Frank Zappa - FAQ: All That’s Left To Know About The Father Of Invention
by Lisa Torem
published: 19 / 4 / 2017

intro
In her 'Raging Pages' book column Lisa Torem finds that John Corcelli's new book 'Frank Zappa FAQ: All That’s Left to Know About the Father of Invention' highlights the American composer's complex compositions and legacy
John Corcelli’s 276-plus page book includes a detailed discography and an intelligent break down of American composer/guitarist/producer Frank Zappa’s extraordinary career. Early on, we get a good picture of everyday living: the musician was born to Sicilian/French parents in Baltimore, Maryland. Because he suffered from asthma, his family moved to Florida, but came back for familial reasons. Ill health meant he was often housebound, so young Frank immersed himself in science experiments, using beakers that his chemist father brought home from his laboratory. In 1965, Zappa was working at Studio Z in California, when he was offered the job of lead guitarist for t-he Soul Giants. The band barely made ends meet doing “Top 40” songs, so Zappa persuaded them to perform his own material and to change the band name to “The Mothers of Invention.” The decision to concentrate on originals displeased local club owners who saw an immediate drop in dance activity, but that decision certainly paved the way for a one-off future; the band cultivated the carefree Californian youth known as “the freaks,” who craved experiential music in the mid 1960s. The author goes on to examine the eclectic collaboration between Zappa and Captain Beefheart, and the emotional challenges they faced while recording a couple of albums, most notably, ‘Trout Mask Replica’ (1969). The first line-up was: Frank Zappa, Roy Estrada, Jimmy Carl Black and Ray Collins. The following year, the band graduated to eight and maded ‘Freak Out,’ ‘We’re Absolutely Free’ and ‘We’re Only in It for The Money’. By 1969, the band had run its course. Zappa’s family gets its fair due. His son, Dweezil, a talented guitarist/arranger in his own right, performs his father’s original compositions on tour, hoping to introduce a younger generation to his father’s music. To illustrate the diversity of his subject’s talents, there are chapters on video and TV appearances and a deep analysis of the man’s recordings. Beyond that, Zappa’s fight against musical censorship depicts a deep, articulate thinker who goes on to challenge conservative viewpoints during a heated congressional hearing. In addition, there is Frank, the psychic, who Rykodisc founder Don Rose referred to as “a forward-thinking artist who controlled his own material and was already digital-friendly” in Billboard, May, 1990. Corcelli stresses the point that when Zappa remastered his albums from vinyl to CD, he made sure the conversion involved an enhancement of or variation on the primary arrangement. Corcelli beautifully described how Zappa’s comfort with the Synclavier opened him up to develop more complicated themes on state-of-the art digital equipment. The photos were limited and sometimes difficult to decipher, but the overall information in this book os conveyed smoothly and intelligently.
Also In Raging Pages
Benjamin Orr (2018)
Bernard Purdie (2015)
Billy Bragg (2017)
Billy J. Kramer (2016)
Bob Boilen (2016)
Bob Dylan (2018)
Bob Marley (2019)
Brian Wilson (2017)
Clive Davis (2015)
Common (2020)
Damned (2021)
Don Short (2020)
Elliott Murphy (2019)
Elvis Costello (2015)
Felix Cavaliere (2022)
Gary Wright (2014)
Gene Simmons (2015)
Geoff Emerick (2018)
George Harrison (2022)
George Martin (2019)
Green Day (2019)
Ian Mclagan (2016)
Jann Wenner (2019)
Jerry Lee Lewis (2015)
Jerry Nolan (2018)
Jim Summaria and Mark Plotnick (2019)
Joe Perry (Aerosmith) (2014)
John Lennon (2017)
Kinks (2014)
Lani Hall Alpert (2019)
Laurence Juber (2014)
Liberty DeVitto (2021)
Lisa Robinson (2021)
Lita Ford (2021)
Little Anthony (2014)
Louise Harrison (2015)
Manic Street Preachers (2017)
Mary Wilson (2021)
Michael Bloomfield (2020)
Michael Dorf (2019)
Miscellaneous (2014)
Ozzy Osbourne (2014)
Pamela Des Barres (2017)
Paul McCartney (2020)
Radiohead (2022)
Renee Rosen (2018)
Richard Balls (2018)
Ringo Starr (2015)
Robby Krieger (2022)
Roger Daltrey (2020)
Rolling Stones (2016)
Ronnie Wood (2015)
Sam Phillips (2018)
Sean Madigan Hoen (2014)
Silas House (2020)
Spencer Vignes (2017)
Sylvain Sylvain (2018)
Thin Lizzy (2016)
Tommy James (2021)
Tori Amos (2020)
U2 (2021)
Who (2014)
Will Romano (2015)
Woody Woodmansey (2018)
Zz Top (2014)
Band Links:-
http://www.zappa.com/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Zappa
digital downloads
most viewed articles
current edition
Cornbury Music Festival - Great Tew Park, Oxfordshire, 8/7/2022...10/7/2022 -The Final GoodbyeBathers - (With Cowboy Mouth and Sugartown), Strathaven Hotel, Strathavan, 17/6/2022
Felix Cavaliere - From Pelham, NY to Rock n Roll Hall of Fame
NIck Godfrey - Interview
Prolapse - Peel Sessions 20.08.94 and 08.04.97
Queen and Adam Lambert - O2 Arena, London, 20/6/2022
Dorothy Bird - Jimmy's, Liverpool, 30/6/2022
Sarah Cracknell - Interview
Dwina Gibb - Interview
Andy Ellison - Interview
previous editions
World Party - InterviewSam Brown - Interview 2008
Cliff Richard - Vs Elvis Presley
Television - The Drug of the Nation : Part 2
Television - The Drug of the Nation : Part 1
Richard Hawley - Leadmill, Sheffield, 11/9/2005
Paul Clerehugh - Interview
Candlelight Tribute to Coldplay - Manchester Cathedral, Manchester, 1/4/2022
Melanie Blake - Interview
Oasis - London Finsbury Park, 5/7/2002
most viewed reviews
current edition
Hurrah! - David Jensen 08.12.82Moon Under Water - Fragments EP
Paolo Nutini - Last Night in the Bittersweet
Marine Research - John Peel 18.05.99
Brooks Williams and Aaron Catlow - Ready for the Times
Burning Hell - Garbage Island
Jeff Beck and Johnny Depp - 18
Dave Edwards - Many Rivers
Jessie Buckley and Bernard Butler - For All Our Days That Tear The Heart
Blue Orchids - Angus Tempus Memoir
Pennyblackmusic Regular Contributors
Adrian Janes
Amanda J. Window
Andrew Twambley
Anthony Dhanendran
Benjamin Howarth
Cila Warncke
Daniel Cressey
Darren Aston
Dastardly
Dave Goodwin
Denzil Watson
Dominic B. Simpson
Eoghan Lyng
Fiona Hutchings
Harry Sherriff
Helen Tipping
Jamie Rowland
John Clarkson
Julie Cruickshank
Kimberly Bright
Lisa Torem
Maarten Schiethart