WAKA / JAWAKA

ZAPPA got jazzed!

Frank ZAPPA had already been flirting with Jazz in earlier records (especially "Hot rats") but the two larger songs on "Waka/Jawaka" ("Big Swifty" and "Waka/Jawaka") were the evidence that he could swim in the musical ocean of Jazz with no problem.

"Big Swifty" is an excellent 17-minute total free-jazz instrumental piece, the session musicians that played with Frank on this record (ZAPPA still didn't have an official band and this was the first album with Ian UNDERWOOD since 1968) were extremely talented and highly educated in jazz, so this piece could compete with some works by Herbie HANCOCK without a problem. "Waka/Jawaka" is more oriented to classical music than to jazz, but still the musicians managed to do their best performances and the song is like a classical music/jazz hybrid. The two songs in the middle ("Your mouth" and "It just might be a one-shot deal") are honestly poor and work only as filler songs, the album would have been even better without them.

This is a very good record by ZAPPA, the following record would consolidate this new era of ZAPPA as one of the greatest in his career, but this album planted the seeds from where that tree would have grown.

SONG RATING: Big Swifty, 5 Your mouth, 4 It just might be a one-shot deal, 3 Waka/Jawaka, 5

AVERAGE: 4.25

PERCENTAGE: 85

ALBUM RATING: 4 stars

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