[.ca] Zappa Picks By Jon Fishman Of

From Amazon.com:
Successive generations of revisionists may argue to the contrary, but rock's best performers often draw upon a rich historical consciousness. That's the driving sensibility of this compilation of favorite Frank Zappa performances from Phish drummer Jon Fishman; the irony, of course, is that the result is a mixed sense of musical nostalgia and inspiration that veteran iconoclast Zappa himself would scarcely have subscribed to. Thus the tracks here arguably say more about Fishman's artistic ethos than they do Zappa's, with the drummer's eclectic tastes ranging from the manic prog-noodling of "Extcenrifugal Forz" and "Apostrophe" to the overt theatricality of "Magdalena," the evocative Nixonian cabaret, "Son of Orange County," and Zappa's loopy tribute to low-budget horror films, "Cheepnis"; if Zappa waxed nostalgic about anything, it was no-brow pop culture of bad '50s monster films--and maybe do-wop. Given his own band's road mania, it's not surprising to find Fishman leaning heavily on live Zappa recordings (and Just Another Band from L.A. and Roxy and Elsewhere in particular), with a trio of Sheik Yerbouti (featuring Terry Bozzio on the drum throne) constructions getting special attention. If it's not definitive Zappa, it is an intriguing way to approach his daunting, musically expansive catalog. --Jerry McCulley

Who Cares?:
I have been a Zappa nut for many years now, and I couldn't give a rat's behind what songs Jon Fishman likes. In recent years, some genius at the record company has had the brilliant idea of repackaging Zappa songs and releasing them on "new" cds. I'm so sick of them trying to milk people for every penny. God forbid, Zappa's discography is so huge anyway that you have to take out a loan to get them all or spend years collecting. These songs are all previously released material, and have been since the day they came out. The only purpose of this album is a sampler for people curious about Zappa, and also idolize Phish. Otherwise, who cares what Zappa tunes Jon Fishman(or Larry LaLonde)likes? If they'd like the world to know what Zappa songs they like, they should have their picks printed in a magazine or on their website, instead of suckering us all into buying music that most Zappa fans already own.

Snippets of Zappa give a view of Fishman:
I bought this because I wanted to know more about Zappa, but there were *lots* of ways to do that and, I confess, I chose to do it by taking a strange drummer's choices. Many of the selections were different from the Zappa to which I had previously been exposed - and different enough that I probably *have* learned something about Zappa, without really realizing it. But I've also learned a bit about Fishman: Not only the song selections, but even the order of the tracks, are less phat and more faht.

Not intended to be a greatest hits package:
I think the Zappa fans reviewing this collection are being quite harsh on Mr. Fishman. Perhaps they have never attended a Phish show to appreciate the pool of genius that Fish (the drummer rather than the band) drinks from. It is a credit to Frank Zappa for his works to be cherished by the musicians creating the driving music of today. I also think that Frank would be impressed that a guy that wears a dress had a say in choosing his favorite songs. Regardless, many of you "die-hard" Zappa fans may be as interested in picking up a live Phish rendition of "Peaches en Regalia" before you continue to blast one of your heroes biggest fans.

In Response to Bob ("Who Cares?, December 29, 2002"):
Whereas I agree with you on the assessment that this disc is worthless for the hard-core maniacs like us (i've been an FZ fan from age 7, and i'm in my early forties,) it does serve a useful purpose. if someone gets more curious about FZ from hearing this, it'll do more for generating interest in his music than anything the zappa family trust has done (although it appears that dweezil may finally be doing something on that front.... check zappa.com for the new "halloween" release info.) >If they'd like the world to know what Zappa songs they like, they should >have their picks printed in a magazine or on their website, instead of >suckering us all into buying music that most Zappa fans already own. i don't think they're trying to sucker people like us -- we already know this stuff is not new. they're trying to generate new interest in a massive and diverse body of work that most people won't explore because they don't know where to start. i didn't know edgard varese from edgar buchanan before frank introduced me to his music. would someone who's hardcore into 20th century orchestral music care what a rock 'n' roll guitar player thinks about varese? probably not, but i cared enough to seek out as much varese as i could find, and i adore his music now (and i'm STILL WAITING for "the rage and the fury" -- hello zappa family!!!!! please please please release this as it's the best sounding performances of varese's material that's ever been done!) frank's love for varese served the same purpose then as fishman's and lalonde's do now for the vast and varied catalogue of one of america's greatest and most under-appreciated composers. so cut the boys some slack. ;^) "frank was my elvis." -- matt groening me too, matt.

Excellent Compilation:
Good compilation of Zappa's work, notably better than the other cd in this that the guy from primus made.

• Excentrifugal Forz - from Apostrophe (')
• Apostrophe (') - from Apostrophe (')
• Magdalena - from Just Another Band From L.A.
• Dog Breath - from Just Another Band From L.A.
• Cheepnis - from Roxy & Elsewhere
• Son of Orange County - from Roxy & Elsewhere
• More Trouble Every Day - from Roxy & Elsewhere
• It Can't Happen Here - from Freak Out!
• Keep It Greasey - from Joe's Garage
• For Calvin (And His Next Two Hitch-Hikers) - from The Grand Wazoo
• What Ever Happened To All The Fun In the World - from Sheik Yerbouti
• Rat Tomago - from Sheik Yerbouti
• Wait A Minute - from Sheik Yerbouti
• It Just Might Be A One-Shot Deal - from Waka/Jawaka
• I'm The Slime - from Over-nite Sensation
• Sofa No. 2 - from One Size Fits All