"Zappa's lyrics were ultimately unimportant; it is the music that will last."
Miles, p. 235.
jeudi 7 avril 2011
The Performer.
To go back a little on what I have briefly mentioned on my previous post, I would like to take a minute and talk about Zappa as a performer...
He often said that he nearly despised his fans, accusing them of not truly understanding the satirical critical aspect of his work or not being interested in his more 'serious' music, which is to say his compositions. He thought of them as ignorant, pitiful drug abusers and did not think much of them.
But! He did wanted to give them the best show possible every night. For him, it was a question of giving the best service to someone buying a good. They were buying tickets to his shows, therefore he needed to provide them with the best entertainment possible. On this basis of commodity exchange, Zappa developed, from the early days of the first Mothers, a passion for performance on stage.
Soon enough, the shows became little theatrical performances of their own rather than a mere succession of songs played on stage.
The first Mothers of Invention were truly the most entertaining musicians Zappa had, and they were building performances around inflatable animals balloons, girls dancing on stage, and whatever else they could think of. "Kids go to see their favorite acts, not to hear them... We work on the premise that nobody really hears what we do anyway (...)" (Miles 185) he finally dismissed the original MOI.
After a few years came the second band Zappa formed, the Flo & Eddie band. New comers were introduced to the band but Volman and Kaylan (ex members of The Turtles) were truly the most theatrical of the group, participating in the creation of sketches with Zappa. "Mark and Howard brought a different, younger, dumber, more sexually explicit humor to the group." (Miles 202) A formula of 30 minutes sketches were brought into the shows. Volman: "We existed in that band of humor, but not necessarily for the audience's humor, but for Frank's humor." (Miles 204)
After rather comical and theatrical performances, Zappa went on tour with his 'Wazoo' lineup and was rather disappointed by the dullness of it all. "This was not a theatrical group." (Miles 238) Fans too, who were expecting something like the previous shows, ended up being disappointed.
Frank was getting older, and his fans too. He wasn't into the same kind of 'show humor' anymore... He took a more satirical approach to lyrics and songs, parodying voices and gestures on scenes with his lead signers such as White or Ike, but it was never the same thing as the MOI or Flo & Eddie tours. Ultimately, Zappa introduced more and more guitar solos into his performances, and even if he never truly got the 'performer' out of the stage, since his music and lyrics were all about impersonation and social criticism, he never reacheived the level of pure entertainment first introduced in his early career...
He often said that he nearly despised his fans, accusing them of not truly understanding the satirical critical aspect of his work or not being interested in his more 'serious' music, which is to say his compositions. He thought of them as ignorant, pitiful drug abusers and did not think much of them.
But! He did wanted to give them the best show possible every night. For him, it was a question of giving the best service to someone buying a good. They were buying tickets to his shows, therefore he needed to provide them with the best entertainment possible. On this basis of commodity exchange, Zappa developed, from the early days of the first Mothers, a passion for performance on stage.
Soon enough, the shows became little theatrical performances of their own rather than a mere succession of songs played on stage.
The first Mothers of Invention were truly the most entertaining musicians Zappa had, and they were building performances around inflatable animals balloons, girls dancing on stage, and whatever else they could think of. "Kids go to see their favorite acts, not to hear them... We work on the premise that nobody really hears what we do anyway (...)" (Miles 185) he finally dismissed the original MOI.
After a few years came the second band Zappa formed, the Flo & Eddie band. New comers were introduced to the band but Volman and Kaylan (ex members of The Turtles) were truly the most theatrical of the group, participating in the creation of sketches with Zappa. "Mark and Howard brought a different, younger, dumber, more sexually explicit humor to the group." (Miles 202) A formula of 30 minutes sketches were brought into the shows. Volman: "We existed in that band of humor, but not necessarily for the audience's humor, but for Frank's humor." (Miles 204)
After rather comical and theatrical performances, Zappa went on tour with his 'Wazoo' lineup and was rather disappointed by the dullness of it all. "This was not a theatrical group." (Miles 238) Fans too, who were expecting something like the previous shows, ended up being disappointed.
Frank was getting older, and his fans too. He wasn't into the same kind of 'show humor' anymore... He took a more satirical approach to lyrics and songs, parodying voices and gestures on scenes with his lead signers such as White or Ike, but it was never the same thing as the MOI or Flo & Eddie tours. Ultimately, Zappa introduced more and more guitar solos into his performances, and even if he never truly got the 'performer' out of the stage, since his music and lyrics were all about impersonation and social criticism, he never reacheived the level of pure entertainment first introduced in his early career...
Zappa the Bitter/Sweet.
Zappa is honestly one of the most complicated artist that I've been asked to study. It seems that everything revolving around him is in a constant, never ending duality. Not that he contradicts himself per se, but he seems to be very keen on certain principals that he does not even follow himself.
I realize that by now this blog is nearly all about these constant contradictions surrounding his life, but it is what I find the most interesting about the man himself. How can a figure be so mysterious and yet express his opinions in dozens of forms (interviews, music, film, etc.)? How come nobody agrees on who truly was Zappa?
Here's a couple of examples of how this duality plays out concretely:
- Frank not liking his fans but wanting to create the best show and best material for their money value.
- Frank choosing to make commercial albums to self-finance his 'serious' orchestral music.
- Frank appropriating ideas from his band members but composing his material exclusively to fit their capacities (and push them to the limit).
- Frank not spending time with his family but stating that he is a family man.
...
The mystery of the man will probably forever stay hidden though, as nobody seems to be able to truly size who was that man, who was the composer, who was Zappa. Like any individual, he has his qualities and flaws, his personality traits and his preferences... But his mythical status affect our judgment and memories. I don't know how much of every testimony I should believe. Everybody Zappa met could have a reason to detest the man as much as loving him. Nobody seems to be interested in presenting his true portrait. Or rather, nobody knew enough of Zappa to present his true self.
Here's a couple of examples of how this duality plays out concretely:
- Frank not liking his fans but wanting to create the best show and best material for their money value.
- Frank choosing to make commercial albums to self-finance his 'serious' orchestral music.
- Frank appropriating ideas from his band members but composing his material exclusively to fit their capacities (and push them to the limit).
- Frank not spending time with his family but stating that he is a family man.
...
The mystery of the man will probably forever stay hidden though, as nobody seems to be able to truly size who was that man, who was the composer, who was Zappa. Like any individual, he has his qualities and flaws, his personality traits and his preferences... But his mythical status affect our judgment and memories. I don't know how much of every testimony I should believe. Everybody Zappa met could have a reason to detest the man as much as loving him. Nobody seems to be interested in presenting his true portrait. Or rather, nobody knew enough of Zappa to present his true self.
mardi 5 avril 2011
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