174. Frank Zappa - Hot Rats (1969)




















Track Listing

1. Peaches En Regalia
2. Willie The Pimp
3. Son Of Mr Green Genes
4. Little Umbrellas
5. Gumbo Variations
6. It Must Be A Camel

Review

This is the last album in the 60's! The long, long year of 1969 comes to an end with Frank Zappa's Hot Rats. In a extreme move Zappa goes from the freakiness of the Mothers Of Invention to Prog Jazz here. And what a great thing he has done. This is definitely my favourite Zappa album of all time and a great introduction to Zappa in general.

When you think Prog Jazz, accessible isn't the first word that comes to your mind I would imagine, but this is the most accessible of Zappa albums until now. Even though it is mostly instrumental, except for the great Beefheart vocal on Willie The Pimp this is a very accessible album indeed, even if it sometimes ventures into the world of Free Jazz, it is so expertly done that it never feels pretentious or that dissonant.

Zappa creates a perfect mix of Jazz, Prog and psychadelic Rock in this album, and it really, really works. As one of the first albums to use 16-track recording it sounds very lush and then you have the technical playing side of the thing. It is just brilliant, the seven minute long guitar solo on Willie The Pimp never sounds streched, and the gamut of moods that Zappa goes through in Peaches En Regalia is truly impressive.

A Zappa essential, so you need to buy it (please) from Amazon UK or US.

Track Highlights

1. Willie The Pimp
2. Peaches En Regalia
3. Gumbo Variations
4. Son Of Mr Green Genes

Final Grade

9/10

Trivia

Peaches En Regalia Live:



From Wikipedia:

Despite Zappa's choice of artwork, he did not use drugs and actually disdained the psychedelic and tie-dyed, jam-band mentality of the era. The colorful, psychedelic aura of the late sixties is apparent in the graphic design and photography of Hot Rats. The one-disc vinyl album was a foldout package emphasizing the photography and also the elaborate and colorful artwork of Cal Schenkel at a time foldouts were usually reserved for double-disc albums. The cover photo, actually a sephia dubbed silkscreen, reflects Zappa's taste for a visually striking expression, combined with the absurdly humorous. The woman pictured on the cover is Christine Frka, of the GTOs.