Zappa in New York

Infobox Album |
Name = Zappa in New York
Type = Live album
Artist = Frank Zappa


Released = March 3, 1978
Recorded = December 26 – December 29 1976
Genre = Jazz fusion, comedy rock, hard rock, progressive rock
Length = 59:05 (LP)
101:56 (CD)
Label = DiscReet Records
Producer = Frank Zappa
Reviews = *Allmusic Rating|4|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:54rj287c053a~T1 link]
Last album = "Zoot Allures"
(1976)
This album = "Zappa in New York"
(1978)
Next album = "Studio Tan"
(1978)

"Zappa in New York" is a live album by Frank Zappa. It was recorded at a series of concerts at New York City's Palladium in December 1976,

Zappa had originally intended to release it in 1977, but the release was delayed over disagreements that Zappa's DiscReet Records label then had with record distributor Warner Bros. Records. A small number of LP and cassette copies appeared in 1977 with Zappa's original intended track listing. But soon after this Warner withdrew the album and removed the song "Punky's Whips" without authorization. Warner also re-sequenced some of the remaining songs on the LP before re-releasing it in March 1978.

Zappa later reacquired the album, and released it as a remixed double CD in 1991, restoring "Punky's Whips." The CD version of the song also included a good deal of overdubbed guitar, which had been recorded at the same time as the album's other overdubs, but never used on the LP version. The CD re-issue of "Zappa in New York" also added four new bonus tracks and a significantly longer version of "Titties and Beer".

The album is notable for the presence of members of the Saturday Night Live band, such as Lou Marini and Tom Malone, with the Brecker Brothers featuring also. Don Pardo was also invited by Zappa to the concert at the Palladium, and he narrates introductory statements on "Punky's Whips" and "The Illinois Enema Bandit" and "sings" a verse of "I'm the Slime" (he did the same for Zappa's 1976 Saturday Night Live appearance).

This album presented mostly new material, such as the aforementioned "Punky's Whips", a tale concerning drummer Terry Bozzio's infatuation with Punky Meadows, a guitarist in the band Angel, set along to a complex, striking musical composition. There is also the humorous "Titties and Beer", featuring Terry Bozzio in the role of the Devil, with whom Zappa is trying to negotiate with in order to reacquire the titular possessions. Typical for Zappa, alongside such "funny" songs, he also presented such musically complex pieces as "The Black Page", and "Manx Needs Women", which stretched the band to its limits. "The Purple Lagoon", an extended track which took up an entire side of the original vinyl release, features a rhythmically challenging opening theme (which also includes an arrangement of Zappa's earlier composition "Approximate") and jazzy solos from the Brecker brothers, bassist Patrick O'Hearn and saxophonist Ronnie Cuber.

Along with the new songs, Zappa also included new arrangements of the waltz "Sofa" (which originally appeared on "One Size Fits All") and an old R&B-styled Mothers of Invention tune, "Big Leg Emma".

1978 LP Track listing

All tracks written by Frank Zappa.

ide one

#"Titties & Beer" – 5:39
#"I Promise Not to Come in Your Mouth" – 2:50
#"Big Leg Emma" – 2:17

ide two

#"Sofa" – 3:15
#"Manx Needs Women" – 1:40
#"The Black Page Drum Solo/Black Page #1" – 4:06
#"Black Page #2" – 5:31

ide three

#"Honey, Don't You Want a Man Like Me?" – 4:15
#"The Illinois Enema Bandit" – 12:31

ide four

#"The Purple Lagoon" – 16:57

CD Re-release

Disc one

#"Titties & Beer" – 7:36
#"Cruisin' for Burgers" – 9:12
#"I Promise Not to Come in Your Mouth" – 3:32
#"Punky's Whips" – 10:51
#"Honey, Don't You Want a Man Like Me?" – 4:12
#"The Illinois Enema Bandit" – 12:41

Disc two

#"I'm the Slime" – 4:24
#"Pound for a Brown" – 3:41
#"Manx Needs Women" – 1:51
#"The Black Page Drum Solo/Black Page #1" – 3:50
#"Big Leg Emma" – 2:17
#"Sofa" – 2:56
#"Black Page #2" – 5:36
#"The Torture Never Stops" – 12:35
#"The Purple Lagoon/Approximate" – 16:40

Personnel

* Frank Zappa – conductor, keyboards, lead guitar, vocals, producer
*Ray White – rhythm guitar, vocals
*Eddie Jobson – keyboards, violin, vocals
*Patrick O'Hearn – bass guitar, vocals
*Terry Bozzio – drums, vocals
*Ruth Underwood – percussion, synthesizer, overdubs
*Don Pardo – narration
*Dave Samuels – timpani, vibes
*Randy Brecker – trumpet
*Mike Brecker – tenor saxophone, flute
*Lou Marini – alto saxophone, flute
*Ronnie Cuber – baritone saxophone, clarinet
*Tom Malone – trombone, trumpet, piccolo

*John Bergamo – percussion overdubs
*Ed Mann – percussion overdubs
*Lou Anne Neill – osmotic harp overdub

Cultural References

* "Titties & Beer" references "Milhouse Nixon" and "Agnew" whose souls are taken by the Devil.

* "Punky's Whips" was written as an inside joke about drummer Terry Bozzio's fascination with a photograph of Punky Meadows, the lead guitar player of the group Angel.

* The "favorite group" of the girl portrayed in "Honey Don't You Want a Man Like Me?" is Helen Reddy. In later concert performances Zappa would change the name into Twisted Sister.

* The Illinois Enema Bandit is based on real facts about criminal Michael H. Kenyon.

* The track "Manx needs women" references the 1967 science fiction B-movie Mars Needs Women and the inhabitants of the Isle of Man who are called "Manx".

Charts

Album - "Billboard" (North America)

References