Frank Zappa- Black Napkins (First Listen)
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- Опубликовано: 10 дек 2020
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Song Link: • Frank Zappa - Black Na... 
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There's an instrumental near the end of his Joe's Garage album called "Watermelon in Easter Hay". It's one of those songs you just would want to go on forever as a soundtrack to life.
Zappa is an absolute genius and Guitar God. His grandest, greatest most epic composition is The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary. It took him 5 years to record it because it's so intricately detailed, but man it was worth the effort. Imagine Stravinsky's The Rite Of Spring in cartoon form. So catchy and impenetrable at the same. Highly recommending The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary from the Studio Tan album by Frank Zappa.
Wanda!
Studio Tan and Sleep Dirt are in my DNA now. Let me take you to the Beach again... just awesome.
Here he comes, Greggery Peccary
@@-davidolivares Yeah! Sleep Dirt might even be my favourite album by Zappa. Pure (underrated) magic!
@@danamaguire4285 The nocturnal gregarious wild swine!
Zappa's guitar work is reason #1 in why I listen to his music. "Blessed Relief" from The Grand Wazoo and "Holiday in Berlin, Full Blown" from Burnt Weeny Sandwich are two that I recommend. They both have some very tasty guitar work plus they're some of his more tasteful compositions. The melody in "Holiday in Berlin" is one heck of an earworm.
You should definitely hear "The Torture Never Stops" from this album.
Pure musical genius. A complete legend. We're blessed he walked the Earth 🌍........
Frank never got the recognition he deserved for his wonderful guitar playing. Such a shame.
Impossible guitar solos
His son Dweezil is a better guitarist but Frank is obviously a better composer.
Frank's playing was unique as well.
One of the greatest guitar players EVA. Period.
@@FURDOG1961 There is a good interview with Dweezil from last year: ruclips.net/video/lJGWTopGtOk/видео.html
Some of it is technical but there are stories about his dad and more including guitar playing at about 38 minutes. He grew up around great musicians and they were his teachers from age 12 on.
I had tickets to see him in April but then covid hit.
Instrumentals like 'Blessed Relief', 'Eat That Question', 'Waka Jawaka', should be at the top of your list!
FZ is my 2nd favorite favorite guitarist, only behind Mr. Steve Howe....😎
I love his lead/solo on Son of Orange County, from Roxy & Elsewhere.
Unreal....
Frank played this on the Mike Douglas Show - think about that viewing demographic for a moment 8-P
Caz Gerald, Wouldn’t that have been around 71 or so? Pretty sure I recall seeing the performance. I would have been around 11 and watched Douglas’ show when I got home from school. Wasn’t he using an amp from the tv studio and it sort of caught fire at the end? Damn. My memoirs slippers.
@@Claytone-Records I believe "Zoot Allures" was released in 1976. You can find the video on YT. Frank performed solo with a backing track.
Played it with a little Pignose amp & backed by Mike Douglas' house band, too....
@@Claytone-Records 1976, I believe....
@@craigfazekas3923 thx - I thought it was a backing track - cool
the best thing about this guitar solo is how it breathes,, it meanders and flows organically like a passionate but relaxed conversation.
Great point!
Killer guitar work. Some of Zappa's best. Great blues song. I liked the band he had here a lot.
Every guitar note was written down. Guitar legend. In the top two ever
That’s Eddie Jobson and Terry Bozio on the cover photo. They were 2/3 of the second UK Album. Can't wait for you to do that record.
Terry Bozzio is a genius! He sports a 200 piece kit. There's a video somewhere about featuring Neil Peart and Terry combining their efforts on a very Avante garde Jazz thing using some non-traditional percussion sources. They had a great deal of respect for one another, which says a lot about both. Terry has toured with Jeff Beck as well. And in the 80's he formed Missing Persons with his then wife as lead singer. That album is also worth a listen for Terry's drum work.
Eddie Jobson doesn’t even appear on this album that’s what’s so weird about the album cover. He was in the band at the time they did the publicity photo but he wasn’t on the album.
Patrick O'Hearn (standing behind Bozzio on the cover of Zoot Allures) was also in Missing Persons (as was Warren Cuccurullo, another Zappa alum).
@@jayburdification Same thing happened with the USA release of Yes-Time and a Word. Steve Howe is on the front cover but Peter Banks is on the back cover and plays on every song. It’s just timing.
The cool thing about Frank (or not depending on your taste) is that his solos were completely improvised. And by extension the instruments supporting him are improvising as well. This is antithetical to many rock musicians who compose their solos. So every night is a unique performance. It's like flying without a net and can be a bit scary for most musicians but many magical and unique things can happen and the mistakes become part of the performance.
Well, that's one way to start the weekend..."Zut alors!"
Great googly moogly!
Frank loved to just "compose on the spot" over a simple two chord vamp. Either a major to another major up a whole step (C to D in "Inca Roads") or this C# minor to D major 7th here. No two solos were ever the same.
Ah...you answered the call for Black Napkins. Very good analysis...very good. My brother was the big Zappa fan in our house. He would go every year when Frank was playing the Palladium in lower Manhattan during the week of Halloween. My brother is a guitarist and would come back from the show stunned. It's safe to say we heard a lot of Zappa in our house. Shut up and play your Guitar probably got the most spin on the turntable. Keep going on Zappa Justin...I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
There’s a new documentary movie about Zappa’s life that I highly recommend (i think it’s just called “Zappa”). He was an amazing mind and an amazing composer.
It's out already?
Watched it last night. It’s really good.
@@quintinallen7219 it's out on Amazon Prime - maybe elsewhere also
We watched it on Sunday. It was very good and kept a good focus on Zappa himself instead of the all the stuff surrounding his estate.
"Black Napkins is a song I've had for year or more but it was finally named last Thanksgiving when we were having this horrible Thanksgiving dinner in Milwaukee. Sliced turkey roll with the fucking preservatives just gleaming off it, and this beat-up cranberry material. The final stroke to this ridiculous dinner was the black napkins, sitting next to the dishes. That really said the most about the dinner" - FZ
So glad Zappa finally won you over. Great review as always.
Ty Adam!
One thing I always found enigmatic about Zappa is that his art can be so light hearted and whimsical (though so friggin' sophisticated), but he is more often than not a completely tortured intellectual when asked questions in front of a microphone. Crazy authentic punk attitude too
I don't think he was tortured at all. He was very non-repressed, very loose and straight forward.
On Shut Up 'n' Play Yer Guitar there's a tune called Pink Napkins, a beautiful, mellow performance of this classic.
Zappa was a composer, there is nothing 'random' or improvised in his songs. He would write every note, every beat, for every instrument, and rehearse his bands until they could play it in their sleep. The only exception was his solos, which he never played exactly the same way twice. He also recorded everything, and practiced a technique he called xenochrony to take different tracks and stitch them together into Frankensongs so seamlessly you would never be able to tell that not all the instruments and vocals were recorded at the same time, or even for the same song. In short, he was a self taught musical genius, and deserves all the time you can give him on your channel. Peace.
My favorite Zappa album is Burnt Weeny Sandwich, especially Aybe Sea and Holiday in Berlin, Full Blown. Little House I used to Live In is mind blowing but it is 19 minutes long!
That was great and it brings up my current misery with Roxy & Elsewhere, my album was stolen in the 70's, I've had the CD for ages but wanted the vinyl again, I finally found a mint vinyl copy. It took ages to come but finally I had it, only to find that LP 1 was 'Apostrophe' instead of the Roxy LP 1 (I already have Apostrophe), so I printed off the correct label and sent it back registered mail, only for it to (mistakenly) return to me 2 days later. I've sent it on again but I'm still waiting! Frank Zappa always welcome JP 👍
Hope it all gets sorted out and all of Roxy & Elsewhere lands on your turntable soon.
@@-davidolivares Thanks mate!
Well thats an annoyance!
Well, now you're ready for Frank's last imaginary guitar solo: Watermelon in Easter Hay ! Enjoy !
This song was recorded live in Osaka Japan. Whole album is excellent.
Frank Zappa never fails to surprise.
Check out the live version of this from the Palladium in '77 at your leisure.
Zappa is a very good guitarist. A few years after this album, Zappa brought a young Steve Vai as a full time member of the band. The album (Valley Girl album) credits Zappa-guitar and Vai-'impossible guitar parts'.
With Frank it's all about melody, miss him
I don't think you want to know the meaning of the title. Trust me. Thanks for covering Mr. Zappa - I have been following him since the beginning and love when people find him.
Hey Justin - Every year, at the end of the year, Playboy magazine used to do a Best in Music section, showcasing the previous years best musicians.(they still may have this, but not looked for it in years) and every year that Frank put out an album, he got Best Composer of the year. Every piece of music, was very much composed by him. Yes, there was room for improvisation, but you'd best believe it was by permission only. Ask any of the outstanding musicians who have played for him. They will tell you they never worked so hard, or had as much fun as they did playing for Frank.
So now I recommend that you listen to City of Tiny Lights from Sheik Yerbouti.
On a personal note, I've been very good friends with Frank's sister, Patrice, since '85. She sings like you would not believe!
Idk why 4:20 hits so hard every time
Personally, I think black napkins is better live, but still mind blowing
And hey, if you’re gonna do more Zappa, you should do stuff from The Grand Wazoo!
I think this is a live version - Zappa would often slip live versions of songs (or sections of songs) on his “studio” albums. Brilliant!
Yes The Grand Wazoo. Great album. Give Blessed Relief a listen. Such a great instrumental.
Eat That Question is another standout song. You can't go wrong with anything off this album.
Grand Wazoo is my favourite of his big band era albums.... to get the full Zappa experience must also try something with satirical lyrics... like The Idiot Bastard Son off of We're Only In It For The Money, or The Air from Uncle Meat which are albums of his group The Mothers of Invention
Doug Jarvie, Blessed Relief! Yesss.
This is live. From Osaka Japan 1975 with Roy Estrada on bass.
There is a 4 bar "head" that is composed. It is played once at the top, then an improvised solo over C#m7 and Dmaj7 in 3/4. The head comes back, then a composed outro - 5/8, 5/8, 5/8, 6/8, 3/8 then ride out in 3/4. Frank is going off and the other players respond, but within the chord progression's framework. Just like jazz.
He took a dog doo snowcone and stuck it in his left eye.
He took a dog-doo sno-cone An' stuffed it in my other eye
Great reaction as always. Next stop on the Zappa train: “Willie The Pimp” from the hot rats album. You get a different kind of guitar from Zappa and fantastic bass work from Max Bennett. Enjoy!
Oh man. What a beauty of a song that is. And Zappa's guitar comes in a like a ferret on fire clawing it's way into your ear canals. Always loved that one.
I have this album. Bought it when it came out. I think this is a live recording. I saw Zappa live twice in the late 70's. None of his show were ever the same, and from what I understand, he recorded all of them and there are shelves of tapes full of them...
keep in mind ... Zappa was a composer and a perfectionist ..... many musicians did not last with him as he demanded to much for them to handle ..... one of his first appearances was on TV, ... I think the Steve Allen show, he played the bicycle ....this is how outside the box he was
Bert musician of the 20 century and a master guitar player
You mentioned something interesting regarding how the guitar playing and the drumming didn’t even seem to quite sync up at times. I don’t think it’s on this song in particular but it’s definitely on this album - Google the word “Xenochrony.” It’s a recording technique that Zappa pretty much invented where he would take the backing track of one song and a solo of another song and put them together and they would still seem to work. The song “Friendly Little Finger” from the Zoot Allures album is a prime example of this. You should probably listen to that on your own, it’ll blow your mind once you realize how they recorded it.
Interesting, never heard of that. Ty!
I saw several Zappa shows 1978-1983. His guitar solos never failed to amaze. One of the all-time greats on the instrument.
I like how you notice that Bozzio will play these ridiculous fills and then pull it right back into the pocket for the beginning of the next phrase. If you like that sort of thing, check out Vinnie Colaiuta's playing with Zappa--he'll play several measures' worth of odd tuplets and other rhythmic weirdness, and then be right on the ONE in the next measure. Breathtaking.
One of my favourite Zappa album, after ca 40 year with Zappa in my life ive heard every record hundreds of time, never gets boring.
As far as I know this song is a jam session. Zappa told the group what to play just before the song actually started and they just let it out instincually. As you said. BTW, such spontaneous compositions (?) were rare with Zappa. His compositions were almost always written. For every instrument!
Uncle Frank! Thanks for spending some of your time on Zappa’s music. It can be trying for most, but you have wet your toes previously and you spend just a little bit of time in the ‘Prog’ realm here, so you may be safe to continue. For a guitar player you can do worse than listen to Zappa. Thanks for your insightful responses as always. C
Jeez what good Zappa was. Had forgot about this album. And his band such smooth and jazzy. Fusion jazz was big in beginning of 70.s and I hope you will continue with Zappa more Zappa in chronological order. Then that you join in with Return to Forever with Stanley Clarke, Chick Corea, Al di Meola,, Lenny White, Jean Luc Ponty and more and maybe some Billy Cobham...
Zappa used to run a very tight band. All of his musicians had to be able to play the songs in various styles. Zappa had different gestures for the styles & during a gig when he made one of these gestures the band would immediately switch the style they were playing in to match without skipping a beat!
This is one of the best Zappa songs for showcasing his guitar mastery.
I don't think so, Watermelon, Deathless Horsie, Truck Driver Divorce, Rat Tomago are better
According to Dweezil Zappa, Frank's favorite guitar solos were "Black Napkins", "Zoot Allures" (on the same album), and "Watermelons on Easter Hay" (might as well listen to the whole album, all 3 parts).
I love this recording but the live video is Zappa in New York is a revelation. He even high 5s members of the audience while playing impossible emotional lead .
This is also a live recording. Osaka, Japan.
Thank you!
Counting his live albums and the posthumous stuff, Zappa has put out 123 albums.
Zappa scored all the music the band played, including drums
This is a killer track. I like the title track maybe even better. Check it out JP. Oh, there is an 19 min version of Black Napkins on Philly ‘76 that is just awesome. Most bandmembers get a shot here but most impressive is the vocal solo by Lady Bianca.
Another Zappa masterpiece, certainly! Contrast the style and frenetic energy of "Black Napkins" to the beauty (imaginary, of course) and ethereal feel of "Watermelon in Easter Hay" and you get it. Frank was Frank, and we were damn fortunate to have him! Genius is so rare........
I was at the NY Halloween show for this tour, 4th row. When he did Black Napkins, I melted into my seat. I never seen a better guitar solo. Ive seen Zep, Yes, Rush, Crimson, etc...but this will always be my top live solo ever! This whole album is a lot of, plenty of humor. As for "The Torture Never Stops", I recommended it a a Halloween song, truly creepy. I miss Frank, the world needs more people like him.
Glad you finally did Zappa!! Some other songs that you really need to listen to from Zappa are Florentine Pogen, Cosmik Debris, Watermelon Easter Hay, and Stinkfoot. Florentine Pogen kind of blew me away with how heavy it can be.
Do the next song on the album "The Torture Never Stops" XD XD XD XD
It’s PG but has no profanity.
Oh jeez...
That song is great for a while, but after about five minutes, the torture never stops if you know what I mean.
musically, not interesting
So dark, but so good.
One of his best!
Frank has many guitar jam songs, even a couple albums called "Shut Up And Play Your Guitar" + sim. The signature piece that features Terry Bozzio drums is "The Black Page" in 3 versions, as Frank originally wrote as an incredibly difficult drum solo, then added music.
I had a little contact with Frank in the 80s, but mostly with his production team at Rhino Records in L.A. I've spent more time hanging out and playing guitar with his son Dweezil, who is a better guitarist, as he can imitate his father's style perfectly, plus can play in modern style, having studied with EVH and Steve Vai.
Frank is an incredibly skilled & prolific composer whose style is very distinct and unique. His music is incredibly hard to play, and I heard one orchestra conductor performing Frank's work "Time's Beach" on Public Radio say, "Frank Zappa is the most important composer of the second half of the 20th century."
Every guitar solo from Zappa is an "air sculpture" that is a "spontaneous composition" that is completely improvised... Except for the "head" of the song, you will NEVER hear this solo piece played the same way again by Frank... Oh, there are 28+ minute versions of this song that will blow your mind...
FZ has been an inspiration to how I look at music. Through his music (along w/ Yes) I have learned the only limit to your creativity is yourself.
Great wake-up for a Friday! Just saw Dweezil and Steve Vai talking about working with Frank and their Zappa plays Zappa tours.Cant wait for Alex Winters(Bill from Bill&Ted) documentary to come out.He had unlimited access to Franks vaults and used it!.Peace have a great weekend,
That’s a Zappa music I can get into. 🎸🎸🎸
Excellent use of words/ expressions to communicate ur take on listening JP!
Ty Cornell!
Transylvania Boogie off Chunga's Revenge is a great Zappa instrumental to review. BTW - all of the other musician's parts are composed by Zappa, notated and conducted by Zappa, including drum parts. So no, no Zappa jams (although guitar solos and other "designated" solos are improvised). The only one of the 3 band members shown on the cover that actually played on the album was Terry Bozzio. Bozzio joined UK after founding member and Yes drummer Bill Bruford left the band, so Bozzio was not on the more popular first UK album. Also shown on the cover is Eddie Jobson who was also a founding member of UK, but more importantly had just finished recording and touring with Roxy Music. He played on 3 of their best albums; Stranded, Country Life, and Siren.
Bozzio also played with Jeff Beck.
I’m really enjoying your videos. For Black Napkins look here on RUclips for black napkins in Philly 76’. Black Napkins has taken over the number one spot for Zappa for me. It has a picture of the band that night with an incredible female vocalist. Have fun look forward to more of your videos.
Ty so much Mike!
It's been so long since I listened to Zappa, I totally forgot about this one. What a nice surprise!
Love it, one of my favourite Zappa albums and a great starting point for anyone new to Zappa. Songs are tight and punchy, imaginative but not too screwball, and adorned with amazing guitar solos. Plus we get the wonderful Terry Bozzio on the drums.
40 hours a week rehearsals can only get you so tight, Zappa’s musicianship grew along with the talent in his band, and it’s just as tight live. On another note, it’s amazing to see how each album can exist in a microcosm of Zappa’s artistic invention of the time based on the bands around him. He was constantly reinventing himself without losing sight of himself.
Wait until you get to Vinny Colaiuta & Chad Wackerman...
Prince. Prince put out as many albums as Frank. Both of their vaults are legendary.
If you're looking for a great Zappa live show, try his Roxy & Elsewhere live Son of Orange County + More Trouble Every Day! Loved your analysis of Black Napkins.
The musicianship impressed you because FZ always hired the best talent and practiced them relentlessly. It’s not entirely accessible but I highly recommend you listen to the Black Page Drum Solo from his live in New York album. You might not like it upon first listen because of the “statistical density” of it all. I certainly didn’t at first but I adore it now. It’s the song I always point to as an example of not only his amazing abilities as a composer, but of what he got out of his musicians. He wrote it for Terry Bozzio as a challenge, and Terry rose to the challenge.
I'll keep recommending it, keep guaranteeing you'll love it, and keep wondering why nobody ever reacts to it: "Willie the Pimp"!
Also, if you want to hear what a beautiful instrument the guitar can be, I can't recommend "Watermelon in Easter Hay" enough
I totally agree with both of your suggestions. They 2 of my favorite song ever
Great choice with Willie the Pimp, one of my favourites too. The Gumbo Variations from the same album would be great too, the sax and violin over that impossibly funky rhythm section slays me every time
The brave "musicians" aren't afraid of silence.
True!
ruclips.net/video/WTTWaBJprNE/видео.html
Glad to see more Zappa, and yes Black Napkins is a great jam, no doubt. As stated elsewhere, check out some of the live clips.
More Frank? Well, for my money, you cannot beat the Village of the Sun > Echidna’s Arf (Of You) > Don’t You Ever Was That Thing? trilogy (aka side two) from the Roxy & Elsewhere album. PEAK ZAPPA!
If you want to hear another great Zappa guitar solo, listen to Watermelon in Easter Hay. It’s simple (for Zappa, anyways) but utterly stunning
ZAPPA RULES
🖤 Zappa
Very nice reaction. Terry Bozzio is a beast on drums and all the players come from jazz so they're very adept at improvising. Try the title track Zoot Allures, one of the most gorgeous compositions ever conceived on guitar
Ty Tim!
Black Napkins means that Frank was writing the score on a napkin and there were so many notes it made the napkins black.
Zoot Allures is a great album, saw Zappa in 1974 I was 15 yrs old.🎸🎵🔥👍
Nice commentary, thanks! Whichever verson of this song you take, it is fantastic. I would recomend you to listen to the Philly'76 version, with the charming vocals of Bianca Odin
Talk about musical exploration. You will never find a deeper rabbit hole than Frank Zappa. As for this tune, your instincts were correct. There was no set prewritten composition. That is Frank and the band going on an improvisational journey while live in concert. Frank would record his concerts and use many live cuts in his albums.
In regards to future Zappa posts, I have always considered his Over Night Sensation album to be one of finest and most accessible. I suggest the song I'm The Slime, or if you are more daring Dina Moe Humm, but the whole album is production jem. You might also checking out his live album Fillmore East, Flow and Eddie co star (The Turtles).
What you might’ve missed is that Frank composed every part of that, then improvised the guitar solo...
Live performances of black napkins are amazing, there are jazzy versions and more rock versions
Zappa got to over 50 albums in his lifetime.
"Air Sculptures" he called it. Below, someone mentioned "The Adventures of Greggery Paccary". Definitely should react to that one. Nobody ever did. For me, it's still the ultimate Zappa track (20 minutes). It has the Jazz, pop, avant-garde, doowop, the humor, crazy storytelling, and the cartoon-like feel throughout the song. A piece of art.
Welcome to the largest catalog of music in modern history.
Er, try John Zorn.
@@psbarrow ah ah ah...😁
@@psbarrow didn't he do some stuff with Bill Frisell?
A daunting task😶
Captain Beefheart next! "Ella Guru"
Bozzio!
You will get more of him on UK's second album.
And there's Eddie Jobson on the cover of Zoot Allures, he barely plays on that album though, if at all.
Group experience.
Black Napkins. Frank saw black Napkins at a restaurant in Japan.
Great stuff. Might want to try Muffin Man. Cheers.
FRANK ZAPPA IS THE BEST!!