Not only is this a good little musical experience, but Steve Allen's humor compliments the whole thing so well. He cracks jokes about it, but is never condescending or impolite.
Steve Allen was Pure class in Our 'Once upon a time New Medium of Impromptu television ln Living Black & White when My grandparents lived not far from KTLA Ch 5 here in LA, Hollywood & 'Allen's Live Shows from the old closeby Hollywood 24/7 Ranch Market are Classics
Above all opinions about Frank and Steve -- BOTH were creative geniuses -- isn't RUclips an amazing thing? This clip is just one of so many that have utterly blown my mind!!! Big "ups" to all the folks who somehow find this stuff and upload it for the rest of us.
This unique eppsode of talent was a true meeting of the minds. Steve Allen was a genius & so was Frank Zappa, although we didn't realize Zappa's genius until about a decade later.This is a priceless video clip of the past. It's too bad that we don't have but only a single episode of The Oscar Levant Show. What a shame!
Frank Zappa was destined for greatness. Zappa starts with "I've been playing bicycle for two weeks" and ends with a full orchestra wigging out with mixed with pre-recorded sounds. True genius. ...and THIS was in freaking 1963. THIS was cutting edge art.
***** The only people that are ever labeled genius are those who dare to do what others have not. Frank Zappa did exactly what Frank Zappa wanted to do, unapologetically. This clip demonstrates that; he went on national television and played a bunch of horrible sounds all because he (I am making some assumptions here) wanted to show that music can come from anywhere. Some of Frank's music, however, is very beautiful. You either have not heard some of his finer work, or do not care to because you would rather remain ignorant to it. Was it experimental, yes. Was it easy to listen to, not always. Was it music, definitely. Easy to listen to and musical genius are two very different descriptions of music. If easy listening and popularity are the measure of musical genius, then there have been many, long-forgotten, musical geniuses over the years, and the current era of music would have to be the most genius of all musical eras in history. In fact, the Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, and N'Sync were at the forefront of the time when music sales were the highest in history. I can tell you those three were definitely not the greatest musical geniuses of all time. I have rambled on too long here, but my point is that FZ was a musical genius. He proved that with his mastery of dozens of genre of music, all the way from rock to classical. Very few, if any one ever, has had the breadth and depth of musical talent that FZ had.
This says alot about how far ahead of his time Frank Zappa was and give Steve Allen credit for having him on. You can tell that Steve "saw" something in him. In today's day and age, the segments are so much shoreter, Frank got some decent face time on The Steve Allen Show... 1963, huh? Wow.
I saw him live in Toledo. Fabulous. The crowd was eating out of his hand and he manipulated us to do things we would not have done otherwise. I don't remember quite how he guided us, but through a series of commands we followed we ended up kissing the person to our left. My partner was sitting to my right, and not happy. 😂
Steve Allen was smart and funny and knew how to share the brilliant Frank Zappa with the American audience. This was before people knew Zappa - and the fact that Allen even had him on the show is a testament to how interested he was Zappa's creativity. Steve Allen's style and the expectation of what he'd deliver was about commentary and punch lines. Zappa's just getting started! You can hear his wit in understatement. Zappa had so many gifts.
Just had my 16 year old watch "Montana" Live at the Roxy before we watched this...hahahahaha & it was brilliant to see Zappa in the earlier stage of genius! Brilliant of Steve Allen to have had him!!
Steve, one of the great hosts of all time. Prhaps the best. He knows when to crack wise, but you can tell he is seriously giving Zappa exposure. The segment is over a quarter of an hour. He even spells out Zappa's name. And he gets down to bring the mike on his nose playing closer to the spokes. Excellent.
Two of the great geniuses in music and entertainment. I would bet that I saw this show, never missed it, and had no idea who Frank Zappa was...wow he was young.
never got to see Zappa perform live, what a gifted guy. He inspires us to express whatever we feel. Life is this, so let go, make some noise and have some fun. Life's too short to be serious. Laugh a lot, Frank would love it. THANKS FOR THE POST!
Too bad you never saw Frank Live in Concert. It was the Greatest Show on Earth! I went a few years back and saw Dweesil with Dad's Band, and I'd pay double to see them once again!
12:00 ... I can hear The Mothers ... What surprises me most is, that they devoted a quarter of an hour to this. Nowadays, he would be glad to get just one minute. Hats off to FZ and Steve Allen.
saw him many times in concert, conducting full orchestras at madison square garden his shows where phenomenal everyone of them... ZAPPA was BRILLIANT . even his written sheet music bizaar ... he performed at the closing of the filmore east sha na na the opening act . (franks ruben and the jets era) . had EVERY album. anymore zappa fans out there? steve allen was fabulous too
Simply Neil hi neil been trying to find ur invite asking for help with randy not sure what it was about . u needed my help u and randy man on overload with incomings and my life. hooked up with global research seems the most urgent randy would agree.... ...
Yes the quality was bad, but that's as good as it got back then. In 1963 I lived in Phoenix. we had only 3 channels on the TV and trust me, they were bad quality plus we had to depend on how good our rabbit ears were.... I was a Zappa Fan for years, saw him in concert 4 times...I miss him
I'm just glad someone taped this... however they did it. I never listened to F. Zappa's music. I had no idea of how multi-faceted he was musically (and I don't mean the bicycle stuff). The composer, mutli-instrumentalist, genre crossing dude this guy was is pretty incredible.
WOW!!!!! Can;t believe how young Frank was here! This is pretty damn amazing! Thanks for posting this! :) Good ol'Zappa! rest in PEACE! Steve Allen also!
wow, how time flies. i recall watching that show when it aired. frank turned out to be the greatest modern composer to date. not only music, he also believed in our freedom of speech. just ask the members of 2 live crew. frank you will not be forgotten. thank you for the emotions you brought about through your wisdom and willingness to be free.
I saw 3 Zappa shows here in Seattle his music wasn't the top ten copy tunes, or dance tunes or sing around the campfire stuff for sure. But, his live shows were something! He often had up to 3 percussionists banging bells, bongs and bell frees! And his signature riffs on his guitar...ahhh It was awesome and a blast
Frank is amazing in this video. He refuses to let Allen make him look like a novelty act. It's brilliant how every time Allen asks him a question intended to be a joke, Frank answers it totally seriously and his respectability grows and grows during the interview intended to make him look like a joke.
For anyone critical of Steve Allen, can you imagine a late night host in recent memory giving 14 minutes to something this avant garde for a complete unknown? Bravo to him for devoting this much time to something like this. It really didn't work as a segment but was still interesting from a historical context.
I used to watch Steve all the time back then during Summer vacation and still try to catch his openings during the school year. He and Johnny Carson will always be my late night entertainment favorites.
Thank you so very, very much for uploading this, I couldn't get enough of Frank when he was a live and since the advent of You Tube most of his work is here as well as his interviews. Many thanks.
Bite your tongue, pud. Steve Allen wrote Thousands of songs (won 1 Grammy) more than 50 books and was the best ad libber I have ever seen. And he had the good sense to put Frank Zappa on TV before anyone knew him. His job was to entertain and he did a pretty good job with FZ.
Two of my favorite people. Steve Allen had the best talk shows on TV, both the national prime-time show and the local syndicated show on KTLA. Oh, how I wish there were more RUclips outtakes like this one! I saw Zappa 3 times live and wore out my Absolutely Free album.
This amazing! Thank you for the upload. To peek inside the mind of a genius as he was beginning. And to think of all he published, the satire, the poignant lyric. Thank you Frank (I miss you) and thank you Kenwahman for sharing this.
+saintsamaritan.......You're absolutely right about Frank's observations, you put it very well. I found this early piece a great insight into Frank's insatiable curiosity with sound, even in that (which you so correctly say) which most of us would tend to overlook or deem insignificant.
Steve Allen and Frank Zappa ... WOW!!! Two American creative geniuses in their own right, both pushing the limits in there own way. Just think what Zappa would be creating for the Web if he were alive today. I miss guys like him. Frank Zappa is NOT just some eccentric doing were stuff. As for Steve Allen, think of all the different actor, comics, comedians who got exposure on his nightly show here in LA. Plus, he was a fine musician/jazz pianist (self taught). Thanks for post his great excerpt.
This is a lot of fun. Personally I don't listen to a lot of Zappa's music but I give him big credit as a "new musician" breaking down barriers like John Cage and others. The idea of reciting Mary Had A Little Lamb in the midst of the cacophony of sound I see as breaking down the old stereotypes or artificial Pollyanna wadydoodle all the day which Frank and others saw as encapsulating ideas into a very small space that excludes other ideas thereby stultifying our ability to evolve. He also could play a guitar 'like ringing a bell." Just my 2 cents.
I tried something like this as my final presentation in an essay writing class in college. I had everyone read various selections of my own work aloud to create that din you'd hear in a crowd. I even tried allowing people to make their own noises, either tearing up the paper I gave them, crumpling it, or distracting other people by tossing paper airplanes... I got an A+ on the final!
Hard to believe this was on tv in 1963!! I am stimulated!! House your bird bby!! How a great man like Zappa broke through where so many were afraid to venture.
Made me laugh thought Steve Allen interacted with Zappa well & gave him ample time to do his thing & of course Steve is going to make jokes it's his show & when he thought he was interrupting he always gave Zappa the floor,a true professional. Had Zappa been on another talk show I think he would have been treated differently.
It was good to hear Allen make that remark at the end. Playing the bikes was funny but pretty cool. Bringing in the band the way Frank did, and the seriousness with which he talked about sound, got Steve's attention--and a lot of viewers' I'll bet. Playing the tape, which even featured sounds recorded off the radio, took us out of the realm of the gimmick. "You have to let your front down." This was 63. Not only had Lennon not done his work on Revolver yet, the Beatles hadn't come to America yet. Sorry to go on like this, but it's a real revelation to me to see Zappa rip such a hole in the Front. You can literally see the work of stitching it back up after he leaves the stage. And to his credit Steve Allen acknowledges that something real just happened. Frank freaked em out.
Holy cripes!!! Did not expect that. lmmfao!!:Gotta start somewhere. I think after this Zap must of moved to Montana... Guy was a genious. Thankz for sharing. : )
This is one of the BEST youtubes I have seen/heard. It is a perfect metaphor for the disconnect in communication between "my generation" and my parents'.
Hahaha you're right! I'm not sure if anyone would go around jamming out this "song" in their car. Thank you for your reply. It's always great to have conversation with others, especially when it comes to something people are so passionate about. I haven't seen Stomp live (only RUclips videos), but it is an amazing production and excellent example of rhythm holding its own against melody. Again, thanks for your take on these wacky sounds.
Thanx for this video! 16,5 minutes of pure fun! With both interviewer & guest being funny, and respecting each other! I'm no American, so this Steve Allen show has no historic connotation to me, but he seems a really nice talk show host who's really interested in his guests. Why don't they make television like this anymore? Why every topic has to last less than 3 minutes? Evolution is going the wrong way it seems...
I was trying to make a short comment about how Steve Allen was so funny and innovative and silly, and not afraid to introduce new music, while sometimes mocking it in order to get the new music out there. His mainstream audience wouldn't have been exposed to Presley or Zappa unless he made fun of it. He disliked disorganized music but he loved artists who were trying new things. He has acquired a bad rep because of having Elvis sing to a hound dog in a tux, and also for reading rock-n-roll lyrics like poetry, but actually, that is not so different than SNL would do now. (and at least in the 50's-60's the music was truly original, not just these mechanically, digitally made songs, which mostly have little to make fun of because they are truly formulaic in a way that pop music moguls who produced Fabian and most Brill Building pop music could only dream of). OK, I went on and on, but only because my first comment went poof when the next video came up. Anyway, many music fans have been led to believe Steve Allen was just a pompous guy who thought he was funny, in the manner of Jay Leno, but when I saw his late 60's franchised talk show, about the same time Merv Griffin, Mel Douglas, Dinah Shore, etc, were out and about, I used to laugh myself silly after school, and I was in first grade.
Bravo! Well said. As the composer who worked with him on the Yellow Shark performances said, "Frank's music is some of the most important music of the 20th century. People will be studying this for hundreds of years because it redefines music in terms of rhythm and texture." (I'm paraphrasing, but it's rather accurate) George Duke said that Frank wrote some of the most beautiful melodies he's ever heard.
That was Fuckin Awesome whoever uploaded this ? Great shit ! Two historical geniuses at work fuckin killer to see . Thanks for the kick ass upload ! Rules !
Steve Allen was mining the material for comedy as usual, but he had a soft spot for outsiders. A few years later he hosted Frank and the Mothers of Invention performing "Hungry Freaks, Daddy" and "America Drinks and Goes Home."
FZ was a true pioneer, an intense composer, a tireless worker, had a wonderfully-wicked sense of humor, and never took himself too seriously. I had the memorable experience of seeing and hearing him and The Mothers (at the time) perform in Phoenix in 1974.
A lot of people do not know that Frank Zappa was also a classically trained musician. He could lead a conventional' orchestra as well as play his own fascinating music.
There was an advantage to the fact that, back then, there were only three or four channels. If Steve Allen was willing to put this on, a sizable audience would hear it.
What a trip! Steve Allen is my hero anyway, and I never imagined he could have crossed paths with Frank Zappa. Took me quite a while to remember what the "New Departure" reference was. Steve made me laugh 8 or 10 times!
It is a combination of comic and musical genius. Allen never once actually mocked Zappa and graciously complimented his vision when they were done. Compare this to any bit on the modern day late night shows and you will notice that Allen gives this 3 times the segment that any artist would get today. This is pretty cool.
![I.N "HALLUCINATION" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n5B5q1Hwt_U/mqdefault.jpg)
Not only is this a good little musical experience, but Steve Allen's humor compliments the whole thing so well. He cracks jokes about it, but is never condescending or impolite.
His sense of humour is very much in tune with Frank's own. The way they're playing off of each other here is fantastic.
*Steve Allen* may look square, but he was definitely one hip and hoopy frood !!
@@grendelum Steve Allen rarely missed an opportunity to say how much he hates rock music.
Agreed. Allen was a musician himself so that may be why.
Steve Allen was Pure class in Our 'Once upon a time New Medium of Impromptu television ln Living Black & White when My grandparents lived not far from KTLA Ch 5 here in LA, Hollywood & 'Allen's Live Shows from the old closeby Hollywood 24/7 Ranch Market are Classics
Above all opinions about Frank and Steve -- BOTH were creative geniuses -- isn't RUclips an amazing thing? This clip is just one of so many that have utterly blown my mind!!! Big "ups" to all the folks who somehow find this stuff and upload it for the rest of us.
Brilliant. For most people of my and Zappa's generation, making Steve Allen laugh would be their high point in life.
This unique eppsode of talent was a true meeting of the minds. Steve Allen was a genius & so was Frank Zappa, although we didn't realize Zappa's genius until about a decade later.This is a priceless video clip of the past. It's too bad that we don't have but only a single episode of The Oscar Levant Show. What a shame!
Steve Allen was a Renaissance Man in the 50's , 60's and 70's- playwright, song writer, composer, accomplished pianist and funny as any comedian alive
Frank Zappa was destined for greatness. Zappa starts with "I've been playing bicycle for two weeks" and ends with a full orchestra wigging out with mixed with pre-recorded sounds. True genius. ...and THIS was in freaking 1963. THIS was cutting edge art.
frank was the master of the notes nobody else wanted to play-genius
*****
The only people that are ever labeled genius are those who dare to do what others have not. Frank Zappa did exactly what Frank Zappa wanted to do, unapologetically. This clip demonstrates that; he went on national television and played a bunch of horrible sounds all because he (I am making some assumptions here) wanted to show that music can come from anywhere. Some of Frank's music, however, is very beautiful. You either have not heard some of his finer work, or do not care to because you would rather remain ignorant to it. Was it experimental, yes. Was it easy to listen to, not always. Was it music, definitely. Easy to listen to and musical genius are two very different descriptions of music. If easy listening and popularity are the measure of musical genius, then there have been many, long-forgotten, musical geniuses over the years, and the current era of music would have to be the most genius of all musical eras in history. In fact, the Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, and N'Sync were at the forefront of the time when music sales were the highest in history. I can tell you those three were definitely not the greatest musical geniuses of all time. I have rambled on too long here, but my point is that FZ was a musical genius. He proved that with his mastery of dozens of genre of music, all the way from rock to classical. Very few, if any one ever, has had the breadth and depth of musical talent that FZ had.
didn't Zappa get the bicycle idea from listening to Yoko Ono's debut album?
I liked his doors renditions
Messiaen and Bartok, Dolphy, and others utilized birdsong.
This says alot about how far ahead of his time Frank Zappa was and give Steve Allen credit for having him on. You can tell that Steve "saw" something in him. In today's day and age, the segments are so much shoreter, Frank got some decent face time on The Steve Allen Show... 1963, huh? Wow.
Both men were awesome in their time. I saw Zappa three times in concert, each concert was an experience to remember.
Saw Zappa live once. Never forget it.
Did he play a bike then...?
I saw him live in Toledo. Fabulous. The crowd was eating out of his hand and he manipulated us to do things we would not have done otherwise. I don't remember quite how he guided us, but through a series of commands we followed we ended up kissing the person to our left. My partner was sitting to my right, and not happy. 😂
Steve Allen was smart and funny and knew how to share the brilliant Frank Zappa with the American audience. This was before people knew Zappa - and the fact that Allen even had him on the show is a testament to how interested he was Zappa's creativity. Steve Allen's style and the expectation of what he'd deliver was about commentary and punch lines. Zappa's just getting started! You can hear his wit in understatement. Zappa had so many gifts.
Amazing see such a young Frank Zappa. Even then, he marched to the best of his own drum!!
Just had my 16 year old watch "Montana" Live at the Roxy before we watched this...hahahahaha & it was brilliant to see Zappa in the earlier stage of genius!
Brilliant of Steve Allen to have had him!!
Steve Allen and Zappa were great. Entertaining on so many levels.
Steve, one of the great hosts of all time. Prhaps the best. He knows when to crack wise, but you can tell he is seriously giving Zappa exposure. The segment is over a quarter of an hour. He even spells out Zappa's name. And he gets down to bring the mike on his nose playing closer to the spokes. Excellent.
Two of the great geniuses in music and entertainment. I would bet that I saw this show, never missed it, and had no idea who Frank Zappa was...wow he was young.
never got to see Zappa perform live, what a gifted guy. He inspires us to express whatever we feel. Life is this, so let go, make some noise and have some fun. Life's too short to be serious. Laugh a lot, Frank would love it.
THANKS FOR THE POST!
Too bad you never saw Frank Live in Concert. It was the Greatest Show on Earth! I went a few years back and saw Dweesil with Dad's Band, and I'd pay double to see them once again!
12:00 ... I can hear The Mothers ...
What surprises me most is, that they devoted a quarter of an hour to this. Nowadays, he would be glad to get just one minute. Hats off to FZ and Steve Allen.
saw him many times in concert, conducting full orchestras at madison square garden
his shows where phenomenal everyone of them... ZAPPA was BRILLIANT . even his written sheet music bizaar ... he performed at the closing of the filmore east sha na na the opening act . (franks ruben and the jets era) . had EVERY album. anymore zappa fans out there? steve allen was fabulous too
like that classic :))
Simply Neil had to live it neil
wish i had lived it then would see Elvis for sure
Simply Neil steve allen was i'd compare to letterman i'd still go with steve tho
Simply Neil hi neil been trying to find ur invite asking for help with randy not sure what it was about . u needed my help u and randy man on overload with incomings and my life. hooked up with global research seems the most urgent randy would agree.... ...
Steve Allen was out for laughs yet still giving much respect..Even noting another musician
Who'd done similar work as Zappa...I dug it.
Yes the quality was bad, but that's as good as it got back then. In 1963 I lived in Phoenix. we had only 3 channels on the TV and trust me, they were bad quality plus we had to depend on how good our rabbit ears were....
I was a Zappa Fan for years, saw him in concert 4 times...I miss him
"World's Greatest Sinner"--one of the must-see movies of all time. Unforgetable.
Brilliant vid clip. Thanks a million for the download 😊
Shazam! That's THE Frank Zappa, isn't it?
"How long have you been playing the bicycle?"
"About two weeks."
😎😎😗😗
I'm just glad someone taped this... however they did it. I never listened to F. Zappa's music. I had no idea of how multi-faceted he was musically (and I don't mean the bicycle stuff). The composer, mutli-instrumentalist, genre crossing dude this guy was is pretty incredible.
WOW!!!!! Can;t believe how young Frank was here! This is pretty damn amazing! Thanks for posting this! :) Good ol'Zappa! rest in PEACE! Steve Allen also!
This is amazing. Now I see where "Directly From My Heart to You"came from. The bow rasping against the spokes... Amazing.
What a great beginning to a phenomenal career. I would guess more people remember Zappa than Allen! Thanks Steve...
What a sweetheart. I love how he's so gentle and self-effacing in response to all that patronising noise from Steve Allen.
wow, how time flies. i recall watching that show when it aired. frank turned out to be the greatest modern composer to date. not only music, he also believed in our freedom of speech. just ask the members of 2 live crew. frank you will not be forgotten. thank you for the emotions you brought about through your wisdom and willingness to be free.
you can tell steve allen was catching the drift he was dealing with a genius
I saw 3 Zappa shows here in Seattle his music wasn't the top ten copy tunes, or dance tunes or sing around the campfire stuff for sure. But, his live shows were something! He often had up to 3 percussionists banging bells, bongs and bell frees! And his signature riffs on his guitar...ahhh It was awesome and a blast
Frank is amazing in this video. He refuses to let Allen make him look like a novelty act. It's brilliant how every time Allen asks him a question intended to be a joke, Frank answers it totally seriously and his respectability grows and grows during the interview intended to make him look like a joke.
Steve Allen was a clever man. His humor was not condescending, and these two played off each other perfectly.
Hard not to think, "Shut Up and Play Yer Bicycle".
Thank you for posting this vid. Brilliant. Zappa and Steve Allen. Just amazing.
Wonderful show. I remember seeing it as a kid. Thanks, Steve and Frank.
WOW! two of my most fav personalities together in time and space!
Yes, Steve Allen was an exceptionally talented man, himself. A genius, if you will.
Steve stays right with crazy Zappa. What a piece.
For anyone critical of Steve Allen, can you imagine a late night host in recent memory giving 14 minutes to something this avant garde for a complete unknown? Bravo to him for devoting this much time to something like this. It really didn't work as a segment but was still interesting from a historical context.
I used to watch Steve all the time back then during Summer vacation and still try to catch his openings during the school year. He and Johnny Carson will always be my late night entertainment favorites.
Anyone here who doubts Frank Zappa's talent, I urge you to look up "does humor belong in music". An amazing and funny live gig.
Thank you so very, very much for uploading this, I couldn't get enough of Frank when he was a live and since the advent of You Tube most of his work is here as well as his interviews. Many thanks.
That was quite crazy. Man look how clean cut Zappa was in 1963? Hard to believe. Steve Allen was way ahead of his time.
Bite your tongue, pud. Steve Allen wrote Thousands of songs (won 1 Grammy) more than 50 books and was the best ad libber I have ever seen. And he had the good sense to put Frank Zappa on TV before anyone knew him. His job was to entertain and he did a pretty good job with FZ.
Two of my favorite people. Steve Allen had the best talk shows on TV, both the national prime-time show and the local syndicated show on KTLA. Oh, how I wish there were more RUclips outtakes like this one! I saw Zappa 3 times live and wore out my Absolutely Free album.
Loved Steve Allen as a kid. Loved zappa since a teen. Saw him plenty of times. Remember a few even ;) this was a real treat. Thanks for posting!
Wow, ol' Steve Allen really gets into it!
Talk about being ahead of his time, with sampling, electronics and found instruments all in an interesting mix. Fascinating to see a young Zappa!
Complete and absolute cacaphony. Well thought out group silliness. Zappa is a genius!
This amazing! Thank you for the upload. To peek inside the mind of a genius as he was beginning. And to think of all he published, the satire, the poignant lyric. Thank you Frank (I miss you) and thank you Kenwahman for sharing this.
+saintsamaritan.......You're absolutely right about Frank's observations, you put it very well. I found this early piece a great insight into Frank's insatiable curiosity with sound, even in that (which you so correctly say) which most of us would tend to overlook or deem insignificant.
Amazing. Frank Z was a gift beyond imagining because he challenged us in so many ways.
There's a fine line between a genius and a mad man,but enough about Steve Allen,Frank Zappa was a very witty and funny man
alot of talent in that duet!
More Music History. Young Frank Zappa.
Totally awesome and that was such a great post and insight into Franks earlier genius side of him.
Zappa is a genius. He can make any object in to a musical instrument. Endless creativity.
This is like a typical day at the music school I went to in the seventies.
Steve Allen and Frank Zappa ... WOW!!! Two American creative geniuses in their own right, both pushing the limits in there own way. Just think what Zappa would be creating for the Web if he were alive today. I miss guys like him. Frank Zappa is NOT just some eccentric doing were stuff. As for Steve Allen, think of all the different actor, comics, comedians who got exposure on his nightly show here in LA. Plus, he was a fine musician/jazz pianist (self taught). Thanks for post his great excerpt.
Brilliant especially as the band keep a straight face.
Watching this was such a treat for me!! I did get to see him in person and seeing him so young and unknown is amazing!! Great clip!!
This is a lot of fun. Personally I don't listen to a lot of Zappa's music but I give him big credit as a "new musician" breaking down barriers like John Cage and others. The idea of reciting Mary Had A Little Lamb in the midst of the cacophony of sound I see as breaking down the old stereotypes or artificial Pollyanna wadydoodle all the day which Frank and others saw as encapsulating ideas into a very small space that excludes other ideas thereby stultifying our ability to evolve. He also could play a guitar 'like ringing a bell." Just my 2 cents.
Absolutely fabulous!!!!!!!!
Thats great, Zappa was allways cool, Steve Allen a good sport
I tried something like this as my final presentation in an essay writing class in college. I had everyone read various selections of my own work aloud to create that din you'd hear in a crowd. I even tried allowing people to make their own noises, either tearing up the paper I gave them, crumpling it, or distracting other people by tossing paper airplanes... I got an A+ on the final!
I love how open Steve Allen is to a young Zappa.
So glad you posted this.
Hard to believe this was on tv in 1963!! I am stimulated!! House your bird bby!! How a great man like Zappa broke through where so many were afraid to venture.
I love when they all start playing, Steve Allen starts playing his nose again!
Made me laugh thought Steve Allen interacted with Zappa well & gave him ample time to do his thing & of course Steve is going to make jokes it's his show & when he thought he was interrupting he always gave Zappa the floor,a true professional. Had Zappa been on another talk show I think he would have been treated differently.
It was good to hear Allen make that remark at the end. Playing the bikes was funny but pretty cool. Bringing in the band the way Frank did, and the seriousness with which he talked about sound, got Steve's attention--and a lot of viewers' I'll bet. Playing the tape, which even featured sounds recorded off the radio, took us out of the realm of the gimmick. "You have to let your front down." This was 63. Not only had Lennon not done his work on Revolver yet, the Beatles hadn't come to America yet. Sorry to go on like this, but it's a real revelation to me to see Zappa rip such a hole in the Front. You can literally see the work of stitching it back up after he leaves the stage. And to his credit Steve Allen acknowledges that something real just happened. Frank freaked em out.
You, my dear sir, get it and may move to the head of the class. Frank was a great genius and far and away ahead of the times.
Jim Caton
Steve Allen brought it back to Genius at the end. Very Respectful.
Frank is in his element! 50 year old TV show..... I am amazed that it is here for us to enjoy!
Miss this BRILLIANCE...Zappa - GENIUS! Steve Allen a marvel!
Holy cripes!!! Did not expect that. lmmfao!!:Gotta start somewhere. I think after this Zap must of moved to Montana... Guy was a genious. Thankz for sharing. : )
He was very new at this point, his first album Freak Out with The Mothers of Invention, didn't debut until 1966.
Great interaction with Steve and Frank. Hilarious at about 6 mins and on...great stuff!
This is one of the BEST youtubes I have seen/heard. It is a perfect metaphor for the disconnect in communication between "my generation" and my parents'.
I think my mother must have been watching this just before I was born. No wonder I can't think normally. :)
What a sport Frank is and obviously a very brilliant mind musically.
Hahaha you're right! I'm not sure if anyone would go around jamming out this "song" in their car. Thank you for your reply. It's always great to have conversation with others, especially when it comes to something people are so passionate about. I haven't seen Stomp live (only RUclips videos), but it is an amazing production and excellent example of rhythm holding its own against melody. Again, thanks for your take on these wacky sounds.
Thanx for this video! 16,5 minutes of pure fun! With both interviewer & guest being funny, and respecting each other! I'm no American, so this Steve Allen show has no historic connotation to me, but he seems a really nice talk show host who's really interested in his guests. Why don't they make television like this anymore? Why every topic has to last less than 3 minutes? Evolution is going the wrong way it seems...
I was trying to make a short comment about how Steve Allen was so funny and innovative and silly, and not afraid to introduce new music, while sometimes mocking it in order to get the new music out there. His mainstream audience wouldn't have been exposed to Presley or Zappa unless he made fun of it. He disliked disorganized music but he loved artists who were trying new things. He has acquired a bad rep because of having Elvis sing to a hound dog in a tux, and also for reading rock-n-roll lyrics like poetry, but actually, that is not so different than SNL would do now. (and at least in the 50's-60's the music was truly original, not just these mechanically, digitally made songs, which mostly have little to make fun of because they are truly formulaic in a way that pop music moguls who produced Fabian and most Brill Building pop music could only dream of). OK, I went on and on, but only because my first comment went poof when the next video came up. Anyway, many music fans have been led to believe Steve Allen was just a pompous guy who thought he was funny, in the manner of Jay Leno, but when I saw his late 60's franchised talk show, about the same time Merv Griffin, Mel Douglas, Dinah Shore, etc, were out and about, I used to laugh myself silly after school, and I was in first grade.
Great web master. You have really expanded the frank zappa experience. There is lots of new stuff for us.
This is awesome! Zappa was the coolest. RIP.
Bravo! Well said. As the composer who worked with him on the Yellow Shark performances said, "Frank's music is some of the most important music of the 20th century. People will be studying this for hundreds of years because it redefines music in terms of rhythm and texture." (I'm paraphrasing, but it's rather accurate) George Duke said that Frank wrote some of the most beautiful melodies he's ever heard.
That was Fuckin Awesome whoever uploaded this ? Great shit ! Two historical geniuses at work fuckin killer to see . Thanks for the kick ass upload ! Rules !
Everytime I do something ankward I just think of Zappa, it helps EVERYTIME!!!
Thanks for posting! This is great!
Steve Allen was mining the material for comedy as usual, but he had a soft spot for outsiders. A few years later he hosted Frank and the Mothers of Invention performing "Hungry Freaks, Daddy" and "America Drinks and Goes Home."
FZ was a true pioneer, an intense composer, a tireless worker, had a wonderfully-wicked sense of humor, and never took himself too seriously. I had the memorable experience of seeing and hearing him and The Mothers (at the time) perform in Phoenix in 1974.
Pure genius, that irrepressibly dynamic sense of humour stupefies our hosts ideas about propriety.
That was great, thanks for sharing!
A lot of people do not know that Frank Zappa was also a classically trained musician. He could lead a conventional' orchestra as well as play his own fascinating music.
Amazing to see Frank on this show. What a kick.
There was an advantage to the fact that, back then, there were only three or four channels. If Steve Allen was willing to put this on, a sizable audience would hear it.
This is great. Thanks.
What a trip! Steve Allen is my hero anyway, and I never imagined he could have crossed paths with Frank Zappa. Took me quite a while to remember what the "New Departure" reference was. Steve made me laugh 8 or 10 times!
It is a combination of comic and musical genius. Allen never once actually mocked Zappa and graciously complimented his vision when they were done. Compare this to any bit on the modern day late night shows and you will notice that Allen gives this 3 times the segment that any artist would get today. This is pretty cool.
He is trying to be too hard to be avant-garde here. Just a lot of random noise.
This is awesome! Zappa was a very creative individual indeed.