Soundz / Muziek.NL
2012
No. 5
'Wilde weduwe' Gail Zappa zoek
de juiste tint
('Wild widow' Gail Zappa find the right shade)
By Ruud Meijer, pp 18-19
Vroege Zappa' onder de loep (Early Zappa under
the microscope)
By Co de Cloet, pp 20-21
Automatic translation:
Hot Rats was Frank Zappa's second solo album and was
released in 1969. The American had just disbanded his Mothers
of Invention and was very inspired by the shifts in the jazz
world. Together with multi-instrumentalist Ian Underwood and
also the electric violinist Jean-Luc Ponty, he made an almost
elusive album that, 45 years later, is still regarded as one
of his best pieces. This vinyl release sounds great. Listen
to Willie The Pimp with the frenzied vocals of Captain
Beefheart, but also to the drum sound that Zappa used to with
new techniques. Hot Rats, what a record! 9/10
Automatic translation:
Call it a love-born joke. Everyone knows that you can only really
tell a joke if you believe in it yourself. Cruising With
Ruben & The Jets (1968) is Frank Zappa's doo-wop album.
The lyrics are full of genre clichés, but the record is not
a musical satire despite the funny group biography on the cover.
Long before Zappa settled with Freak Out! after all,
when the scourge of the flower power era arrived, he was an
avid collector of doo-wop records and mastered the style to
perfection. The lead vocals are largely outsourced to Ray Collins,
while the band leader is mainly limited to the sonorous firecrackers
vocally. This reissue also contains the original inserts with
dancing hairdressing instructions. 6/10
2020
No. 5
[1] Kind aan huis bij Frank Zappa
(Child at home with Frank Zappa)
By ?, p 11
[2] Frank Zappa: Halloween 81
By Hermen Dijkstra, p 99
Co de Kloet's
book review on page 11.
[1] Automatic translation: The cover
of the book says it all. Perhaps even more the soft laugh of
Frank Zappa. The man who could look sardonically into the lens
like no other. But not if he was with the Dutch radio maker
Co de Kloet. Together they adorn the book cover of Frank &
Co. Their friendship was real and De Kloet knows the essence
like no other of Zappa's oeuvre. In addition to a personal relationship,
De Kloet has always maintained professional contact with Zappa
in his work for the media. This resulted in radio productions
with the man himself, but also with people he met through Zappa.
People like: George Duke, Mike Keneally, Napoleon Murphy Brock,
Terry Bozzio, Bruce Fowler, Jimmy Carl Black and Steve Vai are
close to him. Dweezil Zappa, Frank's great guitar-playing son,
is also a regular at De Kloet. During the collaboration with
Dweezil, Co decided to write this book based on his extensive
audio and image archive. Frank & Co is a unique document
full of personal memories and literally transcribed conversations.
Especially with Frank Zappa, but also with Jimmy Carl Black
(the first drummer of The Mothers Of Invention), conductor Kent
Nagano, the duo Flo & Eddie (The Turtles), Don van Vliet
(Captain Beefheart) and the woman who started Zappa's career,
Pamela Zarubica.
[2] Automatic translation: First a
point of criticism. When discussing the Helloween '73
in an earlier Soundz, I already stated that all that enclosed
nonsense like a glove is not necessary from me. I was not listened
to, since we are dealing here with a six CD box supplemented
with a mask and a cape. Let's focus on the musical content.
Zappa's Halloween shows have gradually become legendary and
where the concerts were shortened in 1980 due to illness, the
master was in great shape here. Although Zappa had just made
a change in his band, the rhythm section has been renewed with
Chad Wackerman and Scott Thunes, while keyboardist / vocalist
Bobby Martin is also a new face, the band immediately turned
at the top level. Nothing was too crazy and since the band could
play anything, in addition to playing new arrangements, it was
also possible to deviate extensively from prescribed paths.
Vai's stunt guitar, Martin's voices and of course good old Ray
White and the master himself... one big party!
2021
No. 3
De amerikaanse zwanenzang van Frank
Zappa
(Frank Zappa's American Swan Song)
By Chris van Oostrom, pp 74-75