Grateful Dead

....last covered by Phish on 2.24.22.
Which reminds me.
Four Phishy shows at the Sphere starts tomorrow.
Wish me luck my friends.
Going with no ticket. I've laid out my "plan" here a couple of times.
I just want one. Solo.
You will NEVER regret being kind. Karma. Be on my side.
Ticketmaster "released" some tix today. $1200. Platinum Charity. 🤪
That card in my avatar was given to me by a random fan at a Phish show here in 2018. Nice.

Some months ago I mentioned being curious about Zappa here, and several people provided really useful recommendations. (Thanks again!)

My take, having now listened to fair number of those recs? The music is never less than interesting, occasionally great. His guitar playing is technically impressive but can get wanky. His bands are universally amazing. The lyrics are often annoying, with lots of juvenile potty humor. Ergo, I tend to gravitate towards the recordings where there's lots of the great playing and not so much singing.

Which is to say: I LOVE Hot Rats, the Grand Wazoo, and the Wake Jawaka box. And much of the aptly titled Shut Up and Play Your Guitar series.

Oddly enough, I don't really want him to shut up, though. His interviews are always great. He may have had a cynical view of mankind, but it's hard to argue with most of what he says.

"Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid."

Amen, my brother.

46 - 49 all still available.

On another page, how ‘bout that Wall of Sound tshirt?
I might need one of those.

Profane, controversial, polarizing. Brilliant satire, great guitar, exceptional composer. He was working on getting out the vote more than fifty years ago, when our country was reeling from Viet Nam, Civil Rights issues and a corrupt administration. My apologies, happily avoid politics here. Dark, yeah, however Stephen Hawking also warned us we had about 100 years before the planet is ruined.

'Human species is a mistake, I am convinced of it.
If there is a god he really fu cked up when he made people.
Because there’s only one thing human beings can do and that is K I L L.
They do that exclusively well and better than any other species.
They like to make a mess, they like to k i l l, they like to make trouble.
That’s why the species will eventually just obliterate himself and the world would be safe,
once again, for cockroaches and moss'.

(FZ - A comment from back in the 70ies!)

I've heard a smattering of Frank Zappa albums over the years, and haven't been overly impressed. With one notable exception - "We're Only In It For The Money" - which is a great album to my ears. Far and away my favourite of his.

As a New Yorker in good standing that cover is 100% NYC all the way down to the manhole cover! God Bless The Grateful Dead!

Proudfoot

You are correct in your thoughts of Zappa. I saw him in my Senior year at Penn State 1972 and the show was Great but a friend saw him in the "East Halls" section of the campus and he was not the most friendly person to approach. That is what my friend said. I never really knew how and what he said to Zappa when he approached him

Angels' Share?

I don't care.

back to work, PF

but

happened upon a Frank Zappa documentary last night. I don't remember the title or the channel, but interesting stuff.

FZ: I've always had mixed feelings about him and his stuff. Obviously a musical genius and incomparable composer. Some absolutely magnificent music. Also some not so great. And I wouldn't have wanted to meet him. His vulgarity always turned me off.

anyway, an important figure in the world of music.