Cinemania (Baby Snakes)

By ?

Alternative Media, Spring 1980

Frank Zappa, leader of the Mothers of Invention and one of America's true musical masterminds, has written, produced and directed a new concert-cartoon film called Baby Snakes: A Movie About People Who Do Stuff That Is Not Normal.

"It's sort of a present back to the kids who keep coming to see my shows every year," explained the mustachioed maestro. "Actually, it's a tribute to people who do stuff that's not normal, for without the activities of the not normal people in every town, life would be pretty boring. I believe normalcy can be cured. Baby Snakes might show how this could be accomplished to those people who haven't opted for the bleak life. Being different can be fun, normal people should see Baby Snakes so they can see what they're missing."

The film intersperses three basic segments: one of a live Mothers concert, one of dressing room antics by Frank and his musicians, and one consisting of fabulous clay animation by Bruce Bickford. For the concert footage, Frank picked a Halloween gig at New York's piss-soaked rock 'n' roll mecca. the Palladium Theater. Since it was Halloween, the kids in the audience, the rock ruffians and other Zappafreaks from New York City and the surrounding suburbs were buzzed to the gills. A better night to film a Zappa concert you couldn't find.

The most important thing about Baby Snakes, however, may be the way that the movie was made. Zappa had taken some footage he did several years ago around to the studios to see if he could get backing for a full-scale project and was virtually laughed out of the offices. So, he said: fuck it, I'll do it myself.

Besides writing the music, conducting the band, playing lead guitar and singing, he produced the flick (which means he put up his own and raised other money for it), directed the camera work and supervised the editing. He then released the film and oversaw its promotion and distribution.

This is clearly Frank's – and his audience's – movie. Viewers are made privy to all of the deranged workings of a touring concert band: the rehearsals, the backstage clowning, the perversions. Frank has put together a three-hour long ego orgy that Zappaphiles will revel in.

"Warner Brothers sucks!" Zappa declares, and the crowd goes wild. It was no secret to Zapp's many fans that Warner screwed around with Frank at the end of his contract and released a couple of albums-worth of less-than-par material. There was a long court case and Frank had the final laugh. He now has his own record company and his own film company.