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Topic ClosedZappa Vs. Pink Floyd
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Poll Question: Who is the more popular in PA. Zappa or Floyd?
Poll Choice Votes Poll Statistics
13 [20.31%]
49 [76.56%]
2 [3.13%]
0 [0.00%]
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Dean View Drop Down
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Points: 37575 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 17:53
Frank Zappa was a character but great is subjective, none of his songs are funny the second time of hearing, but he was a great composer. The answer however, is still Pink Floyd.
What?
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Points: 2111 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 17:54
Originally posted by zachfive zachfive wrote:

Originally posted by LSDisease LSDisease wrote:

Pink Floyd. Frank Zappa was a great character, some funny songs, not a great composer. 

You may be able to have an opinion, but this statement here is completely false.

Zappa by a mile on this one. Ain't no one style the man can't master, create a disaster, satirize, and completely make his own. In terms of "progressive", hard to name another artist that more aptly fits the term. An advocate of free speech and a pioneer in self awareness, a personal hero of mine.

Floyd is Floyd. The gap between their most creative output and their lowest point is too close for me to deem them anything other than slightly above mediocre.

I agree with LSDisease that Zappa was far from a great composer. Have you actually heard some of Zappa's attempts at classical music? Absolutely a disgrace to the genre IMHO. A Ravel, Shostakovich, or Bartok he was not! I also disagree about the 'mastering' of styles. I mean who cares? This doesn't make him a viable, emotional force in music. If anything, he alienates listeners and if this thread is any indication still continues to. I'm not saying he wasn't a good musician, quite the contrary, but I don't think his music has been able to establish any kind of foothold because so much of it is nonsensical and unemotional for many listeners.


Edited by Mirror Image - July 21 2014 at 17:55
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Points: 14169 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 18:16
Originally posted by LSDisease LSDisease wrote:

Pink Floyd. Frank Zappa was a great character, some funny songs, not a great composer. 
Wtf that was probably his best quality.
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Points: 6116 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 18:26
Frank Zappa is cool and all, but he is not Pink Floyd. Easy one for me.
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Points: 6472 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 19:05
Both iterations of the question yield the same answer for me: Pink Floyd. I have the vast majority of their albums, but only a few of Zappa's. Uncle Frank was brilliant in many ways, but I often find his humor and criticisms sophomoric. Hot Rats is a great album, but I find We're Only in it for the Money to be rubbish. I think I like him best when he just shuts up and plays his guitar, and he was a devastating guitarist. Pink Floyd is clearly the more popular and justifiably so. Their music actually said something and, as many others on this forum have said, has an emotional element to it - it effects people in a way that is not just intellectual. At the same time, it is also intelligent. Great combo! Zappa was no Forest Gump, not by a long shot, but he frequently came across as the worst kind of intellectual: one who can't distinguish his head from his rear end.
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Points: 2111 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 19:26
Originally posted by Progosopher Progosopher wrote:

Both iterations of the question yield the same answer for me: Pink Floyd. I have the vast majority of their albums, but only a few of Zappa's. Uncle Frank was brilliant in many ways, but I often find his humor and criticisms sophomoric. Hot Rats is a great album, but I find We're Only in it for the Money to be rubbish. I think I like him best when he just shuts up and plays his guitar, and he was a devastating guitarist. Pink Floyd is clearly the more popular and justifiably so. Their music actually said something and, as many others on this forum have said, has an emotional element to it - it effects people in a way that is not just intellectual. At the same time, it is also intelligent. Great combo! Zappa was no Forest Gump, not by a long shot, but he frequently came across as the worst kind of intellectual: one who can't distinguish his head from his rear end.

Very well stated.
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Points: 14050 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 19:49
Originally posted by smartpatrol smartpatrol wrote:

Originally posted by LSDisease LSDisease wrote:

Pink Floyd. Frank Zappa was a great character, some funny songs, not a great composer. 
Wtf that was probably his best quality.
 
Yes I think the musicians who worked with him would say he was a brilliant composer. I've heard Mike Keneally talk about how incredible he was in that department.
As for the poll I had to vote Floyd. Both choices here were innovative with some great ideas over their careers but the music of PF appeals to me more.
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Points: 13228 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 20:24
As much as I appreciate Zappa, he just doesn't match up to Floyd.
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Points: 30855 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 20:52
Two of my all-time favorites and it depends on my mood really.

Zappa this week, Floyd the next one.
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Points: 4574 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 21:19
No contest-Floyd.
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Points: 2673 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 21 2014 at 22:19
I almost didn't read the question. Pink Floyd has the second highest selling album of all time in Dark Side of the Moon, so I would definitely classify them as more popular, even in Zappa's homeland.

If asked which one I prefer, I'd be torn between the two.
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Points: 16130 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 02:52
I have to vote Floyd, as much as I love Zappa. I listen to Floyd more. They are easy to dip into at any time for me. I have to be in a certain very strange mood to sit through an entire Zappa album, with perhaps the excapetion of Hot Rats and Grand Wazoo which I can appreciate any time..
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Points: 10213 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 03:18
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Points: 10213 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 03:28
Originally posted by smartpatrol smartpatrol wrote:


Originally posted by LSDisease LSDisease wrote:

Pink Floyd. Frank Zappa was a great character, some funny songs, not a great composer. 

Wtf that was probably his best quality.

Exactly until his death, he remained to be a great composer, i.e. to release such great albums.





Edited by Svetonio - July 22 2014 at 03:36
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Points: 15926 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 05:18
Love Uncle Frank dearly, but Floyd will always be closer to my heart and soul.....
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Points: 692 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 08:36
Floyd for me easily. I was never interested in Zappa. It's strange as I've been listening to a lot of different music, but Zappa isn't in there. And mind I'm not such big fan of PF...

And the question hasn't any impact on my answer. I's answer the same on any other type of question (better, more popular, more interesting etc. etc.). Maybe only musicians skills could lead to different vote as I've never consider Floyd's to be grand masters of their instruments. But then what. This isn't the main point for listening music.


Edited by Libor10 - July 22 2014 at 08:44
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Points: 5482 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 09:04
Pink Floyd - good
Frank Zappa - exceptionally great
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Points: 35 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 10:08
Originally posted by Mirror Image Mirror Image wrote:

Originally posted by zachfive zachfive wrote:

Originally posted by LSDisease LSDisease wrote:

Pink Floyd. Frank Zappa was a great character, some funny songs, not a great composer. 

You may be able to have an opinion, but this statement here is completely false.

Zappa by a mile on this one. Ain't no one style the man can't master, create a disaster, satirize, and completely make his own. In terms of "progressive", hard to name another artist that more aptly fits the term. An advocate of free speech and a pioneer in self awareness, a personal hero of mine.

Floyd is Floyd. The gap between their most creative output and their lowest point is too close for me to deem them anything other than slightly above mediocre.

I agree with LSDisease that Zappa was far from a great composer. Have you actually heard some of Zappa's attempts at classical music? Absolutely a disgrace to the genre IMHO. A Ravel, Shostakovich, or Bartok he was not! I also disagree about the 'mastering' of styles. I mean who cares? This doesn't make him a viable, emotional force in music. If anything, he alienates listeners and if this thread is any indication still continues to. I'm not saying he wasn't a good musician, quite the contrary, but I don't think his music has been able to establish any kind of foothold because so much of it is nonsensical and unemotional for many listeners.

Frank Zappa didn't believe in music as a way to convey emotion. The fact that Pink Floyd are winning this poll is a travesty. Frank Zappa is a far, far greater artist. 
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Points: 1281 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 10:47
Originally posted by Progosopher Progosopher wrote:



...Zappa was no Forest Gump, not by a long shot, but he frequently came across as the worst kind of intellectual: one who can't distinguish his head from his rear end.


On the one hand, there have been much worse people in that regard. On the other hand, I do agree that a few of his arguments were kind of dumb. For example, saying that didn't believe in music as a way to convey emotion. If that really was the case, he wouldn't have crafted a good chunk of his work to be funny, offensive, or some combination of the two. Not to mention songs like, say, "Starless" by King Crimson make such a philosophy completely unappealing. Now, if he was saying that he didn't believe in using emotion in music as a form of commercial commodity (e.g. propaganda or an excuse to whine about trivial matters), I can get on board with that.

Back on topic, I can't pick. Both had their moments.
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Points: 2060 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 22 2014 at 11:41
Pink Floyd.


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