Everything Zappa Podcast #3 - Joe's garage - The story of each track ! 

I enjoy your podcast, but you’re guessing at a lot of stuff. Crew Slut was finished in one day and performed regularly in 1979 and I think 1978. The process is one of Frank’s most often used - he got the material from crew stories, in this case Michigan 1978, arrived at a sound check with lyrics a few days later, the tune was completed in one hour, performed that same night. SC groove is it’s own thing. It’s not “guitar kill your mama” tracks. The only similarity is using a I-IV-V chord progression. Of course Hold The Line is the source of that melody. Franks awareness of Toto and Hold The Line comes from the band, the samba groove from Vinnie. And the retitling was on purpose. Toad-O was an intentional reference to Toto. Not a result of Frank not understanding how Toto is spelled. Why Does it Hurt melody difference is one note only, the track was the same from the beginning. The material comes from then road manager Phil Kaufman. T-Shirt was written on the road in 1978 after going to a wet t shirt club in FL. Frank on Simmons: “he really didn’t like me. Finally he couldn’t take it anymore, and quit for good.” Dong Work Fo Youda was more written by Smothers than Frank. “Plook” is an ancient original Zappa vocabulary word. Packard was realized and finished during 1978 summer rehearsals. Watermelon was started and finished at the same tempo on the road in 1979. Muffin is an sncjrnt Zappa vocabulary word. Originally a reference to pussy, it became a reference to reels of 2” tape. Al Malkin’s nickname was and is Butsis. That comes from his long time friends Warren Cucurullo and David Ditkowich. Re all else: maybe you are correct, but I don’t hear most of the musical the similarities that you mention. Same for the repositioned guitar solos - I wish you’d document your allegations. I think you are correct to a small degree, but not to the degree that you allege. If nothing else, it’s not like Frank was listening to a different track while recording onto another track. It’s strictly taking ine recording and pasting it into another. Of course everyone is free to use the terminology they want, but imo this overuse of academic terminology is not anything I ever heard Frank use, and he’d actively scoff at words like “premier.” “Gimme a break, it’s a fuckin rock show.” That’s a quote. But great job, i only suggest you’re taking “the eyebrows” out of Franks music in your highly interpretive overly academic analyzations. I take no pleasure in saying this, but if Frank were to hear his music defined in the way that you do, he’d have a field day lampooning your presentations to death. Not that this would be fair to you, your intentions are clearly reverent, but (a) Frank despised people praising his music, and (b) he would sieze on displays vulnerability to humiliate and insult that person into a state if traumatization that they’d never recover from. The way to earn his respect was to never praise his music, never emulate him and to authentically not give a shit what he thought. I wouldn’t write this of I hadn’t exoerirnced it experienced it directly for years, and Kearney these lessons the hard way. Yes, he was weird, and yes, at his core he despised humanity as a whole. That said, I still love the guy. - Ed Mann

Details missing or obscured in this podcast:- Crew Slut was at least partly-written early in the 1978 tour (Chicago). Sy Borg started to take shape in 1975 (or at least, the main theme turns up in some solos). Packard Goose also started to take shape that year (work-in-progress lyrics recited/intoned, at several shows, with onstage comments in Waterbury indicating that Frank at least had a vague idea of the shape of the final vocal melody). The Easy Meat solo used for the Packard Goose comp is the infamous one where the 1979 vamp was changed from two bars of 4/4 to one bar of 15/8 (I feel sorry for Arthur). Watermelon In Easter Hay was already slowing down by the end of the early '78 tour, reaching its final form on the late '78 tour. Little Green Rosetta, as heard here - FZ likened it to the cast party after a stage musical has closed, but it's also deliberately annulling the Central Scrutinizer's pretence of delivering a moral lecture. Oh dear, mention of Stumuk Bill makes me want to yet-again air my theory about the Uncle Meat movie as we know it, but...no not now, maybe later

Ah yes my favorite Zappa album. Leaves so much to interpritation.

Loved this! Really awesome stuff, this was the record that got me into Zappa too

Super informative joel's garage got me into the zappa thing. Don't forget sergeant pepper's lonely heart's club band in joe's garage.

Thanks! That was fun.

Just discovered this, excellent stuff. Been a Zappa fan since i was 14 and I didn't hear this album until the late 80's and always wanted to hear it. After hearing it I wanted an electric sitar guitar and finally got one eventually in 2007.

This is Fantastic! If possible, keep these comin, bruh!

These podcasts are amazing, guys!

How about "A Little Green Rosanna" for Toto continuity?

Add water, makes it's own sauce was from a dog food commercial for Gravy Train dog food, in the song joe's garage you hear frank zappa say "we take you now to a garage in Canoga Park... it makes its own sauce if you add water." Also a token of my extreme is making fun of L. Ron Hubbard who founded the Church of Scientology.

I can’t believe most of the solos are from other songs!!! Holy shit!

Amazing

I believe you hear a harp in The Black Page #1

Jovenes!

Lol is that intro quoted from Hammersmith '82?

I will attempt to spot osmotic harp...........

We'd like to take you home with us we'd like to take you home....

It’s pronounced ‘Veez Bah-den’

The LP was half speed recorded, briliant tremble - lousy bass ...