Wazoo (album)
Encyclopedia
Wazoo is a live album by Frank Zappa
, posthumously released on October 30, 2007.
It is a 2-CD set consisting of the complete concert given by "The Mothers of Invention/Hot Rats/Grand Wazoo" 20-piece big band on September 24, 1972 at the Music Hall, Boston
, Massachusetts
, United States
.
It is the last concert of a brief series of shows that marked Zappa's return to the stage after his forced temporary retirement from the touring scene due to the injuries he suffered from an assault during a concert at the Rainbow Theater in London
on December 10, 1971.
The material showcases Zappa's endeavors into jazz-based music, and many of the compositions were featured on the 1972 studio albums The Grand Wazoo
and Waka/Jawaka
and on the 1978 studio album Studio Tan
. Rehearsals leading to these albums and concerts are documented on Joe's Domage
(2004), while Imaginary Diseases
(2006) presents live recordings with a stripped-down version of the big band named "Petite Wazoo."
Wazoo is the third installment on the Vaulternative Records label that is dedicated to the posthumous release of complete Zappa concerts, following the releases of FZ:OZ
(2002) and Buffalo
(2007).
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
, posthumously released on October 30, 2007.
It is a 2-CD set consisting of the complete concert given by "The Mothers of Invention/Hot Rats/Grand Wazoo" 20-piece big band on September 24, 1972 at the Music Hall, Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
It is the last concert of a brief series of shows that marked Zappa's return to the stage after his forced temporary retirement from the touring scene due to the injuries he suffered from an assault during a concert at the Rainbow Theater in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on December 10, 1971.
The material showcases Zappa's endeavors into jazz-based music, and many of the compositions were featured on the 1972 studio albums The Grand Wazoo
The Grand Wazoo
The Grand Wazoo is a 1972 jazz fusion album by Frank Zappa. Composed and recorded during Zappa's period of convalescence following his assault in London, the album, along with its "twin brother" Waka/Jawaka, represent Zappa's foray into big band fusion, the logical progression from Hot Rats, which...
and Waka/Jawaka
Waka/Jawaka
Waka/Jawaka is an album by Frank Zappa, released in 1972. The album is the jazz-influenced precursor to The Grand Wazoo, and, as the front cover indicates, sequel of sorts to 1969's Hot Rats. Miles Davis's Bitches Brew-era influence is readily apparent on this and its sister album, The Grand Wazoo...
and on the 1978 studio album Studio Tan
Studio Tan
Studio Tan is an album by Frank Zappa, first released in September, 1978 on his own DiscReet Records label. It reached #147 on the Billboard 200 albums chart...
. Rehearsals leading to these albums and concerts are documented on Joe's Domage
Joe's Domage
Joe's Domage is an album featuring music by Frank Zappa, posthumously released on October 1, 2004. It is the second in a series of releases put together by archivist Joe Travers which started with Joe's Corsage . This is an unconventional release which features neither a live recording nor studio...
(2004), while Imaginary Diseases
Imaginary Diseases
Imaginary Diseases is an album of material by Frank Zappa from the Petite Wazoo tour of 1972. It is one of two finished CD projects from the tour containing material mastered by Zappa before his death.-Track listing:All tracks by Frank Zappa....
(2006) presents live recordings with a stripped-down version of the big band named "Petite Wazoo."
Wazoo is the third installment on the Vaulternative Records label that is dedicated to the posthumous release of complete Zappa concerts, following the releases of FZ:OZ
FZ:OZ
FZ:OZ is a live album by Frank Zappa, released in 2002 as a two-CD set and is the first release on the Vaulternative Records label from the Zappa Family Trust...
(2002) and Buffalo
Buffalo (album)
Buffalo is a live album by Frank Zappa, released in 2007 as a two-CD set. It is the second installment on the Vaulternative Records label that is dedicated to the posthumous release of complete live shows of Zappa's...
(2007).
Disc one
- "Intro Intros" – 3:19
- "The Grand Wazoo (Think It Over)" – 17:21
- "Approximate" – 13:35
- "Big SwiftyBig SwiftyBig Swifty is a composition by Frank Zappa from his solo studio album Waka/Jawaka .It is a jazz-fusion tune, similar to many of Zappa's pieces from the jazz period of his compositional time line. It features many horns to achieve a thick brassy sound as well as room for improvisation and use of...
" – 11:49
Disc two
- "Ulterior Motive" – 3:19
- "The Adventures of Greggery Peccary" – 32:37
- "Movement I" – 4:50
- "Movement II" – 9:07
- "Movement III" – 12:33
- "Movement IV – The New Brown Clouds" – 6:07
- "Penis Dimension" – 3:35
- "Variant I Processional March" – 3:28
Note
At the concert, "Big Swifty" was played between "The Adventures of Greggery Peccary" and "Penis Dimension".Musicians
The Mothers of Invention / Hot Rats / Grand Wazoo:- Frank Zappa – guitar and white stick with cork handleBaton (conducting)A baton is a stick that is used by conductors primarily to exaggerate and enhance the manual and bodily movements associated with directing an ensemble of musicians. They are generally made of a light wood, fiberglass or carbon fiber which is tapered to a grip shaped like a pear, drop, cylinder...
- Tony Duran – slide guitar
- Ian UnderwoodIan UnderwoodIan Robertson Underwood is a woodwind and keyboards player. He began his career by playing San Francisco Bay Area coffeehouses and bars with his improvisational group the Jazz Mice in the mid 1960s before he became a member of Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention in 1967 for their third studio...
– piano and synthesizer - Dave Parlato – bass
- Jerry Kessler – electric cello
- Jim GordonJim Gordon (musician)James Beck "Jim" Gordon is an American recording artist, musician and songwriter. The Grammy Award winner was one of the most requested session drummers in the late 1960s and 1970s, recording albums with many well-known musicians of the time, and was the drummer in the blues-rock supergroup Derek...
– drums - Mike Altshul – piccolo, bass clarinet and other winds
- Jay MiglioriJay MiglioriJay Migliori was an American saxophonist, best known as a founding member of Supersax, a tribute band to Charlie Parker....
– flute, tenor sax and other winds - Earl Dulmer – oboe, contrabass sarrusophone and other winds
- Ray Reed – clarinet, tenor sax and other winds
- Charles Owens – soprano sax, alto sax and other winds
- Joann McNab – basoon
- Malcolm McNabMalcolm McNabMalcolm Boyd McNab is a trumpeter and player of other brass instruments, and a Los Angeles-based session musician who has performed on nearly 2000 film and television soundtracks.-Education:...
– trumpet in D - Sal Marquez – trumpet in Bb
- Tom MaloneTom Malone (musician)Tom "Bones" Malone is an American jazz musician. As his nickname implies, he specializes on the trombone, but also plays trumpet, tuba, tenor sax, baritone sax, flutes, piccolo, and other instruments....
– trumpet in Bb, also tuba - Glen Ferris – trombone and euphonium
- Kenny Shroyer – trombone and baritone horn
- Bruce FowlerBruce FowlerBruce Lambourne Fowler is a prominent American trombone player and composer. He notably played trombone on many Frank Zappa records, as well as with Captain Beefheart, and in the Fowler Brothers Band...
– trombone of the upper atmosphere - Tom Raney – vibes and electric percussion
- Ruth UnderwoodRuth UnderwoodRuth Underwood is a retired professional musician, best known for playing xylophone, marimba, vibraphone and other percussion instruments in Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention from 1967 to 1977....
– marimba and electric percussion