And fine discs they are. Highly recommend them to any Zappa fan or would-be fan.

 

[The Owl]

+1!! He's a little bit of a pedantic pr*ck, but an amazing musician. Zappa's '88 band was my absolute favorite.

Very accurate description. Scott was brilliant though VERY difficult to get along with. I read some interview with him a while back, he's really not involved with music that much anymore (reading the interview, I just got the impression Scott had some psych issues of some sort.).

EDITED TO ADD LINK:

Invalid Link Removed