Zoot Allures
| Zoot Allures | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by Frank Zappa | ||||
| Released | October 20, 1976 | |||
| Recorded | May – June, 1976 at Record Plant Studios in Los Angeles, California except "Wonderful Wino" (1972/73), "Friendly Little Finger" (1973/October 1975) and "Black Napkins" (recorded live in Osaka, Japan, February 3, 1976) | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock, Jazz Fusion, Comedy Rock | |||
| Length | 41:32 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Producer | Frank Zappa | |||
| Frank Zappa chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Zoot Allures | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Piero Scaruffi | (5/10)[2] |
Zoot Allures is a 1976 rock album by Frank Zappa. This was Zappa's only release on the Warner Bros. Records label. Due to a lawsuit with his former manager Herb Cohen Frank Zappa's recording contract was temporarily re-assigned from DiscReet Records to Warner Bros.
Contents |
Title [edit]
The title is a pun on the French expression "Zut alors!" which, though it has no direct translation, conveys mild surprise and may be approximated by "Damn it!". The title may also refer to the common British expression for a marijuana cigarette.[3]
Album information [edit]
The album was originally conceptualized as a double LP, but for unknown reasons Zappa rearranged, edited, and shortened the track listing to what was eventually released as a single LP.[4] Zappa played a test pressing of the original album for Circus magazine in 1976, which reported a radically different, though slightly erroneous track listing that included "Sleep Dirt", "The Ocean Is the Ultimate Solution", "Filthy Habits", and "Night of the Iron Sausage". The former three tracks eventually surfaced on the 1979 Sleep Dirt and the posthumous Läther; "Night of the Iron Sausage" remains unreleased, but was seemingly intended to be a guitar solo of fair length. "Wind Up Workin' in a Gas Station" and "Zoot Allures" were notably absent from test pressings.
Songs [edit]
"Black Napkins", one of several guitar-driven pieces on Zoot Allures, began life accompanied by themes that would later make up the unique piece known as "Sleep Dirt".[5] The performance heard on the album was culled from Zappa's February 3, 1976 performance in Osaka, Japan, though it was edited for the official release.[6] Along with "Zoot Allures" and "The Torture Never Stops", "Black Napkins" became a signature piece for Zappa, featuring heavily in nearly every subsequent tour and several official releases.
"Wonderful Wino" was originally released on Jeff Simmons' 1970 LP, Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up. The album, produced partially by Zappa (though credited as "La Marr Bruister"), also included the titular track, which later appeared on 1979's Joe's Garage.
Zappa notes in the liner notes to 1979's Sheik Yerbouti that "Friendly Little Finger" from this album was created using xenochrony.
Track listing [edit]
All tracks written by Frank Zappa, except where noted.
| Side one | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length | ||||||||
| 1. | "Wind Up Workin' in a Gas Station" | 2:29 | ||||||||
| 2. | "Black Napkins" | 4:15 | ||||||||
| 3. | "The Torture Never Stops" | 9:45 | ||||||||
| 4. | "Ms. Pinky" | 3:40 | ||||||||
| Side two | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length | ||||||||
| 5. | "Find Her Finer" | 4:07 | ||||||||
| 6. | "Friendly Little Finger" | 4:17 | ||||||||
| 7. | "Wonderful Wino" (Simmons, Zappa) | 3:38 | ||||||||
| 8. | "Zoot Allures" | 4:12 | ||||||||
| 9. | "Disco Boy" | 5:11 | ||||||||
Release history [edit]
| Country | Date | Label | Format | Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States Canada |
October 20, 1976 | Warner Brothers | LP | BS 2970 |
| United Kingdom | December 1976 | Warner Brothers | LP | K 56298 |
| United States | May 1990 | Rykodisc | CD | RCD 10160 |
| United Kingdom | May 1990 | Zappa Records | CD | CDZAP22 |
| United States | May 2, 1995 | Rykodisc | CD | RCD 10523 |
| United States | August 28, 2012 | Universal Music | CD | ZR3855 |
Rykodisc CD release [edit]
Zoot Allures on compact disc, released by Rykodisc, is mixed differently than the original vinyl. The vinyl also contains a longer edit of "Disco Boy" including a count-off by a drum machine (the first three seconds) and a longer fade-out making the track's duration 5:27, as opposed to the CD duration of 5:11.
Personnel [edit]
Musicians [edit]
- Frank Zappa –guitar (all tracks), synthesizer (1, 4, 5, 9), bass (1, 3–7, 9), keyboards (3, 5, 7, 9), lead vocals (1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9)
- Terry Bozzio – drums, backing vocals (5, 9)
- Davey Moiré – lead vocals (1), backing vocals (1, 9), engineer
- Andre Lewis – organ (2), vocals (2), backing vocals (5, 9)
- Roy Estrada – bass guitar (2), vocals (2), backing vocals (2, 4, 5, 9)
- Napoleon Murphy Brock – saxophone & vocals (2)
- Ruth Underwood – synthesizer (4, 7), marimba (6, 8)
- Captain Beefheart – harmonica (5) (credited as "Donnie Vliet")
- Ruben Ladron de Guevara – backing vocals (5)
- Dave Parlato – bass guitar (8)
- Lu Ann Neil – harp (8)
- Sparky Parker – backing vocals (9)
Keyboardist Eddie Jobson and bassist Patrick O'Hearn, who by the time of Zoot Allures' release were members of Zappa's band, appear on the album's cover but do not perform on any tracks.
Production staff [edit]
- Arnie Acosta – mastering
- Amy Bernstein – layout design
- Michael Braunstein – engineer
- Gary Heery – photography
- Cal Schenkel – design
- Bob Stone – digital remastering
Charts [edit]
Album – Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Pop Albums | 61[7] |
References [edit]
- ^ Couture, François (2011 [last update]). "Zoot Allures – Frank Zappa | AllMusic". allmusic. Retrieved June 26, 2011.
- ^ Scaruffi, Piero (2011 [last update]). "The History of Rock Music. Frank Zappa: biography, discography, reviews, links". scaruffi.com. Retrieved June 26, 2011.
- ^ "Urban Dictionar: zoot". urbandictionary.com.
- ^ "ARF The Home of Frank Zappa Heritage Studies". Retrieved December 10, 2007.
- ^ "Information Is Not Knowledge". Retrieved December 10, 2007.
- ^ "the zappa patio". Retrieved December 10, 2007.
- ^ "Charts and Awards for Zoot Allures". Allmusic. Retrieved August 22, 2008.
