Z's Random Shuffle, May 7, 2023

Mellotron Storm wrote: I have a soft spot for that Medley by Dream Theater. That cd was the first prog related recording I bought soley because it was prog related having just discovered this style of music. I still remember that ride to work the next day, I had about a 50 minute drive and just loving the original long song A Change Of Seasons then been blown away by their skills in covering these well known tracks in a medley. A very good first taste for me and the rest is history.

Keep it Greasy... first time listening to Frank Zappa - almost went with Polyphony

DT gets the nod.

I have a soft spot for that Medley by Dream Theater. That cd was the first prog related recording I bought soley because it was prog related having just discovered this style of music. I still remember that ride to work the next day, I had about a 50 minute drive and just loving the original long song A Change Of Seasons then been blown away by their skills in covering these well known tracks in a medley. A very good first taste for me and the rest is history.

A little fun fact for more Zappa exploration: Within Keep It Greasy is a riff played in 21 from a separate tune he wrote and played live with the line-up that recorded Joe's Garage (this would have been played in the mid-78 to 79 tour). You can listen to it on the Chicago 78 ZFT release (stream or on YT). It's the first track, fittingly called "Twenty-One." You'll recognize the riff immediately as what is played under the second verse of Greasy. For more on the development of Greasy as its own tune, look no further than the very same live ZFT release. You'll find an earlier version of the track that is much more straight-forward. Not quite as interesting as the album version's onslaught, but certainly stimulating in terms of understanding the growth and development of the piece over time. Plus, it's funny, and I like to imagine I was playing it live with the band havin a good time.