Another Zappa gap is filled with this release of previously uncovered material from the Zappa cache. This time, we have Frank Zappa with his tight little team of Ike Willis/g-voc, Ray White/g-voc, Tommy Mars/key, Arthur Barrow/b-key-voc and David Logeman/dr caught performing back in 1980 in Munich, Germany. This is an important collection of sounds, as Zappa didn’t release anything that year, having dumped out a truckload the year before, with Sleep Dirt, Orchestral Favorites, and the two acts of Joe’s Garage. The next year he would release his collection of Shut Up ‘n Play Yer Guitar, with all of these gents sans Logeman appearing on most of these sessions. This working band gives us Zappa fans to see the master on the road, or Autobahn, you might say.–
The material covered here is a thrill as well, going all the way back to his ’66 debut with “You Didn’t Try To Call Me” and “Ain’t Got No Heart” to a heaping sample from Joe’s Garage, including “Outside Now,” “Keep It Easy” and the title track. Also included are ditties like “The Meek Shall Inherit Nothin’” and a reggae’d “ Mudd Club” which is essentially an improvised paeane to the performing theatre. Even more fun are some takes from earlier years, such as a George Bensony “Cosmic Debris”, a 50s ish “Love Of My Life” and the kaleidoscopic “Easy Meat”. Zappa is in a particularly sardonic form on this road trip, while the vocals are a perfect mix of harmony, classic pop and mayhem.
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Included are some fun liner notes from alumni Arthur Barrow and Steve Vai, and of course, this is red meat for Zappa fans. What else are we missing? A guest appearance by Eddie of Zachary All?
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