Frank Zappa - Apostrophe' - 320 CBR

Great Googly Moogly! Hardcore fans probably have other favorites, but a newcomer to the ZAPPA world could do a lot worse than start with this album. Continuing the approach that worked wonders on "Over- nite Sensation", Frank keeps up the bent humor and rock-pop accessibility (relatively, of course) to balance the instrumental prowess and compositional intricacies. The opening suite is one of the greatest musical interpretations of a dream sequence- surreal, funny, full of strange references, compositional left turns, and red herrings (or, rather, mud sharks). "Cosmik Debris" is a classic sleazy track with incredible performances; if for some strange reason the sounds of Jean- Luc Ponty don't impress you, how about Tina Turner and her backup singers? "Excentrifugal Forz" is a "Hot Rats" leftover, but sounds more at home here, providing a good jazzy contrast with the rest of the album. "Apostrophe" is simply outstanding, a funky, heavy jam- even if Zappa and Jack Bruce had a difficult time working together, the result is on a par with ZAPPA's better rock jams. "Uncle Remus" is a portrait of the conflicted emotions of the black man of the era; I can't verify its authenticity, but it is one of my favorite examples of Frank's less bizarre character portraits. "Stink -foot" returns us to classic over-the-top territory- a song about bromidrosis featuring a dialogue from a dog. It's also a great slow bluesey way to wrap up the album. If you've never heard Frank or want to start a collection? This will be a necessity. Is it for everyone? No...but if you like him even a little, you'll like this- after all, "The crux of the biscuit is the apostrophe."

Apostrophe, along with a select few others, remains one of Zappa's greatest works. The album opens with the hilarious song cycle of "Don't Eat That Yellow Snow", "Nanook Rubs It", "St. Alfonzo's Pankake Breakfast", and "Father O'blivion". While showing some interesting musical ideas, the real strength of this lies in the humorous lyrics about a guy who gets 'yellow snow' rubbed in his eyes. There are other songs showcasing Zappa's musicianship, such as "Excentrifugal Forz", but the best track would have to be "Apostrophe", a stunning instrumental with Jack Bruce appearing on bass guitar. All in all, Zappa has managed to craft another hit, arguably surpassing his previous effort, "Over-nite Sensation". Both of these albums are highly reccommended as a noteworthy introduction to Zappa.

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