zappa. a genius or just a comedian?

Jim Garten wrote: Brave thread! There are several members here to whom the very question would be akin to certain others reading "ELP - genius or overblown no-marks with an over-inflated sense of their own importance" or "Radiohead - they're not prog!" Blacksword wrote: One minute he's playing the most brilliant rock/blues riff against a backdrop of intricate jazz, then in a split second there's screaming, whistles blowing and some anecdote about a hooker felating a republican.. Most of this emerges during the huge amount of live material Zappa released, especially during the latter years of his life; in the studio, he was a giant talent, but on stage, he often took the opportunity to adapt well known songs from his back catalogue to satirise current events (a particular example is the Jimmy Swaggart episodes in the late 1980's). While these are funny to listen to once or twice, you can find yourself thinking "Oh, just get on with it, Frank, you made your point". That aside, though, his work with the Ensemble Moderne and Pierre Boulez cannot be under-estimated; widely considered to be modern classics. Add this to his huge influence on guitar players, and his habit of acting as a finishing school for many musicians (Vai, Belew, Wackerman, Jobson to name but a few), I'd have to come down on the side of Zappa as a musical genius - however, as with many such mavericks, the chaff content is there, but in my opinion, only about 5% of the time.

All the live footage I've seen of Zappa swings between brilliant musical performances, and aforemetioned comedic ramblings. I have the 'Baby Snakes' DVD which features a classic concert in New York 1979, with the Belew, Bozzio...line up. The music is fantastic, but my finger is ever ready on the fast forward button. I even sympathise with much of his politics, but when I buy a music product thats what I expect; music. Not a sermon, albeit quite an amusing one.

Apart from Grand Wazoo, Hot Ratz, Sheik Yerbouti & Zoot Alore, can anyone reccomend some good Zappa albums which are musically consistent throughout??

What was Charles Chaplin, a genius or just a comedian?

NetsNJFan wrote: moments of brillian, but way to much chaff. i'd say a 1:4 ratio

I'd say a 4:1 ratio 

A brilliant musician, but I agree with NetsNJFan. Moments of brilliance, but a little too much 'chaf'

I've heard Zappa tracks that blow me away, but an equal amount of material that just frustrates me. One minute he's playing the most brilliant rock/blues riff against a backdrop of intricate jazz, then in a split second there's screaming, whistles blowing and some anecdote about a hooker felating a republican..or something. It gets a little too much for me at times.

He has so many albums, and I have heard probably a quarter of them. I like Hot Ratz and The Grand Wazoo. Of those I've heard, they are the best Zappa albums IMO.