THE GRAND WAZOO

Frank Zappa always seemed to excel in every musical style he performed in. He had been dabbling in jazz rock fusion for some time. On "Uncle Meat" he recorded King Kong, a fusion piece that has been covered by a fair number of jazz musicians. On "Hot Rats", he began getting serious about the genre. On "Waka-Jawaka", he wrote some amazing fusion for a large scale fusion band, and here he perfected that form.

The album opens with a few lyrics on For Calvin And His Next Two Hitch-Hikers, giving the casual listener the impression that this is going to be another humorous vocal filled Zappa album. But the lyrics quickly end, with spectacular musicianship and orchestration taking center stage. Calvin is filled with musical themes that Zappa also used in The Adventures Of Greggery peccary (which was written around the same time, but released years later). The Grand Wazoo, the longest song on the album, is a funky jam with great horn breaks intersperced to spice things up.

Cletus Awreetus-Awrightus is a delightfully pompous number, and Eat That Question boasts some of George Duke and Aynsley Dunbar's best performances anywhere. The album ends with Blessed Relief, aptly named, as it is one of Frank's most peaceful and beautiful compositions.

It's just an incredible album. If You know any fusion fans who hate Zappa because of the sexual references and silly humor, sneak this on sometime, and watch the reactions.