THE LUMPY MONEY PROJECT/OBJECT

Or perhaps phase three of Lumpy Gravy? Or perhaps phase four of civilization? All of these labels would probably apply. Lumpy Money is the newest thing (at the time of this review) to come out of the Zappa Family Trust's vaults, and this one delves deep, all the way back to 1967. And they have found some excellent material. To my knowledge, a majority of these recordings haven't been released in these forms, and if they had been they haven't been available in decades. This fact alone makes Lumpy Money a valued item. One point I must make off the bat is that the sound of these recordings is incredible. The production is spot on and honestly almost unbelievable for material of this age (which was sitting in cold storage for god knows how long).

Three discs of material, from three different "eras". Disc one deals with the sixties. It begins with the 'Primordial Lumpy Gravy' which is (almost) pure avant-classical madness. In addition a few well known Zappa themes pop up here (such as King Kong and Oh No, both of which appeared in the released Lumpy Gravy). Being a fan of atonal/avant-garde musics, and Zappa's more classical stuff, this was a joy to listen to, and one of the main reasons I bought the album. The 'Original Mono Mix' of We're Only In It For The Money follows. The booklet claims this is not just a watered down version of the stereo mix, but this reviewer can not find that many differences between the 1995 remastered mix of We're Only In It For The Money and this one. But then again, I was never an audiophile. However, it is different so true Zappa completists can say they own it.

Disc two takes us to 1984. In said year Uncle Frank remixed both Lumpy Gravy and We're Only In It For The Money for CD release. This is a pretty serious remix, of both. First off all the drums (and probably bass) were rerecorded. These are very 80s sounding drums (unnecessarily heavy, thudy, almost fake sounding [and probably at times are]) and create a huge contrast to the original mixes. Secondly, on We're Only In It For The Money the censorship that took place on the original vinyl is repealed, for better or worse. (The worse in this case refers to the song 'Harry You're A Beast' which I thought the original version is better. Other than this I'm happy the censorship is gone.) Thirdly, according to the liner notes this mix of Lumpy Gravy hasn't been released, thus something else that is (somewhat) new. As for the music itself, I am a bit torn. While its interesting to hear things changed around a bit (and in case of Lumpy Gravy about two minuets added) the 80s drums detract some of the enjoyment. The only positive, IMO, about their presence is that it adds a very interesting juxtaposition of technology versus that old time sound and feel. However, I prefer the 60s drumming, which fits the music significantly more and which sounds more natural. However, not all is lost. For Lumpy Gravy, the vocals added to the beginning add great humor, and as previously stated, the extra two minuets is welcomed. For We're Only In It For The Money, it feels like less is changed. However, with all the trickery, studio effects, and manipulations present its not easy to discern. But, it is nice to hear the tracks as Frank wanted them to be heard (aka without the censorship).

Disc three takes us to the present, at least so far as ninety-eight percent of this album hasn't been previously released. That is to say, all of this material was created back in 1967/1968. The real jewel of this disc is the opener, 'How Did That Get In Here?'. This is essentially an extended jam with many different feels and moods throughout. Once again, a familiar melody is conjured up in the beginning, which reprises at the end, tying this song into the known and many strings of the unknown sprawled all the way through. Other notable tracks on disc three are the instrumental versions of various We're Only In It For The Money tracks (which some vary from there sung counterparts) and the original composition of 'Lonely Little Girl', which is downright amazing. Aside from these a couple interview snippets, "building blocks" of several parts of Lumpy Gravy, and a couple of odds and ends are included.

The only negative things I can say about this album, is that some of the material gets a bit repetitious. Various strands of 'Oh No' and 'Theme From Lumpy Gravy' appear perhaps too often. Of course then there is the obvious, We're Only In It For The Money is presented twice, in full, over these three discs (with a good helping appearing as instrumental versions). Obviously the mixes are different, so there is difference, but still, it needs to be said.

All in all, this is a very enjoyable three CD set for the Zappa fan. The booklet included contains a nice essay about this time in Zappa's life and an interesting couple of paragraphs from Frank's wife. The problem comes with rating it. If judging this purely on the music, I would give it somewhere between 3.5-4 stars. However, this is by no means for the normal prog fan or even for the casual fan of Frank Zappa (unless you are head over heels in love with Lumpy Gravy and/or We're Only In It For The Money). In that case, this should get a two star rating. However, I will be slightly more generous than I should, and I'll give it three stars, with a caveat: If you are not a fan of either Lumpy Gravy or We're Only In It For The Money you will not enjoy this. If you are starting fresh in your Zappa journey, start with the 1995 remastered set of these albums. If you're a casual FZ fan, you will probably have little interest in buying this, being it is a bit on the expensive side, at least at the moment. However, if you love all things Zappa you owe it to yourself to own this. 3 stars.

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