Zappa & Beefheart

By Gerrit Graham

Phonograph Record Magazine, November 1975

BONGO FURY
Frank Zappa/Capt. Beefheart
Discreet DS 2234

Zappa is indispensable, one of the crucial figures in popular music. This contention can be defended on several grounds. First, Frank has always been willing to encourage the creative lunatic-Beefheart, Alice Cooper, Tim Buckley at his most perverse, Flo and Eddie; he'll always be a hero of mine for paying Lowell George's bills for awhile. That's a pretty good record, especially in the face of constant accusations of blind selfishness and artistic tyranny. Sol Hurok he ain't, but he's certainly supplied us with a number of entertaining nuts.

Remember also his persistent efforts to expose his considerable following to something new. Most of them probably still don't know who Varèse is, but at least they've had a taste of progressive rock, atonality, a bit of jazz and a smidgen of musique concrete, always made palatable within the framework of Frank's familiar weirdness.

Most importantly, the guy has a sense of humor. He gets the rock'n'roll joke. Though his social commentary may have lost a lot of its bite of late, he's still willing to make fun of anything or anybody, including himself and his band. He's a megalomaniac, and knows it.

I'm therefore willing, to indulge Zappa in his most wretchedly excessive and self-serving moments. Fortunately, Bongo Fury (recorded live, mostly, and mixed with some older studio cuts) is better than that. The big attraction is Beefheart, in full voice and plenty bizarre. The man has a truly astonishing set of pipes, shown off better here than on his recent Mercury attempts to crack the Top 40. Zappa gives him the opening shot on the album, too, a frenzied boogie about Debra Kadabra, "the witch queen of Lankershim Blvd." "Make me grow Brainiac fingers, only with more hair ... make me kiss your turquoise jewelry ... give me boss relief," Beefheart bellows with the authority of old. He sings lead on most of the stuff, and contributes two crazed raps, one of which sounds improvised on the spot. His main contribution is to give Mothers vocals some variety, not to mention a little real skill. The band, though no match for his Magic Band of Zoot Horn Rollo, Rockette Morton, Antennae Jimmy Semens and The Mascara Snake, fervidly backs him up.

Zappa also gets in his licks at The Bicentennial in two tunes: "Poofter's Froth, Wyoming, Plans Ahead," with Beefheart blowing primitive harp and running down various Bi merchandising scams ("... T-shirts, rats, rubber snats, posters rolled with matching tacks ... a special beer for sports, in paper cups that hold two quarts"), and "200 Years Old" ("She's 200 years old, squattin' down an' poppin' up from the jukebox just like she I had true religion").

Musically, Bongo Fury is restrained, even tame, in comparison to the hyperthyroid jamming of recent Zappa/ Mothers efforts. There's an emphasis on simple rock and blues progressions, a bow, no doubt, to Beefheart's influence. It's not the greatest Mothers album ever, but Beefheart is wonderful, and it must have been one hell of a live show. Viva Zappa.

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